In the final six minutes of USC’s loss at Colorado on January 21, McKenzie Forbes had to play without JuJu Watkins. USC watched Watkins foul out with 5:50 left on a terrible call by the nearside official. Forbes was left to lead the team with JuJu out and Rayah Marshall struggling. It did not go well. Forbes committed multiple turnovers which led to important Colorado baskets. Forbes had a chance to tie the game in the final 30 seconds but missed in a game USC lost by four points. It was simply a bad day at the office.
Forbes, though, is one of USC’s toughest and most important players. She needs to help JuJu Watkins and make sure defenses can’t devote all of their attention to the Trojans’ superstar. Forbes and teammates Taylor Bigby and Kayla Padilla need to be solid offensive players in order for the Trojans to reach their potential.
Friday night in Los Angeles, Forbes bounced back from her rough outing in Boulder. She gave JuJu Watkins more than enough help and reminded everyone how central she is to the success of the USC women’s basketball team.
Watkins did her usual thing and scored 29 points to lead all scorers, but it was Forbes’ 22 points in a supporting role which made the difference, carrying USC to a 70-62 win over a good Washington State team in the Galen Center. The final eight-point margin made the game seem closer than it actually was. USC was 12 to 15 points better than Wazzu for most of the night. Forbes made it happen with an 8-of-18 shooting performance which included 4-of-8 shooting on 3-pointers. Forbes added 4 rebounds and 3 assists in a stellar effort which helped USC grab an 18-point halftime lead and a 12-point lead after three quarters.
USC has played the toughest schedule in the Pac-12 thus far: UCLA twice, plus Utah and Colorado on the road. The Trojans should be able to stack a lot of wins in the coming weeks. Friday’s victory was a good start in that regard.
Expect McKenzie Forbes to continue to lift the Trojans and JuJu Watkins as the calendar moves into February.
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