Tag: USC women’s basketball

USC’s JuJu Watkins does something which hadn’t happened in 28 years

JuJu Watkins is USC WBB’s first player to become a First-Team All-American since the great Tina Thompson in 1996.

The USC women’s basketball team has authored a very special season in 2024. The Trojans, as a group, have done something no USC women’s basketball team has achieved in 38 years: Get a No. 1 seed at the NCAA Tournament. USC has won the Pac-12 Tournament for the first time since 2014. The Trojans, who have played in the Galen Center for nearly 20 years, will finally host NCAA Tournament games in their on-campus arena for the very first time. This is a season full of milestones and landmark moments for USC women’s basketball. You can add one more achievement to the list: JuJu Watkins was named a First-Team All-American in 2024, marking the first time in 28 years anyone at the program has done so. You would have to go back to Tina Thompson in 1996 to identify USC’s previous First-Team All-American.

JuJu Watkins probably would have made the All-America Team solely on the basis of her scoring prowess. She has spent almost all of the season second on the average points-per-game scoring list behind Iowa superstar Caitlin Clark. Watkins likely would have been a Second-Team All-America selection solely for her offensive ability.

What makes JuJu Watkins a first-teamer, not a second-teamer, on the All-America roster is her defense. Watkins is an elite on-ball defender who regularly gets multiple steals per game. She is a capable shot blocker as well and has great instincts as a help defender for USC. JuJu Watkins’ quality at both ends of the floor, not just offense, is what makes her a legitimate first-team selection. Now we will see how far this First-Team All-American can carry the Trojans in the Women’s NCAA Tournament.

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Trojans Wire discusses Pac-12 basketball, Women’s NCAA Tournament on national podcast

We talked about USC women’s basketball, the Women’s NCAA Tournament, and more on The Jones Report with Tyler Jones.

The arrival of the Women’s NCAA Tournament is the big story here at Trojans Wire alongside USC spring football practice. My colleague Tim Prangley is covering spring ball, attending some of the practice sessions and diving into the details on the USC football roster. I am continuing to cover the USC women’s basketball team, which has attained a No. 1 seed in the 2024 Women’s NCAA Tournament.

Before Selection Sunday, I joined Tyler Jones of The Jones Report for a discussion of Pac-12 basketball, men and women, plus a brief talk about College Football Playoff expansion. I joined the broadcast at the 1-hour, 22-minute mark of the show, and I began to talk about USC women’s basketball and the Women’s NCAA Tournament just after the 1-hour, 38-minute mark of the show. I speculated about the possibility that USC could face Iowa in a potential Final Four semifinal. Sure enough, that’s how the bracket has unfolded. That matchup could happen. USC and Iowa now need to win four games apiece to make it happen.

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USC’s JuJu Watkins named finalist for 2024 Dawn Staley Award

JuJu Watkins has a very long list of awards and semifinalist nominations, with more to come.

The leading lady for the Women of Troy is Juju Watkins. The USC superstar has been named a finalist for the Dawn Staley Award. The winner will be announced the weekend of the Final Four (April 5-7). A virtual award ceremony will be held on the evening of Thursday, April 11.

Watkins has been insane this season, averaging 27.8 points per game, 7.2 rebounds per game, 2.6 steals per game, and 1.6 blocks per game.

JuJu Watkins 2023-2024 Honors include:

• The Athletic National Freshman of the Year
• The Athletic First Team All-America
• Ann Meyers Drysdale Award finalist
• Dawn Staley Award finalist
• Sullivan Award semifinalist
• Dawn Staley Award late season watch list
• Naismith Midseason watch list
• Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Top 10
• Wade watch list
• Wooden Award late season Top 20
• Wooden Award Midseason Top 25
• Wooden Award Preseason Top 50
• Jersey Mike’s Naismith Award watch list
• Pac-12 Freshman of the Year
• All-Pac-12 Team
• Pac-12 All-Defensive Honorable Mention
• Pac-12 All-Freshman Team
• Pac-12 All-Tournament Team
• Preseason All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention
• Hall of Fame Series Las Vegas Player of the Game (11/6)
• Pac-12 Player of the Week (3x)
• Pac-12 Freshman of the Week (14)

Watkins and the Women of Troy are now awaiting the reveal of the 2024 NCAA Tournament bracket, with the Selection Show set for 5 p.m. Pacific time on Sunday, March 17. USC is likely to get a No. 1 seed and serve as a host school for the first and second rounds.

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USC’s Lindsay Gottlieb named Naismith Coach of the Year semifinalist

Lindsay Gottlieb is undeniably one of the very best coaches in women’s college basketball, this year and in general.

Lindsay Gottlieb is listed among 10 other semifinalists for the Werner Ladder Naismith Coach of the Year Award. She has the USC women’s basketball team ranked No. 3 in the nation.

In her third season at USC, Gottlieb has guided her Women of Troy to their highest national ranking since 1986, coming off USC’s run to the Pac-12 Tournament championship, won over Stanford a week ago.

Gottlieb, who is no stranger to being a top coach in the Pac-12 Conference, previously coached the Cal Bears women’s team to seven NCAA tournaments, including a Final Four appearance in 2013. She has established a track record of consistent success in one of college basketball’s toughest and deepest conferences. She led USC to the Women’s NCAA Tournament last season in just her second year with the Women of Troy. She now has the program poised to make a deep run in this year’s edition of March Madness.

Gottlieb is 59-31 overall with a 29-24 conference record overall at USC in her third year at the school.

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Photos from USC women’s basketball’s historic Pac-12 Tournament championship

USC won its first Pac-12 Tournament since 2014. McKenzie Forbes was the Most Outstanding Player. What a weekend in Vegas!

Many weekends in Las Vegas are lost and wasteful. A roll of the dice, the wrong cards at the table, or a bad spin of the roulette wheel create that losing feeling and a pit of misery. It was exactly the opposite for the USC women’s basketball team, which had one of the most successful and productive weekends anyone could possibly have in Vegas. What happened in Vegas did not stay in Vegas — it reverberated through the USC community and through the national college basketball landscape. USC’s capture of the Pac-12 Tournament championship — the school’s second all-time and its first since 2014 — has very likely lifted the Trojans to a No. 1 seed in the upcoming Women’s NCAA Tournament.

This was an electric occasion and a very special moment for the team, particularly Pac-12 Tournament Most Outstanding Player McKenzie Forbes, who was overcome with emotion after this historic victory and her majestic 26-point performance. Here are photos of a great moment in USC sports history, with Forbes and USC head coach Lindsay Gottlieb taking center stage as the Trojans enter March Madness with full momentum and belief:

USC women’s basketball is a No. 1 seed in new ESPN NCAA Tournament bracketology (March 11)

Boom. USC is now a No. 1 seed in ESPN’s latest projections after winning the Pac-12 Tournament.

The USC women’s basketball team has moved to the top line in the sport. The Women of Troy are now a projected No. 1 seed for the 2024 Women’s NCAA Tournament in ESPN’s latest edition of NCAA Tournament bracketology. ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme has adjusted his bracket to reflect USC’s wins over both UCLA and Stanford en route to the Pac-12 Tournament championship in Las Vegas.

USC has moved up to the No. 1 line, displacing UCLA, which was a projected No. 1 seed on Friday but has been moved down to a No. 2 seed. The Iowa Hawkeyes are also a No. 1 seed, displacing the Ohio State Buckeyes, who were in the No. 1 slot entering the weekend. Ohio State, which lost to both USC and UCLA during the regular season, would seemingly be eliminated from consideration for a No. 1 seed. UCLA is still in the hunt but would likely need Texas to lose in the Big 12 Tournament to have a chance. Texas and Iowa might be battling for the final No. 1 seed on the board. It could also be that USC and Iowa are both safe for No. 1 seeds, and that Texas is trying to earn a spot as the highest-rated No. 2 seed on the board.

For coverage of Iowa, Ohio State and Texas, be sure to follow our partners at Hawkeyes Wire, Buckeyes Wire, and Longhorns Wire.

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Lindsay Gottlieb promotes USC women’s basketball as Trojans chase Pac-12 Tournament title, No. 1 seed

Lindsay Gottlieb has shown USC fans what elite basketball coaching looks like. She’s talking about USC on podcasts and everywhere else.

Right now is a great time to be Lindsay Gottlieb, the head coach of the USC women’s basketball program. The Women of Troy are in the Pac-12 Tournament championship game, facing Stanford on Sunday afternoon in Las Vegas. USC is firmly in the discussion for a No. 1 seed in the 2024 Women’s NCAA Tournament. The Trojans beat crosstown Los Angeles rival UCLA for a second time this season. They have lost only five games all season long. They will host Women’s NCAA Tournament games at the Galen Center in two weeks, marking the first time in school history that has happened (hosting at the Galen Center, to be specific). Gottlieb has USC in a great place, to be sure.

Then again, is there ever a bad time to be Lindsay Gottlieb? She won at Santa Barbara. She won at Cal. She did well as a Cleveland Cavalier assistant in the NBA. She’s a winner and an elite coach. USC fans have her in their corner. They’re lucky to have Gottlieb coaching their team. We can all see the difference Gottlieb makes.

With USC now front and center in the national women’s basketball conversation, take a look at some quotes and pull up some podcasts Gottlieb has recently appeared on, spreading the gospel of USC women’s basketball, including but not limited to JuJu Watkins:

USC women’s basketball is No. 2 seed in latest ESPN NCAA Tournament bracketology (March 4)

USC is holding firm as a No. 2 seed in ESPN’s projected bracket before the start of the Pac-12 Women’s Tournament.

The USC women’s basketball team is about to participate in the 2024 Pac-12 Women’s Tournament in Las Vegas. The Trojans play their first game in the quarterfinal round on Thursday, March 7, against Arizona or Washington. USC is a No. 2 seed in the latest ESPN NCAA Tournament bracketology forecast from bracketologist Charlie Creme.

Notably, USC is placed behind UCLA. The Bruins are a projected No. 1 seed in Creme’s bracket for Monday, March 4. There is a chance that USC and UCLA could meet in the semifinals of the Pac-12 Tournament. If both teams win their quarterfinal games on Thursday, they would meet in a Friday night semifinal game. The winner could very well get a No. 1 seed in the Women’s NCAA Tournament.

A good question is if the winner of a potential USC-UCLA semifinal would be a lock for a No. 1 seed. It’s probably too early to tell. The odds of the winner getting a No. 1 seed would go up if Iowa, Texas, or North Carolina State — teams battling USC and UCLA for top seeding positions — all lost in the next week. If USC or UCLA wins the Pac-12 Tournament, however, in addition to winning in Friday’s semifinal round, that team would very likely be a No. 1 seed, and it would be hard to see that team failing to reach a No. 1 seed.

Follow Trojans Wire all week for coverage of the Pac-12 Women’s Tournament in Las Vegas.

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USC women’s basketball makes NCAA Tournament history in 2024 at the Galen Center

Start making plans to attend USC women’s basketball in the NCAA Tournament. Clear the time on your calendar.

USC women’s basketball entered Thursday night’s game in Tucson against the Arizona Wildcats in position for a top-two seed in the Women’s NCAA Tournament. Beating Arizona solidified USC’s place near the top of the bracket. Saturday’s victory against Arizona State further cements USC as a team which will get a very high seed in March Madness. All of this is meant to convey a simple point: There is zero doubt now — it’s a lock — that USC will host NCAA Tournament games at the Galen Center. Stop and realize how big that is.

It’s more than just having a great chance to move to the Sweet 16 and make a run at the Women’s Final Four. That’s the biggest reason these home games matter, but the other really big story here is that USC has never previously hosted NCAA Tournament games in Galen. This will be the first time that has happened.

Let’s go through some of the key details attached to this milestone, including and especially when these games will be played so that you can set aside time on your calendar if you live in Los Angeles and want to watch this special team:

Silver medal: USC women’s basketball finishes 2nd in final Pac-12 hoops season

USC won’t have to play on Wednesday at the Pac-12 Tournament. The Trojans secured an important first-round bye.

The USC women’s basketball team has done it. The Women of Troy beat Arizona State on Saturday, 70-55, in a game which was never particularly close. USC clinched the No. 2 seed for next week’s 2024 Pac-12 Women’s Basketball Tournament in Las Vegas. USC finished second in the last season of Pac-12 women’s basketball before the Trojans move to the Big Ten next season. It’s a terrific achievement for a team which has impressed, inspired, and regrouped countless times over the past four months.

Let’s look at some of the highlights of Saturday’s lunchtime win over Arizona State in Tempe, plus some seeding and bracketing scenarios for the Pac-12 Women’s Basketball Tournament, which we will cover extensively in the coming week here at Trojans Wire: