HARTFORD, Conn. — As the USC bench emptied onto the XL Center floor and the No. 7 Trojans defeated the No. 4 UConn Huskies 72-70, JuJu Watkins raised his hands to the sky. Watkins, enjoying her 25-point performance in the first win over UConn in school history, turned to a small group of red- and yellow-clad supporters in the sold-out stadium and thanked them for their support.
“Knowing the history of last year and how they sent us home, it feels a little different,” Watkins said.
The stakes are different this time. In April, the Huskies knocked the top-seeded Trojans out of the NCAA tournament in the Elite Eight. But Saturday night’s two-point win was meaningful. Not just Watkins and USC senior transfer Kiki Iriafin, but their coach Lindsay Gottlieb, who has long admired the program built by UConn coach Geno Auriemma .
“This is a very important win, a very important win because of the stature of UConn’s program and what Geno Auriemma has done for our sport,” Gottlieb said. “Throughout my whole high school (career), that’s what’s been great about basketball. That’s what we’ve seen and it’s been a challenge for all of us to get better and find ways to To get better and be an elite player, I don’t think that’s gone away.
Gottlieb is entering her fourth season with the Trojans and is eager to build a consistent program similar to the Huskies’. A season ago, USC won its second-ever Pac-12 Championship and made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time in the past two decades. During her brief tenure, she not only reminded onlookers of USC’s history of success — two national championships and three Final Four appearances in the 1980s, Hall of Fame players like Lisa Leslie, Cynthia · Cynthia Cooper, Cheryl Miller and Tina Thompson, and reminded them of USC’s history of success and what it could be now. Watkins, last year’s national freshman of the year and first-team All-American, is at the center of the latest chapter. Wins like Saturday’s help make lofty aspirations more achievable.
USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb hopes to emulate what Geno Auriemma built at Connecticut. (David Butler II/Imagn Images)
Gottlieb grew up in suburban New York City, but she wasn’t admitted to Auriemma in high school. However, when she was 15 or 16, she accompanied a friend to one of his camps. UConn has been a local favorite, and after Saturday’s win, she recalled a trip she took when she was a senior at Brown University near Providence, R.I., when she and her father drove there. Toews attended the UConn-Tennessee game.
“It was sold out,” Gottlieb said, “and I saw the atmosphere in that building.”
It was also noisy on Saturday. Watkins, USC’s star guard, said this may be the largest crowd she’s ever played in front of. Nearly 16,000 people were packed inside the XL Center, nearly all dressed in navy blue and white.
Still, Watkins added, “Just to see my family here, all the SC fans, would mean the world.”
If anyone needed a reminder, the Trojans’ win solidified their status as one of the national title contenders this season. Their only loss was an 11-1 loss at home to Notre Dame by 13 points. Gottlieb said it was easy for people within the program to blame each other after the failure in November — leading to the Trojans’ collapse.
“As long as we stick together, this will make us better,” she said she told them later. “And (the losses) are felt in every aspect.”
Entering Saturday’s win, the Trojans’ defense ranked third in the nation and their offense ranked 15th. They convert in transition (nearly 20% of their points come in transition) and turn the ball over (28.7 points per game), important metrics that could serve them well in the future. Their victory over the Huskies reinforced that they can go on the road and strike first in one of the most anticipated games of the season. It was proof that they could give up a 13-point halftime lead, trail by one with less than five minutes left, and still bounce back.
“Nobody got off the treadmill,” Gottlieb said.
Of course, having a superstar like Watkins helps calm the nerves. Not only did she lead the game in scoring, she also added six rebounds, five assists and three blocks, including a block on UConn star Paige Bueckers just before halftime. Bueckers came out strong in the second half, scoring 22 points, but she also guarded Watkins, allowing the USC star to get off to a fast start in the first quarter.
“Every scouting report you put together or every film you watch, it’s obvious there’s a player who can’t guard (Watkins),” Auriemma said. “When she gets into a little rhythm, you just hope she misses.”
Watkins tied the game with just one possession with 4:30 left, scoring six of USC’s eight points and assisting forward Raya Marshall. Rayah Marshall scored a basket she didn’t score on.
“A lot of what she does is very difficult, but she makes it look easy,” Iriafin said. “We all know she’s a superstar, so playing with her will definitely take the pressure off everyone else.”
Any remaining pressure dissipated further in the post-match dressing room. When Gottlieb came in, the players doused her with water. They all jumped together to celebrate.
“It’s very rewarding for me to now lead a team here and know that we can do it and then actually do it,” Gottlieb said. “Very proud of this big win.”
(Above photo of JuJu Watkins driving between Paige Bueckers (left) and Kaitlyn Chen: Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images)
