JuJu Watkins led No. 6 USC to an 85-53 rout over UC Riverside at Galen Center on Sunday as the star freshman’s stellar debut season continued with 27 points on 10-of-16 shooting with five assists and five steals. She was three points short of breaking Cheryl Miller’s USC record for consecutive 30-point games, which stands at three.
Junior forward Rayah Marshall had an 11-point, 12-rebound double-double with three blocks.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
With their highest ranking in the Associated Press poll since 1994, the Trojans (8-0) had their second crowd of 4,000 or more this season, thanks in part to a doubleheader with the USC men’s team that featured Bronny James’ debut. Lakers star LeBron James, in attendance to watch his son play 16 minutes in USC’s overtime loss to Long Beach State, remained in his courtside seat as Watkins led her team onto the court.
The freshman gave the NBA champion something to cheer. She paced the Trojans to a 32-point lead at halftime before James walked across the court and exited through the USC tunnel.
There wasn’t much else for him to see as Watkins had five made field goals, just one fewer than Riverside (4-4) had as a team.
USC forward Kaitlyn Davis controls the ball against UC Riverside on Sunday.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
Already the four-time Pac-12 freshman of the week — winning the award all four weeks of the young season — Watkins added the conference’s top player honor last week. She ranks second nationally in scoring with 27.3 points per game, trailing only Iowa star Caitlin Clark. She’s the USC record holder for 30-point games as a freshman with five in just eight games and entered with three straight. Miller’s record of consecutive 30-point performance probably will belong to Watkins soon.
But the star guard’s impact wasn’t just on the offensive end Sunday. She came one steal short of her career best and had two blocks. She entered the game with 16 steals, twice as many as her teammate Marshall’s eight.
Before their home opener in front of 4,712, USC hadn’t played in front of a crowd of more than 4,000 at Galen Center since March 1, 2020. The opener was the largest home crowd for the Trojans since 2010.
Addressing the crowd after the game, USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb thanked fans for their support, noting that “it has never felt like this.”
She referenced the “hundreds” of fans that used to be in the stands when she took over three years ago. She spoke to thousands Sunday.
“Stay on this journey with us,” Gottlieb said, “because we’re going to keep writing this story. I think it’s going to be epic.”
