UCLA, USC Women’s Basketball Continue to Shine as March Approaches
Armed with stars and no signs of slowing down, UCLA and USC women’s basketball teams roar into college basketball’s most important month at the top of the country’s contenders list ahead of another anticipated regular-season showdown.
By Austin Gage
In a golden generation of women’s college basketball, no region shines brighter than the West Coast.
For a sport that had just lost two of its most gravitating stars to the WNBA, Iowa guard Caitlin Clark and LSU forward Angel Reese, some held questions regarding who would continue the momentum built on from previous exciting seasons.
Reigning undefeated champions South Carolina presented an example of a team that could fill the void along with schools such as Notre Dame, UConn and Texas, and all of these programs certainly have. In the most recent AP Top 25, a 26-2 Texas squad topped the rankings at number one while a 24-3 Notre Dame, 26-3 UConn and a 25-3 South Carolina slotted in at number three, five, and six respectively.
Who are those two other spots in the top six, one may wonder. For Los Angeles fans, the answers are not far away at all.
UCLA, with a sparkling 26-1 record, is ranked second in the nation. USC is not far behind, holding on to the fourth spot in the country with their impressive 25-2 record.
Just like nearby Hollywood, UCLA is stacked with stars of their own. Paced by Lauren Betts, the junior center who is a walking double-double and block machine, the Bruins dispense a balanced offensive attack that sees seven players average at least 7.5 points per game. Betts’ 19.8 points per game lead the way, but playmaking junior guard Kiki Rice plays a key complementary role with 13 points and 4.4 assists per game.
UCLA’s dominance can be summarized by its 12-week run as the country’s top-ranked team. Although the program has seen a few bumps in the road in recent weeks, their resilience was on display Sunday on the road against Iowa as they rallied in the second half to steal a comeback 67-65 victory. In the victory, to no surprise, Betts’ 22 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks gave the Bruins the energy they needed to escape Iowa City unscathed. As competition gets tighter as the Big Ten tournament and March Madness loom in the near future, UCLA will hope to hold on to some of the midseason magic that propelled them to the number one spot for a majority of the campaign.
Perhaps the most Hollywood-style writing is the team behind UCLA’s only loss: USC. The fourth-ranked Trojans, ranked number six at the time, hosted the top-ranked Bruins in a marquee LA-based matchup. By the night’s end, the nation’s only undefeated fell and a superstar showed her generational talent for the entire college world to see.
And that superstar, of course, was USC guard JuJu Watkins. Watkins, the 2024 first-team AP All-American in her freshman season, made herself very familiar last season with her exceptional two-way game and pure scoring ability to the tune of 27.1 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game to go along with 2.3 steals and 1.6 blocks. Although her per-game scoring is slightly down in her sophomore season at 24.2, that can be attributed to others stepping up to compliment her.
In the contest against UCLA, Watkins was simply special. On top of showcasing three-point shooting (6-9 from beyond the arc), she finished her night with 38 points, 11 rebounds and five assists. Her performance on offense alone single-handedly propelled USC, and this is excluding her defensive effort. Watkins was a bully defensively all night for her Bruin rivals as she chipped in a phenomenal eight blocks and a steal to help the Trojans force 20 total turnovers. USC upset their rivals 71-60 in the first matchup for the programs this season.
In the void left behind by Clark and Reese, Watkins has fully taken control as the sport’s newest star.
However, she is not doing it by herself, crediting the Trojans’ overall team success. Transfer forward Kiki Iriafen is a star in her own right, playing as the perfect complimentary piece to Watkins with averages of 18.2 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. Iriafen, who played her first three seasons at Stanford, is a big reason why USC is one of the favorites along with UCLA to claim the national championship.
While USC has had slip-ups, ala an early season loss to Notre Dame and an early February loss to Iowa, the Trojans ride a six-game winning streak that includes four top-25 wins into their Sunday showdown against UCLA.
The spotlight of college basketball is positioned in Los Angeles.
“Just a few years ago people said women’s basketball in LA can’t be big, can’t be covered, can’t be sold out, and we, you guys, us together all keep proving that wrong,” said USC head coach Lindsay Gottlieb.
The two teams will face each other for the second time this season on March 1st as the Bruins welcome USC to Pauley Pavilion. In what is sure to be a fiery conclusion to the regular season, one thing is certain: LA women’s basketball is shining as bright as ever.
