Game recap: USC women’s basketball defeats UCLA for Big Ten title

Roars rained down from each corner of Pauley Pavilion, every soul in the hallowed hoops arena knowing full well the outcome of the crosstown showdown and the conference title that came with it rested squarely on her shoulders. Some in cardinal and gold waited for deliverance, as if it was assured for USC. Others in light blue prayed for divine intervention, understanding little else could save UCLA.

The feeling — of a whole arena hanging on her every move — is so familiar to JuJu Watkins. When she airballed a third-quarter jumper, the superstar sophomore could only smile as the crowd let her hear it, reminding her every time she touched the ball.

The truth, she knew, was their jeers could only fuel her fire. She has survived her share of crucibles already at USC. But never before in her two sensational seasons here had a conference title come attached.

This time, USC did not need a rally to stake its claim to bragging rights in L.A.

In fact, the fourth-ranked Trojans never trailed and cemented their place atop the Big Ten Conference with an impressive 80-67 victory over second-ranked UCLA at Pauley Pavilion on Saturday night.

JuJu Watkins led all scorers with 30 points, 23 coming in the first half as the Trojans (26-2, 16-1 Big Ten) jumped out to a 14-point halftime lead.

UCLA (26-2, 14-2) suffered its second loss at the hands of its rivals after dropping a 71-60 decision at Galen Center on Feb. 13. The Bruins got 16 points from Kiki Rice, who shot only three for 13 from the field. Lauren Betts was held to 11 points.

The Bruins committed 16 turnovers, 11 in the first half, and were held to 36.1% shooting. In the first meeting, USC held UCLA to a season-low 35.1% shooting.

UCLA rallied late in the third quarter to draw within four points, but USC closed the period on a 9-0 run to take a 64-51 lead, then got consecutive three-pointers from Avery Howell to open up a 74-55 advantage with 7:38 to go.

It is the Trojans’ first regular-season conference title since 1994, when they were in the Pac-10. (USC won the Pac-12 conference tournament in 2014 and 2024.)

USC is finishing strong, leading by as many as 20 points in the fourth quarter and holding a 76-59 advantage with 4:23 to go in the game.

Kiki Iriafen made it a 76-56 game when she nailed a turnaround jumper with 6:30 to go in the quarter.

UCLA shot a season-low 35.1% from the field in the first meeting against USC. The Bruins are hovering in similar territory as the game draws to a close.

What appeared to be shaping up as another UCLA third-quarter surge was defused by an impressive counter punch from USC to end the quarter that staked it to a 64-51 advantage.

After falling behind by 16 points 17 seconds into the second half, the Bruins chipped away and pulled within 55-51 with 3:02 to go in the period. But the Trojans answered with seven straight points, including a free throw and driving layup by JuJu Watkins that forced UCLA to take a timeout with 38 seconds to go. Kiki Iriafen capped the scoring with a pull-up jumper with eight seconds to go.

In the first meeting, the Bruins outscored the Trojans 17-9 in the third to take a five-point advantage into the final period. And for most of the quarter in this game, it was trending in a similar fashion as USC went scoreless for more than four minutes while UCLA rallied.

But this time, the Trojans had an answer.

Watkins is at 28 points on 10-for-19 shooting.

All five of USC’s starters have at least three fouls: Watkins, Iriafen and Rayah Marshall with three, and Talia von Oelhoffen and Kennedy Smith have four.

USC holds a 55-46 advantage with 4:50 to go in the third quarter. Kiki Rice and Londyn Jones each have five points to help the Bruins chip away at a 14-point halftime deficit.

Foul trouble continues to be an issue for the Trojans as Talia von Oelhoffen picked up her fourth foul and Rayah Marshall her third.

JuJu Watkins, for her part, is at 25 points after making a long jumper early in the quarter.

UCLA has trailed at halftime three times all season. Two of those have been at the hands of USC.

The Trojans rode the hot hand of JuJu Watkins and strong defensive play to take a 46-32 halftime lead over the Bruins at Pauley Pavilion.

Watkins shot eight of 13 from the field and four of seven from three-point range to account for half of USC’s points.

The Trojans also scored 17 points off 11 Bruins turnovers to turn a three-point game at the start of the second quarter into what is now the largest lead of the game for USC.

UCLA got eight points from Janiah Barker and Gabriela Jaquez added six. Lauren Betts was held to four points on two-of-six shooting and a team-high three turnovers.

What bears watching for USC in the second half: Kiki Iriafen and Talia von Oelhoffen each have three fouls, and Kennedy Smith and Rayah Marshall each have two. That’s four of the Trojans’ starting five.

The Trojans nearly duplicated the fast start in the second quarter with an 11-4 burst to open up a 34-24 advantage with 5:37 to go in the first half, forcing a timeout by Bruins coach Cori Close.

Something to bear watching for USC: Kiki Iriafen, who committed two fouls in the first quarter, picked up her third with 8:40 to go in the second quarter.

After missing their first eight shots of the game and trailing by double figures early, the Bruins responded.

UCLA got offense from Lauren Betts, Janiah Barker and Timea Gardiner to draw within 23-20 after one quarter at Pauley Pavilion. Angela Dugalic’s three-pointer with 35 seconds left in the quarter made it a three-point game.

JuJu Watkins already has 13 points on five-of-eight shooting, including three-of-five shooting from three-point range.

The Trojans have gotten out to a 15-4 advantage with 4:59 to go in the first quarter as some familiar names are carrying the offensive load.

JuJu Watkins already has seven points on 3-of-4 shooting from the field, and Talia von Oelhoffen had a four-point play.

The Trojans scored the game’s first nine points as the Bruins have started missing eight of their first 10 shots. They did not score their first basket until 5:58 to go in the quarter on a made jumper by Janiah Barker.

The second meeting between No. 2 UCLA and No. 4 USC is upon us. Starting lineups for the Trojans and Bruins:

USC

Kennedy Smith (G)

JuJu Watkins (G)

Talia von Oelhoffen (G)

Rayah Marshall (F)

Kiki Iriafen (F)

UCLA

Kiki Rice (G)

Londyn Jones (G)

Gabriela Jaquez (F)

Angela Dugalic (F)

Lauren Betts (C)

It’s quite the capper to their first regular season in the Big Ten Conference.

No. 2 UCLA (28-1, 16-1 Big Ten) square off with No. 4 USC (26-2, 16-1) at Pauley Pavilion in a matter of moments. The winner secures the conference regular season title and further solidifies a hold on a top seed in the NCAA tournament.

This game comes a little over two weeks after the Trojans took down the then-undefeated Bruins, 71-60, behind a transcendent performance from JuJu Watkins, who put up 38-points, 11 rebounds and 8 blocks.

Some familiar faces are in the building for this showdown:

Londynn Jones made a pull-up jumper.

Kiki Rice got a steal.

When the stakes are highest against ranked opponents, JuJu Watkins plays her best basketball — and Wednesday’s game versus No. 22 Michigan State was no exception.

Entering the matchup, Watkins was averaging 24.4 points and 8.0 rebounds against Top 25 opponents. Against the Spartans, she scored 28 points and had eight rebounds in leading led USC to an 83-75 win at the Galen Center, securing the team’s seventh victory over a ranked opponent.

Lauren Betts spent pregame warmups with a smile as the UCLA women’s basketball team welcomed its star center back after she missed a game because of a right foot injury.

Gone was the walking boot, and Betts wasted no time making an impact for No. 3 UCLA against No. 25 Illinois on Thursday night. She scored the game’s first basket on a turnaround layup and immediately made her presence felt on defense with a block at the other end.

When Lindsay Gottlieb was hired at USC in May 2021, her first call went to Rayah Marshall. She was standing in her kitchen in Ohio at the time, uncertain if Marshall, then a McDonald’s All-American, would even consider honoring the commitment she’d made to USC’s previous coach.

Gottlieb didn’t have much tangible to sell her on, after all. She’d spent the previous three seasons in the NBA, while USC, once a women’s basketball powerhouse, had spent the previous three decades toiling in relative obscurity. All Gottlieb had to show Marshall was a vision of what USC could be.

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Elina Aarnisalo made two free throws with 3.8 seconds remaining to give No. 3 UCLA a 67-65 comeback win over Iowa on Sunday.

Lauren Betts finished with 22 points and 12 rebounds while Kiki Rice added 12 points for the Bruins (26-1, 14-1 Big Ten), who trailed by 12 points twice in the third quarter.

JuJu Watkins and USC moved up to a No. 1 seed in the women’s NCAA tournament in the latest projections of the top teams.

The Trojans would be joined by UCLA, Texas and Notre Dame as the top seeds if the tournament began now, according to the NCAA selection committee, which on Thursday did its second reveal of the teams in line for the top 16 seeds.

MADISON, Wis. — Lauren Betts had 26 points and 10 rebounds and second-ranked UCLA routed Wisconsin 91-61 on Wednesday night to set up a showdown with No. 4 USC for the Big Ten title.

UCLA (28-1 overall, 16-1 Big Ten) moved into a first-place tie with USC heading into the regular-season finale Saturday at home against the Trojans, who handed the Bruins their only defeat, 71-60 earlier this month.

Kiki Iriafen tried to play coy. But the man serenading her new USC teammates and coaches over dinner in the back room of their swanky Paris restaurant had just brought out an extra microphone. And now teammates were egging her on.

She brushed them off at first. But they knew her well enough already to know she couldn’t resist.