JuJu and USC take down No. 1 UCLA

Los Angeles, CA (News4usonline) – The USC Trojans handed the UCLA Bruins their first loss of the season thanks to 38 points, 11 rebounds, 8 blocks, and 5 assists from JuJu Watkins.

USC pulled off the 71-60 win in their home arena, and Watkins put on a show with Kevin Hart, Jayden Daniels, Issa Rae, Flea, Cheryl Miller, and many more stars sitting courtside.

UCLA has been the best team in the country all season and was the number-one ranked team coming into the night. They had outscored their opponents by over 16 points per game, and since opening the season with a seven-point win over Louisville, they had won every other game by double-digits.

JuJu Watkins: The first player with 35 points, 5 blocks and 5 assists in a game in the last 20 seasons across all Division I ?? pic.twitter.com/GJxyzhgFBk

— USC Women's Basketball (@USCWBB) February 14, 2025

Watkins presents a different type of challenge. She excels in every aspect of the game and possesses all of the skills, offensively and defensively, to be the best female hooper of this generation. When her game is on, she is nearly unstoppable at the collegiate level.

In the first quarter, Watkins scored eight straight points in less than 100 seconds. On her last bucket, she fell down, kept her dribble, got up, and hit a step-back jumper. She finished with 25 points on 6-7 shooting from three in the first half.

“I didn’t teach JuJu any of that. I try to put her in situations where she can be her best self, and she does most of the work. What I was so impressed with tonight is the mentality she came out with, and obviously, the ball going through the net helps,” said USC head coach Lindsay Gottlieb. “I think this is a historic game and performance that we should appreciate from JuJu and her team.”

The Bruins came out and showed why they are the top team in college basketball in the second half, going on a 10-0 run to start the third quarter, allowing them to take a five-point lead into the fourth. UCLA’s star center, Lauren Betts, was particularly tough for USC to handle and finished the game with 18 points and 13 boards.

Watkins was held in check in the quarter, scoring only five points. She played all but 43 seconds of the game, and UCLA started to aggressively deny her the ball on defense, trying to wear her out and force anyone else on USC to make a play.

“She got really hot, and we needed to make some adjustments,” said UCLA head coach Cori Close. “If she gets to the eight-foot box, she is almost unstoppable. I thought we did a good job adjusting for a long time, and then we lost our focus there in the fourth.”

Issa Rae & Kevin Hart in the building! ? pic.twitter.com/5muuKM01zY

— USC Women's Basketball (@USCWBB) February 14, 2025

The fourth quarter was all Watkins and USC. Betts was starting to take over the game in the post, getting to the line at will. The Trojans then made an adjustment of their own, sending Watkins to double-team Betts every time she got the ball down low. The result was five blocks in the final quarter for Watkins.

“It is just whatever it takes to win, honestly. I didn’t plan on having that many blocks, but I think that is what we needed to win, and just any way I can help out. That is my goal,” said Watkins.

With the loss, USC jumps UCLA in the Big Ten standings. Despite holding the better overall record, the Bruins are now the ones who face an uphill battle to win the conference title.

UCLA will get a chance to return the favor when their cross-town rivals visit Pauley Pavilion for the last game of the regular season.

“This is an opportunity. We will look in the mirror and see what she (JuJu) did and adjust. Hopefully, when they come to UCLA, you will see some of those adjustments take place,” said Close.

The second matchup between them is shaping up to be for the top seed in the Big Ten Conference, and based on the way the two programs are playing, it would not be surprising to see them play at least one more time come late March.

Lead Photo Caption: Southern California guard JuJu Watkins, left, blocks the shot of UCLA center Lauren Betts, center, as center Clarice Akunwafo helps defend during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)