Another week, another sweep for USC Women’s Basketball.
Over the weekend, the Oregon schools became the Women of Troy’s latest victims. No. 10 USC traveled up to the Beaver State and blew out Oregon 88-51 Friday night, before holding off No. 11 Oregon State 58-50 Sunday afternoon.
On Friday, the Trojans came out firing right away and never looked back. USC outscored the Ducks 29-7 in the first quarter and led 57-21 at halftime. While Oregon attempted to make a miraculous comeback in the second half, it was much too little, much too late.
Superstar freshman guard Juju Watkins continued to shine for the Trojans, leading the team with 33 points. She also had eight rebounds, three assists, and four steals. Senior forward Kaitlyn Davis recorded her first double-double of the season, recording 10 points and 11 rebounds.
On Sunday against Oregon State, Watkins had a down day by her own lofty standards, scoring “only” 18 points, tied for her second-lowest output on the season. However, Watkins’s teammates picked up the slack in a low-scoring affair, most notably junior center Rayah Marshall. Marshall had 11 points and a remarkable 17 rebounds as USC held the Beavers to just 20 points in the first half.
“The thing I’m most proud of is the upward trajectory,” Gottlieb said of her team following Sunday’s game. “The continual growth trajectory has been big, and we’re really locked in.”
Now, the Women of Troy, who moved up to No. 7 in Monday’s AP poll, return home to Galen Center for two huge matchups against No. 11 Colorado and No. 18 Utah. A road trip to Salt Lake City and Boulder last month handed USC two of its four losses on the season. Now, the Trojans will have an opportunity to return the favor at home.
“Now we get to come back home against the same two teams that swept us,” Gottlieb said. “They haven’t got any worse. They’re really good. We have to see how much we’ve improved.”
Tipoff between USC and Colorado is set for 7:00 p.m. PST Friday evening. The Trojans will then face Utah in their home finale Sunday at noon.
