SPOKANE, Wash. — Even though JuJu Watkins couldn’t make USC’s Sweet 16 trip because of her injury, the sophomore star’s presence was still felt Saturday in the Trojans’ 67-61 win against Kansas State.
Watkins’ face was printed on the team’s T-shirt that they wore to Spokane Arena and plastered on signs throughout the crowd. The team also passed around a Watkins-looking Funko Pop on the bench.
After the win, Watkins FaceTimed the team to congratulate them on the gritty win.
“It was hard to hear in the locker room, but there were a lot of smiles,” coach Lindsay Gottlieb said. “My daughter was blowing kisses to her and said, ‘JuJu’s not hurt?’ And I said, ‘No, she’s still hurt, but she’s happy today and with us.’ ”
Despite USC losing its best player to a torn anterior cruciate ligament, there was an overwhelming sentiment heading into the game that the Trojans were going to rally and win for Watkins.
It wasn’t easy. USC had only a three-point lead entering the fourth quarter and Kansas State was relentless.
But USC ultimately survived and punched its ticket to the Elite Eight for the second consecutive year.
“From the beginning, our confidence never wavered,” senior Kiki Iriafen said. “We knew we were going to come out, we were gonna play super hard.”
The Trojans knew they would have to make up for the offense missing because of Watkins’ absence.
With Iriafen smothered with double-teams, it was a trio of freshmen who stepped up in major ways for the Trojans.
Kennedy Smith had 19 points and three steals. Avery Howell added 18 points (four 3-pointers), eight rebounds and four steals. And Kayleigh Heckel contributed eight points off the bench.
“We would not be in this game on Monday without [the freshmen],” Iriafen said. “They were electrifying and I feel like for me having an off night, they really helped me stay in the game and be there mentally.”
The Trojans live to play another day. They’re set to play second-seeded Connecticut on Monday for a chance at a Final Four berth.
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