JuJu Watkins, USC Amaze WCBB Fans with Upset Road Win vs. Paige Bueckers, No. 4 UConn
Dec 22, 2024
HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT - DECEMBER 21: Azzi Fudd #35 of the Connecticut Huskies is blocked by JuJu Watkins #12 of the USC Trojans during the first half of an NCAA women's basketball game at the XL Center on December 21, 2024 in Hartford, Connecticut. (Photo by Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images)
In a clash between two teams vying to keep just one loss on their record, the USC Trojans defeated the UConn Huskies 72-70 on Saturday night at the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut.
No. 4 ranked UConn dropped to 10-2 as the No. 7 Trojans improved to 11-1 as USC's JuJu Watkins led the Trojans with 25 points, six rebounds and five assists, one steal and three blocks while shooting 56 percent from the field. Kiki Iriafen added 16 points, 11 rebounds and six assists to the victory.
UConn's Paige Bueckers finished the night with 22 points, three rebounds and two assists while shooting 9-of-22 from the field in the loss. Freshman Sarah Strong added 22 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and four steals.
Fans took to social media to praise USC for their stunning upset over the No. 4 Huskies.
USC beats UConn in its first rematch since the Elite 8 😱
USC survives a furious UConn comeback (18 points) to earn its first marquee win of the season. Game was decided in the final seconds, as this matchup deserved
The stars delivered: 25 from JuJu Watkins, 22 from Paige Bueckers and Sarah Strong
Out of halftime, Watkins sank a two-pointer to extend USC's lead to 15 points, followed by a three-point assist to Kennedy Smith, pushing the advantage to 18 points. Bueckers responded with a two-point shot to put UConn on the board in the second half, trying to halt the bleeding.
The two teams battled down to the wire as UConn tied the game at 67-67 late in the fourth quarter, thanks to a layup from Bueckers. However, the comeback fell short as USC outscored the Huskies 21-17 in the final period, capped off by with two free throws from Watkins.
Turnovers and missed three-point attempts ultimately sealed UConn's fate, as they committed 18 turnovers compared to USC's 13 and shot just 26 percent from beyond the arc.
USC will aim to extend their seven-game winning streak when they host the No. 20 Michigan Wolverines on Sunday.
Report: JuJu Watkins, Nike Agree to New Contract; Among Biggest in Women's Basketball
Oct 8, 2024
PORTLAND, OREGON - MARCH 30: JuJu Watkins #12 of the USC Trojans dribbles during the first half against the Baylor Lady Bears in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament at Moda Center on March 30, 2024 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
USC guard JuJu Watkins is already one of the biggest stars in women's basketball as she enters her sophomore season, and she reportedly added another piece to her impressive resume on Tuesday.
According to ESPN's Shams Charania, the 19-year-old agreed to a multiyear contract extension with Nike that will give her one of the richest shoe deals in women's basketball history.
Charania reported that negotiations for Watkins' deal with Nike were led by Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul and Watkins' team, including agent Jade-Li English, head of marketing Eric Eways and vice president of basketball marketing Brittany McCallum, with Nike officials closing discussions on the deal on Tuesday.
She originally signed with Nike in October 2022 as a high school senior. The decision proved fruitful, as she put forth a star-making season in her freshman year with the Trojans.
Watkins led USC to the Elite Eight in the NCAA tournament, the farthest the program has reached in 30 years. She scored a total of 920 points last season, setting a new record for the most points scored by a freshman in NCAA Division I women's basketball history. San Diego State's Tina Hutchinson had held the record since scoring 898 points in the 1983-84 season.
For her efforts, Watkins was named Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and won Best Breakthrough Athlete at the 2024 ESPYs. She was voted as the Associated Press' Preseason Player of the Year entering the 2024-25 campaign.
Watkins' new deal with Nike will only further add to her star power as she continues her development into a future face of the WNBA.
Stanford Names Basketball Court to Honor Tara VanDerveer After Retirement as WCBB HC
May 10, 2024
STANFORD, CA - JANUARY 21: Stanford Cardinal head coach Tara VanDerveer applauds the team during a game between Oregon State University and Stanford University at Maples Pavilion on January 21, 2024 in Stanford, California. (Photo by John Todd/ISI Photos/Getty Images)
Stanford will name its basketball court after legendary women's basketball coach Tara VanDerveer, the school announced Thursday.
VanDerveer coached the Cardinal for 38 seasons, retiring following the conclusion of the 2023-24 season.
Along with naming its court after VanDerveer, Stanford also announced one of its assistant coaching positions will be named after the former coach. Heather Oesterle will hold that position after she was hired in April.
Tara's name will forever hold a special place at Stanford.
Longtime Stanford benefactors Tashia and John Morgridge gave the endowment to fund and name the assistant coaching position as a gift.
"This endowment will go a long way to strengthening the future of Stanford women's basketball," VanDerveer said. "I have many wonderful memories of leading the women's basketball program at Maples Pavilion. It's an honor, and a little surreal, to know that my name will be linked to both in these ways, and I look forward to celebrating with all our fans this fall."
In her 38 seasons at Stanford, VanDerveer won three national championships—the latest coming in 2021—and appeared in 13 Final Fours. She led the Cardinal to 27 Pac-12 regular season titles, 15 Pac-12 Tournament championships and was named the conference's Coach of the Year 11 times.
VanDerveer is the women's college basketball all-time wins leader with 1,216 in her career, three games ahead of UConn's Geno Auriemma.
Before coaching at Stanford, VanDerveer was the head coach of Idaho State and Ohio State, but spent most of her career with the Cardinal.
Stanford announced that there will be a public celebration and official unveiling of the Tara VanDerveer Court in November ahead of the 2024-25 season.
Kiki Iriafen Commits to USC in WCBB Transfer Portal, Teams Up with JuJu Watkins
Apr 28, 2024
SALT LAKE CITY, UT - JANUARY 12: Kiki Iriafen #44 of the Stanford Cardinal celebrates a score against the Utah Utes during the second half of their game at the Jon M Huntsman Center on January 12, 2024 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images)
Former Stanford forward Kiki Iriafen committed to USC on Saturday, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
Iriafen entered the transfer portal on April 12 after three seasons at Stanford, after having improved her scoring average in each year.
Now, she'll team up with standout guard JuJu Watkins on a Trojans team that advanced to the Elite Eight before a narrow loss to UConn. USC strengthens its status as one of the top teams in women's college basketball with Iriafen's commitment, following a 29-6 record during the 2023-24 season.
Iriafen is coming off a breakout season at Stanford alongside Cameron Brink after averaging just 5.5 points per game in her first two years with the team. In 36 starts during her 2023-24 campaign, she averaged 19.4 points and 11.0 rebounds in 27.8 minutes per game.
Her efficiency increased along with her scoring, as she shot 54.6 percent from the field, while her 77.3 free-throw percentage represented the highest mark of her career.
Iriafen's initial decision to transfer likely resulted from Brink joining the Los Angeles Sparks in the 2024 WNBA draft as well as the retirement of legendary Stanford women's basketball head coach Tara VanDerveer.
Her interest in USC wasn't exactly a secret, as she visited the school on Friday (h/t Matt Zemek of USA Today).
The Trojans should enter the 2024-25 season as one of the top teams in the country, with Watkins coming off an incredible freshman year. She averaged 27.1 points and 7.3 rebounds each night on 40.1/31.9/85.2 shooting splits, winning the Ann Meyers Drysdale Shooting Guard of the Year Award.
Watkins continued to impress during USC's March Madness run, averaging 27.5 points each night in four tournament games.
While the freshman's scoring ability was evident, her efficiency occasionally fluctuated as the Trojans didn't possess a clear-cut No. 2 scoring option to take some of the pressure off her. With Iriafen in the mix, that should no longer be the case.
SALT LAKE CITY, UT - JANUARY 12: Cameron Brink #22 of the Stanford Cardinal brings the ball up the court during the first half of their game against the Utah Utes at the Jon M Huntsman Center on January 12, 2024 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images)
Stanford forward Cameron Brink declared for the 2024 WNBA draft Tuesday ahead of the NCAA tournament.
The senior is averaging 17.8 points, 11.9 rebounds and 3.5 blocks through 31 games this season. Her 20 made threes are also nearly twice as much as her previous career high.
Brink was widely considered one of the three cornerstones in the 2024 draft class alongside Iowa's Caitlin Clark and UConn's Paige Bueckers. With Bueckers returning to the Huskies for one more year, she's all but guaranteed to land second overall to the Los Angeles Sparks.
In the meantime, her focus will be on capturing a second national championship with the Cardinal.
Stanford came up short in the Pac-12 title game, losing 74-61 to JuJu Watkins and USC. ESPN's Charlie Creme still has the team as one of his four No. 1 seeds, so the defeat may not have been too costly in that respect.
That the Cardinal are even poised to lead a region of the bracket is a testament to Brink's season.
Expectations surrounding the team were somewhat tempered coming into the year. Stanford was 15th in the preseason AP Top 25 and 13th in the Coaches Poll, trailing Pac-12 rivals UCLA and Utah.
Brink has led the way on both ends to make a deep March Madness run look attainable. In addition to having a 33 percent usage rate — she's second on the Cardinal in points and assists — she ranks first nationally in rebounding rate (24.4 percent) and third in block percentage (13.3), according to Her Hoop Stats.
When it comes to the 2024 draft, Clark has dominated the conversation, and for good reason. She's the all-time leading scorer in Division I history and no women's player in modern history has stretched the floor to the degree she has.
But there's no question Brink's two-way abilities can make her a perennial All-Star at the next level. Her arrival couldn't be better timed for the Sparks, who are entering a genuine rebuild after longtime star Nneka Ogwumike left in free agency.
Aaliyah Gayles Shot Multiple Times at a House Party in Vegas, USC Basketball Confirms
Apr 18, 2022
West girl's Aaliyah Gayles participates in the first half of the McDonald's All-American Girls basketball game Tuesday, March 29, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
USC women's basketball commit Aaliyah Gayles was one of four people shot at a house party in Las Vegas on Saturday night, the school confirmed to Alexa Philippou of ESPN.
The four people were hospitalized with "survivable gunshot wounds," according to Sam Gordon of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Gayles, currently a senior at Spring Valley High School, underwent two emergency surgeries Sunday morning.
The 5-star recruit was a McDonald's All-American and is listed as the No. 8 overall player in the 2022 class by ESPNW.
The 5'9" point guard averaged 13.8 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.5 steals per game during her final high school season.
"Aaliyah is one of the strongest, most resilient young people I have ever known," USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb said in a statement to ESPN. "I have no doubt she will continue to face this unfathomable situation with courage and resolve. We will continue to support her and her parents in every way that we possibly can."
Aaliyah's father, Dwight Gayles, also posted about the incident:
According to the North Las Vegas Police Department, a fight broke out during a house party with gunfire being reported at 11:15 p.m. local time. Of the four victims, two were minors.
Gordon reported Gayles, 18, was not targeted in either the head or torso.
An investigation remains ongoing, and the shooter had not been arrested as of Sunday.
NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament 2022: Elite 8 Scores, Final Four Bracket
Mar 29, 2022
GREENSBORO, NC - MARCH 27: The South Carolina Gamecocks celebrate their victory over the Creighton Bluejays during the Elite Eight round of the 2022 NCAA Womens Basketball Tournament held at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex on March 27, 2022 in Greensboro, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
The Final Four of the NCAA women's tournament is set with three No. 1 seeds and a No. 2 set to face off for the chance to play in the national championship game.
The Stanford Cardinal and South Carolina Gamecocks punched their tickets to the Final Four with wins over Texas and Creighton on Sunday, while the UConn Huskies and Louisville Cardinals punched their tickets Monday with wins over NC State and Michigan.
Here is a look at the Elite Eight scores, Final Four bracket and a deeper dive into each team and how it reached the Final Four.
Elite Eight
No. 1 Stanford 59, No. 2 Texas 50
No. 1 South Carolina 80, No. 10 Creighton 50
No. 2 UConn 91, No. 1 NC State 87, 2OT
No 1. Louisville 62, No. 3 Michigan 50
Bracket
The bracket for the 2022 NCAA women's tournament can be found at NCAA.com.
Stanford
The Cardinal are the reigning national champions, and they have been playing like it.
Stanford kicked things off with a 78-37 win over 16th-seeded Montana State in the first round and followed it up with a 91-65 win over the No. 8 seed Kansas Jayhawks.
The Sweet 16 and Elite Eight caused more problems for the Cardinal, however. The fourth-seeded Maryland Terrapins scored 30 points in the fourth quarter of their Sweet 16 matchup to give Stanford a scare, but the Cardinal escaped with a 72-66 win.
The Elite Eight featured an even larger battle, as Texas held Stanford to 59 points, one of its lowest outputs of the season.
Stanford has received key contributions from Cameron Brink, Haley Jones and Lexie Hull, and Hannah Jump and Francesca Belibi have been reliable as well.
Jump, a junior guard, is averaging 9.3 points per game while shooting 40.2 percent from the floor and 40.0 percent from deep. Belibi, a junior forward, is averaging 7.9 points and 4.6 rebounds per game while shooting 58.9 percent from the floor.
If the Cardinal can continue to spread the wealth in the Final Four, they could be headed to the championship game for the second straight season.
South Carolina
Dawn Staley and the Gamecocks are looking to reach the championship game for the first time since the 2016-17 season, when they won it all.
Staley's squad has been dominant after losing the SEC championship game to Kentucky. It opened things with a 79-21 win over the 16th-seeded Howard Bison and followed that with a 49-33 win over No. 8 Miami.
South Carolina faced its first challenged in the Sweet 16 when it met No. 5 UNC, but the Gamecocks used a 17-8 second quarter to win 69-61. The Elite Eight featured another easy matchup, as they won by 30 to advance to the Final Four.
South Carolina has been led by junior forward Aliyah Boston, who is a force to be reckoned with. She's averaging 16.8 points, 12.2 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game while shooting 54.2 percent from the floor and 28.3 percent from deep.
The Gamecocks are also led by senior guard Destanni Henderson and junior guard Zia Cooke, who are averaging 11.1 and 10.7 points per game.
UConn
Geno Auriemma and the UConn Huskies are headed to the Final Four for the 14th straight season following their double overtime win over the No. 1 seed NC State Wolfpack on Monday in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
The Huskies had defeated No. 15 Mercer 83-38 in the first round before taking down No. 7 UCF 52-47 and No. 3 Indiana 75-58.
On Monday, Paige Bueckers took over in the second half and overtime. The superstar sophomore notched just four points in the first half before going off for 23 points the rest of the way, including 10 in the first overtime.
It was Bueckers' best game of the tournament, though she has been UConn's best player all season, averaging 14.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 4.0 assists while shooting 55.1 percent from the floor and 36.2 percent from deep. Bueckers has played only 15 games this season because of a knee injury.
In addition to Bueckers, senior Christyn Williams and freshman Azzi Fudd have been among the Huskies' top scorers, averaging 14.7 and 12.7 points per game. They'll need the trio to be at its best against Stanford on Friday.
Louisville
For the first time since the 2017-18 season, the Louisville Cardinals are headed to the Final Four.
Louisville has had a dominant NCAA tournament, kicking things off with an 83-51 win over No. 16 Albany. It then downed No. 9 Gonzaga 68-59 and No. 4 Tennessee 76-64.
Monday's game between Louisville and Michigan was close through three quarters, but the Cardinals outscored the Wolverines 17-7 in the fourth to clinch a spot in the Final Four.
Hailey Van Lith, who leads the team with 14.5 points per game, finished Monday's game with 22 points. She was the best player on the court, while Chelsie Hall and Kianna Smith chipped in 15 and 11 points and Emily Engstler grabbed 16 rebounds.
If Louisville hopes to reach the championship game, it will need those three players to have similarly strong efforts against South Carolina and for Engstler, who had five points on 1-of-9 shooting against Michigan, to score closer to her average of 11.8 points per game.
