Los Angeles, CA – Freshman sensation JuJu Watkins returns home and scores 30 for the eighth time this season as she leads Southern California (17-4,7-4 Pac-12) to an 81-64 victory over Arizona State (10-13,2-9 Pac-12).
The reigning AP Player of the Week JuJu Walkins finished with 31 points, 7 rebounds & 5 assists. Watkins continues her phenomenal play after she dropped a historic 51 points in an upset victory over then No. 4 Stanford and followed up with 29 against Cal University to wrap up a successful trip to the Bay area.
“It’s remarkable what we put on Ju’s plate, and she continues to do what she’s been able to do,” Head Coach Lindsay Gotlieb said after Watkin’s performance.
The Trojans jumped out to an early lead, outscoring the Sun Devils 22-9 in the first period. USC maintained their offensive momentum, shooting 42% from the field in the first half. However, their three-point shooting cooled down slightly to 23% after an impressive 75% shooting performance from beyond the arc in the first quarter.
Sophomore guard Jalyn Brown shined for the Sun Devils scoring 24 points on 8 of 20 shooting from the field. Trayanna Crisp added 17 points.
ASU shot 42% in the first half and trailed USC 38-28 as they went into halftime.
USC took advantage of their size and controlled the paint. The Trojans scored 46 points in the paint and outrebounded the Sun Devils 42-28.
Junior forward Rayah Marshall, who was recently added to the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year watchlist was a huge part of USC’s success in the paint. Marshall recorded a double-double with 13 points, 16 rebounds and 3 blocks.
“The flow of the game was just clicking for me,” Marshall said. “I just took advantage of that and just tried to remember to compete on both sides of the floor”.
Watkins scored 25 of her 31 points in the second half for the Trojans and was the driving force as USC pulled away from the Sun Devils. USC shot 50% from the floor in the second half, making 15 of 30 attempts.
ASU shot 44% from the field in the second half and made 2 of 5 three-point attempts for 40%.
The Women of Troy now prepares to host Arizona (12-11,4-7 Pac 12) in a primetime matchup on ESPN2 Monday night.
