Los Angeles, CA – The No.11 USC (14-4) Trojans suffered their first loss at home as they were upset 62-59 by the Washington Huskies (13-6). The Trojans were undefeated at home this season with their streak ending at 10.
Freshman sensation Juju Watkins, one of the best scorers in the nation, struggled to catch a rhythm. Watkins finished the game shooting 29% with 19 points on 8 for 27 shooting from the field.
USC’s Kayla Padilla led the Trojans in scoring with 20 points on 6-for-9 shooting from 3-point range.
The Huskies came out with a good game plan and great energy. Washington took command of the game early and led all but the first 1:10 to secure a notable victory over USC, marking their first win against the Trojans since 2020 and their first road victory since 2017.
“It’s the first time I thought we came out and said, ‘We’re wearing USC on our jerseys and therefore we’re going to win,’ ” USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb said. “You can’t win like that.”
Washington held their largest lead of the game in the second quarter as they held a 13-point advantage. The Huskies showcased an impressive shooting performance, hitting 53.6% of their shots, while effectively limiting USC to a 33.3% shooting percentage in the first half.
Washington led 34-23 at halftime.
When asked about adjustments to her gameplan and what was said to her girls at halftime USC Head Coach Lindsday Gotlieb said “I thought there was no adjustment I could make in the gameplan. There were curse words. There was emotion. We had to have a different level of want and intensity. I thought we were getting cooked individually. I thought we were settling on offense. We weren’t good on anything. It was a matter of trying to change that energy. I’m not taking anything away from Washington. They’re a really good team who does what they do very well.”
In the second half, USC came out with some fight. The Trojans’ defense held the Huskies to 36% shooting on 8 of 22 from the field and forced 10 of the Huskies’ 22 turnovers.
Lauren Schwartz led the Huskies in scoring with 21 points on 8-15 shooting and making 3-5 attempts from long distance.
The Trojans shot 41% in the second half on 12-29 shooting and made 7-14 attempts from behind the arc for 50%.
USC outscored Washington 36-28 in the second half behind five three-pointers from Kayla Padilla and none more clutch than the one she made with 00:02 left on the clock that shrunk the Huskies’ lead down to one. The road doesn’t get any easier for the Women of Troy who now prepares to play the No.1 team in the Pac-12 conference and the No. 4 team in the nation the Stanford Cardinals in a highly anticipated matchup.
