JuJu Watkins sustains devastating injury during USC’s NCAA Tournament win

JuJu Watkins is one of the foremost stars of women’s college basketball, leading USC into the NCAA Tournament as a 1-seed. That meant the Trojans were hosting a regional across the first weekend, including a Monday night matchup vs. 9-seed Mississippi State out of the SEC.

That game started innocently enough with USC scoring 17 of the first 19 points, including 3 points from Watkins, all on free throws. Unfortunately, her night and season were cut short by a devastating knee injury in the first quarter.

While running on a fast break, Watkins went down between 2 Bulldog defenders and instantly began grabbing her right knee in visible pain. She would even need to be carried off the court by 2 trainers and taken straight to the locker room.

Late Monday night, the Trojans confirmed it was a season-ending injury to Watkins’s right knee, cutting her season short. Her absence did not derail USC in that game as the Trojans rolled to a 96-59 win, but it’s a massive personal blow for a true superstar and a big piece missing from one of the top title contenders in the country.

JuJu Watkins led USC to a regular-season title in the Big Ten and led the conference while averaging 23.9 points per game, a mark that ranked 5th nationally. She captured the B1G Player of the Year and is likely headed to more first-team All-America honors after earning first-team recognition last year when Watkins finished 2nd nationally (trailing only Caitlin Clark) with 27.1 points per game.

With Watkins in the lineup, USC was a serious national title contender to challenge other top teams such as South Carolina, Texas, UConn and UCLA. Without Watkins, it will be a struggle for the Trojans as the competition gets much tougher in the rounds ahead.

In the Sweet 16, USC will face 5-seed Kansas State. Another win will bring the Trojans face-to-face with the winner of Oklahoma vs. UConn.

Paul Harvey

Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.