On Saturday night, No. 7 USC defeated Paige Bueckers and fourth-ranked UConn 72-70 with to 25 points from JuJu Watkins and a comeback from blowing an 18-point lead in the second half.
Two of the top players in women’s collegiate basketball, All-Americans Bueckers and Watkins, faced up in a rematch of the Huskies’ victory in the Elite Eight game the previous season. For the majority of the game, the two protected one another.
Bueckers scored 22 points in the end.
Watkins gave USC the lead with 1:21 remaining in the game, which was tied at 67, when he handed the ball to Rayah Marshall for a layup.
With 31 seconds remaining, Watkins was fouled following a Huskies miss. The ball sat on the rim for a few seconds before slipping off, and she missed the first of two free throws. She scored the second to put the Trojans (11-1) ahead 70-67.
Sarah Strong’s shot in the third quarter brought UConn (10-2), who had fallen behind 51-33 before a comeback, within four seconds.
Then, with 19.5 seconds remaining, Watkins made two free throws to put the score 72-69.
With five seconds remaining, Strong attempted a 3-pointer but was fouled, giving the Huskies a final opportunity to tie the score. She missed the second free throw but made the first. UConn grabbed the rebound after the freshman purposefully missed the third. Strong finally received it, and his desperate heave at the buzzer was off.
Takeaways
USC: The Trojans had not faced a challenge since their Nov. 23 loss to Notre Dame. In their next four games, they will play three Big Ten opponents who are rated.
UConn: The Huskies are currently 0-2 after losing to Notre Dame, and this was their second game against a top-10 club this season.
Key moment
With UConn’s star defending her, Watkins blocked Bueckers’ shot earlier in the third quarter, then took the ball to the opposite end and scored when it went through her legs.
Key stat
UConn was only 6 for 23 from outside the 3-point line the game after making a school-record 20 3-pointers.
Up next
On December 29, USC will host Michigan.
On December 29, UConn will host Providence.
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