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Juju Watkins grew up taking part in the NCAA tournaments and building her own brackets.
Well, that’s the time for the super sophomore sparkle. He is leading the No. 1 seed in Southern California, pursuing a deeper run than the Elite 8’s debut a year ago.
“Every year, the goal is to break the opinions of others,” she said.
The Trojans (28-3) host 16th seed UNC Greensboro (25-6) in their first round match at Gallen Centre on Saturday.
USC was the Big Ten regular season champion in their first year in the league, losing to Crosstown rivals and NCAA Tournament No. 1 seed UCLA in the tournament title game. Other defeats of the Trojans were Notre Dame and Iowa.
Watkins averages 24.6 points (2.5 less than last year) and plays 6.9 rebounds for 35 minutes in the game. She has stroked six games with over 30 points. She is a 40-point effort against California’s Baptists.
Last season, Watkins led USC to the deepest run of the program in the NCAA Tournament for over 25 years. She is the second national scorer, averaging 27.1 points and scoring all freshmen with a record 920 points. She had 14 games with over 30 points, including a 51 point blast at Stanford.
UConn’s men’s basketball team is seeking a third straight national championship, but South Carolina’s Lady Gamecox will try to win the fourth title in program history after an undefeated 2024 season. Below are key dates and locations for the 2025 Men’s and Women’s NCAA Basketball Tournament, which is scheduled to kick off at the selection on Sunday, March 16th.
Still, there is always the urge to be better.
“She’s looking at something that can be improved first. She’s never going to point her finger at someone else,” USC director Lindsay Gottlieb said. “It’s always a place where she can grow up, and that’s a pretty notable feature for a 19-year-old.”
Part of Watkins’ support system is Phil Handy, a 53-year-old former Los Angeles Lakers assistant who coached in a basketball league similar to the women’s this season. They met through mutual family friends when Watkins was in eighth grade.
“I saw her drive, I saw her weirdness, how does it look like it would be great,” recalled a handy phone interview.
Watkins believes it’s convenient to be “very there for me.” He sees himself as her “trainer, coach, brother, uncle.” They text regularly and watch game films together on Zoom. When it’s convenient, they bump into the gym.
“Whenever there’s something to do, she never says no,” he said.
Watching more movies this season, Watkins struggled to match her basketball knowledge with her fearsome courtroom skills.
“She really challenged herself to do that and become a smart player in a place where she understands how to defend and what her team is doing,” Handy said.
Watkins chose to attend college in his hometown, just a few miles from his mostly Hispanic and Black Watts neighborhood. The community comes out to support her. Men, women and children of all ages and races seek photos and autographs after games and patiently rewards after Watkins.
“It’s pretty noteworthy about how she handles the kind of madness around her,” Gottlieb said. “She’s a natural introvert.”
Last month, a giant three-panel mural of Watkins wearing her iconic bread rose in an iconic advertisement on a downtown Los Angeles building.
“How cool,” Gottlieb said.
Watkins downplays her subsequent Caitlyn Clark talking to women’s college basketball face.
“I think that’s an honor, but I don’t think about it that much,” she said. “The main goal is to stay here and deal with business.”
Her off-court business, overseen by Klutch Sports, is thriving. She rarely trades Nike, fanatics, snack maker Mondeles, United Airlines, degree deodorant, State Farm, Gatorade, Collectibles Company Funco and more. According to ON3.com, her rating is one of the highest in the country with an estimated $739,000.
Watkins is strengthened by her family, including former college athletes Robert and Sari, who are always present in the front row. Her sister, Mari, sometimes sings the national anthem in the games.
“They always say, ‘I’ll just go there and do you,'” she said.
Looking at Watkins in person has become a hotter ticket. The average attendance for the Trojans has increased from 4,421 last year to 5,932 this season. Celebrities such as Snoop Dogg, Kevin Hart, Jason Sudeikis, Michael B. Jordan, and Sanaa Lathan appeared in one of Watkins’ favorite movies, Love & Basketball. The year before she arrived averaged 1,037.
“We’re trying to make it feel like football,” she said, referring to USC’s biggest sport. “That’s my goal here, to make it feel like a big thing.”
Of course, Watkins knows where she can go to on the floor, and is the main focus of the opposing defender trying to take them away. However, she has a running mate for forward Kiki Iliafen, a graduate from Stanford who has returned to her hometown.
Iriafen’s 18.2 points average is second to Watkins, but his field goals, three points and free throw averages are all higher than his sophomore.
“She’s increasing my IQ in every way and pushing me up to be a better player,” Watkins said.
UCLA coach Cori Close saw Watkins up close. The Bruins have lost two of the three to the Trojans this season. Close cites Watkins’ “elite level work ethic” as one of the reasons why she is so good. Watkins is known for hitting the USC gym at night and posting hundreds of shots similar to the diligent work of the late Coby Bryant.
“When you’re driven to success, sometimes there’s no balance,” Handy said.
Last year, losses pushed Watkins into a lonely time job, but she is learning moderation.
“Sometimes, it’s okay to move a little further away,” she said. “I’m currently watching “retirement.” Watch the TV show and let it cool the next day and come back. ”
Watkins’s gentle expression believes anything that’s happening in the courthouse. But behind a locked room, Handy sees her fiery side if she misses a shot or doesn’t pick up something as fast as she expects.
“She has an appetite,” he said. “It definitely reminds me of a great athlete in her time, Kobe, MJ and female athletes.”
It’s almost time for the Trojans, which means Watkins narrows her mental focus.
“Now I’m like being in this space where there’s nothing else around me,” she said. “I just go to tunnel vision whenever possible.”
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