Despite falling short to UConn 80-73 in the Elite Eight on Monday night, the 2023-24 season is one for the books for head coach Lindsay Gottlieb’s squad.
“We did a lot more celebrating than other teams get to do,” Gottlieb said. “We’re on the uprise. We’ve had a lot more joy than sadness.”
With the No. 1 recruit JuJu Watkins suiting up in cardinal and gold, USC women’s basketball had high expectations coming into this season. It’s safe to say that the Trojans more than answered the call.
The freshman guard led USC to an overall 29-6 record, their best finish since the 1993-94 season. On top of winning the Pac-12 tournament title, the Trojans were the No.1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and made a bid to the Elite Eight for the fourth time in program history.
Let’s not forget that USC dominated its crosstown rivals twice this season – first in January during the regular season and again in double overtime in the Pac-12 Tournament semi-finals.
As a freshman, Watkins proved herself as an elite scorer who’s more than worthy of being in discussions of the NCAA’s best players. Her 51-point game against No. 4 Stanford broke a USC scoring record and drew national attention, garnering well-deserved praise from many of the NBA’s elite, such as LeBron James and former Trojan DeMar DeRozan.
From breaking the DI freshman scoring record on Monday night against UConn to finishing second in the nation in scoring (26.9 ppg), Watkins was raining buckets all season long.
“She’s a competitor. I could trust her with my life,” junior center Rayah Marshall said. “When it comes down to winning, she’s going to do what she has to do.”
“Ju is a winner,” graduate guard McKenzie Forbes added. “We see the work that she puts in, so I never lack confidence in her. She’s not just a scorer, she’s a playmaker.”
Aside from Watkins’ star power, several other Trojans stepped up big time this season.
Forbes was a mature presence for this Trojan squad.
“We have a special relationship,” Watkins said of Forbes after their Sweet 16 win over Baylor. “She’s always just encouraging me and really speaking to me in times when I needed during the game. She’s just a great leader and I’m just glad to have that type of leadership my first year.”
The Harvard transfer stepped up every single game, most notably in the Pac-12 tournament championship game where she led the Trojans with 26 points.
Additionally, Marshall’s huge presence in the post should not be overlooked. Her aggressiveness in the paint helped her snag offensive and defensive rebounds, which were often the key to the Trojans coming away with a win.
“If she’s in the paint, and [the ball] is in her vicinity, around a 10-foot circumference, she’s getting it,” graduate forward Kaitlyn Davis said of Marshall’s rebounding abilities. “She’s determined to get the rebound, so honestly, I don’t know if anyone can stop her if she’s really putting her mind towards rebounding the ball.”
In her third season as USC’s head coach, Gottlieb managed to lift USC to its highest NCAA ranking in program history at No. 3. Gottlieb kept her players poised in big moments. Her stellar coaching led to her being named a finalist for the Naismith Women’s Coach of the Year award.
Of the Trojans’ many accomplishments, the most special was the attention and admiration they brought to women’s basketball – both at USC and beyond. A record 10,657 fans were in attendance at Galen Center on February 23 to witness the Trojans defeat the Colorado Buffaloes 87-81.
“This season of USC women’s basketball has gotten me so excited to go to USC games again,” said Arike Coker, a senior studying biomedical engineering. “From the beginning of the season, the girls have had me so excited to show up to their games and track how they’re doing.”
From rapper Travis Scott to Milwaukee Bucks’ guard Damian Lillard to USC students, everyone was tuned into Monday night’s Elite Eight matchups.
“I would’ve really loved to see them go all the way for my last year, but honestly just watching them make history and do as well as they did was really fun,” Coker added.
And it’s not just their skill that grabbed the hearts of Trojans fans. It’s who the players are – the camaraderie, the teamwork. The Trojan family rallied behind them all season long.
USC women’s basketball seemed to check off nearly all the boxes this season. So, what went wrong?
This year was USC’s first time on this big of a stage in a while. The Trojans did enough to establish themselves as true competitors and return to the national stage, but a win against UConn Monday night would’ve meant that the Trojans would have to face some really tough competition moving forward.
The giants of women’s college basketball today – South Carolina, LSU, Iowa, UConn – are all accustomed to the spotlight, the tough matchups and the win-or-go-home situations. After all, two of the aforementioned four schools appeared in last year’s NCAA Championship game.
The Trojans are the newcomers on the scene. Naturally, they’ll experience some growing pains while learning how to be at the top again.
With that being said, the future of women’s basketball is incredibly bright for USC. The team has gotten a taste of the spotlight and will not want to relinquish that anytime soon.
While the Trojans’ will miss the likes of Forbes, Davis, and graduate guard Kayla Padilla, the program is in great hands with Gottlieb and Watkins.
The Trojans will also be introducing some young star power to their lineup next season — California’s top recruit Kennedy Smith will be joining the Trojans for 2024-25. Smith led her school to the 2023 Open Division State Championship and the Southern Section title in 2022.
“Kennedy has the full package: defensive tenacity, offensive skill, size, athleticism. But what sets her apart further is her competitive drive,” Gottlieb said in a statement. “Kennedy’s decision to stay home will have a lasting impact on our program, and is really significant as we take steps to become a national power in women’s basketball.”
Joining the five-star recruit will be 6-foot forward Avery Howell and guard Kayleigh Heckel. Smith, Howell and Heckel were all named McDonald’s All-Americans, a coveted honor for high school players across the nation.
“Even though we’re going to be so young next year, we’re going to be in a different stratosphere where [winning] is the standard and so that’s going to drive us,” Gottlieb said of the Trojans’ tourney run. “I know that we’ll respond.”
It’s safe to say that the Trojans will be back next year.