A previous version of his article incorrectly identified Simeon Waller as Sammie Arnold and incorrectly identified Sammie Arnold as Emma Becerra. The article was updated at 10:41 a.m. on March 6 to correct the names. Annenberg Media regrets the error.
Rivalry week is one of the most exciting events to ever grace the world of sports.
As game day approached in Southern California, USC’s campus buzzed with anticipation. For students choosing their outfits this week, the only answer is cardinal and gold. Football season is often the main character of rivalry week when it comes to college sports. This time, however, women’s basketball is the center of the conversation, with a top-five rematch between the No. 2 UCLA Bruins (27-1, 16-1) and No. 4 USC Trojans (25-2, 16-1) coming in less than an hour.
The two powerhouse programs will open Women’s History Month as one of the weekend’s first women’s basketball matchups. What makes this matchup such great cinema are its storyline and characters (an ode to Hollywood’s most significant awards show, the Oscars, happening this weekend). Saturday night’s game in Westwood will be a box office event, with 2024-25 Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year JuJu Watkins and the Trojans going head-to-head against Big Ten Co-Player of the Week Lauren Betts and the Bruins.
The Spirit of Troy took over campus Thursday with a mini basketball theme park of activities. Students participated in activities like the two-Player Hoop Basketball Arcade Game, shooting their shots into large trash cans painted with cardinal and gold colors.
The main attraction was the Hoop Bus, styled with sophomore guard Watkins’ face. It featured a basketball hoop with the USC logo in front of the bus wrapped in cardinal and gold with the Nike symbol. It was USC’s first-ever activation event with the Hoop Bus, hosted by Nike LA to celebrate Watkins and the game of women’s basketball ahead of the marquee matchup between the Trojans and Bruins.
Hoop Bus is a non-profit that aims to connect communities through basketball; the activation is a traveling bus that doubles as a basketball court. Students popped out to score buckets in a knockout game, along with a two-on-two pickup game. Dozens of Trojans shot their shot at winning prizes like an exclusive Nike JuJu Watkins T-shirt, a USC Nike towel, a Watkins Nike campaign poster and the chance to win tickets to the sold-out game.
Simeon Waller, a business administration major, joined a pickup basketball game. He displayed a competitive spirit, possibly influenced by the coveted tickets on the line. After dropping the first pickup game, Waller, who played basketball in high school, returned for a rematch. This time, he was victorious and got the grand prize of winning tickets to the USC-UCLA women’s basketball game.
“After losing the first one, I was like, ‘I gotta go get this one,’” Waller said. “I’m an ultimate competitor; no matter what I do, I want to win. I hate losing, and with the chance of seeing one of the biggest games with USC and UCLA, I wanted to give it my all.”
Waller is a spring transfer. This will be the first game he attends this season, adding a new perspective to the conversation about the game being a must-see event.
Film major Sammie Arnold was taking a stroll around campus after class when she noticed the pop-up event. The Poly Palisades Charter High School graduate previously played shooting guard for the girls’ basketball team.
“I came over, and they said they were doing twos,” Arnold said. “I played all four years in high school. I was like, “I might have to come get some work in.”
Arnold showed off her skills, passing through her defender and making one of three shots to win the set. She also tried her luck to win tickets to the game by playing knockout. While Arnold came up short, she still had a great time around the game she grew up playing.
When asked how she feels about the attention women’s basketball is having and how Arnold gets to witness her school USC be in the mix of hanging with the top five teams in the country, Arnold lit up with enthusiasm, saying “My God, it’s electric.”
“Honestly, growing up and being a girl’s’ basketball player, you’re used to hearing all this stuff [like], ‘Oh, get back in the kitchen,’” Arnold said. “‘You guys can’t play basketball,’ all this and all that. To have JuJu and [graduate forward Kiki Iriafen] out here representing and to be at a school where the women’s team is in the top four in the country… Growing up, I always dreamed of playing at UConn or Stanford, and to have us be in those conversations right now is really incredible.”
The atmosphere around women’s college basketball reached a fever pitch as fans prepare to witness an intense showdown that will make history for USC to claim the Big Ten regular-season championship in the Trojans’ first season in the conference. As March arrives, it’s a woman’s world after all.
Earlier on Thursday, Watkins spoke to the media after practice. With the Trojans heading into their final regular-season game, the chance to play for a Big Ten conference title is on the line.
“We’re trying to make it feel like football,” Watkins said. “They do all the statue stuff. That’s my goal here: to make it feel like a big, big thing.”
The last meeting between the Trojans and Bruins was a sold-out, electric event. The team aims to make women’s basketball games a significant event on campus.
“I definitely do feel the energy. I think we always get packed out student sections when we play [at Galen Center]. Hopefully, some of our students get to go there too,” Watkins said.
Senior center Rayah Marshall discussed the campus spirit and the competitive nature of the rivalry, mentioning the excitement and support from the student body and athletes.
“Oh my gosh, it’s awesome. It’s so much fun. We don’t wear blue during rivalry week,” Marshall said. “On campus, all the athletes, we go into our athlete dining hall, how they’re wishing us good luck, ‘go get the Bruins.’ I have a couple of friends at UCLA, and we just talk a little smack here and there, but it’ll be a showdown come Saturday.”
These student-athletes are writing a piece of history as Women’s History Month arrives.
“I think every month should be women’s month,” Marshall said. “Games like this, we get the opportunity; we’re [playing] March 1, and we’re one of the first games of the month. You never know. March is madness. We get a chance to go and beat a team that is ranked above us at their place, undefeated at their house, for the Big Ten conference championship. We’re just embracing it all. We’re working for it. It’s not going to be easy.”
Women’s basketball continues to grow in Los Angeles, with the likes of Watkins, Iriafen, and UCLA’s junior guard Kiki Rice and junior center Lauren Betts joining the two programs. These rivalries are sweeter because the athletes who grew up in California have a connection to the schools.
Dr. Nickey Woods played for the UCLA women’s basketball team. She’s also USC’s Associate Dean for Student Life, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging and the Dean of Students for the Juris Doctor (JD) Program.
“With any sports matchups between USC and UCLA, it’s always been a rivalry. As long as I can remember, these two teams are going at it,” Woods said.
Growing up with this intense rivalry embedded in her, Woods experienced its intensity firsthand when she played for UCLA in the mid-90s.
“This was a big deal, but that’s how we were all brought up. Especially if you grew up in this area, you understood the magnitude of the matchups between USC and UCLA, regardless of sport,” Woods said.
However, Woods believes the stakes have evolved. The rivalry between these two powerhouse teams now holds even greater significance as women’s sports continue to grow in popularity.
“Women’s basketball and just women’s basketball fandom has increased dramatically in the past five years,” Woods said. “Both of these teams are good right now within the context of the growth of women’s sports. It’s a special moment for sure.”
With every dribble, cheer and “Fight On” chant, the Trojans and their fans hope to invade Westwood decked in cardinal and gold.