Graduate forward Kiki Iriafen scored a season-high 36 points and freshman guard Avery Howell added 18 as USC took down Mississippi State 96-59 in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
Despite advancing to the Sweet 16, the win was bittersweet as the Trojans faced a significant setback when star sophomore guard JuJu Watkins left the game early with a serious injury, ultimately ending her season.
“We just wanted to keep dancing, so whatever it takes is what I wanted to do, what my teammates wanted to do,” Iriafen said postgame on the ESPN broadcast. “I think it just shows our toughness. I loved how we played today, we were super aggressive. I think that helped us win this game today.
“We’re not losing. We’re not losing at Galen. We’re getting to Spokane. It’s my senior year and I didn’t want it to end today.”
Mississippi State’s sluggish start put USC firmly in control early. The Bulldogs committed two turnovers and missed their first three shot attempts, giving the Trojans a 9-0 lead. Graduate guard Talia von Oelhoffen and freshman guard Kennedy Smith sparked USC’s fast start, each knocking down a 3-pointer to set the tone.
But, after the Trojans had secured a 13-2 lead, disaster struck. Watkins drove to the basket on a fast break, collided with two Mississippi State defenders and immediately clutched her right knee as she fell to the floor. USC training staff carried the Big Ten Player of the Year to the locker room.
An hour after the game, USC women’s basketball released a statement: the injury is season-ending, Watkins will require surgery.
The star sophomore leads USC in scoring, averaging 24.6 points per game.
USC head coach Lindsay Gottlieb expressed immense pride in her team’s ability to stay composed and execute in the wake of Watkins’ injury.
“I’m feeling a lot of emotions, but the biggest one is pride,” Gottlieb said postgame. “Something didn’t go right for us… but this team rallied for [Watkins], they rallied for each other. … We showed what kind of team we are.”
After Watkins’ injury, the team needed to display physical and mental toughness to avoid retaliation against Mississippi State.
“As the game got chippier, all we needed to do was stay being us,” Gottlieb said. “We weren’t extra, we were just us. … I just kept saying to [the leaders on the court], ‘Hey, the more extra they get, the more clean we need to be.”
Fans played a crucial role, acting as the sixth man. A loud ovation of boos echoed throughout the Galen Center whenever Mississippi State retained possession, providing all the fuel for the Trojans to turn up their tenacity.
“It just shows how ride or die our fans are, and we really appreciate them,” Iriafen said. “I wish we could take them to Spokane and everywhere else with us.”
Howell stepped in to shoot two free throws for Watkins following her departure from the game. Howell knocked both and finished the night with18 points, tying her career high. She shot 5-for-10 from the floor and hit four 3-pointers on nine attempts.
The freshmen contributions were notable, particularly guard Kayleigh Heckel’s aggressive play and Howell’s climactic performance from 3-point range.
“I think we have a pretty big role this year, which coach has let us have,” Howell said. “We’re prepared for most moments because of the time we’re given in games and how hard we work in practice.”
The crowd kept rocking after multiple hustle efforts from Heckel. She forced a deflection off an inbound, went for a loose ball coming out with the possession and drew a foul against the Bulldogs. Heckel took a trip to the foul line and sank both free throws, making it 25-6 for the Trojans.
Sharing the basketball was another major key to victory. As a team, USC combined for 29 assists on 35 made field goals with von Oelhoffen, Heckel and Howell each recording six dimes.
USC senior center Rayah Marshall lit up on defense with a deflection-turned-steal, then made a deep pass across center court to Smith, who banked a fadeaway jumper.
The Bulldogs trimmed a 24-point deficit to 15, but USC kept its foot on the gas and did not let up. Marshall closed out the half by knocking down a 3-pointer at the buzzer to take a 50-27 lead. It was Marshall’s third 3-pointer of the season.
Iriafen was too much for the Bulldogs to handle over the first two quarters, as she scored 15 points on 7-for-11 shooting while Smith and Howell each added 10 points in the half.
USC’s bench played a crucial role in keeping the intensity high. The Trojans hit shots within the final 10 seconds of three consecutive quarters.
“Everyone on our team plays a huge role, our bench especially,” Howell said. “We always have a lot of bench energy, which affects us, our energy on the floor.”
Mississippi State — known for its physicality — attempted to impose its will, but USC refused to be outmatched.
“Our team came in with a mindset that we’re not going to get punked by anyone,” Howell said. “We were ready for whatever they threw at us in any form.”
Iriafen’s offensive efforts radiated in the second half by adding 21 points. With over seven minutes left to go in the third, Iriafen received a pass from von Oelhoffen, drove to the basket and got the finish at the rim to start a 10-0 run. She finished with a season-high 36 points, shooting 16-for-22 from the floor with nine rebounds and two assists.
Mississippi State couldn’t handle the Trojans’ intense defense, which was up a notch in response to losing Watkins.
Graduate guard Jerkaila Jordan wouldn’t go quietly, hitting Mississippi State’s first 3-pointer during the third quarter. Jordan, the Bulldogs’ leading scorer on the season, finished with a team-high 17 points on 6-for-24 shooting from the floor.
Graduate guard Eniya Russell had 11 points and three rebounds for the Bulldogs. Redshirt junior guard Destiney McPhaul added 10 points, three rebounds and three assists.
USC was up 34 points in the third and the fans loved every moment of it, getting on their feet and roaring, with Iriafen throwing her hands up in the air for more cheers from the stands.
Marshall carried on her defensive fierceness, recording four blocks in the game to mark 303 for her career. She joins Cheryl Miller and Lisa Leslie as the only players in USC history to achieve the mark.
A standing ovation erupted in the arena as the crowd chanted for Marshall when she exited late in the contest. She finished with 12 points, nine rebounds, four blocks, three assists and two steals for the Trojans.
The momentum did not stop as Heckel closed out the third quarter doing what she does best, providing relentless energy and key stops. She drove past her defenders and straight to the rim for the finish in the final seconds on the clock. Heckel finished the game in double figures with 13 points, hitting five shots from the floor on seven attempts.
Despite the emotional toll of injuries, the team rallied, showcasing its teamwork and the impact of fans’ support.
Gottlieb said there’s a narrative about West Coast teams not being up to the task of facing SEC toughness, and the Trojans wanted to show they could do just that.
“We know that we’ve got no punks in our locker room, that we have a team that’s going to step up,” Gottlieb said.
The game continued to be chippy after sophomore guard Malia Samuels went down after a rough play from Mississippi State.
“I’d be lying if I told you that I wasn’t rattled,” Gottlieb said. “This is a human game and I obviously tried my best to be what I need to be for the team, but internally it’s a lot.”
Gottlieb also wanted to remind the officials throughout the game because of the chippiness that “if there’s 50 fouls happening, then you call 50 fouls.”
Iriafen reinforced that the Trojans’ mindset was always on winning and moving forward.
“We want our season to be extended,” Iriafen said. “That’s the standard here — we expect to win.”
Despite losing the team’s best player, the Trojans still came away with the 37-point win in an NCAA tournament game.
“I don’t think I’ll forget this night for a lot of reasons,” Gottlieb said. “We felt like a tidal wave tonight.”
USC advances to its second straight trip to the Sweet Sixteen and will face No. 5-seeded Kansas State on Saturday.