Head coach Lindsay Gottlieb earned her 100th win at USC tonight (notching a 100-38 record overall), as the No. 16 Trojans (7-2) stayed perfect at home this season with a statement 59-50 victory over No. 21 Washington (8-1) in their Big Ten opener at Galen Center.
“I get goosebumps thinking how grateful I am to be a coach here,” Gottlieb said.
The Trojans had to get aggressive on defense and maximize communication to match Washington’s scrappy energy.
“I thought our defense was elite,” Gottlieb said. “Our effort was there — we made it tough on a team.”
USC and Washington met tonight for the 77th time in series history, with the Trojans taking it home and shifting the all-time record to 40-38.
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Setting Up the Stakes
Coming into tonight, USC held a narrow edge in the rivalry, leading the all-time series 39-38 since their first meeting in 1990. The Trojans have historically been strong at home against the Huskies with a 15-8 record at Galen Center since its opening in 2006. The road portion of the series remains tight at 13-12. USC has also won six of its last seven matchups against Washington.
Holding the No. 16 spot in the AP ranking, the Trojans opened the year with elevated expectations after last season’s breakthrough, when they captured the Big Ten regular season title in their debut year in the conference and climbed through to the Elite Eight. Their 31-4 finish marked the program’s highest winning season since 1986.
USC is navigating this season without junior star guard JuJu Watkins, who is sidelined as she recovers from an ACL injury. Her absence has shifted more playmaking responsibilities onto freshman point guard Jazzy Davidson, who has stepped into a leading role far earlier than expected. Davidson currently leads USC in all five major statistical categories (16.0 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 4.2 apg, 2.4 bpg, 1.9 spg). She recorded her second double-double of the season against the Huskies with 22 points and 12 rebounds.
Sophomore guard Kennedy Smith was a force on both ends for the Trojans, notching 13 points, five rebounds and four assists along with two blocks and two steals.
So far, USC has wins over New Mexico State (2-6), NC State (6-4), Portland (4-5), Tennessee Tech (6-2), Pepperdine (6-2), Saint Mary’s (7-4) and now Washington. The team’s two losses came to No. 3 South Carolina (9-1) and No. 18 Notre Dame (6-2).
The Trojans’ loss to Notre Dame ended on a last-second shot by junior guard Hannah Hidalgo, tying the game at 59 to force overtime, where the Fighting Irish took the win. Against the Gamecocks, USC was eventually overpowered in the second half behind strong play from South Carolina sophomore forward Joyce Edwards.
With tonight’s win over Washington, USC improves to 7-2 this season.
USC continues its challenging nonconference slate next week, hosting No. 1 UConn on Dec. 13 at Galen Center.