No. 4 Stanford vs No. 15 USC | Pac-12 | 2.2.24

STANFORD, CALIF. — https://linktr.ee/womensbasketballall...

Freshman JuJu Watkins was a force of nature. Her 25 first-half points had the No. 15 USC women's basketball team even with host No. 4 Stanford. And 26 more in the second half not only secured USC's first road win over the Cardinal since 2001, it cemented Watkins with the most points ever scored in a game by a Trojan. Her 51-point outing paired with 11 rebounds for the Trojans, who topped Stanford 67-58 tonight at Maples Pavilion. USC improves to 15-4 overall and to 5-4 in Pac-12 play with the upset — the Trojans' third win over a top-10 opponent this season — while Stanford goes to 19-3, 8-2 in receiving a rare home loss at the hands of the Trojans.

The lead changed five times in the first half while USC's JuJu Watkins was the driving force for the Trojans en route to a 31-31 scoreline at halftime. Watkins had delivered 25 of USC's first-half 31 points, with the Trojans shooting 34.3 percent overall in those first 20 minutes. Stanford, meanwhile, was hitting at a 35.3 percent clip, and was up on the boards 24-18 thanks in large part to Cameron Brink's 10 first-half rebounds for the Cardinal. Watkins kept coming in the second half, draining bucket after bucket and free throw after free throw in spite of the fact that USC had three players foul out by the four-minute mark of the fourth. Big shots from McKenzie Forbes also helped USC fend off the Cardinal's comeback efforts, as she'd join Watkins in double digits with 12 on the night. USC finished out the game shooting 32.8 percent overall to edge out Stanford's 31.6 percent effort, with the Trojans and Cardinal ending up even on the boards 39-39.

In addition to her double-double on 51 points and 11 rebounds, Watkins had four steals and two assists. Forbes scored 10 of her final 12 points in the second half for the Trojans. Stanford was led by Brink's 19 points and 15 rebounds, with Kiki Iriafen adding 16 points and Hannah Jump had 10 for the Cardinal.

While the foul count tipped against the Trojans, the Cardinal made a 7-0 run to lead it 13-7 before JuJu Watkins went to the line to knock down a pair and snap the run. She and Rayah Marshall both had been dealt a pair of fouls but then, but that didn't stop Watkins from knocking down a jumper and a 3-pointer to get USC within four at 18-14 by the close of the first. Watkins kept chugging, scoring seven straight all her own to open the second — having accounted for all but two of USC's points — to get the Trojans on top 21-18 at 8:25. Stanford would find its footing next, though, striking off on another 7-0 rally into the lead. That surge came to a stop at the hands of McKenzie Forbes to get it to a two-point game at 25-23 with 6:10 on the clock. Three minutes later, Clarice Akunwafo converted in the paint, and Watkins would net the equalizer to knot it at 31-31 two minutes before halftime. A stalemate ensued, although the whistle would blow three USC fouls in a 30-second span, and it remained a 31-31 snarl at the break.

Watkins kicked off the second half with a 3-pointer to lift USC into the lead, and the Trojans would stay out ahead the rest of that stretch. Watkins would work her way to 40 points with three free throws at 4:15 to make it a 10-point USC lead at 4:15. McKenzie Forbes contributed her second 3-pointer of the frame later for another USC boost, and the Trojans were up 52-42 entering the fourth. Within a six-minute span, USC had three players foul out — Rayah Marshall was dealt her fifth in the final second of the third, and then by the 4-minute mark of the fourth both Akunwafo and Kaitlyn Davis had joined her on the bench with five fouls apiece. Stanford got it to a two-point margin with yet another visit to the line with 2:18 to go, only to see USC score the next nine points after a buzzer-beating bucket from Forbes made it 60-56 at 1:45. Forbes served up a block on the defensive end with 21 seconds left, and Watkins hit four straight free throws to work her way to her record-breaking night and set her Trojans up for the big road win.

NEXT:
USC heads to Berkeley next to square off against California in a 12 p.m. Pac-12 clash on Sunday (Feb. 4) at Haas Pavilion.

NOTABLE:
- With her 51 points tonight, Watkins set the USC record for most points scored by a Trojan in a game, beating Cherie Nelson's previous record of 50 score vs. Cal on March 11, 1989.
- Watkins has now tallied seven games this season with 30 or more points — the most such outings by a Trojan win Nelson had eight as a senior in 1988-89.