When USC and Connecticut met in the Elite Eight, in the immediate wake of JuJu Watkins’ devastating knee injury last March, it didn’t take long to see how much USC missed its superstar. As hard as the Trojans fought, the Huskies were simply too much to handle without Watkins.
That thought, nine months later, hadn’t been given much serious credence at USC through a solid 7-2 start. At least, not until Saturday, when the top-ranked Huskies offered a rude reminder by totally trouncing the 16th-ranked Trojans, 79-51, in their home arena, where they had yet to lose this season.
Connecticut, though, had yet to lose a game since early last February. Coming into Saturday, it had won its nine games by an average of 39 points, dominating wherever it went.
It took all of a few minutes Saturday to see a similar beatdown was in store. When it finally was over, less than two hours later, USC had been outmatched in almost every category. The Huskies shot 18% better from the field. They outrebounded USC, 41-33. They forced more turnovers, 20 to 13, and piled up 25 assists to the Trojans’ 11.
Watkins, who is sitting out this entire season, could only watch from the end of the bench as the star freshman who stepped up in her absence struggled Saturday. Jazzy Davidson had been nothing short of terrific over the last month as she settled into her new role as the Trojans’ undisputed top weapon.
But the freshman looked anything but settled Saturday, as Connecticut blanketed her early and often. Davidson missed her first five shots and managed to make only three of 13 overall, scoring 10 points, her lowest output since USC’s loss to South Carolina.
By the time Davidson had hit her first jumper of the afternoon, early in the second quarter, the Trojans had already dug a 12-point hole. By the time USC scored another bucket, the Connecticut lead had ballooned to 19.
It was up to 22 as Davidson searched for a final shot in the waning seconds of the first half. When she finally lifted up for a floater, Connecticut forward Serah Williams was waiting. She swatted the shot back into the freshman’s face.
Davidson fell to the court as the buzzer sounded. It would prove to be a fitting image from an afternoon to forget for USC.
It was ugly from the start. Connecticut harassed USC with full-court pressure, forcing turnovers at the Trojans’ own end. When they did make it across half court, the Huskies swarmed the perimeter, leaving USC without many open shots.
The Trojans managed to hold tight with the defending champions for a little while. They led 9-8 at the 5:14 mark of the first quarter. But then Connecticut’s defense ratched up. The shots stop falling. The Huskies went on a 15-0 run to end the first quarter, as USC failed to score for five minutes.
Davidson made a jumper early in the second to put a stop to the slump, only for the Trojans’ offense to go cold again. Connecticut held USC scoreless for six more minutes after that as it ripped off another run, extending its lead to 22 at halftime.
Any hope of a miracle comeback was extinguished mere minutes after halftime, as Connecticut once again mounted a run. It was almost five minutes into the third quarter before Londynn Jones finally made the Trojans’ first shot of the half.
By then, there was no more suspense of where Saturday was heading.
