USC women’s basketball takes care of business against Oregon

USC women’s basketball (12-1, 2-1 Pac-12) completed the weekend sweep of two Oregon universities to begin the New Year with a 68-54 victory over the Oregon Ducks (9-7, 0-3) on Sunday at Galen Center. In the win, USC tied a season high with 25 assists and committed just six turnovers.

USC freshman guard JuJu Watkins had a team-high 17 points, along with nine rebounds and six assists in 37 minutes. Watkins’ point total was a season low, yet her impact was felt beyond just scoring.

“She’s a winner more than anything else,” head coach Lindsey Gottlieb said. “She can hurt you in a number of ways. And we’re just glad she’s a part of our team, because it’s leading to a lot of winning along with her teammates.”

Oregon sophomore forward Grace VanSlooten had a game-high 18 points, plus six rebounds.

USC junior center Rayah Marshall and graduate guard McKenzie Forbes added 16 points each.

The Trojans came into the game undersized compared to the Ducks — who started 6-foot-8 junior center Phillipina Kyei and 6-foot-7 sophomore forward Kennedy Basham — forcing USC to find different ways of neutralizing the Ducks’ bigs.

At the start of the game, the size was an apparent problem for the Trojans. Marshall had no answer for Kyei, who had eight early points and dominated the paint with her height advantage.

The Ducks had the lead for most of the first quarter, but a three from USC redshirt sophomore guard Taylor Bigby (a transfer from Oregon prior to last season) allowed USC to take a one-point lead into the second quarter.

Gottlieb turned to 6-foot-6 junior center Clarice Akunwafo over Marshall to begin the second quarter, rejuvenating the Trojans’ defense. Akunwafo’s impact was instantly felt, making two blocks in her first three minutes of play.

“I think we just have to figure out the best way for us to be the most effective basketball team we can be,” Gottlieb said. “We have a lot of depth and versatility options.”

The Trojans’ defense held the Ducks to only ten points in the second quarter, closing out the first half with a 30-23 lead.

The third quarter became a back-and-forth between both offenses as Oregon regained a presence in the paint, outscoring the Trojans 10 to four in the area. However, USC still ended the quarter with a six-point lead.

The Trojans broke away in the fourth quarter with significant scoring contributions from Marshall in the post and Forbes’ shooting, closing the game with a double-digit win at home.

After slow starts, Marshall and Forbes found their rhythm, with both of them scoring double digits in the second half, and offering another option on offense beyond Watkins. Marshall came alive in the paint, providing her strong rebounding ability; she grabbed six of her nine rebounds in the second half.

“I am proud of my teammate Clarice. When I came into the locker room for halftime, she told me to play better defense,” Marshall said. “I did that when I came out, made that [defensive] adjustment. I was like, wow.”

USC is back in action next Sunday in a rematch versus the No. 2 UCLA Bruins (14-0, 3-0) at 2 p.m. at Galen Center. The Trojans suffered their first-season loss against the Bruins just a week ago.

“The game plan doesn’t change: box the heck out, go be the tougher team, and try to keep them off the boards. That’s what we have to do,” Gottlieb said ahead of the rematch. “There’s no way to beat UCLA unless you’re willing to do the dirty work on the boards.”