JuJu Watkins continues to etch herself into the history books.

She and her Trojans are off to the Elite Eight.

USC women’s basketball (29-5, 13-5 Pac-12) rode a strong fourth quarter from the star freshman guard to take down the Baylor Bears (26-8, 12-6 Big 12) 74-70 at Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.

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Watkins did her damage in the clutch, as all of her 9 fourth-quarter points came with less than four minutes left in the game as part of a 30-point performance. The freshman — in her first NCAA Tournament — shot from the charity stripe seven times in the final quarter and did what legends do: knocked down every single one.

Even though Watkins was the leader, USC could not have won without her counterparts. Junior center Rayah Marshall brought down 16 rebounds as part of an 11-point double-double, while graduate guard McKenzie Forbes continued her hot stretch with 14 points.

The game did not start as the Trojans would have liked, with the Bears building an early 5-point lead. Baylor was on top for more than six minutes in the opening period, holding a lead as late as 1:41 left in the first quarter. Playing from behind has been unfamiliar territory from USC as of late, as the Trojans trailed for a combined 22 seconds between their first two NCAA Tournament games.

USC finally found its groove as it took a 2-point lead into the second quarter, a lead it would hold onto for more than a quarter and a half. In the middle of the frame, the Trojans built a double-digit lead after an 8-point run. It was a rough-and-tumble affair in the second frame, as Watkins had 5 of her 7 points in the period at the free-throw line.

But the ebbs and flows of basketball are unforgiving beasts: The Bears built momentum of their own to close out the half, going on a 7-0 run in under a minute to close the gap and limiting the Trojans’ halftime lead to 6 points.

The Bears carried their strong close to the half into the third period, slowly chipping away at USC’s lead. There were three different lead changes in the penultimate frame, but Baylor’s 64.7% shooting from the field in the period helped the Bears take a 57-53 lead into the final quarter.

The close affair continued throughout the fourth quarter, as the largest lead for either team was 5 points. USC’s staunch defense held Baylor to a meager shooting line of 5-for-19, but the Trojans weren’t able to put up much offense themselves. 

While USC was 5-for-11 from the field in the final period, it had only one offensive rebound compared to Baylor’s three. 

But March is where stars shine the brightest, and that is exactly what Watkins did.

The Trojans finally gained the lead for good after the phenom freshman secured a defensive rebound, drew a foul in transition but still finished at the rim. The and-1 with just over three minutes left fired up the fans wearing Cardinal and Gold, as USC fans behind the Trojan bench remained on their feet for the rest of the game with an Elite Eight berth on the horizon. 

Even though the Bears would close it to a 1-point game with 23 seconds left, Watkins put her final signature on the game and sunk two free throws to ink the win in the record books.

USC now awaits the winner of Duke University versus the University of Connecticut. The Trojans will play the victor at Moda Center on Monday, with tipoff time yet to be released at time of publication.