Well. After a lovely Saturday night at Pauley Pavilion, where I watched No. 4 USC blow the doors off No. 2 UCLA, I returned home with an interesting task ahead. That, of course, was to respond to Editor in Chief Stefano Fendrich’s latest brilliant, timely take in “The Great Debate” — that he is unconvinced by the Trojans’ chances at taking home a national championship.

After watching the display USC (26-2, 17-1 Big Ten) put on in Westwood, I think it’s safe to say Fendrich has swung and missed once again. I am not sure what the Bruins’ (27-2, 16-2 Big Ten) ranking will be when the new Associated Press Poll comes out, but it’s important to remember that if Head Coach Cori Close’s squad never had to play the Trojans, they would still be the undefeated, No. 1 team in the nation. And USC beat them by double-digits, twice.

When that poll does come out, the Trojans might just claim that No. 1 ranking for themselves — a title USC has not held since January 1984. That honor might still belong to No. 1 Texas (29-2,. 15-1 SEC), but with the gauntlet the Longhorns will face in the upcoming SEC Tournament, Head Coach Lindsay Gottlieb and the Trojans are probably the odds-on favorite to be the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Now, that on its own doesn’t disprove Fendrich’s argument. The Cleveland Cavaliers are well on their way to securing the best record in the NBA this season, and I remain unconvinced that they can win a seven-game series against a number of other contenders. But the Trojans have the depth and pedigree to back it up. They should be a favorite against any team in the nation, and they proved it in their two wins over the Bruins.

Fendrich was unimpressed by USC’s first win over UCLA because it required “an other-worldly, record-breaking performance from sophomore guard JuJu Watkins,” but Saturday night, the Trojan supporting cast showed they also have the ability to hang with the best of the best.

Watkins did drop 30 points, but she’s the best player in the country, and it’s to be expected that she’ll bring her A-game in the biggest matchups. More importantly, when the Bruins were able to limit Watkins’ productivity in the second half, the rest of USC’s rotation came through in a big way.

Whether it was graduate forward Kiki Iriafen dropping 15 second-half points on 7-10 shooting, freshman guard Avery Howell draining back-to-back clutch triples in the fourth quarter or senior center Rayah Marshall setting the tone with her physicality inside, it was a true all-around team victory for the Trojans.

I am sure Gottlieb’s squad is tired of hearing the media act as if USC is a one-woman show.

Iriafen was an AP Preseason All-American and dropped 41 points in an NCAA Tournament game for Stanford last year. Graduate guard Talia von Oelhoffen was named to the All-Pacific-12 team twice at Oregon State. Marshall has All-Pacific-12, Pacific-12 All-Defense and NCAA Tournament All-Region honors to her name. That’s before we even get to freshmen guards Kennedy Smith, Kayleigh Heckel and Howell — all of whom were five-star, top-16 prospects in the 2024 recruiting class.

Acting as if USC can’t win a game against a good team if Watkins has a rough shooting night is a disservice to the roster and the incredible job Gottlieb and her staff have done building it. The Trojans have the most talented squad in the country, and it’s starting to show.

It’s no surprise that a November battle with No. 3 Notre Dame (25-4, 16-2 ACC) was too early for this group to put together a cohesive performance against one of the nation’s best, but the victories over the Bruins displayed the chemistry USC has built, and serve as a statement that the Trojans are ready now.

USC also benefits from the fact that there is no truly dominant behemoth in women’s college basketball this season. Last year, I liked the Trojans’ chances to make a nice run, but knew they had no chance against Head Coach Dawn Staley’s South Carolina, who, of course, finished 38-0 and took home the national championship. If Gottlieb had to worry about last year’s Gamecocks, or say, the 2015-16 UConn squad led by Breanna Stewart, which had four-time WNBA All-Star Napheesa Collier coming off the bench, I’d say Fendrich has a valid argument.

This season, there’s a lot of depth, but no team that scary. No. 6 South Carolina (27-3, 15-1 SEC) lost key players to the WNBA Draft. The Trojans already beat No. 5 UConn (28-3, 18-0 Big East) on the road and Notre Dame just dropped back-to-back games in ACC play. Texas has impressed in a brutally deep SEC but lacks tournament experience and championship pedigree. UCLA, well, we’ve seen how that goes.

The Trojans should fear no team, and I don’t think they do. It is impossible to be “fully confident that [a team is] championship-bound” on March 3, as Fendrich complains he is unable to be about USC, but there is no reason to be anything other than optimistic for what is sure to be a deep run. I can’t guarantee the Trojans will be lifting the trophy in Tampa next month, but I can say that Watkins and co. have a better chance to do so than any other team in the nation.

Henry Mode is a sophomore opposing the takes offered in Editor in Chief Stefano Fendrich’s column “The Great Debate.” Mode’s column, “The Not So Great Debate,” runs every other Monday, and he is a sports editor at the Daily Trojan.