USC vs. UCLA — as it happened
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Bennett Christofferson & Anna Jordan from Galen Center; photos by Luis Ochea
USC falls 73-50 in rivalry rematch
Though Sunday afternoon saw the USC-UCLA women’s basketball rivalry move from Pauley Pavilion to Galen Center, the end result was largely the same: a Bruin blowout. The Trojans fell 73-50 in their final game before the Big Ten Tournament, marking their third-straight loss to end the regular season.
Outside of a brief run in the third quarter, USC looked outmatched from start to finish — particularly on the glass, where UCLA brought in 22 offensive rebounds and 47 overall to the Trojans’ five and 22, respectively. While both squads enjoyed roughly the same efficiency from the field, the Bruins were far more effective from deep, making nine 3-pointers to USC’s three.
Freshman guard Jazzy Davidson struggled on both ends of the court, spending significant time on the bench with foul trouble and ending the day with 12 points on 4-for-13 shooting. Meanwhile, the Trojans held UCLA’s star senior center Lauren Betts quiet all night, limiting her to just 5 points, but the Bruins’ depth proved too difficult to overcome.
While USC shouldn’t drop out of the NCAA Tournament field altogether after the loss, the Trojans will likely need at least one win in the Big Ten Tournament if they want to go dancing.
Further reading:
- USC looks to bounce back from a stunning upset loss to Penn State, in which it led for 86% of the game before falling apart in the fourth quarter.
- Sports editors from the Daily Trojan and Daily Bruin unanimously predicted a UCLA victory in today’s matchup.
- Senior guard Kara Dunn has put herself on the map with a stellar senior season, drawing WNBA Draft buzz.
We’re reporting live from Galen Center. Refresh to see new updates.
5:02 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
An airballed 3-point attempt from Dunn dropped the Trojans to 3-for-18 from deep on the day; the Bruins are 9-for-22.
Dunn and Jones walked off the Galen Center court together, presumably for the final time, to a standing ovation from the crowd.
4:59 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
The once-packed Galen Center has begun to disperse as time winds down in the fourth quarter. Davidson exited the game to applause from the remaining Trojan fans; despite missing much of the first half with foul trouble, she still leads USC with 12 points.
4:55 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
Back-to-back UCLA layups — with a steal in the middle for good measure — have the Bruins up 71-42 with just five minutes to play, as they look to finish the job and lock up an undefeated conference slate in their second Big Ten season.
4:47 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
Kneepkens became the third Bruin to score in the double-digits on a third-chance layup, a moment emblematic of UCLA’s rebounding dominance throughout the game.
She followed it up with the Bruins’ ninth 3-pointer of the day to extend the lead to 66-42, forcing Gottlieb to call her first timeout.
4:41 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
The minority of Galen Center attendees wearing blue are slowly growing louder than those in cardinal, as it becomes more and more apparent that this USC team is simply outmatched. Leger-Walker reached 20 points on the day with a 3-pointer to end the third quarter, bringing the score to 57-36 — UCLA’s largest lead yet.
4:35 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
After Smith was called for an offensive foul — her third foul today — officials reviewed the play and upgraded it to a Flagrant 1, putting a serious dent in the Trojans’ comeback hopes. Rice made both of her subsequent free throws, putting UCLA up 50-33.
4:32 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
Though Betts’ scoring prowess has been limited, with just 4 points on 2-of-7 shooting, she’s up to 10 rebounds, nearly as many as USC’s entire roster. As a team, the Bruins have as many offensive boards — 12 — as the Trojans have on the defensive end.
4:28 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
Though the Bruins seem to find the net every time they put up a shot, they’ve been dealing with heightened turnover troubles in the second half, giving the ball up three times in five minutes to the Trojans’ none.
And yet, it has yet to make much of a difference. After USC seemed to be stealing momentum with its earlier 11-2 run, UCLA regained a bit more of a cushion with two 3-pointers of its own. Halfway through the third quarter, the Bruins lead 46-33.
4:23 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
The Bruins remain unstoppable on the glass, bringing in three offensive boards on the same possession — though one that ultimately ended with a turnover. UCLA has outrebounded USC at a 23-to-14 rate.
4:18 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
It’s not over yet.
The Trojans have opened the second half on an 11-2 run thanks to two 3-pointers from Dunn — who was held scoreless for the entire first half — and a 3-point play from Davidson. UCLA Head Coach Cori Close called a timeout after Dunn’s second trey cut the Bruins’ lead to single digits for the first time since early in the second quarter.
4:07 p.m.
Anna Jordan, Chief Copy Editor
After 8-year-old audience member Ava sunk a 3 in exchange for a shirt, Galen’s audience was the loudest they had been all day. Ava is now shooting 1-for-1 on 3-point attempts.
4:00 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
UCLA dominating through first half
Home-court advantage has done nothing to help USC put up a better fight against the Bruins, who are playing just as well as they did in their 80-46 victory Jan. 3. Heading into halftime, UCLA holds a commanding 38-20 lead, on pace to best its 34-point margin of victory in the previous rivalry matchup.
As a team, the Bruins are shooting 47% — including a 5-for-12 clip from deep — compared to the Trojans’ 35% mark. Gottlieb’s squad committed 10 turnovers in the first half and couldn’t get anything going on the glass, bringing in just two offensive boards to UCLA’s six.
While USC’s defense has been highly effective at limiting the damage done by Betts, who sits at just 4 points on 2-for-5 shooting, the Trojans haven’t seen much from their own star, Davidson, after the freshman guard exited the game early in the second quarter with three fouls. Without her, Smith has been carrying the bulk of the load, leading USC with 7 points on a 3-for-7 mark.
3:55 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
Without Davidson on the court, the Trojans look lifeless on offense, missing shot after shot and turning the ball over nine times. Dunn has played nearly the entire game but remains scoreless on just two shots as we approach the end of the first half.
3:51 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
Through 15 minutes, USC has limited Betts and Rice to just 5 points combined, giving some of the Bruins’ other stars opportunities to shine. Graduate guards Charlisse Leger-Walker and Gianna Kneepkens have scored 8 and 9 points, respectively, and combined for three 3-pointers; USC as a team still has just one.
3:44 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
Davidson is headed to the bench after picking up her third foul just 12 minutes into the game. The Trojans cannot afford to be without their leading scorer if they want any hope of catching up to UCLA, which hit back-to-back treys to extend its lead to 14.
3:39 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
The Trojans shot roughly as well as the Bruins in the first quarter — 44% to 50% — but took half as many shots due to a total lack of presence on the glass. UCLA accumulated 10 rebounds in the quarter to USC’s three.
3:36 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
Though Betts remains scoreless with just one rebound to her name, UCLA is nevertheless dominating from under the basket, racking up five offensive boards — the Trojans have none — and scoring 12 points in the paint.
Sophomore forward Dayana Mendes drained USC’s first 3-pointer to cut the Bruins’ lead to 8 and nearly made another as time expired, but it bounced in and out of the rim. UCLA leads 19-11 at the end of the first quarter.
3:32 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
Davidson brought the Trojan faithful to life with a steal-turned-layup, giving USC just its second bucket of the day, but the fans at Galen Center have had little to cheer about otherwise. The star freshman picked up her second foul after just seven minutes, though she remains on the court.
3:26 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
USC’s defense has a much taller task ahead than simply controlling Betts, as the Bruins are red hot and shooting 6-for-8 to start the game. The Trojans have taken half as many shots and made just one of them.
It only took five minutes for UCLA to extend its lead to double digits — the Bruins are up 14-4.
3:23 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
The Trojans seem to have a clear strategy for dealing with Betts: double-teaming her every time she touches the ball. The Bruins’ star center has been unable to get anything going in the paint.
And yet — there’s more to the team than Betts. UCLA is out to a quick 9-2 lead, looking every bit as dominant as it did two months ago in the rivals’ previous matchup.
3:15 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
Today’s starting lineup for USC:
G Londynn Jones
G Jazzy Davidson
G Kennedy Smith
G Kara Dunn
F Laura Williams
UCLA rolled out the same lineup it has nearly all season, headlined by Betts and senior guard Kiki Rice. Betts, Rice and graduate guard Gianna Kneepkens combined for 47 points in the previous edition of the crosstown rivalry — one more than the Trojans’ entire roster.
3:04 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
Before the starting lineups were announced, senior guards Kara Dunn and Londynn Jones were honored for Senior Day in their final home game. The first-year Trojans have both been critical members of the roster this season, with Dunn in particular emerging as a dynamic scorer and earning WNBA Draft buzz.
2:56 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
For USC to have any chance at pulling off an upset, it needs to figure out how to stop UCLA’s senior center Laura Betts — something the entire Big Ten has struggled with all season. Betts is averaging 16.7 points, 8.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game to go along with a 56.8% shooting clip.
In the rivals’ previous matchup, Betts dominated the Trojans on both ends with a double-double, racking up 18 points and 12 rebounds.
2:50 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
According to ESPN’s Charlie Creme, the Bruins are projected to earn one of the four No. 1 seeds in the rapidly approaching NCAA Tournament, while the Trojans sit at a No. 8 seed. UCLA is seeking to lock down an undefeated Big Ten slate, but USC is fighting for its season; an uncompetitive loss today and a first-round exit in the Big Ten Tournament may knock the Trojans out of the field altogether.
2:45 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
We’re about 15 minutes from tipoff here at Galen Center, where cardinal and blue alike line the seats as a crosstown rivalry rematch awaits.
The scent of defeat still lingers in the air after USC men’s basketball’s loss to No. 12 Nebraska yesterday — Head Coach Lindsay Gottlieb and company are looking to avoid the same fate.
2:30 p.m.
Bennett Christofferson, Sports Editor
USC, UCLA set for crosstown showdown in season finale
Though USC women’s basketball hasn’t enjoyed quite the same amount of success as it did the past few years under Head Coach Lindsay Gottlieb, the Trojans are still in a solid position to earn their fourth-straight NCAA Tournament bid. Only one obstacle stands in their path before the Big Ten Tournament: crosstown rival No. 2 UCLA.
USC (17-11, 9-8 Big Ten) is looking for a much closer outcome than the previous matchup between these squads, in which the Bruins (27-1, 17-0) throttled the Trojans for all 40 minutes of an 80-46 blowout. While USC has struggled heavily against ranked competition, UCLA has put together one of the best seasons in program history, with its only loss coming to No. 4 Texas (27-3, 12-3) back in November.
To pull off a highly improbable upset, the Trojans will need another dominant performance from freshman guard Jazzy Davidson, who has taken her game to another level in recent weeks as she continues to solidify her status as one of the best players in the sport. Davidson has scored more than 20 points in six straight games, highlighted by a career night against No. 13 Ohio State (23-6, 12-5) on Feb. 22, in which she scored 32 points and shot 6-for-9 from deep.
