JuJu Watkins scores 32 in debut to lead No. 21 USC women past No. 7 Ohio State
The highly recruited freshman from Sierra Canyon High finishes 11 for 18 from the field with six rebounds and five assists in an 83-74 win in the season opener in Las Vegas. Rayah Marshall has 18 points and 17 rebounds.
USC freshman JuJu Watkins, left, drives against Ohio State’s Diana Collins during the second half of their season opener on Monday night at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Watkins had 32 points in her debut as the No. 21 Trojans defeated the seventh-ranked Buckeyes, 83-74. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
USC’s JuJu Watkins, left, and Kayla Padilla celebrate after Watkins scored and drew a foul against the Ohio State Buckeyes in the second half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Trojans defeated the Buckeyes 83-74. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)u12
USC’s Kayla Padilla is guarded by Celeste Taylor of the Ohio State Buckeyes in the first half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Rayah Marshall #13 and Kayla Padilla #45 of the USC Trojans react after Marshall scored off of an Ohio State Buckeyes turnover in the first half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
USC’s JuJu Watkins is fouled as she shoots by Rebeka Mikulasikova of the Ohio State Buckeyes in the second half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Trojans defeated the Buckeyes 83-74. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Celeste Taylor of the Ohio State Buckeyes brings the ball up the court ahead of Taylor Bigby of the USC Trojans in the first half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Jacy Sheldon #4, Cotie McMahon #32 and Taylor Thierry #2 of the Ohio State Buckeyes try to trap Kaitlyn Davis #24 of the USC Trojans in the first half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb gestures in the first half of a game against the Ohio State Buckeyes during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Trojans defeated the Buckeyes 83-74. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Rayah Marshall #13 and Kayla Padilla #45 of the USC Trojans react after Marshall scored off of an Ohio State Buckeyes turnover in the first half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
USC’s Rayah Marshall shoots against Cotie McMahon of the Ohio State Buckeyes in the second half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Trojans defeated the Buckeyes 83-74. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
USC freshman JuJu Watkins, left, drives against Ohio State’s Diana Collins during the second half of their season opener on Monday night at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Watkins had 32 points in her debut as the No. 21 Trojans defeated the seventh-ranked Buckeyes, 83-74. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
USC’s McKenzie Forbes drives against Celeste Taylor of the Ohio State Buckeyes in the second half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Trojans defeated the Buckeyes 83-74. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Celeste Taylor of the Ohio State Buckeyes drives to the basket against USC’s Clarice Akunwafo during the first half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Trojans defeated the Buckeyes 83-74. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
USC’s Kayla Padilla drives against Diana Collins of the Ohio State Buckeyes in the second half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Trojans defeated the Buckeyes 83-74. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Jacy Sheldon #4 of the Ohio State Buckeyes drives against Kayla Padilla #45 of the USC Trojans in the first half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff, center, reacts after a foul was called against the Buckeyes in the second half of their game against USC during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Trojans defeated the Buckeyes 83-74. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
USC’s Kayla Padilla, left, and Rayah Marshall react after Marshall scored off of an Ohio State Buckeyes turnover in the first half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Trojans defeated the Buckeyes 83-74. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
USC’s JuJu Watkins, left, and Kayla Padilla celebrate after Watkins scored and drew a foul against the Ohio State Buckeyes in the second half of their game during the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena on November 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Trojans defeated the Buckeyes 83-74. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)u12
LAS VEGAS — The JuJu Watkins Era got off to a roaring start.
The former Sierra Canyon High star scored 32 points in her college debut, lifting the No. 21 USC women’s basketball team to an 83-74 victory over No. 7 Ohio State on Monday in the season opener for both teams.
“I’m lost for words right now. I’m still kind of processing everything,” Watkins said. “Whenever we get the chance to compete against a top-10 team, any team really, we’re ready, we prep the right way, we do what we need to do, and we get out on the court and we show the world what we can do.”
Watkins, perhaps the highest-regarded incoming freshman in the country, finished 11 for 18 from the floor with six rebounds and five assists.
Watkins made her first college bucket a little more than a minute in and went on to score 16 points in the first half.
Rayah Marshall had 18 points and 17 rebounds for the Trojans while McKenzie Forbes scored 11 points.
“They’re just really consistent people. They’re consistent players,” USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb said. “They don’t get easily rattled.”
Jacy Sheldon led the Buckeyes with 28 points on 10-of-19 shooting, and Taylor Thierry scored 16.
After seeing their 19-point lead disappear when Ohio State outscored them 30-10 in the third quarter, the Trojans opened the fourth on a 13-4 run to seize control.
USC shot 12 for 18 in the second quarter and finished the first half shooting 18 for 35, including 4 for 11 from 3-point range.
After shooting 35.2% from the floor in the first quarter, the Buckeyes were 2 of 10 in the second quarter.
Marshall didn’t make it easy on the Buckeyes, as she had four steals in the second and converted two of them into breakaway buckets. The Trojans finished with 10 points off turnovers in the first half and outscored Ohio State 26-6 in the paint. USC also dominated the Buckeyes on the boards, outrebounding them 27-11.
“We didn’t come out with energy like we normally do and ready to go, and they did,” Sheldon said.
Las Vegas’ Aaliyah Gayles, who was shot more than a dozen times in April 2022, dressed for USC but did not play.
BIG PICTURE
USC: The Trojans’ Ivy League transfer trio of Forbes (Harvard), Kayla Padilla (Penn) and Kaitlyn Davis (Columbia) made their presence felt in their USC debuts, too, combining for 23 points on 6-of-19 shooting.
Ohio State: The Buckeyes averaged 35.3 rebounds per game last season and ranked 251st in the nation with a -2.2 rebounding margin. Monday they were outrebounded 43-28 by the Trojans.
