2023–24 USC Trojans women's basketball | |
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Conference | Pac-12 Conference |
Ranking | |
Coaches | No. 6 |
AP | No. 9 |
Record | 13–1 (3–1 Pac-12) |
Head coach |
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Assistant coaches |
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Home arena | Galen Center |
Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 5 Colorado | 5 | – | 0 | 1.000 | 15 | – | 1 | .938 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 8 Stanford | 4 | – | 1 | .800 | 15 | – | 2 | .882 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 2 UCLA | 3 | – | 1 | .750 | 14 | – | 1 | .933 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 9 USC | 3 | – | 1 | .750 | 13 | – | 1 | .929 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Oregon State | 3 | – | 2 | .600 | 14 | – | 2 | .875 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
California | 2 | – | 3 | .400 | 12 | – | 5 | .706 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 19 Utah | 2 | – | 3 | .400 | 12 | – | 5 | .706 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Oregon | 2 | – | 3 | .400 | 11 | – | 7 | .611 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arizona | 2 | – | 3 | .400 | 10 | – | 7 | .588 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Washington | 1 | – | 3 | .250 | 11 | – | 4 | .733 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Washington State | 1 | – | 3 | .250 | 12 | – | 5 | .706 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arizona State | 0 | – | 5 | .000 | 8 | – | 9 | .471 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
† 2024 Pac-12 tournament winner As of January 14, 2024 Rankings from AP Poll |
The 2023–24 USC Trojans women's basketball team represents the University of Southern California during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Trojans play their home games at the Galen Center and are members of the Pac-12 Conference. This is the last year the team will play in the Pac-12 as they are slated to join the Big Ten Conference. The squad is led by third-year head coach Lindsay Gottlieb.
USC started off ranked No. 21 in the preseason rankings in both the AP and Coaches Polls. The team was picked to finished 6th by the last-ever Pac-12 coaches poll.
Previous season
The Women of Troy finished the regular Pac-12 season tied for 4th with UCLA and Arizona. Because both of those teams held tiebreakers over USC, the Trojans earned the 6th seed in the 2023 Pac-12 Conference women's basketball tournament.
The squad earned its first bid for the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament since 2014.[1] and its first at-large bid since 2006. Holding an 8-seed in the 2023 NCAA tournament, the Women of Troy fell in overtime in the first round to 9-seeded South Dakota State, 57-62.
Last year's team spent much of the season receiving votes in both polls and made the top 25 once in the AP Poll. In the last AP Poll, they received 3 votes while they no longer received any votes in the final two coaches' polls.[2]
Offseason changes
The Women of Troy will bring in 2 first-years out of high school, 1 transfer student, and 4 graduate students. 1 student who red-shirted last year is also expected to play this coming season. 6 players from the previous year graduated while 1 transferred and 1 retired.
Regarding coaching staff, Women of Troy alumna Courtney Jaco, who previously served as Director of Player Development and who as a player won the 2014 Pac-12 tournament to qualify for the NCAA tournament, was promoted to Assistant Coach.[3] Wilnett Crockett also joined the coaching staff as an Assistant Coach and Recruiting Coordinator. Meanwhile, Nneka Enemkpali joined the Rutgers coaching staff during the off-season.[4]
Departures
Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Reason for Departure |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Koi Love | 0 | F | 6'0" | Junior | Orlando, FL | Retired |
Destiny Littleton | 11 | G | 5'9" | Graduate Student | San Diego, CA | Graduated |
Bella Perkins | 12 | F | 5'9" | Sophomore | Fairfax, VA | Transferred to Pittsburgh |
Madison Campbell | 23 | G | 5'11" | RS Junior | Fresno, CA | Retired for Medical Reasons |
Okako Adika | 24 | G/F | 6'0" | Graduate Student | Holstebro, DK | Graduated |
Alyson Miura | 25 | G | 5'9" | Senior | Clackamas, OR | Graduated |
Kadi Sissoko | 30 | F | 6'2" | Graduate Student | Paris, FR | Graduated |
Rokia Doumbia | 52 | G | 5'9" | Graduate Student | Bamako, ML | Graduated |
Incoming transfers
Name | Num | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
McKenzie Forbes[5] | 0 | W | 6'0" | Graduate Transfer | Folsom, CA | Harvard |
Dominique Onu[6] | 23 | G | 5'9" | Junior | Los Angeles, CA | UCLA |
Kaitlyn Davis[7] | 24 | G/F | 6'0" | Graduate Transfer | Norwalk, CT | Columbia |
Roxane Makolo | 24 | G | 5'10" | Graduate Transfer | Saint-Hubert, QC, CA | Purdue |
Kayla Padilla[8] | 45 | G | 5'9" | Graduate Transfer | Torrance, CA | Penn |
2023 recruiting class
Source:[9]
Name | Overall Rank | Position | Position Rank | Hometown | High School | Height | ESPN Stars | ESPN Grade |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Juju Watkins | 1 | PG/SG | 1 | Los Angeles, CA | Sierra Canyon | 6'0" | 5 | 98 |
Malia Samuels | - | G | - | Seattle, WA | Garfield HS | 5'6" | 4 | 94 |
The Women of Troy bring in the tenth-ranked recruiting class in the country.[10] The incoming squad features top-ranked high school recruit Juju Watkins and 49th-ranked Malia Samuels.[11] Redshirt first-year Aaliyah Gayles is also expected to play after having sat out the previous season due to injury.[12] Gayles, ranked No. 8 in the country for the class of 2022, was recruited by previous head coach Mark Trakh[13]
Roster
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Roster |
Schedule
Date time, TV |
Rank# | Opponent# | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site city, state | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Non-conference regular season | |||||||||||
November 6, 2023* 11:00 a.m., TruTV |
No. 21 | vs. No. 7 Ohio State Hall of Fame Series Las Vegas |
W 83–74 | 1–0 |
32 – Watkins | 17 – Marshall | 5 – Watkins | T-Mobile Arena Paradise, NV | |||
November 10, 2023* 7:00 p.m. |
No. 21 | Florida Gulf Coast | W 67–51 | 2–0 |
18 – Tied | 7 – Tied | 6 – Forbes | Galen Center (4,712) Los Angeles, CA | |||
November 13, 2023* 5:30 p.m. |
No. 10 | Le Moyne | W 93–43 | 3–0 |
35 – Watkins | 9 – Watkins | 5 – Forbes | Galen Center (1,009) Los Angeles, CA | |||
November 20, 2023* 6:00 p.m., FloHoops |
No. 8 | vs. Seton Hall Baha Mar Pink Flamingo Championship |
W 64–54 | 4–0 |
15 – Watkins | 15 – Marshall | 3 – Tied | Baha Mar Convention Center (409) Nassau, Bahamas | |||
November 22, 2023* 6:00 p.m., FloHoops |
No. 8 | vs. Penn State Baha Mar Pink Flamingo Championship |
W 71–70 | 5–0 |
31 – Watkins | 12 – Watkins | 3 – Watkins | Baha Mar Convention Center (297) Nassau, Bahamas | |||
November 28, 2023* 7:00 p.m. |
No. 6 | Cal Poly | W 85–44 | 6–0 |
30 – Watkins | 8 – Akunwafo | 6 – Padilla | Galen Center (1,419) Los Angeles, CA | |||
December 3, 2023* 3:00 p.m. |
No. 6 | San Diego | W 89–58 | 7–0 |
30 – Watkins | 12 – Marshall | 6 – Padilla | Galen Center (2,169) Los Angeles, CA | |||
December 10, 2023* 3:30 p.m. |
No. 6 | UC Riverside | W 85–53 | 8–0 |
27 – Watkins | 12 – Marshall | 5 – Tied | Galen Center (4,201) Los Angeles, CA | |||
December 18, 2023* 7:00 p.m., P12N |
No. 6 | Cal State Fullerton | W 93–44 | 9–0 |
23 – Watkins | 6 – Tied | 6 – Watkins | Galen Center (1,962) Los Angeles, CA | |||
December 21, 2023* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ |
No. 6 | at Long Beach State | W 85–77 | 10–0 |
36 – Forbes | 8 – Akunwafo | 4 – Tied | Walter Pyramid (1,243) Long Beach, CA | |||
Pac-12 Conference Regular season | |||||||||||
December 30, 2023 5:00 p.m., P12N |
No. 6 | at No. 2 UCLA Rivalry |
L 64–71 | 10–1 (0–1) |
27 – Watkins | 13 – Marshall | 5 – Padilla | Pauley Pavilion (13,659) Los Angeles, CA | |||
January 5, 2024 7:00 p.m., P12N |
No. 9 | Oregon State | W 56–54 | 11–1 (1–1) |
28 – Watkins | 14 – Marshall | 5 – Marshall | Galen Center (2,749) Los Angeles, CA | |||
January 7, 2024 12:00 p.m., P12N |
No. 9 | Oregon | W 68–54 | 12–1 (2–1) |
17 – Watkins | 9 – Tied | 6 – Watkins | Galen Center (2,282) Los Angeles, CA | |||
January 14, 2024 2:00 p.m., P12N |
No. 9 | No. 2 UCLA Rivalry |
W 73–65 | 13–1 (3–1) |
32 – Watkins | 10 – Watkins | 4 – Forbes | Galen Center (10,258) Los Angeles, CA | |||
January 19, 2024 6:00 p.m., P12N |
at Utah | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, UT | |||||||||
January 21, 2024 12:00 p.m., P12N |
at Colorado | CU Events Center Boulder, CO | |||||||||
January 26, 2024 7:00 p.m., P12N |
Washington State | Galen Center Los Angeles, CA | |||||||||
January 28, 2024 12:00 p.m., P12N |
Washington | Galen Center Los Angeles, CA | |||||||||
February 2, 2024 7:00 p.m., P12N |
at Stanford | Maples Pavilion Stanford, CA | |||||||||
February 4, 2024 12:00 p.m., P12N |
at California | Haas Pavilion Berkeley, CA | |||||||||
February 9, 2024 7:00 p.m., P12N |
Arizona State | Galen Center Los Angeles, CA | |||||||||
February 12, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN2 |
Arizona | Galen Center Los Angeles, CA | |||||||||
February 16, 2024 7:00 p.m., P12N |
at Oregon | Matthew Knight Arena Eugene, OR | |||||||||
February 18, 2024 12:00 p.m., P12N |
at Oregon State | Gill Coliseum Corvallis, OR | |||||||||
February 23, 2024 7:00 p.m., P12N |
Colorado | Galen Center Los Angeles, CA | |||||||||
February 25, 2024 12:00 p.m., P12N |
Utah | Galen Center Los Angeles, CA | |||||||||
February 29, 2024 5:00 p.m., P12N |
at Arizona | McKale Center Tucson, AZ | |||||||||
March 2, 2024 11:00 a.m., P12N |
at Arizona State | Desert Financial Arena Tempe, AZ | |||||||||
Pac-12 Women's Tournament | |||||||||||
March 6–10, 2024 TBA, P12N/ESPN |
vs. TBA | Michelob Ultra Arena Paradise, NV | |||||||||
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Pacific Time. |
Source: USCTrojans.com[14]
Rankings
Week | ||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
AP | 21 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 9 | 9 | Not released | |||||||||
Coaches | 21 | 10т | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 |
Awards and honors
- Forbes
- Cheryl Miller Preseason Watchlist
- Pac-12 Player of the Week
- Marshall
- Silver Medalist at the 2023 FIBA Women's AmeriCup.[15]
- Jersey Mike's Naismith Award Watchlist
- Lisa Leslie Preaseason Watchlist
- Preseason All-Pac-12 Team
- John Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 Watchlist
- Watkins[16]
- No. 1 recruit in the nation
- National Gatorade Player of the Year
- Gold Medalist and MVP of the 2022 FIBA Under-17 Women's Basketball World Cup
- 2020 Sports Illustrated Sports Kid of the Year
- McDonald's All-American
- Los Angeles Times Girls Basketball Player of the Year, 2021, 2022, 2023[17]
- USA Today Girls Basketball Player of the Year
- Jersey Mike's Naismith Award Watchlist
- Preseason All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention
- USBWA Tamika Catchings Freshman of the Week
- Pac-12 Freshman of the Week (x8) - Tie for All-Time Pac-12 record
- Pac-12 Player of the Week
- John Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 Watchlist
See Also
References
- ↑ "USC women are back in NCAA tournament; UCLA to host two rounds". Los Angeles Times. March 13, 2023.
- ↑ "2022-23 Women's College Basketball Rankings for Week 19". ESPN.
- ↑ Team, BVMSports (July 1, 2023). "USC's Courtney Jaco Promoted To Women's Basketball Assistant Coach". BVM Sports.
- ↑ "Nneka Enemkpali Joins Women's Basketball Coaching Staff".
- ↑ "McKenzie Forbes Grad Transfers to USC". USC Basketball. April 23, 2023.
- ↑ "USC Welcomes Mid-Year Transfer Dominique Onu From UCLA". USC Athletics. July 1, 2023.
- ↑ https://twitter.com/CULionsWBB/status/1655745212554117122
- ↑ Carnathan, Walker. "Kayla Padilla of Penn women's basketball announces graduate transfer to USC". www.thedp.com.
- ↑ "2023 High School Girls' Basketball Recruits - USC - ESPN". ESPN.com.
- ↑ "Top women's hoops recruit Watkins chooses USC". ESPN.com. November 15, 2022.
- ↑ "2023 HoopGurlz Recruiting Rankings - espnW 100 - ESPN". ESPN.com.
- ↑ "Graney: Aaliyah Gayles authoring a remarkable comeback story". March 2, 2023.
- ↑ Selbe, Nick (June 2, 2022). "Watch: USC Celebrates Graduation of Signee Aaliyah Gayles, Victim of April Shooting". Sports Illustrated.
- ↑ "2022-2023 USC Women's Basketball Schedule". USCTrojans.com. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
- ↑ "Rayah Marshall". USA Basketball.
- ↑
- Incoming first-year Juju Watkins was ranked as the number one recruit in the nation.
- ↑ "Girls' basketball player of the year: Sierra Canyon's Juju Watkins, again". Los Angeles Times. March 19, 2023.