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Heartbroken Hoops Fans Share Words of Support for JuJu Watkins After Injury

The USC guard took a scary spill Monday evening.

Patrick Andres

JuJu Watkins looks on during USC's 2025 NCAA tournament opener.
JuJu Watkins looks on during USC's 2025 NCAA tournament opener. / Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images
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USC guard JuJu Watkins jumped out to her usual excellent start Monday in the second round of the NCAA tournament, putting up three points, a rebound and two assists as the Trojans went up 13–2 on Mississippi State in the first quarter.

Then, all hell broke loose. Watkins took a frightening spill chasing after a loose ball, and had to be carried off the court with an apparent knee injury.

The sequence invited an outpouring of support for Watkins, a two-time All-American and one of college basketball's brightest young stars. Fans were in broad agreement that the injury didn't look good.

Some offered their own good health for Watkins's.

The reality that basketball can be a cruel game was brought to the forefront.

Fans worked their way through the stages of grief even as Watkins's status remained unknown.

All in all, the response was a much-needed spark of positivity as a national championship contender and its star deal with an uncertain future.

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Patrick Andres
PATRICK ANDRES

Patrick Andres is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in December 2022, having worked for The Blade, Athlon Sports, Fear the Sword and Diamond Digest. Andres has covered everything from zero-attendance Big Ten basketball to a seven-overtime college football game. He is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism with a double major in history .

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