USC Star JuJu Watkins Out for Season After Tearing ACL in NCAA Tournament

The Trojans' guard suffered a catastrophic injury.

JuJu Watkins gestures during USC's game against Michigan State earlier this season. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

USC guard JuJu Watkins will miss the rest of the 2025 season after tearing the ACL in her right knee, the Trojans announced early Tuesday morning—effectively confirming a report from Shams Charania of ESPN.

Watkins, 19, suffered the injury in the first quarter of No. 1 USC's 96–59 win over No. 9 Mississippi State in the second round of the NCAA tournament Monday. The injury—sustained while tailing a loose ball—ended Watkins's evening with just three points, a rebound and two assists.

The Trojans are gunning for their first Final Four berth since 1986 and first national championship since 1984.

Watkins, already among the most famous college athletes in the country, has been the catalyst for USC's return to glory. She averaged 24.6 points per game this season to follow up a freshman year in which she averaged 27.1, and is already drawing hype in WNBA circles.

JuJu Watkins sustained a season-ending injury in the NCAA Second Round on Monday night. She will undergo surgery and then begin rehabilitation shortly thereafter.

— USC Women's Basketball (@USCWBB) March 25, 2025

The AP named her to its All-America team for the second time in as many years, and the Big Ten anointed Watkins its Player of the Year in her team's first season in the league.

The Trojans are scheduled to play No. 5 Kansas State Saturday evening in the Sweet 16.

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