Lindsay Gottlieb Reacts to USC's Chaotic NCAA Tournament Win

The USC Trojans women's basketball team secured a 71-67 win in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against Clemson. While the nailbiting win brings excitement, the final seconds brought uncertainty.

Clemon hit a buzzer-beater three that was about to send them to the second round, and USC Trojans coach Lindsay Gottlieb breaks down the thought process and the emotion heading into overtime.

Lindsay Gottlieb Shares Emotions Heading Into Overtime

USC Trojans Clemson Tigers March Madness Lindsay Gottlieb Jazzy Davidson Kara Dunn Overtime NCAA Tournament South Carolina — Jan 29, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lindsay Gottlieb on the bench in the first half against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Galen Center. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

USC has been without star guard JuJu Watkins, who is still recovering from a torn ACL injury from last season. Even if USC felt the pressure to perform without Watkins this NCAA Tournament, the Trojans got the job done in overtime fashion.

In their one-point win over the Tigers, Gottlieb shared the emotion and thought process heading into the buzzer-beater challenge that ultimately sent the game to overtime.

“I mean, you think about someone like Kara Dunn and that emotion of you think your college career might be over, to then having to go play overtime. It is pretty unreal," Gottlieb said. "For me, I trust our video person.. and I go ‘did they get it off on time’ and he said ‘I don’t think so.’ So that was the first thing. Then the whole foul situation, so if they had called a foul on the ground prior to the shot and before time expiring, they were maybe going to go to the free throw line."

The final moments came down to the wire when Clemson’s Mia Moore appeared to hit a three-point shot that would send the Tigers to the Round of 32. However, instant replay showed the ball was still in her hands as the clock expired, and USC freshman Jazzy Davidson’s foul on Moore came after time had run out. The shot was waved off, no foul was called, and the game was sent to overtime.

Gottlieb also emphasized her process heading into the uncertainty at the end of regulation, especially with no timeouts left if a free thrown was drawn from the foul.

TROJANS WIN!!!!! pic.twitter.com/VVZ68ZbsiI
— USC Women's Basketball (@USCWBB) March 21, 2026

"So during that time we obviously tried to get our kids ready and say ‘this thing might be going to overtime,’ number two ‘they might have a free throw,’ so we were trying to draw something up because we didn’t have anymore timeouts… Obviously I was trying to trust what the video was saying… the officials did a great job, Gottlieb continued.

Davidson has been a star all year long for the Trojans, as the true freshman dropped 31 points in regulation and two critical three-pointers to help the Trojans secure the win. USC's Kara Dunn also added 22 points in the Trojans win.

USC Draws Rematch With Top-Ranked South Carolina

The Trojans now move onto the round of 32, where they face the No. 1 seed South Carolina for the second time this season. USC fell to the Gamecocks in their third game of the season 59-62.

"It's a huge challenge in front of us, but we're excited to still be playing and exciting to take our shot at one of the nation's best teams, who wouldn't want that... we know to beat a top-tier team, it's going to take top-tier effort," Gottlieb said.

The Gamecocks head back to the tournament seeking their third title win in five seasons. The Trojans now have another opportunity to seek a win over one of college basketball's best to send them back to the Sweet 16.

SIGN UP FOR THE USC TROJANS NEWSLETTER HERE!