USC Women's Basketball: JuJu Watkins Aggravates Ankle, Exits In OT

In overtime just now against the UCLA Bruins, All-American USC Trojans freshman superstar shooting guard JuJu Watkins re-aggravated the ankle she rolled during the first half of their ongoing Pac-12 Tournament matchup and had to leave the game.

With 3:56 remaining, the back-and-forth matchup was eventually knotted up, 61-61, after grad student Trojans transfer guard Kayla Padilla nailed a pair of free throws.

With 3:56 left in overtime, JuJu Watkins was helped off the court after grabbing her ankle. pic.twitter.com/mMGJnKWQav
— Maren Angus-Coombs (@Maren_Angus) March 9, 2024

USC's medical staff tested the strength of her ankle, she is reportedly capable of putting weight on it and running, per the Pac-12 Network broadcast.

The 6'2" wing out of Sierra Canyon School in Chatsworth had been, by far, USC's leading scorer at the time of her departure, with 29 inefficient points on 9-of-26 shooting from the floor, plus 10 rebounds and a steal.

UPDATE:

Watkins did indeed return, limping, to the court, determined to play through the injured ankle. Whether it actually behooves her to do this and risk further exacerbating the injury, with the NCAA Tournament looming and her club possible capable of a deep run, is an open question. She's a tough, nervy player, and has been doing her darnedest to will her club to victory against the bigger, deeper Bruins. We'll see if she can stay healthy.