USC women's basketball star JuJu Watkins to miss rest of NCAA Tournament with season-ending knee injury

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On Monday night, the powerhouse USC women’s basketball suffered a huge blow when their best player, JuJu Watkins, went down with what looked like a serious knee injury. And after taking care of business in the second round of the NCAA Tournament against the number nine Mississippi State Bulldogs, 96-59, the Trojans’ worst fears were confirmed — Watkins’ season is now over.

As reported by the official USC women’s basketball account on X, Watkins sustained a season-ending injury and will be undergoing surgery. The injury occurred in the first quarter, when Watkins crumpled to the floor as she drove to the basket in transition in what was an immediately worrying non-contact injury.

According to Shams Charania of ESPN, the injury Watkins suffered was a torn ACL in her right knee, which would then keep her out for a considerable period of time. The typical timeline for recovery after suffering an ACL injury is around six to nine months, and if everything goes according to plan for the USC women’s basketball star, then she should be back in action around late 2025 or early 2026.

USC women’s basketball was one of the favorites to win the NCAA Tournament. Their hopes of doing so take a huge hit with the injury to their best player in Watkins, who entered the tournament averaging 24.6 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game. She put up 22 points, eight rebounds, two assists, and three steals in the first round of the tournament.

JuJu Watkins’ 2024-25 season for USC women’s basketball comes to an end

JuJu Watkins could not have suffered a major knee injury at the worst possible time; USC women’s basketball has been playing some excellent hoops as of late, and Watkins is at the heart of their national title hopes thanks to her dominant scoring ability and ability to contribute in multiple facets of the ball.

Watkins, of course, should come back stronger than ever come next season. She’s only 19 years of age, so there’s no reason to expect her to not be able to return to her previous level of play for USC.

Moving forward, the Trojans will be relying on Kiki Iriafen to take them as far as they can go in the NCAA Tournament. The senior popped off for 36 points in their recent win over Mississippi State, and it’s that kind of performance that USC women’s basketball will be expecting out of her as they look to navigate their 2025 March Madness journey without Watkins.

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