“It took a long time, right? We’re definitely on the right channel, right?” Trojans head coach Lindsay Gottlieb joked during a post-bracket reveal press conference.
HC Lindsay Gottlieb with Kennedy Smith, Jazzy Davidson (National Freshman of the Year by The Athletic) and Kara Dunn following Selection Sunday. (Photo by Deja Shearrill)
The Trojans were named a No. 9 seed and slated to play eighth-seeded Clemson in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday in Columbia, South Carolina. They received their fourth consecutive tournament berth with a lot of patience – and not just on Selection Sunday.
Losing JuJu Watkins to injury for the entirety of this season forced USC (17-13) to regroup and find its new identity while fighting through a Big Ten Conference schedule that threw a challenging opponent at them every week.
The regular season ended on a four-game losing streak, but two of those losses came to nationally ranked teams in then-No. 10 Ohio State and No. 2 UCLA.
That’s only made the team more driven.
“We want to be the team that someone else doesn’t want to play,” senior guard Kara Dunn told reporters. “We know that some games in the past we could have won – and we probably should have won – and knowing that and knowing the things that potentially could have lost us games, I think that that gives us the power to know that we can control the things that we can control.”
Dunn, the team’s second-leading scorer at 15.3 points per game, could be a focal point in multiple ways in Saturday’s opener.
She’s become an unquestionable leader in her one season with the Trojans and, on the court, she’s an elite finisher in the paint and from long range on a team that is averaging 16.5 assists per game.
Dunn also has experience playing against ACC teams after spending the previous three seasons with Georgia Tech. Second-year Clemson head coach Shawn Poppie remembers her, too.
“There’s a little bit of familiarity with that personnel,” Poppie told reporters on Selection Sunday. “I’m not sure she’s playing the same role that she did at Georgia Tech, but at least I know a few of the faces.”
Poppie also said Sunday that USC star freshman Jazzy Davidson is “top-notch.” Davidson is leading the Trojans in every major statistical category, including points (17.6), rebounds (5.7), assists (4.2), steals (2) and blocks (2). Her impact on the defensive end has been particularly rare. Davidson is the only Div I player averaging at least two steals and two blocks per game, highlighting her ability to disrupt opponents on both ends of the floor.
The 6-foot-1 guard had a brief health scare when she needed an MRI after her arm got tangled up with Washington guard/former Trojan Avery Howell in the Big Ten Tournament. USC announced in a social media post March 11 that she will be available for the NCAA Tournament.
If Davidson is fully healthy, her shot-blocking ability, as well as 6-foot-1 sophomore guard Kennedy Smith’s aggressive style of defense, could come in handy against a Clemson team (21-11) that ranked fourth in the ACC in 3-point percentage at 34.2%.
Multiple Trojans, including Davidson, are making their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
Senior guard Londynn Jones (10.5 ppg) has the most tournament experience after reaching the Final Four with UCLA in last season’s bracket. Junior guard Malia Samuels and Smith are the only players who received significant playing time in USC’s tournament run last season, which ended in the Elite Eight.
Clemson is also entering the tournament fresh and has secured its first berth in seven years. Its advantage in this game could be a home state environment.
The Tigers have only a two-hour drive to Colonial Life Arena, meaning there could be a lot of orange in the stands Saturday.
“If it’s a quote-unquote hostile environment, we feed off of energy and people there,” Gottlieb said. “I hope it’s a really full building. And we’ve got to do what we need to do to be able to get a win.
“I think we’re focused. We understand that we have work to do to prove what we’re capable of. There’s no lack of belief in the room,” Gottlieb said. “In terms of the experiences we’ve had together, this is where we’re supposed to be, and we’re going to go play our best basketball in the NCAA Tournament. We’ll bring our West Coast juice, we’ll bring our energy, and I think we’ll see the best version of ourselves.””
The winner of Saturday’s first-round game will move on to play top-seeded South Carolina (31-3). It would be a rematch for either team – USC lost 69-52 to the Gamecocks on Nov. 15 at Crypto.com Arena and Clemson fell 68-61 on Nov. 11.
The Tigers played that game at Colonial Life Arena, giving them some familiarity with the environment. They savor the thought of getting another shot at an in-state rival, but not without taking the favored Trojans (-6.5 FanDuel) seriously.
“I think a lot of people will jump to that second round with South Carolina and the rivalry and all that,” Poppie said, “but we’re going to have our hands full in the opening round and have a lot of respect for what they’ve done.”
History won’t be on the Trojans’ or Tigers’ side in that matchup. Only twice in the last 15 years has a No. 8 or No. 9 seed in the women’s tournament upset a No. 1.
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I just realized I rarely see much about USC women’s basketball because I am football biased. Hopefully this next game they can avenge the “Real USC” game. Turn those game hens into chickens nuggets.
That’s gonna be a tough task, especially in Columbia. #9 seeds rarely accomplish such a feat.
USC plays 5 guards most of the game. Smith and Davidson, at 6-1, are the only 2 over 6′. Can they out rebound Clemson’s taller forwards? Who will have the hot hand at 3 pt range?