By W.G. RAMIREZ The Associated Press
LAS VEGAS — JuJu Watkins scored 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds and second-seeded USC defeated seventh-seeded Arizona, 65-62, in a Pac-12 tournament quarterfinal game on Thursday night.
USC (24-5) held off the pesky Wildcats, who led by four with 3:28 left in the third quarter and made it a one-possession game with 10 seconds left.
But after Helena Pueyo’s 3-pointer made it 63-60, USC’s Kaitlyn Davis scored on a layup to push the Trojans’ lead to five and put the game out of reach.
Rayah Marshall had 15 points and 15 rebounds for the Trojans.
Pueyo finished with 19 points to lead Arizona (17-15), while Skylar Jones and Breya Cunningham each had 14.
USC’s Aaliyah Gayles was honored with the Tammy Blackburn Inspiration Award before the game. The award, created to honor Blackburn who has battled breast cancer since 2017, honors a Pac-12 women’s basketball student-athlete, coach or staff member who exhibits courage, resilience and unbreakable spirit in overcoming adversity in their life.
As a senior in high school in 2022, Gayles was shot several times at a house party. The Las Vegas native suffered fractures in both arms and both legs and underwent multiple surgeries. Gayles checked into her first game as a member of the Trojans on Nov. 10.
BIG PICTURE
USC: Senior guard Kayla Williams, known as a defensive stopper for the Trojans, came in averaging 2.6 points per game. A key slash to the basket near the end of the third quarter extended USC’s lead to six points, and another layup during an 8-0 run to start the fourth helped give the Trojans distance from Arizona.
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Arizona: The Wildcats came into the game ranked eighth nationally with a Pac-12-leading 11.5 steals per game. After recording 11 in the first half, they finished with 15 for the game.
UP NEXT
USC will face either third-seeded UCLA or sixth-seeded Utah in a semifinal on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
More to come on this story.