Kennedy Smith stepped into the void left by injured star JuJu Watkins, scoring 19 points to help Southern California hold off Kansas State 67-61 in the Sweet 16 of the women’s NCAA Tournament.

JuJu Watkins was on the USC bench as the Trojans advanced to the Elite Eight with a 67-61 win over Kansas State on Saturday. Well, sort of. Watkins tore her ACL in the second round of the tournament and therefore she did not make the trip up the coast.

Madison Connor leads all scorers with nine points for TCU. But the Horned Frogs trail Notre Dame, 30-26. The Irish have taken the lead, 24-20, on an 11-0 run capped by an Olivia Miles 3-pointer. TCU was bound to cool off after its scorching start and Notre Dame has taken advantage of the cold spell.

Kennedy Smith, Avery Howell and Kayleigh Heckel fill the void left by injured Trojans’ star JuJu Watkins in a gritty Sweet 16 win over Kansas State, setting up a second straight meeting with

Freshman Kennedy Smith scores 19 and Avery Howell adds 18 as USC beats Kansas State 67-61 without injured star JuJu Watkins, setting up Elite Eight rematch with UConn.

JuJu Watkins has spent the 2024 college basketball season doing what few have ever done in a USC Trojans uniform — dominating every game she touched. The sophomore guard led the Trojans to a 30-3 record and a No.

Monday night's Elite Eight matchup between USC and UConn was supposed to be a showdown between perhaps the two best players in the country. The Trojans' Juju Watkins and the Huskies' Paige Bueckers squaring off with a trip to the Final Four on the line for the second consecutive year would have been appointment television.

USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb sent JuJu Watkins a special gift as she recovers from her ACL injury sustained in the NCAA tournament.

Kennedy Smith and Avery Howell played a large role in helping the Trojans overcome Juju Watkins' absence vs KSU. Can they do the same against UConn?