LOS ANGELES — It was a wonder, really, that USC’s social-media team didn’t run out of photos of JuJu Watkins.
Every week for the past 14 weeks, USC women’s basketball’s official Twitter account has posted a congratulatory photo-illustration in accordance with Watkins earning another Pac-12 Freshman of the Week award – a record 14 of 14, according to the Pac-12. Watkins, in the midst of a truly sublime freshman season, has won the award every single week. Somehow, USC’s team had the preseason foresight to snap enough pictures of Watkins from every angle to never double down on any graphic; they got particularly creative in week nine, cropping Watkins’ photo from the eyes up.
Her eventual nod as the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, then, was all but certainty. And Watkins officially earned the honor Tuesday, en route – currently at 751 points – to snapping Cheryl Miller’s all-time USC record for most points scored in a single season (805). The freshman has single-handedly supercharged women’s basketball in Los Angeles in a matter of months, the hometown kid averaging 27.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.6 steals and 1.6 blocks a game as of Tuesday.
It’s certainly not the final ribbon on her season, as Watkins and USC (23-5, 13-5 in the Pac-12) head to Las Vegas for the final Pac-12 tournament this week before beginning a run in March Madness. And the most obvious key to the Trojans’ continued success is Watkins’ ability to keep her motor running; she has battled through cramps and halftime IVs in an all-out freshman season, coach Lindsay Gottlieb speaking continually about the need to find rest for a player who’ll leave every drop of sweat on hardwood for 40 minutes.
“I’m still learning that, honestly,” Watkins said after one practice last week, with a shy smile.
Senior teammate and grad transfer McKenzie Forbes, who’s been irreplaceable as a secondary scorer and playmaker in averaging 13.1 points and 3.4 assists a game, was…
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