USC women’s basketball has earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Lindsay Gottlieb-coached Trojans went 28-3 on the year, losing just twice in the regular season before falling to UCLA in the Big Ten title game.
Now, JuJu Watkins and company look poised to battle it out for a national title, but a tough regional draw means there will be potential pitfalls along the way that complicate the team’s path forward.
Here are the three scariest teams who could upset USC’s bid to make it to the Final Four.
USC landed the final No. 1 seed, which means the Trojans are stuck in the region with the best No. 2 seed, UConn.
The Huskies have one of the nation’s biggest victories this season, a huge upset over South Carolina earlier in the year. In that game, UConn’s defense suffocated the Gamecocks, winning 87-58. It was the best game that a team had played against South Carolina in years, just thoroughly demolishing them in a way no one usually can.
The 31-3 Huskies might have had an argument for a No. 1 seed if they played in a tougher conference than the Big East, where the team went undefeated and rarely seemed challenged.
Of the team’s three losses, one actually came to the Trojans, with USC winning 72-70 when the teams met in December. You could make a good argument that UConn is better now, though, as Azzi Fudd played just eight minutes. Fudd’s had some explosive showings since, including scoring 28 points in the win over South Carolina. She’ll add another dimension to a hypothetical rematch, making the Huskies an even scarier opponent for the Trojans. Don’t be shocked if betting odds favor UConn if these teams play in the Elite Eight.
A potential Sweet Sixteen meeting with the Wildcats could spell trouble for the Trojans.
The addition of Georgia Amoore to this Kentucky team brought the team to new heights this season, with Amoore averaging 19.1 points and 6.9 assists per game. She’s vaulted up WNBA Draft boards thanks to her strong 2024-25 campaign.
Kentucky faltered a bit near the end of the year, losing three of its final four games including the SEC Tournament opener against Oklahoma, but each of those losses was to a team that earned at least a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and the team was competitive in all of those contests.
The Wildcats might have shown some issues against top opponents, but when the team gets hot, it can beat anyone, as it had wins over Alabama, Oklahoma, and Tennessee over the course of the season. The biggest issue for the team has been offensive consistency — Kentucky is undefeated when scoring at least 70 points, but just 1-7 when scoring under 70 points.
