No. 9 USC dismantled by No. 1 South Carolina in second round of NCAA tournament

The USC Trojans (No. 9) went out quietly in the second round of the NCAA tournament on Monday evening, losing 101-61 to the South Carolina Gamecocks (No. 1).

The Trojans had advanced to the Elite 8 in each of the past two seasons, but could not extend the streak to three as the season-long absence of JuJu Watkins was impossible to ignore. It was their largest margin of defeat in tournament history, surpassing an 85-51 loss at the hands of Duke in the second round in 2006. The loss also marked their fifth in the last six games, with the only victory in that stretch coming in a round one overtime win, 71-67, over Clemson.

Senior guard Londynn Jones led the way for USC with 20 points, shooting 7-for-12 from the field and 5-for-6 from beyond the arc. Freshman guard Jazzy Davidson, who led the team in scoring throughout the regular season, was guarded tightly but still managed 16 points on 5-of-15 shooting (4-of-6 3PT). Second triple of the day for Jazzy 🎯 📺 ESPN pic.

twitter. com/n3L0AZk92l — USC Women's Basketball (@USCWBB) March 24, 2026 Davidson joined the Watkins, Sarah Strong, Maya Moore, Cheryl Miller and Candace Parker as the only freshmen in women's college basketball history to record at least 500 points, 100 assists, 50 steals and 50 blocks in a season. She posted 31 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists in the round one victory over Clemson.