BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Daybreak Staley despatched JuJu Watkins a textual content as quickly as she noticed the star Southern California sophomore endure a season-ending knee harm on Monday night time.
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It was “really tough” to see Watkins in ache, the South Carolina ladies’s basketball coach stated.
“JuJu is loved by all of us,” Staley added.
Coaches and players all across women’s basketball, along with fans of the game, feel the impact of Watkins’ injury. The dominant USC guard and Associated Press All-America first-teamer will likely miss significant time, leaving the sport without one of its most transcendent stars during March Madness.
How Watkins’ absence will affect the women’s Sweet 16 remains to be seen, though attendance and ratings are down from last season’s record highs for the women’s tournament that featured Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese. But that shouldn’t come as surprise.
After the record-setting numbers that tuned in for the Magic Johnson-Larry Bird showdown in the 1979 national championship, the ratings for the 1980 tourney signficantly dropped.
“JuJu is raising our game up with how she plays,” said Staley, whose Gamecocks will face Maryland on Friday in the Sweet 16, “with pouring into marketing when it comes to NIL deals. She’s a business herself. And to see part of that not be a part of our NCAA Tournament — something is missing. There’s a big void.”
Within the opening two rounds of this yr’s ladies’s match, there have been 224,972 followers in attendance, representing a 30% lower from final season’s file that noticed 292,456 individuals present up. Nonetheless, this yr’s mark is the third highest ever, additionally trailing the 231,677 that got here to March Insanity in 2023.
Scores additionally dropped, with the primary spherical averaging 367,000 viewers throughout all 32 video games. That’s a 22% drop from final season. However these numbers are up 43% from the 2023 match, which was the second-most watched ever.
“It’s a massive disappointment because she’s such an extraordinary player,” stated ESPN faculty basketball analyst Rebecca Lobo. “People would be watching her for the first time in the regionals. It’s a huge disappointment and blow as we’ve had so much growth over last year and a half.
“She’s been a big part of that.” Watkins has change into the face of girls’s faculty basketball
Watkins’ knee bent awkwardly as she planted her proper foot on a quick break 5 minutes into USC’s victory in opposition to Mississippi State within the second spherical. She instantly grimaced and collapsed onto the court docket earlier than being carried off by a number of individuals, unable to place any weight on her leg. USC later stated she would have surgical procedure after which rehabilitate.
After the harm, many took to social media to precise their heartbreak and ship encouragement, together with Johnson, Reese and Clark.
“Sending all my thoughts and prayers to JuJu,” Clark posted on X. “Kid will come back stronger than ever.”
Watkins had emerged as the following face of girls’s faculty basketball after Clark raised its profile to unprecedented ranges whereas at Iowa. The 6-foot-2 Watkins led USC to its deepest run within the NCAA Event in over 25 years final season and was the nation’s No. 2 scorer, averaging 27.1 factors.
She has NIL offers with Nike, Fanatics, snack maker Mondelez, United Airways, Diploma deodorant, State Farm, Gatorade and collectibles firm Funko, amongst others. And her NIL valuation is among the highest within the nation at an estimated $739,000, in response to On3.com.
Celebrities throughout star-studded Los Angeles flocked to USC’s Galen Heart to observe her play this season, together with film star Michael B. Jordan, rapper Snoop Dogg and Vanessa Bryant. Paige Bueckers and others anticipated to fill the void
Whereas this yr’s discipline is filled with particular person expertise and quite a few reputable title contenders, many have been excited to observe Watkins proceed her stellar season — by which she averaged 24.6 factors — and doubtlessly lead the Trojans to their first nationwide championship in 41 years.
“My mom played basketball at Santa Clara, so I’ve kind of been tapped into the tournament,” said Claire Swendsen, 22, who is in Spokane, Washington, for the other half of the Sweet 16. “I have planned on attending one of UConn’s and one of USC’s games. This kind of puts a damper on the SC game.”
There are still big names in the tournament that resonate with fans, including Connecticut senior Paige Bueckers, who also had to rebound from an ACL injury and is making her last run at a national championship. UConn’s blowout win over South Dakota State was the most-watched game of the second round, drawing an average of 1.7 million viewers to ESPN on Monday night.
Watkins “will come back better and stronger,” stated UCLA coach Cori Shut. ” … She’s such a fighter. She’ll be ready. That being said, I feel like it’s time for people around the country to really step up and see some of the other amazing players who are ready to shine. I am so sad that JuJu is not playing in the tournament anymore, but I am excited for other players are going to step into that spotlight.”
There are many talented players in the women’s field, but few with Watkins’ star power.
“What did we see last year with the epic battle with LSU and Iowa?” Lobo, a member of the Basketball Corridor of Fame who gained an NCAA title with UConn, requested rhetorically. “We had the potential to get an identical type of rematch within the Elite Eight of this one” with a Watkins-Bueckers matchup.
“Even if both USC and UConn are there,” Lobo added, “it gained’t be the identical with out JuJu. They’re the most important stars in ladies’s basketball. Lacking considered one of them is big.”
Basketball Author Doug Feinberg and Sports activities Author Anne Peterson contributed. Peterson contributed from Spokane, Washington.
March Insanity bracket: /hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and protection: /hub/march-madness