LAS VEGAS – When JuJu Watkins makes her long-awaited return to the courtroom in November, she’ll even be returning to the identical area the place she made her USC debut
It was formally introduced on Tuesday that USC would open its season in opposition to UNLV on Nov. 2 on the Corridor of Fame Collection at T-Cell Area, the identical occasion and placement the place Watkins performed her first common season colleigiate sport in November 2023 in opposition to Ohio State.
November 2nd 2026: The Return of JuJu Watkins https://t.co/s8pAn3uWsv pic.twitter.com/KlIlv1smXo
— Watkins Report (@JWatkinsReport) February 25, 2026
Ranked No. 21 within the preseason ballot, USC stunned eventual first-round choose Jacy Sheldon and the Buckeyes with an entertaining 83-74 victory that was nationally televised on TNT. USC, in fact, would emerge as one of many nation’s greatest groups over the course of the 2023-24 season, successful the ultimate Pac-12 Ladies’s Basketball Match, additionally held in Las Vegas at MGM Grand Backyard Area, earlier than falling to UConn within the Elite 8.
Watkins was the consensus Nationwide Participant of the Yr as a sophomore and led USC to a No. 1 seed within the NCAA Match earlier than struggling a torn ACL within the second spherical in opposition to Mississippi State that has stored her sidelined for the 2025-26 season. USC has largely struggled by way of its gauntlet of a schedule with out Watkins, however the efficiency of five-star freshman Jazzy Davidson units up an intriguing 1-2 punch for the Ladies of Troy subsequent season. Add within the probably switch haul that may coincide with Watkins’ anticipated return, and USC must be proper again to the place it was earlier than the star of the present was sidelined.
The Different Groups
After 4 consecutive seasons taking dwelling each the Mountain West common season and convention titles, Lindy LaRocque’s UNLV Girl Rebels are having a down yr (by their very own requirements). It’s not essentially a down yr in actuality, as UNLV remains to be 13-4 in Mountain West play, however then again, the Girl Rebels solely had 5 convention losses within the earlier 4 seasons mixed. Whereas UNLV will now certainly be coming into its season opener as a considerable underdog, the Girl Rebels even have the possibility to start out their season with an announcement, even when they only handle to hold round and play USC competitively.
Corridor of Fame Collection returns to Las Vegas for Opening Night time on November 2 at @tmobilearena.#HOFSeries | #HoophallU pic.twitter.com/U7WnaELjZJ
— Corridor of Fame Collection (@hofseries) February 25, 2026
The opposite ladies’s sport options Arizona in opposition to Stanford, which is mockingly LaRocque’s alma mater. The boys’s aspect of the Corridor of Fame Collection slate is as soon as once more stacked, that includes Arizona, Gonzaga, Purdue, and UCLA. In case you’re out of the loop, three of these 4 groups are at the moment ranked within the prime 10 of the AP Ballot. Florida and Arizona confronted off within the 2025 version of the Corridor of Fame Collection in Las Vegas, highlighted by Koa Peat’s electrical debut, and was headlined by the BYU debut of freshman phenom AJ Dybantsa in opposition to Villanova.
