No. 2 UCLA vs. No. 6 USC women’s basketball: Three things to watch in Pac-12 showdown

The USC vs. UCLA showdown on Saturday night also will feature a matchup between Trojans star Juju Watkins, left, and UCLA standout Lauren Betts. (Ryan Sun, Michael Woods / Associated Press)

Pauley Pavilion is quiet for now. Kiki Rice looks at the empty stands after a recent practice. The UCLA guard knows this scene won’t last long with crosstown rival USC coming in 30 hours.

“To play a game where it’s going to be packed in here, it’s going to be sold out, the noise, the environment, I’m really excited,” Rice said Friday. “I think that’s really what I came to UCLA to be a part of.”

The Pac-12 opener for No. 2 UCLA and No. 6 USC is shaping up to be one of the best games in the long rivalry. This is the first time the teams have met as unbeatens and first time they’ve both been ranked since 1985. They haven’t met as two top-10 teams since 1981.

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Hype has been building steadily. Both teams made appearances on “SportsCenter” this week. The Bruins (11-0) announced a sellout Wednesday. USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb was monitoring the rumors of a packed arena long before the official release, and after the Trojans (10-0) dominated UC Riverside at Galen Center on Dec. 10, Gottlieb told more than 4,000 USC fans that on Dec. 30, “we want to make sure it’s full of cardinal and gold.”

“We don’t shy away from the excitement around it,” Gottlieb said last week after the Trojans finished the nonconference slate with a win against Long Beach State. “I think both teams have earned it. They’re really tremendously good, we know that, but to have the rivalry game, the proximity be so close and both teams to be so good and so exciting is just really good for women’s basketball.”

Here are three things to watch:

On the big stage

USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb, left, and guard JuJu Watkins react after a win over Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in November. (Ryan Sun / Associated Press)

Two days before coaching against each other in the biggest game of the season, Gottlieb and UCLA coach Cori Close were recruiting side by side. They paused to celebrate a rare rivalry moment that both teams could celebrate as a victory.

“We want to look at this for years and go, ‘This is when Southern California basketball hit a major tipping point,’” Close said. “I think everybody wins in this scenario.”

While both programs celebrate the growth of the women’s game in L.A., where women’s college basketball has struggled to break through in a crowded market, Close admitted the balance between appreciating the massive opportunity and then staying focused enough to take advantage of it on the court is “delicate, honestly.”

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“I have really been focusing on trying to eliminate as many distractions from their minds as possible,” Close said. “I just want our players to focus on the consistency of what it takes to be their very best. What’s the best version of themselves, what’s the game plan and take care of what’s between the lines.”

Players are on winter break and free from academic stresses, but distractions still encroach. National media opportunities increase. Players’ friends and family are asking for tickets and wondering where to park on campus, expecting a logistical nightmare of more than 10,000 fans.

Sophomore guard Londynn Jones said she was able to secure just 12 tickets for her family. Everyone else hoping to watch the Riverside native had to hunt on their own. But the sharpshooting guard averaging 13.4 points is still expecting a large contingent of familiar faces.

“Being a Cali girl, this is something a little girl dreams of,” Jones said.

Cloud nine?

UCLA coach Cori Close instructs her players during a win over Ohio State on Dec. 18. (Jay LaPrete / Associated Press)

UCLA is going for its ninth consecutive win against its crosstown rival, which would match the longest winning streak for either team in the series when USC won nine straight between 1992-1996. But the Bruins have not always been dominant during the stretch. Both of last season’s games were decided on the final possession as UCLA won both by a combined four points.

Close has revisited the film from both games, but that USC team was focused more on operating through the post. Freshman JuJu Watkins has completely changed a USC attack that is more balanced.

“They’re such a better offensive team and they’re so different,” Close said. “The challenge will be how they really defend. I actually think both teams are really, really good offensively. … We’re all going to find ways to put the ball in the basket if we take care of the basketball, but who really locks in on the defensive end, I think that’s really where it’s going to happen. … You’re not going to hold JuJu scoreless”

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The star freshman is the second-leading scorer in the nation at 26.8 points. But USC showed its scoring depth against Long Beach State when Watkins was out because of an illness and grad transfer McKenzie Forbes scored a career-high 35 points.

UCLA’s 90.5 points per game ranks seventh nationally and second in the conference. The Bruins have five double-digit scorers, led by Lauren Betts, who averages 16.9 points.

Post presence

UCLA’s Lauren Betts, left, and Charisma Osborne celebrate during a win over Florida State on Dec. 10. (Jessica Hill / Associated Press)

Betts’ arrival from Stanford has been the biggest boon for the Bruins, who have matched their highest ranking in program history despite a grueling nonconference schedule that included road games at Ohio State and Arkansas and a neutral game against longtime power Connecticut. The 6-foot-7 center leads the country in shooting percentage at 77.1%.

Close called Betts a “unicorn” for her ability to move on defense at her size, allowing the Bruins to switch screens and trust her against even smaller guards, but Betts won’t be the only strong inside presence on the court Saturday.

USC’s Rayah Marshall, a 6-foot-4 junior averaging a double-double with 14.3 points and 10 rebounds, is “an X-factor that not enough people talk about,” Close said.

“Her motor is night and day different than coming out of high school,” she continued. “That takes a lot of discipline on Rayah’s part but also credit to their staff.”

Marshall, a former McDonald’s All-American out of Lynwood High, was named to the All-Pac-12 team and the conference’s all-defensive team last season after setting the USC single-season blocks record, eclipsing Lisa Leslie.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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