Guard JuJu Watkins and the Southern California Trojans have traveled to Iowa City to play the Iowa Hawkeyes in a Big Ten women’s basketball matchup.
The Trojans (19-1, 9-0) enter the matchup ranked No. 4 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll and are currently on a 15-game winning streak. The team has not lost since a 74-61 defeat to Notre Dame on Nov. 23.
Watkins is averaging 24.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game in 20 starts this season. Forward KiKi Iriafen is nearly averaging a double-double with 18.1 points and 8.4 rebounds per game.
In their first season without superstar Caitlin Clark, the Hawkeyes (14-7, 4-6) are currently unranked but have bounced back from a five-game losing streak to win back-to-back games to close out January. Senior guard Lucy Olsen leads the team with 15.8 points per game. She also averages five assists and 3.5 rebounds.
“They’re definitely a younger group. The freshman class to me is what’s really exciting,” Clark said before the game. “You can tell they’re freshmen. They’re going to be inexperienced at times, but you learn from that, you grow through that.
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“This program’s in a really good spot,” she added. “It’s a great young group.”
The Hawkeyes are retiring Clark’s No. 22 jersey after the game. Fans, many wearing Clark’s No. 22, were lined up to get into Carver-Hawkeye Arena and rushed in when doors opened two hours before the game. Each fan got a yellow towel with a black screenshot of Clark’s No. 22 jersey, the Iowa logo and 2020-2024.
“It’s been fun looking back on this whole past year and everything that’s been able to happen. Just the journey we went on,” Clark said.
USA TODAY Sports will have all the action from the Big Ten contest. Follow along for news, scores and highlights of the action:
What’s it like for Caitlin Clark to be back at Iowa?
Clark said she assumed she’d be able to spend a lot of time at Iowa this off-season, but this is only the second time she’s been back on campus. (The first was in October when her team received their Big Ten championship rings.)
“It’s just fun for me to come back and just say `thank you’ to everybody that poured so much into me and allowed me to be great,” Clark said. “None of that happens without all of those people pouring themselves into our team and our program every single day.”
Still, it’s a bit weird to be coming to the arena knowing she won’t be playing.
“You have those butterflies in your stomach when you walk in here. Not so much for a basketball game now, but just to be around everybody and to enjoy the environment,” Clark said. “You’re a little more vulnerable. I don’t have to go and compete for 40 minutes, even though I wish maybe I could.
“It’ll definitely be a little bit more emotional that I don’t have to compete and go play for 40 minutes.”
When is the Big Ten game between USC and Iowa?
The Big Ten regular-season game women’s basketball game between the No. 4 Southern California Trojans and the Iowa Hawkeyes tips off at 1:30 p.m. ET (12:30 CT) at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa.
How to watch USC vs. Iowa game
The Big Ten regular season game between the No. 4 Southern California Trojans and the Iowa Hawkeyes will be televised nationally on FOX.
The game can be streamed on FoxSports.com and the Fox Sports app. Live streaming is also available on Fubo, which is offering a free trial.
Catch college basketball games this season with Fubo
USC vs. Iowa betting odds, line
The USC Trojans are the favorites to defeat the Iowa Hawkeyes in this Big Ten game, according to the BetMGM college basketball odds on Sunday.
- Spread: USC (-15.5)
- Moneyline: USC (-2000); Iowa (+1000)
- Over/under: 143.5
USC vs. Iowa predictions
HawkCentral: USC 75, Iowa 65
Dargan Southard writes “The Hawkeyes get off to a decent start while riding the intense energy in the building, but the Trojans have too much firepower to stay grounded for 40 minutes. A down afternoon from JuJu Watkins is offset by USC’s elite depth, as the Trojans extend their winning streak to 16.”
HawkeyeInsider: USC 80, Iowa 72
Sean Bock writes “It’s going to be an emotional day, but this USC team is just too talented and I’m not sure if Iowa has the offensive firepower to keep up.”
Hawkeye Report: USC 77 Iowa 66
Kyle Huesmann writes “I think the Hawkeyes will meet the moment and give a spirited effort, but taking down the Trojans is a tall task. This feels like it could be a game where Iowa is always within reach and just a scoring run away, but USC may just make too many shots.”
USC vs. Iowa location
USC travels to Iowa City to take on Iowa in a game that will be played at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The multi-purpose home of the Hawkeyes has a capacity of 15,500.
USC vs. Iowa record
Since 1993, the USC Trojans have played Iowa twice, with the Hawkeyes holding a 2-0 record in the series during that time.
Iowa beat USC 78-65 in their last meeting, which came on Nov. 28, 2013 in Cancun, Mexico. On Dec. 30, 1993, the Hawkeyes edged the Trojans 50-49 in the USC Christmas Tournament.
NCAA women’s college basketball rankings
Here are the latest USA TODAY Sports women’s basketball coaches poll top 25 for Week 13. Records current through Jan. 30, 2025.
- UCLA (20-0)
- South Carolina (20-1)
- Notre Dame (17-2)
- USC (18-1)
- LSU (21-1)
- UConn (19-2)
- Texas (20-2)
- Ohio State (19-1)
- TCU (20-2)
- Duke (17-4)
- Kansas State (19-2)
- Oklahoma (16-4)
- Kentucky (17-2)
- Maryland (16-4)
- North Carolina (18-4)
- North Carolina State (16-4)
- Michigan State (17-3)
- California (18-3)
- Tennessee (15-5)
- West Virginia (16-4)
- Georgia Tech (17-4)
- Alabama (17-4)
- Vanderbilt (17-4)
- Florida State (16-4)
- Oklahoma State (17-3)
Caitlin Clark’s financial impact
Des Moines Register reporter Chad Leistikow wrote on the remarkable financial impact Caitlin Clark has had on her teams. From his story:
“Caitlin Clark’s final year as a college basketball star led to record revenue for University of Iowa athletics but also added millions of dollars in extra expenditures, the school’s 2024 fiscal-year statement shows.
“The report, which was due to be filed to the NCAA by Jan. 15 and obtained by the Des Moines Register via an open-records request, also showed that Iowa women’s basketball revenue exceeded that of the men’s team for the first time. The numbers are staggering and underscore how Clark’s senior season with the Hawkeyes became a wildly entertaining experience, both on and off the court.”
CAITLIN CLARK EFFECT:How much money did Iowa women’s basketball earn in her final year?
Nancy Armour contributed to this story
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