By ANNE M. PETERSON AP Sports Writer
SPOKANE, Wash. — As top overall seed UCLA and star center Lauren Betts prepared for a Sweet 16 meeting with Mississippi, the Bruins’ thoughts were also on a familiar foe.
UCLA won’t get a rematch against JuJu Watkins further down the line in the NCAA Tournament because the USC star suffered a season-ending knee injury early in their second-round victory over Mississippi State on Monday night.
“I watched it live. It was just so hard to watch and I feel so sorry for her,” the 6-foot-7 Betts said. “And I feel so bad for that team and that program, to be honest. I know she’s such a crucial part of that program. I feel for her as a person and that’s not something that’s easy to come back from, but I know she’s going to be OK.”
UCLA (32-2) plays fifth-seeded Ole Miss (22-10) on Friday night for a chance to advance to the Elite Eight, facing the winner of Friday’s earlier game between third-seeded LSU and No. 2 seed N.C. State.
The Bruins earned the trip north with a second-round 84-67 victory over Richmond at Pauley Pavilion. Betts had 30 points and 14 rebounds in that one.
Mississippi defeated Baylor in Waco, Texas, to reach the Sweet 16 for the second time in the past three years. In 2023, the Rebels upset Stanford in the second round before falling to Louisville.
This time, the Rebels aren’t just happy to be here.
“The difference is, I think, we’re hungry. I mean, to be honest, back then we were just happy to do something that hadn’t been done in a very long time,” guard Madison Scott said. “But now we’ve done it again. So we’re not complacent, we’re not satisfied. We want to keep going. We want to keep dancing.”
UCLA’s only two losses this season came against Watkins and the Trojans before the Bruins got their revenge in the Big Ten Tournament title game, beating USC, 72-67.
The Trojans will also play in Spokane, facing Kansas State on Saturday. It will be their first full game without Watkins, who tore the ACL in her right knee during the first quarter of their 96-59 victory over Mississippi State.
Watkins planted her right leg awkwardly as she drove to the basket between two defenders and crumpled to the floor, wincing and as she was carried off. USC later said she had season-ending surgery as the Trojans look to win their first national title in 41 years.
Should USC get past the Wildcats, it will face either Paige Bueckers and traditional power Connecticut or Oklahoma in the Elite Eight.
There’s still a chance for UCLA-USC rematch in the Final Four, but if it happens, it will be without Watkins.
“To see, even a competitor, but someone who is a face of the sport, too, to just have her season end just like that? It sucks,” UCLA guard Kiki Rice said. “I mean, obviously we play against each other and it’s a rivalry, but you hate to see anyone go down with an injury like that. And she’s a great player, a great person.”
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