Illinois (21-6, 11-5) sticks around in Los Angeles, hoping to leave with good news. No. 4 USC (24-2, 14-1) stands in its way, led by sophomore guard JuJu Watkins.

Watkins dropped a jaw-dropping 38 points against UCLA (25-1, 13-1) in a crosstown matchup on Feb. 13. She has scored in double-digits all season. Her defensive game is also on point, totaling 50 blocks, including an astounding eight against the Bruins alone.

As the season beats on, the Illini have had to persevere against devastating team injuries. Losing starter fifth-year guard Makira Cook and sixth-man sophomore guard Gretchen Dolan in January was a major blow. Then, new starter sophomore guard Jasmine Brown-Hagger was sidelined indefinitely after Sunday. 

It appears the Illini will close the season with just eight eligible players. While almost all original starters remain, nearly all backups are unavailable. This leaves them heavily relying on underclassmen who simply lack experience. 

Still, the Trojans should approach the Illini with caution. While USC has a strong and healthy rotation, it fell to Iowa (18-8, 8-7) at the beginning of February. The Hawkeyes have had a middling season and were the underdogs in that matchup, but they pulled away early. They then won the fourth quarter to put away the upset.

The Illini may adopt a similar strategy to best the top-five contender on Sunday. With that noted, here are some things Illinois must focus on for this battle. 

Finding momentum early

Sophomore guard Cori Allen and freshman forward Berry Wallace are typically called on not only to rest players but also to energize the floor. With Brown-Hagger day-to-day, Wallace, in particular, leads this charge. She has made the most of her minutes recently when awarded the chance. Wallace has scored over 10 points in five of her last six games and shot over 50% from the arc in the last four.

USC will likely try to capitalize on the shorter bench, but it does so with only two players averaging double figures: Watkins (24.2) and graduate student forward Kiki Iriafen (18.0). This highlights the primary scoring threats that are most important to shut down if they get the rock.

To combat the rotation of fresh legs, the Illini must focus on moving the ball efficiently in the transition to prevent movement. Fast breaks aren’t necessary to win, but Illinois should prioritize open looks over gameplay that is too fast. On defense, sticking to assignments and guarding the key will be crucial.

“We need to have an all-around game to beat a high-ranked team on their home court,” said fifth-year guard Genesis Bryant. 

Stay aggressive, clean up sloppiness

Despite struggling to manage strong starts, Illinois never bows out early. This has led the team to impressive comebacks against ranked teams, most recently in its one-point win over then-No. 14 Maryland (21-6, 11-5). The Illini didn’t tie the game until the end of the third quarter. 

However, against UCLA, head coach Shauna Green noticed that her players had a particularly slow start. 

“We were really passive coming out,” Green said. “We were feeling the game out too much. Our length affected us early on, and we weren’t as aggressive.”

The new starting rotation, combined with a high-pressure atmosphere, forced the Illini into mistake after mistake, but one thing Green has instilled in her players is not to let the past affect the future. 

“You learn through failure,” Green said. “In this league, you can’t be too high, and you can’t be too low.” 

She preaches resilience, which will come in many forms — for starters, it’s from the three-point range. Those high-value shots will help the underdogs stay in the fight. 

Thanks to Bryant and Wallace striking gold beyond the arc recently, the Illini’s three-point game has improved past the Trojans. Watkins falls behind both in three-point percentage but takes many more shots. Her team can also open up the middle and give the star room to drive down the lane.

Illinois also must do a better job of cutting off the paint. Bryant played a lot of defense down low against UCLA, angling to pick off dribbles. Fifth-year forward Kendall Bostic and senior forward Brynn Shoup-Hill will be paired against senior center Rayah Marshall and Iriafen. This is a more comfortable matchup for the Illinois duo since Marshall and Iriafen are around the same size.

This post-battle will be purely skill-based, and Illinois holds the edge. Bostic is the only one of the four who averages over double-digit boards in this meeting. 

Big TV spot

In a first for Illinois this season, FS1 has the rights to this game. 

“It’s great exposure for this team and the program,” Green said about the game being slotted for national television. 

The tipoff will be at the Galen Center at 3 p.m. on Sunday.

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