USC star JuJu Watkins breaks silence after devastating March Madness injury: 'Thank you all'

JuJu Watkins has go 1 of the apical players successful women's assemblage basketball. 

The USC defender sustained a season-ending genu wounded during a second-round crippled successful the NCAA Tournament.

While USC got past Kansas State successful the Sweet 16, the short-handed Trojans were eliminated from contention successful the Elite Eight. The time aft UConn's 78-64 triumph implicit USC, Watkins expressed gratitude for the enactment she's received since tearing an ACL.

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USC Trojans defender JuJu Watkins (12) during pregame warmups earlier a second-round NCAA Tournament crippled against the Mississippi State Bulldogs astatine Galen Center successful Los Angeles March 24, 2025. (Robert Hanashiro/Imagn Images)

"Thank you each for the unthinkable emotion and support. Seeing each your messages and benignant words has meant the satellite to maine — y’all person fixed maine truthful overmuch hope," Watkins wrote successful a station to her Instagram story.

WNBA LEGEND REVEALS 1-WORD REACTION TO JUJU WATKINS' DEVASTATING KNEE INJURY

"Right now, my bosom is with my teammates – I privation I could person been retired determination battling, but I couldn’t beryllium prouder of the combat we’ve fought together. Thank you all."

USC Trojans defender JuJu Watkins grabs her genu aft falling to the level during the archetypal 4th of a second-round NCAA Tournament crippled against the Mississippi State Bulldogs astatine Galen Center successful Los Angeles March 24, 2025. (Robert Hanashiro/Imagn Images)

UConn's triumph implicit USC punched the Huskies' summons to the Final Four. UConn faces UCLA Friday.

USC entered this year's tourney arsenic a apical seed. The Trojans besides earned a No. 1 effect past twelvemonth and precocious to the Elite Eight. UConn besides eliminated USC successful the Elite Eight successful 2024.

Watkins was fouled arsenic she drove to the handbasket connected a accelerated interruption astir 5 minutes into a March 24 crippled against Mississippi State. Her close genu appeared to buckle connected the play, and she fell to the floor, wherever she remained for good implicit a infinitesimal successful disposable pain, grabbing her knee.

USC defender JuJu Watkins (12) against Mississippi State defender Jerkaila Jordan (2) during the archetypal fractional successful the 2nd circular of the NCAA Tournament March 24, 2025, successful Los Angeles.  (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh)

Watkins enactment unneurotic an outstanding freshman run during the 2023-24 season, and her awesome show continued this year. The Los Angeles autochthonal averaged 23.9 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists successful 33 games this season.

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USC manager Lindsay Gottlieb said Watkins' presumption for the 2025-26 play is unclear.

"We don’t cognize what JuJu volition do. Will she instrumentality the full twelvemonth and redshirt? Will she effort to travel backmost astatine immoderate point," Gottlieb told ESPN Monday. "Those aren’t conversations for close now, but I bash deliberation we volition dive into however bash we enactment an elite squad careless of those circumstances. We volition person clip to fig retired however to beryllium great, adjacent if JuJu isn’t retired there."

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