The Trojans take on UConn and stars Paige Bueckers and Sarah Strong at 9 p.m. ET. They already have a head-to-head win over the Huskies from December, but they won't have the services of Watkins, who scored a game-high 25 points, this time around.

Monday night's Elite Eight matchup between USC and UConn was supposed to be a showdown between perhaps the two best players in the country. The Trojans' Juju Watkins and the Huskies' Paige Bueckers squaring off with a trip to the Final Four on the line for the second consecutive year would have been appointment television.

USC knew there would be an element of surprise Saturday because opponents spend so much time scouting Watkins. But even when the Wildcats were able to focus on the other players, the load was so evenly spread that it was impossible to stop all of them.