USC sophomore JuJu Watkins reached a career milestone faster than Indiana Fever star and Division I all-time leading scorer Caitlin Clark in the Trojans’ 81–50 win over the Santa Clara Broncos on Friday at Galen Center.
With 6:47 remaining in the third quarter, Watkins drained a jumper from the free-throw line to extend the Trojans’ lead to 18 points, and give the sophomore guard 1,000 points in her college career.
Watkins reached the mark in her 38th game, tied for the fourth-fewest games in NCAA Division I history. Clark, who went on to become the all-time leading scorer in Division I women’s basketball, and later the all-time leading scorer in Division I basketball—male or female—reached the milestone in 40 games. Watkins also achieved the feat quicker than any player in Trojans women’s basketball history.
“I’m not taking anything for granted, Watkins said after the game. “Very blessed to be in this position. This is great, something to build off and continue to work on.”
Watkins’s coach, Lindsay Gottlieb, perhaps summed up best the company Watkins is joining with such an accomplishment.
“When you break a record at USC, it hits a little different because the people you break the record from are so great,” Gottlieb said. “JuJu belongs in that conversation, and we’re all comfortable in saying it. It was the great Cheryl Miller who was next.”
Watkins cemented herself as an elite scorer when she dropped 51 points in a February 2024 game to help the Trojans upset then-No. 4-ranked Stanford.
Among the fastest to reach 1,000 career points, could Watkins next take aim at Clark’s Division I record 3,951 points?
