INDIANAPOLIS – Kiki Iliafen scored 17 of her 25 points late Saturday, with Juju Watkins adding 20 points, pulling down 11 rebounds each to enter the Big Ten Championship Game past fifth seeded Michigan 82–70.
The Trojans (28–2) face No. 4 UCLA, a 75-46 winner in No. 13 Ohio State on Sunday. USC won the league’s regular season by wiping out a two-game series with the Bruins.
USC scored the ninth straight despite league player Watkins having a rest night. Iriafen made 10 out of 19 shots.
Syla Swords finished with 26 points, while Olivia Olson led the Wolverines with 13 points and nine rebounds (22–10).
USC chased 31-29 at halftime, but turned the game later in the third quarter when Iriafen scored eight straight points to give the Trojans a 50-48 lead. They closed it with 16-2 runs midway through the fourth.
Take home
Michigan: The Wolverines won three times in a row, playing even better than they were promoted against one of the nation’s top teams. However, they ran out of gas and played their third game in three days.
USC: Again, the Trojan was sloppy. They struggled to take care of the ball, shot without shooting, didn’t control them late. Still, they managed to do enough.
Important moments
At 6:14, Watkins midrange broke a 60-60 tie. Malia Samuels then completed a 3-point play.
Key Statistics
The Trojans had a scoring edge of 17-12 with second chance points.
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Michigan will know where it is heading next week and who will play in the NCAA Tournament.
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By Michael Marotto
