The No. 4 USC Trojans women’s basketball team is 15-1, 5-0 in Big Ten Conference play. The Women of Troy are coming off a top ten matchup against Maryland with a 79-74 win. The Trojans face the 9-7 Penn State Lady Lions on Sunday night.

How to watch:

The USC Trojans women’s basketball team will face the Penn State Lady Lions on Sunday at 5:00 p.m. PT at the Galen Center in Los Angeles, California. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.

USC vs. Penn State Preview:

The Women of Troy are coming off back-to-back road games and will finally return home to face Penn State. The USC-Maryland game was a game between two top ten teams, but the Trojans walked away with a decisive win.

After the game, USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb spoke about the win against Maryland and how proud she is of the team. Maryland is a tough opponent and was a big test for the Trojans in Big Ten conference play.

“Really, really proud of our team tonight and that starts with a level of respect for Maryland. You know, I watched for a long time and did my homework,” Gottlieb said. “They’ve been through the Big Ten Championship more times than they’ve ever been through before in this league. So we knew this was a great opportunity but also a difficult task.”

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While USC played its last two games on the East Coast, they couldn’t ignore the tragic wildfires in Los Angeles. They will return home to the Galen Center to face Penn State.

“I received a really nice text message from our marketing manager at home saying that for a good two hours your team allowed us to not think about what was going on and I think, without really knowing it, “That’s what this team does,” Gottlieb said.

“We feel that basketball isn’t everything, but when those 40 minutes are in front of us, it’s everything to us in that moment, and I think that maybe gives people the feeling of taking their minds off more difficult things and have some joy,” Gottlieb continued.

The home crowd in the Galen Center can look forward to an alumni presentation at halftime. USC guard JuJu Watkins is averaging 24.4 points per game in Big Ten conference play. Against Maryland, Watkins and forward Kiki Iriafen each led the team with 21 points.

The Penn State Lady Lions are 9-8, 0-5 in Big Ten conference play. They are on a five-game losing streak and 1-3 away games this season. While the season may not turn out the way Penn State had hoped so far, there are still players for USC to prepare for. Penn State center Gracie Merkle leads the team with 16.8 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game. Guard Alli Campbell leads the way with an average of 4.3 assists and 1.8 steals per game. Penn State will look to turn its fortunes around at the Galen Center.

The USC Trojans and Penn State Nittany Lions have only played once in their history. The Trojans won by just one point on November 22, 2023. The final score was 71-70.

USC vs Penn State Prediction:

The Trojans are 25.5 point favorites against the Lady Lions. USC will take the win 81-57.

The USC Trojans’ next game was scheduled for January 15th. Northwestern announced it would not travel to California and the game was postponed. USC’s next scheduled game is January 19th against the Indiana Hoosiers. The matchup will take place at Bloomington Assembly Hall in Indiana.