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JuJu Watkins has attracted national attention for her dominance on the court. The USC sophomore was named both The Athletic's National Player of the Year and the Big Ten Conference Player of the Year. Her impact on women's basketball has led many to draw comparisons between her and former Iowa star Caitlin Clark.
Clark won back-to-back Naismith National Player of the Year awards and was the first overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft. Both Clark and Watkins are stars in their own right, and some argue that comparisons between the two are pointless.
NCAA analyst Rachel Annamarie DeMita reflected on the Clark and Watkins comparison in a YouTube video posted on Monday.
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"It has gotten absurd and I'm so sick of it," DeMita said about the comparison between the two players. "I don't think any of it is productive to any of these players."
DeMita argued this point further, saying that players like Watkins and UConn star Paige Bueckers are making names for themselves and are not benefitted by comparisons to other players like Clark.
"Caitlin Clark had a legendary run in her college career," DeMita said. "She is now in the WNBA. Let her be in the WNBA and let these women build their college careers."
JuJu Watkins' Big Ten Tournament performance for USC
USC entered the Big Ten Tournament as the top seed and received a double bye. The Trojans' first game of the tournament was a quarterfinal appearance against Indiana. In the 84-79 win, Watkins put up 31 points, up from her 24.6 points-per-game average.
The guard made it a double-double with 10 rebounds and added two assists. Her three steals and a block were valuable to the defense, but she turned the ball over six times.
In a semifinal win over Michigan, Watkins recorded another double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds. She contributed three assists and three steals but, once again, turned the ball over six times.
USC fell to rival UCLA in the Big Ten Tournament title game. Watkins put up 29 points but shot just 32.1% from the field, down from her 42.6% average this season.
Her six rebounds and two assists were also both below average, but she contributed four steals. The sophomore guard continued to struggle to keep control of the ball and had five turnovers.
Despite her team's disappointing loss to UCLA, Watkins has emerged as a women's basketball star independent of comparisons to Clark.
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