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Freshman standout Kiyomi McMiller will not be suiting up for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights' Big Ten game against the fourth-ranked USC Trojans on Sunday. She will miss one of the regular-season marquee matchups she has with sophomore sensation JuJu Watkins.
On Instagram, McMiller announced her absence from the highly anticipated game in a decision made by her coach, Coquese Washington:
"To My Fans, I would like to apologize to my fans. I will not be playing in today's game vs USC, which is #4 in the country. This decision was made by my head coach, Coquese Washington. Thank you all for your continued support. Godbless all of you ~ Kiyomi 'The Product' McMiller."
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According to ESPN, the program addressed her absence:
"Kiyomi will miss tonight's game due to coach's decision. We will handle the matter internally."
Meanwhile, she reposted a sports fan page's Instagram story of hers:
"Dis one hurt bad. Eye never looked forward to covering an athlete more than this one. And eye haveseen many profressional athletes in da making. Wishing you da best @kiyomimcmiller32."
For now, Washington and Rutgers, which entered the game at 8-6 (0-3 Big Ten) will have to test their luck against the USC Trojans (13-1, 3-0) without McMiller's spitfire scoring and Kyrie Irving-like handles. USC led 37-14 at halftime.
Kiyomi McMiller versus JuJu Watkins will have to be played another day
Heading into the game, many fans were excited to witness a potential back-and-forth affair between Kiyomi McMiller and JuJu Watkins. After all, McMiller has burst into the college scene, being the first from her program since 2020 to receive consecutive Big Ten Freshman of the Week nods.
Both McMiller and Watkins are tremendously gifted perimeter players, and the teams won't play again this season unless they're matched up in the Big Ten Tournament. McMiller is averaging 19.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.1 steals per game while Watkins is tallying 25.3 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 4.1 apg, 2.4 spg and 2.0 blocks per game.
The 5-foot-8 freshman's next opportunity to suit up will be Wednesday at the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
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