LOS ANGELES — It’s feeling like March around Galen Center, even though it’s only halfway through November.
The No. 8 USC women’s basketball program is pulling out all the stops for Saturday’s game against No. 2 South Carolina – dubbed “The Real SC” – and it’s creating an atmosphere that can prepare them for the future.
“It really is playoff vibes,” Trojans guard Kara Dunn told reporters after practice Thursday. “I feel like it’s such an advantage having a tough schedule early. We know that we need to lock in on the scout, we need to get our routine before we play, making sure that we’re locked in from the get-go. And I think that we can only go up from here.”
USC (2-0) will take the court at Crypto.com Arena, which is the second consecutive professional venue in which the Trojans will play after beating No. 10 NC State 69-68 at the Charlotte Hornets’ Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.
There’s still momentum from that win, and it’s a game that helped true freshman Jazzy Davidson build her confidence. She scored only three points in the first half but finished the game with 21 points as well as a game-high five blocks.
“I’m surrounded by such amazing teammates and coaches,” Davidson said. “They’re just constantly lifting me up and up and helping me through kind of harder spells like the first half.”
Davidson is becoming the main attraction on a USC team that is without JuJu Watkins, who is recovering from an ACL injury. She was the No. 1 recruit in the 2025 class, and next season, she’ll be joined by a 2026 recruiting class that’s ranked No. 1 in the nation, according to ESPN.
The Trojans signed top-ranked guard Saniyah Hall and five-star international player Sitaya Fagan on Tuesday. It’s the third time in four years that head coach Lindsay Gottlieb has nabbed the No. 1 recruit in the nation.
“I grabbed the coaches after practice yesterday,” Gottlieb told reporters. “And I said, ‘I know, this just kind of feels like any other day, but you all did this.’ We did this. We signed the number one class in the country. But most importantly, young women who fit as human beings, people we want to be around every day, who fit the style of play.”
Kaleena Smith, an Ontario Christian High point guard, is the No. 1 recruit in the 2027 class. She was in attendance for USC’s practice Thursday afternoon and posted a photo to her Instagram story from the sideline.
USC will wear its Legacy Gold uniforms Saturday for the first time this season in a game that could be viewed as a recruiting tool. Rather, Gottlieb instead sees it as a culture-building tool.
“I look at it if you’re trying to be elite women’s basketball, you’ve got to play really good nonconference games,” she said. “The opportunity to play at Crypto was super cool. We want to be at center stage of women’s basketball. I want to put the players in those situations because it’s great for them basketball-wise.
“It’s absolutely an incredible opportunity just to continue to make our program in the places that we want to be.”
USC will be South Carolina’s first ranked opponent of the season. Coached by Dawn Staley, the Gamecocks (3-0) are coming off a 65-37 win over Clemson and are led by 6-foot-3 forward Joyce Edwards’ 18.3 points per game.
Dunn said she’s familiar with two Gamecocks – 5-foot-8 guard Ta’Niya Latson and 5-foot-9 guard Raven Johnson – from her days in travel basketball. Latson is the team’s second-leading scorer with 16.3 points per game and Johnson leads the Gamecocks with 20 assists.
“They’re a high-level team with respectable players, a respectable coach,” Dunn said. “That’s everything that you want to be playing against early on so that we’re ready later on.”
No. 2 South Carolina (3-0) at No. 8 USC (2-0)
When: 6 p.m. Saturday
Where: Crypto.com Arena
TV/radio: FOX (Ch. 11)/USCTrojans.com/Listen