This post was updated Jan. 18 at 6:08 p.m.
A lone USC fan lined up outside the Galen Center.
It was five hours until tip-off, and the spectator spotted USC guard and freshman phenom JuJu Watkins.
“I couldn’t sleep last night,” he said to Watkins.
“Me either,” Watkins replied.
Then-No. 2 UCLA women’s basketball squared off against then-No. 9 USC on Sunday in front of a sold-out crowd for the second time in two weeks.
On Dec. 30 in Pauley Pavilion, a record 13,659 people witnessed the Bruins beat the Trojans for the claim to the city.
On Jan. 14 in Galen Center, a historic 10,657 attendees watched USC topple UCLA for the first time in the last 10 matchups.
Watkins poured in 32 points to help the Trojans claim a nearly wire-to-wire win as they split this season’s rivalry series. On Monday, USC moved to No. 6 in the Top 25 AP Poll, while UCLA slipped to No. 5.
Sunday’s ticket proved the most coveted in Southern California, a welcome change for two programs attempting to rewrite the narrative in recent years. A combination of women’s basketball’s rise, alongside intentionality and perseverance in both teams’ cultures, has manifested in unprecedented hype around UCLA and USC this year.
“This is the dream,” said USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb after the game.
Last season, UCLA welcomed a season-high 6,855 fans for its game against then-No. 2 Stanford while averaging about 3,000 spectators across all conference games. The Bruins cracked into the AP Top 10 last year and made a run to the March Madness Sweet 16.
Meanwhile, USC’s attendance numbers hovered around 1,000 to 1,500 with a season-high 2,418 watching the Stanford game. The Trojans went 15-2 at home during the 2022-2023 campaign and qualified for their first NCAA Tournament since 2014.
Gottlieb said this year’s turnout represents a staggering shift in culture since becoming head coach in 2021.
“The number of times I’ve had conversations with recruits who say the other coaches in the league say you don’t get fans,” Gottlieb said. “Particularly for JuJu, … there were times her sophomore and junior year where I’m like, ‘Do we want JuJu to come to this game? Are there going to be enough people?’ Because I was worried.”
Both UCLA’s and USC’s recruiting successes – evident in the effect of Watkins and UCLA sophomore guard Kiki Rice so early in their careers – have also contributed to cultivating excitement around watching women’s basketball in Southern California. Administrations and marketing teams at the two schools are increasingly invested in promoting their top-ranked squads.
Instead of adopting a short-sighted outlook on the buildup and success of both programs, Sunday’s contest begs an appreciation for the foundation. It was not the result of passing hype for two top-10 teams. It was two teams reaping the rewards of years of disciplined recruiting, development and commitment.
“They’ve recruited really well. We’ve recruited really well,” Close said. “I give their administration credit – they’ve been really invested and done a great job to give Lindsay and her staff what they need to go really be a great team. I think that’s imperative on the women’s side, and I think we’re seeing the benefits of that.”
Gottlieb said navigating a market like Los Angeles that is so saturated with entertainment has one requirement: a winning pedigree.
“LA likes winners. They like a show – they show up when you’re good,” Gottlieb said. “This is LA at its best.”
True, this is LA at its best. Recognizing two incredibly talented teams, tapping into loyalties and long-standing rivalries, giving top-10 crosstown showdowns the audience they deserve. Attracting the likes of former UCLA men’s basketball star and current Clipper Russell Westbrook as well as rapper and USC alumnus Saweetie on the sidelines.
But LA has a short attention span.
Against Oregon and Oregon State, neither UCLA nor USC eclipsed the 4,000 mark in their home stadiums – just a week after the first rivalry game in Pauley Pavilion sold out.
“It’s good for all of women’s basketball for us to be good, but I would challenge the fan base. I challenge all of you – don’t just show up when we play each other,” Close said. “Last week, neither of us had great attendance numbers against Oregon when we were home, right after this.”
Graduate student guard Charisma Osborne – who has been with the Bruins for five years – shared her optimism about the potential for both teams to garner the type of attention surrounding their games in every situation.
“I wish every game was like this, and I think every game could be like this for both our team and their team,” Osborne said.
However, for the women’s teams to attract the attendance numbers they deserve, LA and greater Southern California are going to need to see beyond the initial shine.
UCLA and USC are polished, near-perfect teams with a combined two losses – each to the other – and star-studded rosters to pair. They are playing their best basketball in decades, topping polls for the first time since the turn of the century.
But their success is not a measure of the current moment. It is a consequence of the culture both programs have cultivated.
And LA is lucky enough to witness it.
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