USC women’s basketball‘s most recent game versus Maryland may have been its most encouraging loss in the entire Lindsay Gottlieb era.
That sounds silly to say, but hear me out. I’d much rather lose to the No. 12 team in the country despite putting up an elite defensive effort, than lose to unranked teams like the Trojans had been doing this last week. USC showed clear signs of life, and for a fanbase that is holding out hope that this team will make the NCAA tournament, that was. a very welcome sight, even if the result wasn’t great.
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Now, the Trojans need to keep up the fight and translate it into a win. USC has a good opportunity to do so this weekend, hosting a Purdue team that has also struggled overall in Big Ten play.
Here are five things to watch as a USC team desperate for a conference victory looks to beat the Boilermakers on Sunday:
The momentum game
Both teams are 10-7 overall and 2-4 in Big Ten play, needing a win to stay afloat in the NCAA tournament race. But they took very different paths to get there.
USC won its first 2 Big Ten games against ranked teams Washington and Nebraska, then lost four in a row to UCLA, Oregon, Minnesota, and Maryland. Oregon and Minnesota were unranked. On the flip side, Purdue lost its first four conference games, then beat Wisconsin and No. 23 Washington.
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Purdue’s win over Washington was the Boilermakers’ first ranked win since the 2022-23 season.
So, Purdue is coming into this game with all of the momentum, while USC has experienced all of the heartbreak in its last few games. Which attitude will win out: Purdue’s feeling of belief which the program has not had in a long time, or USC’s feeling of desperation as the season has gotten away from the Trojans a little bit?
This is a potential revenge game for Purdue
Last season on January 22, 2025, USC destroyed Purdue 79-37 on the Boilermakers’ home floor. It was an absolute embarassment.
Interestingly enough, Avery Howell was the leading scorer in that game for USC with 18 points.
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The Boilermakers already got revenge on Howell this week. Are they going to come for the Trojans next?
This is a very different USC squad than the one that took the floor in West Lafayette last season, but the Boilermakers will recognize Vivian Iwuchukwu, Malia Samuels, Rian Forestier, Brooklyn Shamblin and Kennedy Smith, if Smith is recovered in time to play. USC needs to make sure that the Boilermakers don’t stick it to them.
Is Kara Dunn officially USC’s go-to player offensively?
USC may be struggling in Big Ten play in 2026, but one player is still thriving on the court: senior wing Kara Dunn.
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Dunn has led USC in scoring each of the Trojans’ last four games, and in each of their last three contests, she has scored 20+ points.
Dunn’s shooting volume has also increased dramatically. She took 18 shots against Oregon, 17 shots against Minnesota and 16 shots against Maryland.
Dunn is rewarding Lindsay Gottlieb for running the offense through her, a wise decision in conference play given that Dunn is USC’s most experienced, proven scorer. Hopefully she can lead the Trojans to a win with her scoring efforts here soon.
Will Laura Williams receive a second straight start?
Ahead of the Minnesota game I pointed out that Laura Williams appeared to be shaking up USC’s forward rotation again. Turns out I was right: Williams received her first career start against Maryland.
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She didn’t stuff the stat sheet, scoring only 4 points and pulling down 1 rebound in 13 minutes. Dayana Mendes and Vivian Iwuchukwu played more than Williams off the bench, as well.
The forward rotation remains something to monitor, because USC still doesn’t seem to have it quite figured out. If the Trojans are going to win any postseason games, they need to have at least one forward they can trust at key moments.
USC must slow down Madison Layden-Zay
Madison Layden-Zay is a Purdue program legend. She will likely hold most of the meaningful Purdue program records after her career ends, and she could meet some Big Ten milestones as well.
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But while USC should respect her experience and expect a crafty game from the veteran, what the Trojans really need to be worried about is Layden-Zay’s great stretch of recent offensive production.
After managing to score in double figures in just 2 of her first 10 games, Layden-Zay has scored 10+ points in 6 of her last 7 games.
Her two most recent performances are her best this season, dropping 18 points to lead Purdue past Wisconsin and 19 points to help Purdue defeat Washington.
It’s not a coincidence that her best games were also Wisconsin’s biggest wins of the season. USC needs to end Layden-Zay’s hot streak to have its best chance of winning this game.
Can the Trojans do it?
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USC women’s basketball faces Purdue at Galen Center on Sunday
