LINCOLN, NEB — The last game on the 2025 portion of the season for the USC Women of Troy would prove to be a difficult task, as the Trojans traveled to Lincoln to face the undefeated Nebraska Cornhuskers in their second game of Big Ten play. Despite the back-and-forth camaraderie between the two programs, it was the Women of Troy who came away with the 74-66 victory in compelling fashion.
“Big time arena. Big time atmosphere. Awesome fans. A great top-20 battle. This is what the Big Ten is going to be every night. Credit to Nebraska… super proud of our team for battling back, finding our offense… big road win, we’ll take it and head back to LA,” Trojans Head Coach Lindsay Gottlieb said on the Women of Troy’s impressive win over the No.20 Cornhuskers.
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The Women of Troy were torching offensively, as the team shot 50% from the floor, and a total of four Trojans scored double figures. Freshman Jazzy Davidson and sophomore Kennedy Smith led the Trojans in scoring with 17 points each, which paired with Davidson’s 8 rebounds, 5 blocks, and Smith’s team-high 9 boards and 6 assists.
With Davidson’s five blocks against Nebraska, she is the only player this season with multiple five-block games against ranked opponents. Truly a testament to the true freshmen’s impact on all fragments of the floor.
On the topic of Davidson, late in the fourth quarter with two minutes left of regulation, the freshman went down and had to be carried off the floor and did not return to the game with apparent cramps. As of yet, there is still no word on her condition.
The Trojans were never once out of this game against a crucial Big Ten opponent, as the Women of Troy were only down two heading into halftime. Senior Kara Dunn led the team in first-half points with 11 and shot 47% from the floor. USC took off in the second half, gaining its biggest lead over Nebraska with a 16-point lead as the final seconds of the third quarter wound down, and generated a 13-0 run earlier in the quarter.
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USC shot exceptionally well on the floor in the second half, notching 54% from the floor, and defensively, the Trojans were just as good. Despite outscoring USC 14-9 in the final quarter of play, Nebraska went scoreless for the final two minutes of play, which allowed the Women of Troy to gain ground on their undefeated opponent.
With a huge road win against an undefeated Big Ten team, the Trojans not only improve to 10-3 on the season, but remain undefeated in their own right in Big Ten play at 2-0. USC ends the year with an exclamation point, but looks to open up the 2026 portion of its schedule against cross-town rival UCLA on January 3.
