NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Even a six-minute scoring slump wasn't enough to shake JuJu Watkins and her No. 8 USC women's basketball team. USC watched a seven-point lead melt away at the hands of a fierce Penn State squad in the fourth quarter. The Trojans trailed by six until Watkins broke the silence with two minutes to go, shouldering the load and scoring the final seven points of the game as USC topped the Nittany Lions 71-70 to stay perfect on the year at 5-0. Watkins finished with her first career double-double on 31 points and 12 rebounds, as USC capped a victorious visit to the Bahamas at the Baha Mar Pink Flamingo Classic. Penn State goes to 5-1 after tonight's heart-stopping finish in Nassau.

The lead changed hands 11 times in the first half, with USC shrugging off an early 9-0 run by the Nittany Lions and getting the last word of the half with a buzzer-beating bucket from half court by JuJu Watkins, lifting USC ahead 35-34 at the break. USC was shooting 41.4 percent from the floor to that point, just a beat behind Penn State's 41.7 percent effort. USC also had the edge on the boards 21-17 through those first 20 minutes. The intense competition continued, with USC wrapping up at 40.4 percent overall from the floor and PSU at 40.6. USC was 9-of-18 from 3-point range to outpace PSU's 5-of-16 effort, and USC wound up ahead on the boards 37-34.

Freshman Watkins' 31 points led all scorers on the night, and marked the most points by any player in a game at the Baha Mar Pink Flamingo Classic. She went 11-of-14 from the free-throw line and secured her first double-double as a Trojan with her game-high 12 rebounds. Rayah Marshall also notched a double-double — her third of the season and 23rd of her career — with 11 points and 10 boards. Penn State had three players finish in double digits, led by an 18-point effort from Shay Ciezki along with 10 points apiece from Makenna Marisa and Kylie Lavelle.

It was a game of scoring spurts out of the games as USC answered a 4-0 PSU start with a bucket from JuJu Watkins and a 3-pointer from Kayla Padilla in the first three minutes of play. USC would get ahead 11-7 on a three-point play from Watkins, and the game would lock up even twice in the next two minutes. Penn State got hot with a 9-0 rally to lead it 21-14 before McKenzie Forbes broke the cycle with a take to the hoop and then the USC defense forced a shot clock violation out of the Nittany Lions and kept them at bay as the score sat at 21-17 PSU at the end of the first frame. PSU capitalized on a steal to start the second, but USC was undeterred, getting a score from Rayah Marshall and a gutsy 3-pointer from Malia Samuels to get one back at 23-22 with 7:25 on the clock. Watkins delivered the go-ahead bucket at 6:00, prompting a see-saw battle that stretched for the next few minutes until Dominique Onu punched in back-to-back buckets to edge USC ahead 30-27 at 3:05. PSU responded with a three and a score to get out ahead again, and the Nittany Lions would go up 34-32 with four ticks to go — enough time for Watkins to sail a perfect halfcourt shot through for a swish at the buzzer and a 35-34 halftime lead for the Trojans.

The battle raged on in the third. Padilla buried a couple key threes for the Trojan cause to help craft a 45-39 USC lead two minutes in. The Nittany Lions fired back with an 8-0 surge to lead it 47-45 midway through the third. Again, USC didn't blink. The Trojans jumped back on top with an 8-0 rally of their own, fueled by a steal and finish from Watkins and a clutch 3-pointer from McKenzie Forbes to go up 55-49 at 2:36. It was largely free throws that fell in the next stretch on both ends, and USC gripped a 59-54 lead entering the fourth. USC hit a scoring skid in the fourth after a three from Taylor Bigby had built a 64-56 USC lead at 8:30. Penn State scored 12 straight points to move ahead 70-64 with 2:14 remaining. The Trojans finally broke through when Watkins struck at the 2-minute mark. After a defensive stop, Watkins drained an enormously clutch three to make it a one-point game at 70-69. With plenty of work still to do, USC stayed together, and Watkins stayed very much in game mode. With 30 seconds left, she sliced and diced her way to the hoop, delivering the go-ahead bucket to make it 71-70 USC. It was a wild final 30 seconds to the final buzzer, but USC held firm and Penn State misfired on its final looks as the Trojans celebrated an intense victory to stay undefeated on the year.

NEXT:
USC heads back to California, where the Trojans will stay in-state for the next nine games, beginning with next week's Tuesday (Nov. 28) meeting with Cal Poly at 7 p.m and a 3 p.m. clash with San Diego on Sunday (Dec. 3) at Galen Center.