Selection Sunday didn’t pan out the way USC wanted it to. It seems like their conference championship loss against UCLA was the turning point for the committee, as they appointed the Bruins as the best team in the nation. The seeding wasn’t well-received either, with USC Coach Lindsay Gottlieb speaking out about the decision. She felt ‘disrespected’ by the seeding, and felt that there should have been very little chance for USC to end up as #4. 

It’s not just Gottlieb either. Many analysts recognized how unexpected this ranking was. On ESPN’s The Elle Duncan Show, show-hosts Elle Duncan and Gary Striewski talked about how the bracket formed unfavorable matchups. In particular, they pointed out how UConn and USC will have to meet before the Final Four for the second year straight.

Elle Duncan got candid about her views on the bracket. She had a number of burning questions she wanted to ask the committee. “Did you not think at all about the matchup? The idea that for the second straight year, a number-one-seeded USC has to get through UConn to get to the Final Four? It ended their season last year.” Considering the hype that surrounds Bueckers and Watkins, their matchup is worth way more than an Elite Eight appearance. It was a definite blunder by the hands of the selection committee.

And in her critique of the seeding, Elle Duncan had quite a simple fix in mind. Swap Texas and USC. “USC beat UConn already this year. They beat UCLA twice this year. I don’t think anybody would have clutched their pearls if you would’ve made USC the number three, number one overall, and make Texas the number four.” With Texas at number four, suddenly the matchups would begin to make sense.

The NCAA could build towards a Paige Bueckers vs JuJu Watkins Final Four or championship game, rather than forcing the matchup too early. It is a big event for the NCAA when two stars go against each other with everything on the line. So, logically, it would make sense to have it as close as possible to the finals. But what do the players think about a potential rematch?

JuJu Watkins looking forward to a clash with Paige Bueckers and UConn

Fans love to see a clash of the giants. Well, there are no two bigger names in NCAA basketball than JuJu Watkins and Paige Bueckers. Both are in contention for NPOY honors, and Bueckers is expected to go #1 overall in this year’s WNBA draft. And when they battle it out? People pay attention.

Their last matchup was one of the highest rated games of the NCAA season. It went down to the wire, but JuJu Watkins avenged her previous years’ Elite Eight loss by 2 points. The USC star’s 25 point masterclass was the highlight of the night, but it was definitely a close game. Paige Bueckers and Sarah Strong led UConn with 22 points each, but it was not enough.

Now, what does JuJu Watkins feel about a rematch with Bueckers? “That’s really cool.” The USC star said, referring to UConn and USC meeting before the Final Four bracket. “We love competition. We got to match earlier in the season, so it will be an even better matchup this time,” she added. “We’re better, they’re better, so yeah. It will just be a great game,” 

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It will be quite fun to see the two stars face off again, even though it won’t be in the championship game. With the NCAA Tournament growing bigger and bigger every year, their matchup will be absolutely lovely to watch for fans — old and new alike.