LOS ANGELES (AP) — Southern California’s JuJu Watkins is back on the court preparing for the upcoming college basketball season over 14 months after one of the biggest stars of the women’s game suffered a torn ACL.“I’m just really blessed to be here, feeling back like myself and being able to practice with the team,” Watkins said Monday. “It’s been a long time coming. I’ve just been working out, grinding every day so that I could be in this position, so to see all of that hard work kind of pay off right now is really fulfilling.”Watkins missed the entire 2025-26 season as she recovered from the injury she suffered in the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. “She’s back on the court and it’s just a beautiful thing to see,” coach Lindsay Gottlieb said.Watkins and Gottlieb didn’t get into specifics about the guard’s status, although Watkins said she’s been able to scrimmage. The Trojans are in their third week of summer camp.
“She’s stronger, faster, in her best shape ever,” Gottlieb said. “The work that she put in is something that is going to speak volumes.”Teammate Kennedy Smith said, “She’s back like she never left.”
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