USC still keeping eyes on ultimate goal after devastating JuJu Watkins injury

SPOKANE, Wash.— When Kiki Iriafen arrived at Spokane Arena Friday afternoon, fond memories of the last time she was here started to come back to her. Three years ago at this very arena, Iriafen, then a freshman at Stanford, danced the electric slide with her teammates on a confetti-filled court after the Cardinal beat Texas to advance to the Final Four. “I started my season in this building,” Iriafen, now a senior at USC, said.

“And I kind of want to end in the same way that I started it.” It’s wishful thinking considering the Trojans lost their best player, JuJu Watkins, earlier this week after she tore her right anterior cruciate ligament in their second-round win. But Iriafen and the rest of the team have maintained the belief that they can still accomplish their season-long goal of winning a national championship. “We are fighters,” Iriafen said.“So we’re just again keeping the main thing, the main thing, keeping the goal.” The outpouring of support for Watkins and USC over the past five days has been “unbelievable.” Coach Lindsay Gottlieb received scores of text messages from fellow coaches, including UConn’s Geno Auriemma, UCLA’s Cori Close and Notre Dame’s Niele Ivey, with words of encouragement regarding the team’s situation.

Several more people, including Candace Parker and Lindsey Harding, have offered to connect with Watkins throughout her rehabilitation journey. Want to tune into as much March Madness as you can? DIRECTV Stream and Hulu + Live TV both have you covered with every channel you’ll need, plus free trials.Gottlieb gave her team the day off after it punched its ticket to the Sweet 16 Monday.The time allowed players to process their emotions and lock back in.

About 36 hours later, the Trojans reconvened and started preparing for Saturday’s game against Kansas State. “We’ve had a lot of emotions, but none of them are doubt,” Gottlieb said.“There’s a lot of belief in our team, there’s a...