Usc Star Juju Watkins Is The Ap Player Of The Year And Just The Fourth Sophomore To Earn That Honor

JuJu Watkins, the sensational sophomore who led Southern California to its best season in nearly 40 years, was honored Thursday as The Associated Press women's college basketball Player of the Year.

Watkins, whose Trojans won the Big Ten regular-season title for its first conference crown in 31 years, received 29 votes from the 31-member national media panel that votes on the AP Top 25 each week. Notre Dame's Hannah Hidalgo got the other two. Both were first-team AP All-Americans.

"I think what's so significant about this award is that this was a year that didn't have an absence of talent and stars, and JuJu found a way to elevate herself and her team," USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb said.

Watkins became just the fourth player to win the award in her sophomore year, joining Oklahoma's Courtney Paris 2007 and UConn stars Maya Moore 2009 and Breanna Stewart 2014. The AP first started giving out the award in 1995 and Watkins is the first Trojans player to win it.

"She makes a lot of things that aren't easy look easy," Gottlieb said. "It's one thing to say she's a generational talent, but another to actually do it and put yourself up with names like Stewie, Maya and Courtney Paris."