WBB Wraparound: Juju Watkins, Syla Swords, Mikayla Blakes and more

3 highlights in women's college basketball this past week:

Juju Watkins records 7 assists against Michigan: No. 4 USC knows that Juju Watkins is a star, but the young player keeps striving for more. Watkins had an amazing freshman campaign, winning National Freshman of the Year by averaging 27.1 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game. Coming into this season, Watkins was vocal about wanting to be "a better teammate" on the court. That meant working on her playmaking skills and ensuring that when teams presented her with tough defense, she could give her teammates good looks.

That growth was evident in the Trojans' recent game against No. 23 Michigan, where Watkins recorded 7 assists. In a game that was close until the fourth quarter, Michigan was giving it all they had, getting Kiki Iriafen into foul trouble and playing strong defense on Watkins. She successfully helped her teammates get buckets, resulting in a 78-58 win for USC. Watkins scored 31 points herself along with 7 assists and 5 rebounds.

Syla Swords scores 30 points against No. 1 UCLA: Michigan's star freshman had to sit out against No. 4 USC due to a lower leg injury, but luckily was able to return against No. 1 UCLA a few days later. The McDonald's All-American, Canadian Olympian and Gatorade New York Player of the Year had herself a game in her return. Despite Michigan losing 86-70 to the country's best team, Swords scored 30 points with 4 rebounds and 2 assists on 11 made field goals. This Michigan team is young but promising, and Swords is the highest-ranked recruit in the program's history. She and Olivia Olson are the team's top scorers despite both being freshmen. This team is going to be very good for years to come.

Mikayla Blakes scores 36 points in SEC debut: Another young team making a splash is Vanderbilt. Their duo of Mikayla Blakes (FR) and Khamil Pierre (SO) score a combined 43.4 points per game for the Commodores. The team had a great non-conference schedule and now head into a very difficult SEC conference. In her SEC debut, Blakes scored 36 points in Vanderbilt's win against Georgia. She added 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 1 block, shooting 55.6 percent from 30point range. Vanderbilt won that game 108-82, a great start to SEC play. Their sole loss of the season was against Michigan State, but Vanderbilt is currently 14-1. They'll now play Kentucky, Ole Miss, and LSU back-to-back-to-back, and even one win among those tough teams will do a lot for their resume-building come tournament bracket-making time.

2 games to watch this week:

No. 9 Oklahoma vs. No.15 Tennessee: Sunday, Jan. 6, 3 p.m. EST

Now that conference play is in full swing, we are going to get some elite matchups. The SEC is such a tough conference known for its physical and dynamic play, especially in the post. Think about some recent players who have come out of the SEC: Angel Reese, Aliyah Boston, Rickea Jackson — all extremely good post players. Oklahoma has a great post player of their own in Reagan Beers, and the Sooners have been succeeding since Beers transferred. They are 12-2 on the season, with losses coming from No. 14 Duke and most recently against No. 5 Texas. They have the edge over Tennessee, but the Volunteers have been thriving this season so far despite acclimating to a new head coach. They are 13-0 this season and will have the homecourt advantage. It should be a great game.

No. 4 USC vs. No. 8 Maryland: Wednesday, Jan. 8, Time TBA

No. 4 USC has officially arrived in the Big 10 conference, which features some of the best guards in the country. Juju Watkins immediately shot to the top of that list upon entering, though. USC is 13-1 this season, with just one loss against Notre Dame. This will be a huge test for No. 8 Maryland, who are 13-0 so far. Kaylene Smikle leads Maryland with 17.5 points per game, and Shyanne Sellers averages 5.4 assists per game. The team has wins against No. 14 Duke, and No. 19 Michigan State, and will play No. 23 Iowa this weekend, but USC will be their first game against another top-10 opponent.

1 player to watch: Aneesah Morrow, LSU

Fans of LSU and college basketball as a whole know Aneesah Morrow, but if you're new to the scene, you may not. LSU tends to play a little more of a lowkey non-conference schedule before heading into the SEC. They are 16-0, but the only ranked opponent they have played this year is No. 22 NC State.

Still, Aneesah Morrow is second in the country when it comes to Win Shares, per Her Hoop Stats. She scores an average of 17.9 points per game, along with 14 rebounds, 2.6 steals and 1.4 assists. Morrow is high on every WNBA mock draft going into 2025, so this conference schedule will be incredibly important for those stocks. LSU will be tested against Tennessee, Vanderbilt, South Carolina, and Oklahoma in the coming weeks.

Morrow is wildly talented and seeing her perform against these other top-ranked teams will definitely help fans become more familiar with her before she enters the WNBA.