USC Women's Basketball Continues Road Trip Sunday Against Illinois

Sunday, February 8

Urbana-Champaign, Ill.

10:00 AM

USC

Illinois

Kara Dunn dribbles past an opponent at Welsh Ryan Arena.

Photo by: Katie Chin/USC Athletics

USC Women's Basketball Continues Road Trip Sunday Against Illinois

February 06, 2026 | Women's Basketball

Game Notes

Trojans travel to Champaign for a noon matchup against Fighting Illini.

USC women's basketball concludes its two-game road trip as the Trojans face Illinois on Sunday, Feb. 8 at the State Farm Center. The game will tipoff at 12 p.m. CT and air on Big Ten Plus.

Sunday's game marks the second all-time meeting between the two programs, with USC holding the 1-0 advantage.

USC is riding a three-game winning streak entering Sunday's road contest against Illinois.

SERIES RECORD: 1-0
LAST MEETING: W, 76-66 (2025 ) - Galen Center - Los Angeles, Calif.
HEAD COACH: Shauna Green (fourth season - 79-42 at Illinois)
CONFERENCE: Big Ten Conference
STREAK: W, 1-0
TV/STREAM: B1G+ (PxP - Ella Peterson, Color - Anna Eckburg, Sideline - Kennedy Caldwell)
LISTEN: ESPN LA 710 AM / USC Gameday App / ESPNLA App

A WIN WOULD

Be the 891th win in program history (890-575)
Be head coach Lindsay Gottlieb's 108th win at USC (107-45)
Be head coach Lindsay Gottlieb's 343rd win as a head coach (342-173)
Help USC improve to 7-6 in conference play
Help USC stay undefeated in the month of February (2-0 currently)
Help USC improve to 3-4 in Big Ten road play (2-4 currently)

SCOUTING ILLINOIS

Illinois wrapped up its two-game road swing in the Pacific Northwest with a 76-73 loss to Oregon on Wednesday night
The Fighting Illini stormed back from a 21-point second-half deficit to take a late lead in the fourth quarter, but it was not enough as the Orange and Blue moved to 16-7 overall with a 6-6 mark in Big Ten play.
SO forward Berry Wallace leads Illinois in scoring, averaging 19.4 ppg
Illinois is the 3rd youngest P4+BigEast team, and youngest in B1G

NUGGETS OF KNOWLEDGE

As a squad, USC is seventh nationally & leads the Big Ten in blocks per game (6.0) (137 total)
USC is 30th nationally in assist/turnover ratio (1.21). The Trojans are 32nd nationally in assists per game (17.0),
Senior Kara Dunn has been an offensive weapon for the Trojans through the last nine games, averaging 23.1 ppg (shooting 52.4 percent from the field). The senior is also averaging 6.7 rpg, 3.0 apg & 1.7 spg (through the last nine).
Freshman Jazzy Davidson leads the Trojans in every major statistical category including points per game (16.4), rebounds per game (6.2), assists per game (4.3), blocks per game (2.3), steals per game (1.9) & minutes played (33.8).
Davidson has recorded 22 double-figuring scoring games this season, including 20 straight games since Nov. 18. Davidson also has eight 20+ point performances this season.
Davidson is 13th nationally & second in the Big Ten in blocks (52). The freshman is 15th nationally & second in the Big Ten in blocks per game (2.26).
Davidson is 5th in the Big Ten & 13th nationally in field goal attempts (376). She is also 2nd amongst all D1 freshman in field goal attempts (376).
Sophomore Kennedy Smith and freshman Jazzy Davidson lead USC in steals per game (1.9)
Senior Londynn Jones has appeared in 131 consecutive collegiate games (108 at UCLA, 23 at USC)

LAST TIME OUT

USC beat Northwestern 83-65 on Thursday, Feb. 5.
USC's 28 first-quarter points matched its season high (Jan. 28 vs. Iowa).
The Trojans scored a season-high 53 points in the first half, surpassing their previous best of 47 (Nov. 28 vs. Pepperdine). It was also the most points in a half (first or second) this season
During the first half, the Women of Troy shot 61 percent (20-for-33) from the field and scored 19 points off turnovers (allowed none)
FR Jazzy Davidson led USC with 21 points, recording her 20th consecutive game scoring in double figures. Davidson also added six assists, three rebounds and two steals
SR Kara Dunn scored 18 points, extending her double-figure scoring streak to 13 games. Dunn also tallied six rebounds and four assists
SO Kennedy Smith posted the second double-double of her career and first of the season with 17 points and a season-high 11 rebounds. Smith also added five assists.

DAVIDSON'S DOMINANCE

ESPN named Davidson No. 1 in the Dec. 18 women's college basketball freshman impact rankings (Davidson was also No. 1 preseason)
Freshman Jazzy Davidson leads the Trojans in points per game (16.2), rebounds per game (6.4), assists per game (4.2), blocks per game (2.3), steals per game (1.9) and minutes played (33:51).
Davidson has recorded 22 double-figuring scoring games this season, including 18 straight games since Nov. 18. Davidson also has eight 20+ point performances this season.
Davidson is 13th nationally and leads the Big Ten in blocks (51). The freshman is 14th nationally and leads the Big Ten in blocks per game (2.32).
Davidson is 5th in the Big Ten and 15th nationally in field goal attempts (342). She is also 3rd amongst all D1 freshman in field goal attempts (342).
The newcomer put up 14 points (second leading scorer), had five rebounds, four assists, 1 steal and 1 block in her collegiate debut
Against NC State, Davidson put up 21 points, had five blocks, four assists, three steals and was perfect from the free throw line (2-2). Davidson delivered the winning basket in USC's victory over NC State as the freshman made a fast break driving layup with 8 seconds remaining in the game.
Davidson posted a breakthrough performance versus Tennessee Tech, recording her first double-double as she finished with 20 points (9-of-14 FG) and a career-high 16 rebounds. Her 16 boards not only led all players but also marked the most by a USC freshman since Rayah Marshall's performance against Texas Southern on Dec. 18, 2021. Davidson also chipped in four assists and two blocks to round out the effort.
Against No. 21 Washington, Davidson notched her second career double-double with a game-high 22 points and team-high 12 rebounds. The freshman guard also contributed four assists, two blocks and a team-high two made three-pointers.
Against Cal, Davidson scored a career-high 24 points with her ninth consecutive double-figuring scoring performance and her 12th of the season, adding four rebounds, four blocks and matching her career best with three three-pointers.
At No. 20 Nebraska, Davidson scored 17 points and contributed five blocks, eight rebounds, three assists and 1 steal.
Davidson recorded her third double-double against Oregon, putting up 14 points, 13 rebounds (11 defensive), five assists, two blocks and two steals.
Against No. 8 Iowa on Jan. 29, the freshman delivered a complete performance with 21 points and eight assists, accounting for 40 total points. Davidson also added four rebounds, two steals and one block in USC's statement win at the Galen Center.

KENNEDY SMITH STEPS UP

Sophomore Kennedy Smith leads USC in steals per game (1.9)
Smith posted the second double-double of her career and first of the season with 17 points and a season-high 11 rebounds. Smith also added five assists.
Smith has stepped up for the Trojans this season under pressure, scoring in double figures against No. 21 Washington (13), No. 2 UConn (16), No. 20 Nebraska (17), No. 13 Michigan State (15) and No. 8 Iowa (12).
Smith posted a season best 17 points against No. 20 Nebraska, also contributing nine rebounds, six assists, two blocks and one steal
Through 15 games, Smith led USC in assists per game (3.7) and wass tied with Davidson in steals per game (1.8).
Due to injury, Smith missed USC's games against Oregon, Minnesota and No. 12 Maryland

KARA GETS IT DUNN

Senior Kara Dunn has been an offensive weapon for the Trojans through the last eight games, averaging 23.8 ppg (shooting 53.8 percent from the field). The senior is also averaging 6.8 rpg, 2.9 apg and 1.9 spg (through the last eight).
With her 25 point performance against No. 8 Iowa, senior Kara Dunn officially surpassed 1,500 career points, sitting at 1,523 total
Dunn has posted 20+ points in seven of the last eight games, including a season best 29 points against Purdue.
The senior is averaging 20 ppg in conference play and 6.1 rpg
Dunn leads USC in offensive boards this season at 41 (1.9 offensive rpg)
Against No. 24 Notre Dame, Dunn led USC in scoring with 21 points
The senior has led USC in scoring three times and rebounding three times this season
Against Oregon, Dunn tied her season best 21 points to lead USC in scoring. The senior also had nine rebounds and four assists. She was also perfect from the charity stripe, shooting 5-5 from the line
At Minnesota, Dunn dropped 27 points, making five three-pointers and contributing six steals and three assists
Against No. 13 Michigan State, Dunn recorded 23 points, six rebounds and three steals
Against No. 7 Michigan, Dunn had her first double-double of the season, posting 26 points, ten rebounds, three assists and two fouls.

KEEPING UP WITH JONES

Appearing in her first ever game as a Trojan, UCLA transfer Londynn Jones led USC in scoring, putting up 16 points off the bench. The senior came off the bench for 18 minutes and had three rebounds, three assists and two steals. She was also 4-4 from the charity stripe.
Against Cal Poly, Jones put up a career high 28 points, while also contributing 2 rebounds and four steals in just 23 minutes played.
The senior got her first start as a Trojan against Pepperdine on Nov. 28, recording six points, five assists and one rebound. Against Saint Mary's, Jones put up a team-high 17 points.
Jones, who has appeared in 131 consecutive collegiate games (108 at UCLA. 23 at USC), has recorded 11 double-figure scoring performances for the Women of Troy this season.
Jones has been clutch at the free throw line, shooting 85.2 percent from the charity stripe, while attempting a team-leading 54 this season (team high 46 made)