Lindsay Gottlieb reveals how USC can overcome Baylor in fourth quarter

USC trailed Baylor 57-53 going into the fourth quarter but head coach Lindsay Gottlieb revealed how the Trojans could overcome the Bears.

Star JuJu Watkins was a force in the first half. However, Baylor limited her to just two points in the third quarter.

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Following a six-point lead at halftime, Gottlieb and crew found themselves in a hole.

“We have to decide,” Gottlieb said on ESPN’s broadcast. “I thought our shot selection wasn’t great, which let them get out in transition. And then we weren’t tough enough on the ball and will be better. We got one quarter to decide to be better.”

Watkins would be key in the game. Gottlieb made sure to make it known that Watkins was going to be better.

“We have to get ourselves all in rhythm,” Gottlieb said. “I gotta get her in the right spots. Let’s get her in rhythm and get going.”

Gottlieb spoke about the improvements on defense for USC coming into the game.

“Yeah, many of you guys know our associate head coach is Beth Burns,” Gottlieb said. “She’s a defensive mind. She’s always thinking that side of the ball. It’s always been a priority of ours. As you feed into your identity, you learn what really works for you.

“I think our players understand when we lock in on the game plan and do it really well, our kind of word for that is ‘juicy’. No matter what the game plan is, if you’re not juicy, it doesn’t work.”

So as far as McKenzie Forbes was concerned going into halftime, that was the message going into the matchup versus Baylor.

“I think the length helps us. JuJu has a ton of length, and she’s a terrific shot-blocker,” Gottlieb said. “Rayah Marshall was All-Defensive everything last year, and she’s a better defender this year than she’s ever been because she still has the shot blocking and the instincts, but now she anchors us, understands the coverages, calls them out. She’s a weapon on the defensive end.

“We have other lengthy people, Forbes, and KD is a really good defender. It allows us to understand our game plans better, play more connected than we were two months ago. We know shot-making is important, but we start our offense when we get stops. We need to get stops to be as good as we can be.”