JuJu Watkins injury: USC, Mississippi State players get in 'ugly' exchange during handshake line over star

Things got heated in the handshake line at the end of Monday night’s NCAA Tournament game between Mississippi State and USC. Players from both sides exchanged words and had to be restrained after the Trojans rolled to a 96-59 victory.

Emotions were high after USC star JuJu Watkins went down with an injury in the first quarter and never returned. ESPN’s Holly Rowe reported after the game that was at least part of the reason to blame for the scuffle. You can view the moment below.

Words are exchanged between USC and Mississippi State during handshake line following USC’s win which saw JuJu Watkins injured pic.twitter.com/52otJrJk8c

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“I can tell you the building was just absolutely aghast,” Rowe said. “A lot of really negative feelings here. In fact, just moments ago, some tempers really flared in the handshake line. People were upset about the injury and the fans getting into it really booing and yelling. It kind of got ugly at the end here. But people really upset about how this happened with JuJu Watkins.” 

Watkins suffered the injury at the 4:43 mark in the first quarter with USC leading 13-2. She was driving to the basket on a fast break when she fell to the floor and immediately grabbed at her right knee.

She could be seen grimacing in pain as she eventually had to be carried off the court and immediately back to the locker room. It was a huge loss as Watkins has averaged 24.6 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.3 steals per game while shooting 42.8% this season and won Big Ten Player of the Year.

The Trojans advanced to the Sweet Sixteen with the victory but may have a bigger problem on their hands if Watkins is unable to play the rest of the tournament, which seems a likely possibility. Rowe also reported that the USC star is set to undergo an MRI to further determine the severity.

“What I can share with you is there were a lot of people on staff here that kind of came out of the stands — team doctors, medical personnel — who jumped into quick action with JuJu Watkins. I am told they do not have an MRI machine here, which would do further imaging on that knee. They can do static ligament tests to see if there’s some damage but they can’t do the MRI here so they did wheel her out. We saw her go out in a wheelchair, wheeled out of the building. They will take her to a Keck Medical Center for further evaluation.”

With the win against Mississippi State, USC advances to face Kansas State on Saturday. We’ll await more news on Watkins in the days leading up to then.