Big Ten preview: No. 3 USC, No. 5 UCLA set to make splash with Clark gone

Caitlin Clark made Big Ten women’s basketball a must-see attraction before leaving for the WNBA.

Thanks to her transformational talent, the Iowa Hawkeyes sold out every conference game last season for the first time in history.

Now it's up to players like JuJu Watkins of Southern California, Lauren Betts of UCLA, Alexis Markowski of Nebraska and Shyanne Sellers of Maryland to keep the momentum going.

The conference, now having grown to 18 members with the addition of UCLA, USC, Oregon and Washington this season, has six teams in the The Associated Press preseason Top 25.

“I just feel really secure to know that I’m stepping into the best league in the country,” UCLA coach Cori Close said.

The Hawkeyes aren't ranked to start the season. They've ceded that status to two of the league's newcomers.

USC leads the way at No. 3 behind Watkins, a preseason first-team All-American along with teammate Kiki Iriafen. The Trojans’ crosstown rival, UCLA, is ranked seventh led by returnees Betts and Kiki Rice. Also in the Top 25 are No. 14 Ohio State, No. 18 Maryland, No. 23 Nebraska and No. 25 Indiana.

“Our depth and versatility is spectacular,” Close said. “It’s the most talent of any team that I have ever coached, which is really fun.”

The Big Ten will get an international spotlight when the season begins with the Aflac Oui Play doubleheader in Paris on Nov. 4. The Bruins take on No. 17 Louisville and the Trojans face No. 20 Mississippi at Adidas Arena.

“It’s unbelievable to be a part of this sport now. There’s this tidal wave, an apex, and it feels like we’re only going to grow from here,” USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb said. “It’s been incredible to see the opportunities grow for women, to see the game take on the exposure that we’ve gotten, and just really grateful to be where we are right now.”

Fans will want to circle Feb. 2 on their calendars. That's when Watkins, the nation's second-leading scorer at 27.1 points last season, and the Trojans travel to Iowa to face the Hawkeyes and Lucy Olsen, who averaged 23.3 points. Even without Clark, this game will be a hot ticket on a cold winter's night.

“I’m really excited to see the Big Ten atmospheres across the country that we’re going to get to experience and how our players react and respond to that,” Gottlieb said.

Other big games include Indiana at Iowa on Jan. 12; Ohio State at UCLA on Feb. 5 and the Buckeyes at USC three days later; and UCLA at USC on Feb. 13.

Schools will play 18 conference games. Each team plays 16 of the other teams once. Traditional rivalries will be preserved, with schools like USC and UCLA playing each other twice.

“I haven’t been a part of a balanced schedule like that for many years,” Close said. “Then for playing your rival twice, I think it’s going to be a really good situation.”

To ease the travel burden, the West Coast schools will combine six games into three trips to the Eastern and Central time zones. Teams from those time zones will go west just once to play two games over four days.

The Big Ten Tournament will be played in Indianapolis from March 5-9, with the top 15 teams qualifying.

The Trojans added Iriafen, a preseason first-team All-American from Stanford, and Talia von Oelhoffen from Oregon State. The Bruins brought in Charlisse Leger-Walker from Washington State and Timea Gardiner from Oregon State.

Ohio State lost two players to the WNBA draft, but the Buckeyes reloaded with Oregon transfer Chance Gray, Ajae Petty from Kentucky as well as top recruit Jaloni Cambridge.

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AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll