USC's Saniyah Hall steals the show in JuJu Watkins's return from 588-day layoff

USC Trojans guard JuJu Watkins returned to competitive action after 588 days on Monday, but a 100-68 win over the UNLV Rebels ended up as five-star freshman Saniyah Hall's coming-out party.

While all eyes were deservedly on Watkins in her first game since tearing her ACL in March 2025, Hall, the No. 1 high-school recruit of the 2026 class, was remarkably efficient in her college debut while finishing second on the team in scoring behind sophomore guard Jazzy Davidson. Hall had 22 points on 7-of-8 shooting (3-of-4 on threes) and stuffed the box score with a team-high seven rebounds, two blocks, two steals and an assist.

Saniyah Hall shines for USC as Juju Watkins returns after 588 days

For her part, Watkins had a solid debut, adding 21 points to give Associated Press No. 3 USC three 20-point scorers. But she struggled from distance, missing all five of her three-point attempts. It didn't matter against the inferior competition, however, as Hall and Davidson were nearly perfect from the court while combining for two missed field goals.

Hall connected from deep twice in the opening quarter, first when creating separation off the dribble, then draining a step-back three to beat the buzzer.