USC women’s basketball Head coach Lindsay Gottlieb came to the defense of the Mississippi state player, Chandler Prater, after making severe criticism online for his involvement in the play that led to the injury of the Juju Watkins season.
Addressing the media on Friday, Gottlieb clearly indicated that she did not believe that Prater’s game in the first half of the second round match resulted in Watkins injury.
The South California goalkeeper, Juju Watkins (12 years old) falls on the ground with the Ballon between the Mississippi Eniya State Guard of State Russell, on the left, and the goalkeeper Chandler Prater, on the right, during the first half of the second round of the NCAA College basketball tournament on Monday March 24, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP photo / Jessie Alcheh)
“There was nothing for me who seemed to have the intention of hurting her … I mean, it is not at all a view of the USC,” she said, via ESPN. “It was a physical game … No one deserves online intimidation in a kingdom, but certainly not a young woman to Chandler, who was trying to play, and unfortunately, our player was injured.”
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PRATER, a graduate student in her first season with Bulldogs, He seemed to deactivate his comments section on his latest Instagram messages after having faced an influx of hateful messages. According to reports, some of the comments called Prater a “dirty” player.
“Learn to play sport without gusling and injuring players,” read an article.
“Dirty like Hell,” read another. “Stop playing basketball, are you so much – you have to fly like that?”
South California goalkeeper Juju Watkins (12) reacts on the ground after an injury during the first half against the state of Mississippi in the second round of the Basketball tournament at the NCAA University on Monday, March 24, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP photo / Jessie Alcheh)
Chandler Prater of the state of Mississippi faces online criticism after the injury of Juju Watkins
Watkins was injured during a quick break in the field. Prater and another Mississippi state player kept her when Watkins planted his right foot down, and his knee was clumsily leaning. She immediately groaned in pain as she grabbing her right knee, and she was finally swept away by the ground.
“We have really passionate fans, and there is a lot of love for Juju, and I understand that people are sad and injured that she is injured, but no one in our camp has the impression that there was a type of attack on her, and would not support any type of intimidation online or things of this nature,” added Gottlieb, via ESPN.
“It’s a young person who was playing basketball, Also, and I am sure that I did not want to be part of a negative situation that it turned out to be. “”
South California head coach Lindsay Gottlieb talks about Juju Watkins at a press conference before Sweet 16 of the NCAA College basketball tournament on Friday March 28, 2025, in Spokane, Wash. (AP photo / Jenny Kane)
The Trojan horses advance without Watkins, which will undergo surgery and a detoxification treatment after having torn his LCA. They face the seed n ° 5 Kansas state Saturday in Sweet 16.
“I think that the dominant feeling is that we can always do something together, and that’s what Juju wants us to do,” Gottlieb said about the team’s state of mind to move forward in the female tournament.
