"It's the sweetest thing ever": JuJu Watkins' mom on young girls copying USC star's iconic bun

JuJu Watkins is enjoying an incredible sophomore season leading the USC Trojans in their first year with the Big Ten Conference. At the top of the conference standings with a 17-1 record, the Trojans won the regular season title and are fighting for the Big Ten championship this week.

In her two years of college, Watkins has become synonymous with her top bun. Fans often sport this hairstyle as part of their game-day looks and the guard's mother Sari Watkins commented on it on Friday during the quarterfinal game between USC and Indiana.

Ellie Whittington of "On Her Turf" asked Sari for the secret behind the bun.

"The secret behind the bun is, don’t tell the secret behind the bun," she said.

Watkins was then asked for her thoughts on fans copying her daughter's hairdo.

“Oh my God, that’s the sweetest thing ever; that’s the sweetest thing ever that she can inspire young girls to be the best at whatever it is they choose," she said.

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Meanwhile, JuJu Watkins and the Trojans defeated the Hoosiers 84-79. The sophomore finished with 31 points, 10 rebounds, two assists and three steals. She was assisted by KiKi Iriafen, who had 21 points, ten rebounds and three assists.

JuJu Watkins once said that her mother still helps with the bun

Despite this being her signature hairstyle since she began playing, JuJu Watkins said that it is not her but her mother who does her hair. She spoke about it in her "On The Rise" docuseries released in November 2024.

"The fact that everybody's gonna know that my mom does my hair after this, like, I’m getting so much backlash," Watkins said. "So, listen, this is all I'm gonna say: I'm working on it. I'm trying to get it like that. This woman has 18 years of experience. So, please, relax! Chill on me for a second."

Watkins' biggest quest this season is to build on the Elite Eight run from last season and finally win a national championship. The Trojans are among the favorites to win the title. However, their biggest competitions include the South Carolina Gamecocks, UConn Huskies, Texas Longhorns, Notre Dame Fighting Irish and city-rivals UCLA Bruins.

The road to the championship is not an easy one, but Watkins, along with KiKi Iriafen and the Trojans, are ready to give it their all.

About the author

Ruth is a College Sports writer at Sportskeeda with over two years of experience reporting for multiple publications. Ruth values thorough research while reporting and leaves nothing for assumption, emphasizing the ethics needed to write about the human aspect of a player. She is an expert in profiling and giving fans a peek into their favorite players outside of the sport.

Ruth has reported for The Covai Mail and worked for Anandha Vikatan as a press correspondent. She has a master's degree in English, which influenced her journey into writing, and her love for sports was mainly due to watching it while growing up. Ruth enjoys college sports as much as the NBA and NFL because of the dedicated fan-following college programs have.

The South Carolina Gamecocks are her favorite college program, and she considers them the definition of rising from the ashes. Their coach, Dawn Staley, is Ruth’s favorite coach of all time because of how she built the culture in the program and the camaraderie in her squad. Jared McCain and Angel Reese are her favorite players for being unapologetically themselves. Ruth also admires Caitlin Clark for being one of the best and yet staying humble and holding herself high.

Ruth likes to watch interior design shows on Netflix or travel vlogs on YouTube when not reporting. Her favorite College Sports moment of all time was when Angel Reese blocked a shot with an untied shoe in her hand.

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Edited by Prathik BR