The NCAA women's basketball Sweet 16 is almost here, but sadly, it will be missing one of college basketball's brightest stars. After suffering a knee injury against Mississippi State in the second round, it was announced that star guard JuJu Watkins tore her ACL and her season is done.

The Trojans were able to handle business against Mississippi State, but the Kansas State Wildcats, their opponent in the Sweet 16, is not going to be so easy to take down. One of the biggest highlights of this matchup, and maybe of the Sweet 16 as a whole, is the battle between seventh-year senior Ayoka Lee and senior Kiki Iriafen. Both bigs are going to be going at it under the rim in what should be an epic showdown.

Odds provided by FanDuel Sportsbook

Even without Watkins on the court, the USC Trojans are a slight favorite over the Kansas State Wildcats in what is believed to be a high-scoring affair.

Kansas State and USC have met only once in their series history, where the Wildcats came out on top. It has been 23 years since these teams have met, and Kansas State walked away with a 73-61 win in a non-conference matchup early in the 2002-2003 season.

With only one game between these two teams in program history, the biggest thing on the line is a trip to the Elite Eight.

Kansas State vs. USC Trojan game prediction

This matchup became a bit more evenly matched when JuJu Watkins went down with an ACL injury in the. Trojans match up against the Mississippi State Bulldogs but don't think that this team can't win games without her. Watkins is a huge presence on the court, there is no doubt about that, but her team looked elite even without her on the court against Mississippi State.

Kansas State was able to take down a tough Kentucky team with one of the nation's best scorers in Georgia Amoore. the Wildcats defense and clutch three-point shooting is what led the Wildcats to their first Sweet 16 since 2002.

The matchup of Kiki Iriafen and Ayoka Lee is one that many are excited to see as both bigs battle down low. Fould will be key in this game, especially if both get into foul trouble early. Kansas State might just have more experience on their team, though, as the Wildcats have the ability to move the ball well and because of that walk away with a narrow victory.