The USC women's basketball program recently added Londynn Jones -- who last played with UCLA -- in the transfer portal, Alexa Philippou of ESPN reports.
"Breaking: UCLA transfer Londynn Jones has committed to USC, she told ESPN," Philipoou wrote on X (formerly Twitter). "The Riverside, Calif. product led the Bruins in 3-point makes last season, averaging 8.5 PPG. She joins a new-look Trojans squad for her final season of collegiate eligibility."
The USC-UCLA rivalry is well known. A transfer going from one school to the other is quite rare. Jones' decision could add more fuel to the fire as the rivalry continues to heat up.
The Trojans will be an interesting team to watch. JuJu Watkins unfortunately suffered a devastating torn ACL in the NCAA Tournament this past season, so her injury timeline is uncertain. Nevertheless, USC could still compete in 2025-26, especially with Jones set to join the program.
Londynn Jones ready to impact USC women's basketball
Jones has experience, having played three seasons with UCLA. During the 2024-25 season, the guard averaged 8.5 points, 1.8 assists and 1.1 rebounds per outing while shooting 34.7 percent from the field and 35.1 percent from beyond the arc. As Philippou mentioned, Jones led the UCLA women's basketball team in three-pointers made this past season.
Jones can score at a respectable level. At 5'4", she doesn't make much of an impact in the rebounding department. Jones is also still improving as a play-making guard. Still, she is going to find the bottom of the net from deep, and that will help the Trojans.
USC wants to make a true championship run. They made a deep March Madness pursuit this year but Watkins' injury took the wind out of their sails. The Trojans' future is intriguing, though, as they could become a national championship contender once Watkins returns.
Losing Kiki Iriafen to the WNBA won't help matters, however. The Trojans need to continue to find ways to add talent through the transfer portal. Improving the depth of the roster will prove to be of the utmost importance.
USC will be a team worth closely monitoring as the offseason moves forward. For now, the program is happy to have landed Londynn Jones in the transfer portal. Not only does bringing her in help the Trojans, but it negatively impacts their rival in UCLA, which is an added bonus for USC women's basketball.