Coming off USC women's basketball's first-ever Pac-12 Tournament Championship, the 2015 season had high expectations and big shoes to fill. With the departures of Cassie Harberts and several other key team members, this season's squad looked to its two seniors, Alexyz Vaioletama and Kaneisha Horn, to step up and lead the Trojans in their final year wearing Cardinal and Gold.
The trusted twosome answered the call, both significantly boosting their performance from their junior seasons and constantly raising the bar for their teammates in the process. The duo lead the Women of Troy in scoring, rebounding and blocks and have both nearly doubled their production from the 2014.As a captain, Vaioletama seized the opportunity to lead the program in her senior year. The high expectations were something she took in stride after a phenomenal breakout junior season. Thriving under the tutelage of new head coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke, she stepped into her own last year, exploding onto the women's basketball scene as a dynamic threat on both ends of the court. From her sophomore to junior year she nearly doubled her offensive effort, finishing with 8.6 points per game and 7.7 rebounds per game, a mark that led the team. On the defensive end, she tallied 15 blocks and was voted Pac-12 All-Defensive Honorable Mention for her stellar play. In her senior campaign, Vaioletama has been nothing short of excellent again, surpassing her junior year contributions by a wide margin. This year, she is averaging 12.3 points per game and 6.8 rebounds per game with 15 blocks. Her 727 career rebounds place her at 11th all-time in USC history.
Horn's story is much different from her senior co-star. The forward transferred to USC after two seasons at Alabama and quickly embraced the opportunity to help build a new Trojan dynasty in Cooper's first year at the helm. In her first season as a Trojan, she averaged just 3.0 points and 3.0 rebounds per game, still adjusting to a new school, team and atmosphere in Los Angeles. But just like Vaioletama, Horn did not shrink at the challenge presented to her as she entered her senior year, quickly becoming the team's leader on the boards, averaging 7.0 rebounds per game. She more than doubled her scoring effort as well, posting a 10.1 points per game average this season. Heading into the two home games this past weekend, Horn boasted a seven-game double figure scoring streak, including her third career double-double performance which she attained versus Stanford.
The duo led their team once again in the Trojans' final home weekend of regular season play, first in a victory over Arizona and again in a heart-breaking double overtime loss to No. 12 Arizona State. Vaioletama had her fifth career double-double against the Sun Devils, scoring 18 points and snatching 12 rebounds. Horn finished in double figures as well, with 11 points and four rebounds. The Women of Troy own a 7-9 record with two regular season games remaining on the schedule. While that mark is slightly below that of last season, USC is not deterred at the prospect of shocking the conference once again. Last season, the Trojans received a No. 5 seed and ultimately won the Pac-12 Tournament, a feat they hope to replicate this year with Vaioletama and Horn leading the way.
Here is a senior tribute video highlighting the fantastic senior seasons of both Vaioletama and Horn...
