If it can even be called drama, however much existed in USC's opening game of the NCAA women's basketball tournament Saturday ended in the second quarter.

The No. 1-seeded Trojans struggled through a sloppy start and led by just 2 points early in the second quarter against No. 16-seed UNC Greensboro.

And then, well, it went about as expected the rest of the way.

USC reeled off 16 straight points from there and only continued to add to the lead in the second half on the way to a 71-25 blowout win inside Galen Center to advance to a second-round matchup Monday vs. No. 9 Mississippi State.

JuJu Watkins led USC with 22 points, 8 rebounds and 3 steals and Kiki Iriafen had 13 points and 13 boards as the Trojans improved to 29-3 with the win.

"Glad to get the first one out of the way, excited to be continuing to play," USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb said. "I thought we were a little rusty on offense early, but also that was a credit to UNC-G, which came out and played some tough D. But I thought we figured it out together. I thought our defense was our calling card -- I think the pressure helped get us going and I thought we got contributions from everyone."

Watkins, the Big Ten Player of the Year and first-team All-American, was playing through noticeable pain in her left wrist/hand, clenching it between possessions, but she still managed to make a major impact as usual.

Watkins scored 5 points in that game-turning 16-0 run for USC as the Trojans found their rhythm after the sluggish start thanks in part to a turn-up in defensive pressure that clearly rattled the Spartans (25-7).

"I don't know," Watkins said when asked what caused the injury. "I think it's end of the season, body's a little banged up, but on to the next. Nobody really cares, so onto the next. I'm all good."

Continuing that spurt, Kayleigh Heckel turned a steal into a fastbreak layup, Iriafen grabbed an offensive rebound and tossed in a putback and Avery Howell scored a layup and free throw to cap the run and stake USC to a 28-10 lead late in the first half.

In the third quarter, USC had separate runs of 8-0, 9-0 and 8-0 to stretch the lead to 53-16. To that point, UNC Greensboro had made just 4 of 37 shots from the field.

Iriafen acknowledged there was some rust to shake off early before the Trojans took over the game.

"Yes. I think it was pretty evident. One, we were really excited to just be playing again -- we haven't played in about two weeks, playing in your home court," she said. "So I think there was a lot of rust but a lot of excitement, and I think our defense really helped us in that first half staying in the game and then, you know, coach talked some sense into us and I think we came out a lot better in the second half."

Said Gottlieb: "It's a unique situation where I feel we've accomplished a lot and we've got a really good team, but we still have more growth, which is a good thing, right? So just reminding us that we have everything we need in the locker room, but we also don't have to be perfect and it doesn't all come sometimes all once and just getting us back to what our core mission is, and they were really responsive."

In the end, the Trojans flustered UNC Greensboro into a woeful offensive performance at 7-of-54 shooting with 23 turnovers.

USC's 17 turnovers were the only real blemish a strong performance. Heckel added 8 points and 4 steals while Howell had 6 points, 8 boards and 2 steals for the Trojans.

"I also just want to commend the crowd," Gottlieb said. "It's never lost on me how incredible it is kind of what we've built here in a time when people said you couldn't do it in LA or at 'SC for women's basketball, and it's a credit to our players and how they play and the administration who's poured in support in a number of ways. Just an exciting day."