ROESETTE GONZALES Senior center Malika
Leatham restrains senior forward Shalada
Allen.
By Bruce Tran
Daily Bruin Contributor
Despite falling to USC on Sunday afternoon at Pauley Pavilion,
it can’t be said that UCLA didn’t go down fighting
““ literally.
With 5:32 remaining in the game, on a play indicative of the
physical nature of the contest, Bruin forward Shalada Allen and
Trojan forward Ebony Hoffman wrestled each other to the floor.
After being pried apart, both were ejected and will likely be
suspended.
Who says women’s basketball isn’t physical?
In front of a raucous crowd of 5,331, UCLA fell to the Trojans,
67-57. It was USC’s first win on UCLA’s home floor in
five years. In spite of her first victory at Pauley, USC head coach
Chris Gobrecht, who was also ejected, was irate following the
game.
“The officials didn’t give me any explanations about
anything,” said Gobrecht, who refused to sit in a chair
imprinted with the UCLA logo. “Those kids (UCLA players) need
to be kept in line. When a situation gets to that point, it’s
because the officials allow it to.”
Early on, the Bruins played aggressively, both offensively and
defensively. UCLA opened with a fullcourt press and was able to
force turnovers, converting into easy points. Offensively, the
Bruins were sluggish, missing layups and committing turnovers, but
guard Natalie Nakase did score eight points during that
stretch.
“I just wanted to get my defender in foul trouble,”
Nakase said.
“They were playing aggressively, and I just wanted to free
myself up.”
However, the Trojans began to take advantage of UCLA’s
lack of interior presence, effectively putting the game away by
halftime. With UCLA trailing, 16-15, and 9:27 remaining in the
first half, USC used its bulk to pull away. The Trojans closed the
half with a 27-8 run to take a 43-23 halftime lead, as USC shot
60.7 percent from the field. Hoffman and fellow Trojan forward
Carmen Krause, who average 24 points a game combined, reached that
total in the first half alone, converting on nine of ten field goal
attempts.
“We’re really thin inside,” Olivier said.
“We came into the game knowing that Hoffman had picked up her
game and was a much better player than last year. Every time they
needed baskets, that’s who they went to.”
Hoffman finished the game with 12 points, 12 rebounds and a
career-high four blocks. And though Krause was held scoreless in
the second half, she had a new career-high with 14 points.
The second half featured several runs by UCLA but the Bruins
never got closer than nine the rest of the way. Still, the game was
marred by 32 second-half personal fouls.
“Anytime you play your crosstown rival, it’s going
to be ugly,” UCLA head coach Kathy Olivier said. “This
game can bring out the best in people and the worst in
people.”
There were several bright spots for the Bruins. Nakase finished
the game with 21 points and is quickly becoming a viable offensive
option. Allen had 12 points and 9 rebounds prior to being
ejected.
Still, the Bruins struggled offensively, missing on all 13
three-point attempts and shooting 25 percent from the field.
“We need to get it going at home,” Olivier said.
“We’re too comfortable early, and then our opponents
get a lead on us. We need to be consistently aggressive throughout
the entire game.”
Without an interior presence, UCLA was out-muscled,
out-rebounded and essentially outmanned. In spite of all this, the
Bruins showed they still had some fight in them.