This post was updated April 6 at 10:29 p.m.
To the surprise of many, Charisma Osborne will be running it back for the Bruins.
Rather than declaring for the WNBA Draft as expected, the senior guard announced via social media on Wednesday morning that she’ll be returning to UCLA women’s basketball for a fifth and final season.
It’s always go bruins 💙💛 pic.twitter.com/tY2BfNpZOo
— Charisma 🦋 (@CharismaOsborne) April 5, 2023
Osborne’s UCLA collegiate career seemed to be over after her name appeared on an official list from the WNBA of players who declared for the league’s 2023 Draft. ESPN women’s basketball reporter Alexa Philippou posted the list to Twitter on March 28 – three days after the Bruins’ 2022-2023 season ended with a Sweet 16 loss to South Carolina.
The Moreno Valley native even received a standing ovation at Pauley Pavilion after scoring 36 points – a career high and UCLA postseason record – in the Bruins’ final home game of the season against Oklahoma in the Round of 32. Osborne waved to the crowd as she exited the floor and gave coach Cori Close a long hug during the emotional moment.
After her success leading her team this season, a CBS Sports WNBA Mock Draft from Monday projected Osborne as the No. 8 overall pick. But the draft speculation was for nothing.
Osborne returns to Westwood having already ascended to ninth on UCLA’s all-time scoring list. The multiple-time All-Pac-12 honoree has been the Bruins’ leading scorer in each of the last two seasons, averaging at least 15.9 points per game during those campaigns.
And she’s not the only starter coming back.
Senior guard Camryn Brown also announced she’ll be returning for a fifth season in an Instagram post posted eight minutes after Osborne’s.
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After starting a combined seven games in her first three years, Brown started 32 games for UCLA this past season and set career highs in both points and assists per game while averaging more than 20 minutes of playing time per contest.
The Bruins now return four of their five starters from last season, their entire five-person freshmen class that ranked No. 1 in the country heading into the 2022-2023 season and welcome McDonald’s All-American forward Amanda Muse, as she will begin her UCLA career next year as well.
The Bruins have every reason to expect big things in the 2023-2024 season.
