Junior center Lauren Betts was not jumping at center court for the first time this season.
But even without their top scorer, the Bruins didn’t miss a beat.
The short-handed No. 1 UCLA women’s basketball (11-0) defeated Cal Poly (4-6) on Monday night at Pauley Pavilion. The 69-37 victory marked the Bruins’ 11th consecutive against the Mustangs dating back to 1975.
Betts, who sustained a knee injury during the team’s last outing against Long Beach State, remained in her grey jumpsuit and did not participate in the team’s pregame warmup. Junior forward Janiah Barker filled in for Betts, finishing the first quarter 2-for-2 from the field alongside four rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Barker was given her first starting nod of the season following her 19 point and 10 rebound performance against Long Beach State on December 14.
“We have 13 starters,” Barker said. “I don’t care about starting.”
Barker finished the game with her second consecutive double-double, scoring 12 points alongside 13 rebounds.
The Bruins stormed to a 16-point lead in the opening quarter following a 10-0 scoring run during the first six minutes of the game. Cal Poly closed the quarter with a run of their own, narrowing UCLA’s lead to 13 points.
After making 9-of-14 first quarter field goal attempts, the Bruins were successful on only 1-of-8 field goals in the early minutes of the second quarter. A pair of 3-point baskets from graduate student forward Angela Dugalić helped to propel the Bruin offense to a 16-4 run to close the half.
Fresh off a career-high scoring performance against the Beach, Dugalić led the Bruins in first half scoring with eight points, shooting a perfect 3-for-3 from the field.
“People talk a lot about our other shooters,” coach Cori Close said. “Her (Dugalić’s) consistency from the 3-point line has been really, really good.”
Junior forward Timea Gardiner limped to the team’s locker room following an early second quarter fall, but made her presence known in her return to the court by almost immediately swatting a Cal Poly layup attempt.
Gardiner, who was sidelined for the first time this season against Cal Poly, finished the game with 11 points and six rebounds.
“We have had some illnesses running through the team and towards the end of final exams,” Close said. “Timea has been on the receiving end of that.”
By the end of the first half of play, the undefeated Bruins led 41-20 and looked to be on their way towards notching another victory.
And while the Bruins were unable to regain their shooting touch from the first half, they managed to stretch their lead to 26 by the end of quarter three.
Despite decreased offensive production in the second half, four Bruins found themselves with double-digit scoring performances: Barker, Dugalić, Gardiner and junior guard Londynn Jones. Conversely, guard Mary Carter was the only Mustang to reach double-digit scoring for Cal Poly.
As the clock struck zero, Close shook the hand of Cal Poly’s head coach to cap off the win – all while donning a blue holiday sweater. The game marked Close’s 298th career win at the helm of the program.
The Bruins will next face a string of formidable opponents: Creighton, No. 23 Nebraska and No. 20 Michigan.
“When we played South Carolina, we were hunting,” Barker said. “Now we’re being hunted. We have to change our perspective and realize we’re still hunting everybody.”
