The Bruins’ 2023-2024 season ended with a loss in the Sweet Sixteen, forcing the team to shift its focus toward the next season.
And as fate would have it, that would be the team’s last defeat for nearly a calendar year.
No. 1 UCLA women’s basketball (23-1, 11-1 Big Ten) suffered its first loss in 320 days to crosstown rival No. 6 USC (22-2, 12-1) on Thursday night.
“This is the hardest working team I have ever coached in 32 years of coaching,” said coach Cori Close. “They will respond.”
With just six games remaining in the regular season, UCLA doesn’t have much time to respond. Its first opportunities for redemption will be facing No. 22 Michigan State (19-5, 9-4 Big Ten) on Sunday night and Illinois (20-5, 10-4) on Thursday.
“We have to regroup and watch the film,” said junior guard Kiki Rice. “Michigan State is a really good team, so we can’t sit and sulk about it.”
Michigan State is second in the Big Ten in scoring, averaging 81.5 points per game – just above UCLA’s 79.8. Michigan State is also second in blocks and steals per game, averaging 5.7 and 13, respectively.
The Spartans are led in scoring by 6-foot-2 guard Julia Ayrault, one of three Michigan State players averaging more than 13 points per game. She is joined in the backcourt by guards Jaddan Simmons and Theryn Hallock.
Six-foot-3 forward Grace VanSlooten and 6-foot-3 center Inés Sotelo could be tasked with guarding 6-foot-7 junior center Lauren Betts. The National Player of the Year candidate recorded her 13th double-double of the season against USC.
“We have to keep our heads up and keep going forward,” Betts said. “That’s all we can do.”
The Fighting Illini boast the best free throw shooting percentage in the conference at 80.3%. Illinois has also earned 488 total free throws this season – over 100 more than UCLA.
Leading the Fighting Illini in both free throw attempts and makes is 5-foot-6 guard Genesis Bryant. Bryant has cashed in on 118 of 132 attempts from the charity stripe – while also making a team-high 50 3-point shots.
With five players averaging double-figure scoring, Illinois’ high-powered offense may prove to be the defensive test that Close is looking for.
“Bring it on,” Close said. “Give me the best you got, because I want to step up into that space.”
UCLA will meet Michigan State on Sunday at 6 p.m. and Illinois on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. Both games will be at Pauley Pavilion.
“I have to get us ready,” Close said. “It’ll be my job to get us extremely fatigued in practice. When things don’t go our way, when we’re really fatigued, we have to choose our system anyway.”
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