Coach Cori Close often preaches that five of the last six national champions boasted the top defense in the country.
And after holding their opponent to zero points in the second quarter and just nine points across the entire first half, the Bruins appear to have internalized their coach’s advice.
No. 3 UCLA women’s basketball (6-0) trounced Southern University (1-4) 88-37 Sunday afternoon at Pauley Pavilion, giving the home crowd a display of defensive dominance. The Bruins grabbed 50 rebounds and held the Jaguars to a 28.6% field goal percentage and an 11.8% mark from beyond the arc.
“We always talk about ‘defense is the mentality,’” said senior center Lauren Betts. “And the guard specifically today did a really good job of communicating through all those screens and just stopping the downhill drives.”
Prior to the contest, the Bruins scored an average of 81.8 points to their opponents’ 56.6.
But back on their home court, Close’s squad proved that they have what it takes to continue lengthening that margin – on both sides of the ball.
For the sixth straight game, UCLA had four athletes posting double-digit scoring, something that has become the norm. However, it is not the norm for freshman guard/forward Lena Bilić, though, who recorded 14 points and six rebounds after recording just nine combined points so far this season.
By the end of the first quarter, Bilić had already garnered a season-high in points after knocking down back-to-back 3-pointers. The Zagreb, Croatia, local is the only freshman who has seen notable court time, with forward Sienna Betts still sidelined due to a lower leg injury.
“The amount of practices and extra work I’ve been putting in, that leads to more confidence,” Bilić said.
Bilić’s 4-for-9 shooting performance from beyond the arc led the team, and it was not just Bilić whose competence from deep was on display.
Graduate student forward Angela Dugalić continued her scoring run, going 3-for-6 from the 3-point line and 8-for-15 from the field.
Dugalić – who sat outside the top-five scorers on last year’s roster – traditionally may not be seen as one of the Bruins’ biggest offensive threats on the court. But when she stood open on the perimeter with 3:40 left in the second quarter and her defender hanging off into the lane, it appeared like her opponent was underestimating her lethality.
Dugalić sank the 3-pointer from well behind the line off an assist from senior guard Kiki Rice, propelling her way to her fourth double-digit scoring game in a row.
“Angela is playing her best basketball of her career,” Close said. “So obviously she wants me to even raise the standard, and I’m like, ‘Fight for consistency. That’s what your fight is.’”
The Bruins’ passing – manifested in 24 assists – facilitated their offensive productivity.
Multiple no-look passes from graduate student guard Charlisse Leger-Walker – who led the team with seven assists – garnered some of the loudest cheers of the night from the home crowd at Pauley Pavilion that, while lacking a prominent student section, had a large fanbase of regular and season ticket holders.
And the Bruin faithful had more than one reason to come to the game Sunday.
Prior to the team’s victory, each returning UCLA player and staff member was awarded their Final Four rings in celebration of the program’s historic tournament run last spring.
[Related: No. 1, done: UConn guts UCLA women’s basketball by 34, ending historic NCAA run]
On top of the festivities, senior guard Gabriela Jaquez scored her 1,000th career point off a drive to the basket in the second quarter.
“I just think to myself, ‘How lucky am I to be her head coach?’” Close said. “She’s been just a joy, and I have a ton of respect for her and how she came in as an overlooked, underrated, undersized forward, and now she’s been leading us in three-point shooting.”
UCLA will return to Las Vegas later this week to compete at the Players Era Women’s Championship, where it will compete in a field of four nationally ranked teams.
