It would seem that putting two consecutive wins together is not
too much to ask.
But the UCLA women’s basketball team has accomplished that
feat only once ““ and that was during the preseason.
Ever since those two early victories, the Bruins have been
inconsistent, to say the least.
UCLA (6-6, 1-2 Pac-10) has dropped five of its last nine games,
but by an average of only six points per contest.
“We’re inconsistent where we’re
inconsistent,” Coach Kathy Olivier said. “We’re
kind of out there in the sense of where we’re still trying to
find ourselves and our strengths. We have to stay focused
regardless of who we play.”
The Bruins have struggled on the road (2-4), but they have
maintained their home court advantage (4-1).
Two of the road losses were by one point. The first was a
disappointing defeat at the hands of St. Mary’s and the
second, a heartbreaker against No. 8 Purdue.
“We get really relaxed when we’re winning,”
said sophomore guard Lisa Willis.”We’ll be up by 10
points and then we get content with what we’re doing. Then
when the other team goes on a run, it’s too late for us to
bring it back.”
One of the reasons for the Bruins’ inconsistent play was
an injury to freshman standout Noelle Quinn, who went down with a
stress fracture in the third metatarsal of her right foot during
the Purdue game.
“Throughout high school, I’ve never been injured,
and even if I were, I would still play,” said Quinn, who sat
out for three games. “I feel good now, and I’m glad it
happened early in the season and not later.”
The loss was a big blow to the team as Quinn’s 10.7 points
per game and team-leading 6.8 rebounds per game were missed
throughout the week.
“Noelle got injured, we didn’t have (Whitney) Jones
for the beginning of the season, (Jamila) Veasly got injured on her
right shoulder and missed one and half games, and (Julia) Pitts is
still not 100 percent,” Olivier said. “These were all
starters at one time or another but now everyone is here, and
everyone is healthy.”
During Quinn’s absence, Jones stepped in after completing
her obligations as a starting midfielder for the women’s
soccer team.
“Whitney is good with her defense,” Willis said.
“I guess it has to do with soccer and all the physical play
she goes through.”
During Quinn’s absence, the Bruins were able to go 2-1, in
part because of sophomore guard Nikki Blue’s remarkable play.
During the three games, Blue averaged 14.7 points, 6.7 rebounds,
6.3 assists and 4.3 steals per game.
After dropping its Pac-10 opener to USC, UCLA bounced back
against No. 18 Ohio State. Behind Willis’ team-high 17 points
and Quinn’s 14 points, the Bruins stunned the Buckeyes,
71-56.
The fifteen-point spread was the largest margin of victory for
UCLA this season, and it may be attributed to Olivier’s
alteration of the starting lineup. Forwards Pitts and Veasley now
find themselves splitting time.
With the adjustment in the lineup, UCLA has won two of its last
three games, including its first conference victory over Oregon,
63-57.
“Coach told us that no one’s starting spot is locked
in,” Blue said. “It makes it that much more competitive
in practice because everyone’s fighting for a starting
spot.”
Before the season even began, it was thought that rebounding
would be a major ailment in the Bruins’ up-tempo style of
play. Yet UCLA ranks first in the Pac-10 in rebounding and steals.
Blue leads the conference with 3.5 steals per contest and Willis is
second with 2.92.
But Olivier believes that things are still far from what the
team is capable of accomplishing.
“We’re playing average basketball, and we all know
we can play very good basketball,” she said. “But our
spirits are up and we’re in a good situation because these
players don’t like to lose.”