Timing is everything, and like a true magician, UCLA coach Kathy
Olivier always keeps something hidden up her sleeve.
But with UCLA down eight with nine minutes left in
Sunday’s win over USC, Olivier could no longer wait. She
revealed her full-court press ““Â a staple of many of
Olivier’s shows for the past several years ““ and to the
record crowd’s delight, the USC offense simply
disappeared.
“We couldn’t do the press too soon because we have
too many players playing too many minutes,” Olivier said.
“We wanted to be more active defensively, and that’s
always the best way. We wanted to set the tempo.”
Indeed, the momentum swung decidedly in the favor of the Bruins.
Prior to that point, UCLA had played well defensively, but was
unable to gain any semblance of an offensive rhythm. In those final
eight minutes, UCLA forced seven turnovers and picked up five
steals.
USC, on the other hand, appeared frazzled. While the Trojans
made ill-advised passes and seemed timid, the Bruins took advantage
and went on a 17-7 run to seal the victory.
“They waited and did it at the right time,” Trojan
guard Rometra Craig said. “It threw us totally off guard.
Before that, it was so easy bringing it upcourt. We definitely
weren’t prepared for it.”
Seemingly, with every Trojan turn, there were Bruins in the way.
Whenever the Trojans picked up the dribble, there were Bruins to
trap them. Whenever the Trojans passed the ball, there were Bruins
to deflect it.
“We didn’t handle it with as much poise as I’d
like,” USC coach Chris Gobrecht said. “There
isn’t anybody in the Pac-10 that does what they do
defensively. It’s organized chaos.”
It was that chaos that allowed USC to get off only seven shots
in the game’s final eight minutes. It was all UCLA would need
to make its move, as the tempo picked up with the turnovers ““
much in the favor in the Bruin three-guard lineup.
The press did not come without its cost. Noelle Quinn played a
role in several of the steals and got knocked to the floor in the
process, struggling to her feet each time. All the energy she
expended resulted in a cramped calf.
“It was very intense,” Quinn said. “At that
point, I had already exerted a lot of energy in the first half. I
was exhausted.”
It’s a consequence of the so-called chaos, and it’s
the reason why Olivier waited so long to use it. Still, its
effectiveness in flustering opponents makes the only question
appear to be, how long before UCLA uses the full-court press
again?