With only three games left in the regular season, UCLA
women’s basketball coach Kathy Olivier and the rest of the
Bruin team know exactly what’s at stake this weekend.
“We have to get it done these three games or we can kiss
the (NCAA) Tournament goodbye,” sophomore Consuelo Lezcano
said.
Winners of only four of their last 10 games, and with lingering
memories of getting swept at Arizona still on their minds, the
Bruins stagger into Pauley Pavilion to close out their home
schedule with games against Cal tonight and No. 4 Stanford on
Sunday.
With their tournament hopes still hanging in the balance, UCLA
(15-9, 9-6 Pac-10) understands the necessity of playing well in
each and every game remaining. Though Cal (9-14, 3-11) currently
resides near the Pac-10’s basement, Olivier has ingrained
into her players the mind-set that their next game is their biggest
of the season.
“Our biggest thing is we have to make sure we play well
the first game,” she said. “We can’t overlook
anyone, we’re not in a position to overlook anyone.
“We did a great job in Arizona. We played them very tough;
the game could have gone either way. We battled, we fought, we
played hard until the very end. So hopefully, if we can continue to
do that, we can pull out some wins down the stretch in these last
three games.”
Though the Bruins profess to be focused and intent on
dismantling Cal on Friday, UCLA’s eyes may waver to
Sunday’s opponent in Stanford (22-2, 13-1).
In the past 11 meetings between the Bruins and the Cardinal,
UCLA has come out on the wrong end of the scoreboard. Their most
recent loss was a 25-point drubbing at the hands of Stanford in
January.
Yet the Bruins have put that game in the back of their
minds.
“When they come here, they’re going to come
stronger, but we’re going to come stronger,” Lezcano
said. “Whatever happens, happens. We’re going to give
it our all and leave it all out on the floor.”
During this past week in practice, the Bruins worked on each
individual, properly preparing themselves before the game.
With Nikki Blue and Lisa Willis having shouldered a large part
of the team’s offensive production for the past few weeks,
UCLA is looking for other players to step up to help diffuse the
responsibilities.
“Off the court we’ve been talking about the things
we need to change that will help us to be successful in these two
games,” Blue said.
“Everyone individually has something they need to bring to
the table.”