Heading into a seemingly winnable game against UC Irvine tonight
at 7 p.m. at Pauley Pavilion, the UCLA women’s basketball
team knows that they have shown themselves to play at two very
different levels in the early going.
Through the first four games, the Bruins have been aggressive
and quick on defense, featuring a suffocating full-court press.
They have also been diligent on the boards, out-rebounding the
likes of No. 11 Georgia and Charlotte the past two games.
However, the Bruins have also been sloppy and streaky at times,
unable to hit their free throws and getting into foul trouble
before the end of the first half.
UCLA (2-2) is looking to solidify its play against UC Irvine
(0-4) with an otherwise boring win in front of the home crowd.
“We’ve got our confidence back with the last two
wins,” senior point guard Nikki Blue said. “But the
wins mean nothing if we don’t sustain it and keep playing
well. We want to get on a bit of roll right now.”
Playing against a winless opponent at home, the Bruins are
looking to avoid any letdown before they travel to Clemson and No.
21 Oklahoma. The game is much like the BYU home opener, an
underhyped game against a middle-level team that’s sandwiched
between two ranked opponents.
UCLA isn’t counting on the same results this time.
There’s been a focus on strong rebounding and solid defense,
a mantra that has started to become the party line after only a
handful of games.
“Irvine is a local school, and they see us as a
rivalry,” coach Kathy Olivier said. “They have players
who looked at coming to UCLA and are very fired up to play
us.”
Much of the Bruins’ defensive efforts will be directed at
stopping junior guard Angie Ned, a first team Big West Conference
pick who led the Anteaters in scoring last season with 16.1 points
per game. UCLA senior guard Lisa Willis, one of the nation’s
premier on-ball defenders, will be given the task of containing
Ned.
Through their first four games, the Bruins have used both a
full-court press and a 2-3 zone. As the season moves along, Olivier
hopes her team will be able to take advantage of its agility by
using the full-court press during longer stretches of the game. To
do that, the bench will likely be used more and more.
“In these games before conference play, we’re hoping
to get the bench some important minutes so that we stay
fresh,” Olivier said.
Olivier will see a familiar face roaming the other end of the
sideline for UC Irvine. Coach Molly Tuter had a brief stint as an
assistant coach for UCLA (1998-2000) before moving on to the
Anteaters’ coaching staff.
Tuter is in her first year as coach, though she took over the
program after Mark Adams’ resignation at the end of 2004.
While the coaches clearly know one another’s styles and
gameplans, Olivier downplayed its importance. She maintained that
the difference in the game will ultimately come down to which Bruin
team shows up.
“It’s still early, but we need to start playing at
that high level every time out, and that is all about focus,”
Olivier said. “We’ve got to focus on this game and just
play fundamental basketball.”