This year has not been a good one for the UCLA women’s basketball team against USC. Accidental elbows, ejections, record-setting futility and an 0-2 record have accompanied 2008’s edition of the rivalry, leaving a bitter taste in the Bruins’ mouths.
However, revenge is sweet, and the Bruins look to gain a measure of redemption with their season on the line Saturday night.
UCLA will face USC for the third time this season at the Pac-10 Tournament in San Jose, and the stakes are high. Both teams will be playing for their respective seasons; UCLA needs to win the tournament to gain a bid to the NCAAs, and the Trojans hope to avoid losing their bid at the hands of the enemy. UCLA also looks to snap an eight-game losing streak to the Trojans and extend the Lindsey Pluimer farewell tour for at least one more game.
“It couldn’t get any better playing in the (Pac-10) Tournament against our rival, a team we think we should have beat,” senior forward Lindsey Pluimer said. “We’re ready for it.”
For the Bruins, a game-by-game approach will be crucial if they are to make any sort of run at the conference title as they did in 2006. UCLA’s freshman guards must remain composed in the high-pressure atmosphere of the postseason, especially Doreena Campbell, who will run the point. Campbell is excited at the opportunity for a tournament bid, even if the road appears treacherous ““ the winner of Saturday’s contest will likely face conference powerhouse Stanford the next day.
“Oh yeah, we are really looking forward to this,” Campbell said of the tournament, following Saturday’s win over Arizona. “We really have to play hard. We’re really excited.”
The Bruins must first crack the riddle that is USC coach Mark Trakh, whose defensive schemes have baffled the Bruin offense into low-wattage, sloppy basketball in each of the previous meetings. In their Feb. 17 meeting at Pauley Pavilion, the Bruins scored just 36 points, one of the lowest totals in school history. On the defensive end of the floor, UCLA must capitalize on its impressive defensive showing at Pauley the same night, when it held USC below 50 points. The Bruins should have an easier time shutting down USC with Trojan star Nadia Parker out for the season with an injury.
“They are going to throw some junk defenses against us,” Olivier said. “We have to get off to a good start.”
Because of Parker’s injury, USC may rely more heavily on redshirt junior guard Camille LeNoir, who has played well in the team’s earlier meetings. The Bruins must also be aware of a barrage of perimeter shots from the Trojans, who sport sharpshooters Brynn Cameron and LeNoir. Perimeter defense has been a struggle for UCLA this season, and there was never a more crucial time to fix this shortcoming than now.
“When we play together, we’re a much better basketball team,” Olivier said. “We need to play our game and be aggressive. We need to keep them off balance offensively.”
With a win, the Bruins will take one further step toward an improbable postseason. Lose, and the roller coaster of a season will have finally pulled back into the station.
This team, though, is looking for one final thrill ride.
“This is how it works. We get beat twice, and now we’re playing them in the first round. If anyone isn’t excited about that, they shouldn’t be in a UCLA uniform,” Olivier said.