One down. Three to go.
The UCLA women’s basketball players left KeyArena Thursday a little lighter after the weight of the first round of Pac-12 tournament play was lifted off their shoulders.
UCLA defeated the University of Arizona 80-62, advancing to play No. 19 Stanford on Friday – a new weight adding pressure to their postseason aspirations.
In the first half of Thursday’s first-round game, the Bruins would creep to a lead only to watch the Wildcats narrow it during a see-saw opening stretch that seemed to sway momentum in both directions. It wasn’t until the end of the first half that UCLA gained a comfortable 13-point lead. That lead continued to grow into the second half, even reaching a magnitude of 19 points.
Freshman guard Jordin Canada said Arizona, which only was able to score 18 points in the second half at Pauley Pavilion on Feb. 22, was much more aggressive and mentally locked in Thursday. The Wildcats more than doubled their Feb. 22 output, scoring 38 in the second half, while also outrebounding the Bruins 40-33.
However, whatever flame the Wildcats lit was extinguished by a dominating performance across the Bruin roster. UCLA had standout performances from bench players, some of whom hadn’t seen much playing time all season.
Although redshirt sophomore guard Kari Korver didn’t score a point until four minutes into the second half and senior forward/center Corinne Costa wasn’t her usual presence under the rim, senior guard Madeline Poteet came off the bench to drain three 3s, freshman guard Kelli Hayes tallied nine points, and freshman forward Monique Billings grabbed 7 rebounds.
“I love when other players, under the highest amounts of pressure, are ready to step up and help their team,” said coach Cori Close. “I was just really proud of their selflessness leading up to this so they were ready when their number was called.”
Junior guard Nirra Fields led the Bruins with 21 points. Canada, the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, was one assist shy of a double-double.
“It’s a big swing from the regular season to the Pac-12 tournament,” Canada said. “The difference is not wanting to go home.”
UCLA headed out of the locker room of KeyArena Thursday aware that the road to a Pac-12 title and a berth to the NCAA brackets is a daunting one. After knocking the Wildcats out of contention, the Bruins will switch gears to face No. 19 Stanford on Friday.
Should the Bruins pull an upset over the Cardinal, they will potentially face two more ranked opponents in the progression of the tournament. UCLA has yet to win against a ranked opponent this season.
But they aren’t ready to go back to Los Angeles.
Close said that improving on the boards, finding creative ways to get the ball in the paint and not settling for early jumpers will be imperative against the Cardinal.
“We’ve gotten the same amount of shots as Stanford in the past,” Close said. “The difference is that theirs were 3s and ours were 2s.”
If the Bruins are able to foil the Cardinal offense and prevent their infamous downpour of 3-pointers, they’ll move closer to the title.
“It’s not about the rankings,” Hayes said. “It’s about what we are playing for.”