UCLA women’s basketball has crafted its own version of a comeback.
The Bruins’ postseason has extended to the semifinals of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament after UCLA knocked out St. Mary’s College in an 82-66 home win Sunday.
The game brought out a strong performance from the Bruins beyond the arc, with five different guards sinking 3-pointers. The team as a unit made a season-high 10 3s. The Bruins are a combined 62.5 percent from the 3-point line in the last two games.
Although the Bruins were outrebounded by the Gaels,
UCLA’s next stop during its tournament run is Ann Arbor, Mich., on Wednesday, where it will attempt to knock the University of Michigan out of the running and boost its way into the finals.
Michigan is coming off of tournament wins against Cleveland State University, the University of Toledo, the University of Missouri and the University of Southern Mississippi.
Coach Cori Close said playing as a collective unit is the main reason that the Bruins have been able to advance as deep as they have into the tournament.
“When you play better together, you get easier shots and you shoot higher percentages,” Close said. “It’s been fun to watch the team get on a roll, get behind this experience and really use it to their benefit.”
Though Michigan flaunts a superior record, UCLA holds an advantage over the Wolverines in rebounding, averaging 40.7 rebounds per game to Michigan’s 37.4.
UCLA’s season stats have revealed that the Bruins score more points in the first period than the second, coming into the game hot and slightly cooling down before the final buzzer. The Bruins will need to enhance their second-period push in order to fend off a hungry Wolverine offense.
On a familial level, the game will pit twin sisters against each other.
Sophomore guard Dominique Williams and her twin sister, Michigan guard Danielle Williams, will find themselves on opposite sides of the ball.
Danielle Williams’ teammate, Wolverine guard Cyesha Goree, will be a paramount threat to the Bruins after recording her 17th double-double of the season with 15 points and 12 rebounds against Southern Mississippi in the quarterfinals.
However, Goree won’t be the only target to defend. Michigan brings depth to the semifinal match, with five players tallying double figures for two games in a row.
The Bruins said they have bolstered their chemistry throughout the course of the postseason. Redshirt sophomore guard Kari Korver noticed that the number of players contributing has increased. Utilizing the strengths of those pieces will be a primary goal against the Wolverines’ depth.
“Coach wants us to become the dominant rebounding team we are capable of becoming and play with passion,” Korver said.
Freshman guard Jordin Canada acknowledged ferocity in rebounding as an integral part of the game plan, but also highlighted physicality and execution as key to success in the semifinal match.
“Michigan is a great team, and they are going to give us the best they have,” Canada said. “We have to be able to match the intensity that they will bring.”
Although the Bruins aren’t competing for the NCAA title, leaving the Crisler Center with a bid to the final game of the WNIT would complete their comeback and breathe life into a young team that left Seattle just weeks ago thinking it had played its last minutes.
But Close knows it won’t be an easy leap into the finals.
“We’re going to have to have a warrior mentality,” she said.