At this point in the season, UCLA women’s basketball knows exactly what the team needs to do. Defend, rebound and attack with speed in transition. These elements resulted in a great deal of success for the Bruins over the course of the season.
Against No. 1 seed Oregon State (28-4, 16-2 Pac-12) in the Pac-12 tournament championship game, however, No. 3 seed UCLA (24-8, 14-4) failed to stay with its modus operandi and were punished severely in a 69-57 defeat.
“We had a game plan against Oregon State,” said junior guard Kari Korver. “Pressure them, trap them and do whatever we could to make them uncomfortable. We didn’t do that for the whole first half.”
So far this season, the Bruins have been prone to a varying degree of slow starts, especially on the offensive end. During those stretches, their defense provided them with the momentum to take over the game and progress toward solid victories.
On Sunday night in Seattle, that ever-consistent defensive effort failed to show up – the Beavers had their way inside and out. When Pac-12 Player of the Year Jamie Weisner and Sydney Wiese launched three-pointers, they drained them. At halftime, Wiese had already collected 18 points.
UCLA, as a whole, only picked up 17 in the first two quarters. The Bruins dug themselves a hole they would be unable to dig themselves out of.
“We did not execute our game plan in the first half,” said UCLA coach Cori Close. “You can’t do that against an Elite Eight, or above-caliber team.”
In the second half, Oregon State cooled off, except for center Ruth Hamblin. If she is the “Canadian Hammer,” then UCLA was the nail.
On a night where she broke the career Pac-12 record for blocks, Hamblin enforced her will throughout. She dominated the glass and completely controlled the paint, making it hard for UCLA on the interior.
All told, she ended the night with 23 points, a career-high 20 rebounds and five blocks. Wiese finished with 21 points and Weisner accumulated 19. The deadly trio accounted for 63 of Oregon State’s 69 total points.
“Oregon State is the type of team that could be in the Final Four,” Korver said. “Going against them was really helpful. They have great players, the kind we have to learn how to take out of a game.”
In spite of the tough result, not everything was bad for the Bruins. Their defense came to life midway through the third quarter and they continually chipped away at the Beavers’ large lead.
During the fourth quarter, UCLA went on a 16-2 run, bringing the deficit down to nine. The Bruins were unable to cut further than that.
Individually, sophomore guard Jordin Canada pitched in with a solid 17 points and three steals. Korver ended the night on 10 points, a welcome sign after some recent scoring struggles.
The usual suspects of senior guard Nirra Fields and sophomore forward Monique Billings, on the other hand, were nullified and only had eight points between the two of them.
Next on the docket for UCLA is the NCAA Tournament, where ESPN Bracketology currently has them sitting as a No. 2 seed.
“We’ve earned too much confidence over the course of the season to have it taken away,” Close said. “We’re in a great position to make a run in the NCAA Tournament and we fully expect to do so.”