The UCLA women’s basketball team (11-4, 2-2 Pac-10) has a hard enough time when it goes on the road to Arizona State (11-6, 3-2 Pac-10), and 6,000 elementary students cheering for the Sun Devils did not help during Thursday’s morning matchup.
In the Bruins’ sixth consecutive loss in Tempe, the Sun Devils led the entire game as UCLA’s turnovers played a key factor in the 68-44 loss. The Bruins handed the ball over 28 times, which is eight more than their season average. With 17 turnovers in the first half alone, UCLA’s chances for a win slipped away.
According to coach Nikki Caldwell, ASU’s offensive rebounds leading to second chance points also played a role in the win.
“An area where we did a poor job was boxing out,” Caldwell said. “We were giving them offensive rebounds. We don’t need to let them be successful at that.”
The Sun Devils started the game off with a lot of energy, scoring the first nine points until sophomore guard Doreena Campbell made a jumper in the fourth minute.
Later in the first half, the Bruins held the Sun Devils scoreless for a six-minute period to close ASU’s lead to 13-10. But the Sun Devils then rallied back to gain a double-digit advantage at 20-10. UCLA scored just 18 points in the first half, a season-low for the team.
In the second half, the Bruins never got within 17 points of the Sun Devils. ASU’s main offensive weapon was junior guard Dymond Simon, who led all players with 14 points.
For the Bruins, Campbell finished with 13 points and six rebounds, both team highs. Campbell, who was named the U.S. Bank Pac-10 Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for her play against USC last Sunday, also had a team-high three steals.
“Doreena was a bright spot for us,” Caldwell said. “I challenged her to be a leader and step up for us.”
In addition to ASU’s usual basketball fans, the Bruins had to deal with the noise and intensity of thousands of elementary school students, primarily cheering for ASU.
The game was held on Thursday morning to accommodate ASU’s “Sparky’s Kids to College Field Trip Day,” which introduces elementary students to the ASU campus.
“There was such a young crowd,” Caldwell said. “You want to be able to perform in front of whomever.”
BRUINS HEAD TO TUCSON: UCLA continues its road trip through the Grand Canyon state with a game against Arizona on Saturday afternoon. The Wildcats currently place at the bottom of the Pac-10 after falling to California and Stanford last week.
The match includes a sibling rivalry as senior center Chinyere Ibekwe will face off against her younger sister Ify Ibekwe, Arizona’s sophomore forward. The Ibekwe sisters are two of the top three rebounders in the Pac-10.
UCLA leads the all-time series against Arizona 41-19 and have won five of the past six meetings.