With one game under its belt, the UCLA women’s basketball
team is ready to host their last exhibition game this weekend
against the West Coast All-Stars.
Last weekend’s exhibition game against Love and Basketball
resulted in a 77-74 Bruin loss but also displayed both the fresh
and returning Bruin talent that will hopefully translate into an
improvement over last year’s 4-14 Pac-10 record.
“This weekend we are really looking to press more and to
rebound better,” head coach Kathy Olivier said.
“We also need to keep our opponents off the free-throw
line. We put (Love and Basketball) on the line 33 times and we
can’t to that this weekend,” she said.
What the Bruins can do is shoot. Senior guard and Pac-10 scoring
champion Michelle Greco is back on the court after redshirting last
year due to a history of mild concussions and led the Bruins in
scoring last weekend with 12 points albeit on 3-of-22 shooting.
“I’m feeling great,” Greco said. “It
feels so good to be back and playing.”
Freshmen Nikki Blue, Julia Pitts and Lisa Willis all added 11
points apiece to the Bruin scoreboard last weekend, and after any
first-game jitters, fans can expect to see their court presence
improve even more.
The All-Stars, whose roster includes Los Angeles Sparks player
Nicky McCrimmon, have already lost against UC Santa Barbara
(95-81), University of Nevada, Las Vegas (80-71) and Nebraska
(97-63) this season. UCLA defeated the All-Stars in exhibition play
last year, 96-66.
“We’re still going to be trying different
combinations this weekend,” Olivier said.
Looking to their first regular season tournament, the Waikiki
Beach Mariott Resort Classic, hosted by the University of Hawaii,
Olivier said there are in which the Bruins are looking to
improve.
“We’re really looking to play up tempo, but
it’s hard to both play up tempo and not foul,” Olivier
said.
“After this game we’ll be able to see who’s
more of a starter,” she said.
In addition to Greco, senior guards Natalie Nakase and Jalina
Bradley brought their experience to last weekend’s game in
which all five freshmen played. Sunday will be an opportunity for
the Bruins to solidify their starting lineup and prepare for the
start of their regular season.