Women’s basketball loses fourth straight match to undefeated Indiana

Kennedy Burke hung her head at the sound of the final buzzer as the Bruins dropped their fourth consecutive game.

UCLA women’s basketball (3-5) fell to Indiana (7-0) 67-65 in the final seconds at home Sunday afternoon.

The senior guard had the opportunity to tie the game at 66 but a missed second free throw with five seconds remaining in the game allowed Indiana to seal the win. The Bruins are now facing their greatest losing streak since the 2014 season.

“I did my routine in my head,” Burke said. “I had a perfect follow through – I just feel like I pushed it a little too hard. Things like that happen.”

Burke went 6-for-15 from the field, scoring 15 points. Her eight rebounds on the game made her the fourth Bruin in program history with more than 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 100 blocks.

Burke led the Bruins in a dominant first quarter. UCLA never trailed during the entirety of the first, nor for the first seven minutes of the second. But a layup by Indiana guard Bendu Yeaney propelled a 13-0 Hoosier run that extended into the second half.

Coach Cori Close said this marked the most important turning point in the game.

“I wouldn’t argue that (the game) came down to the last minute,” Close said. “It really came down to the seven minute run in the second quarter when we went up 10, to down seven.”

UCLA went 8-of-16 from the field in the first quarter, but only 4-of-17 in the second. The Hoosiers forced the Bruins into shooting from beyond the arc, but UCLA only shot 2-of-14 from the 3-point line throughout the first half.

“I don’t want our players playing scared,” Close said. “But where the disappointment came was where early in the shot clock we would settle for the 3-point shot. We should’ve probably settled for eight or nine (3-point shots) in that first half.”

A putback jumper by senior guard Japreece Dean put UCLA ahead again in the fourth. This was followed by five more lead changes of a two-point difference or less in the remainder of the contest.

After a layup by sophomore forward Michaela Onyenwere, the Bruins led 64-62 with 34 seconds left in the game. This shot gave Onyenwere a double-double, logging 13 points and 10 rebounds.

A 3-point shot, however, from Indiana guard Jaelynn Penn and assisted by guard Ali Patberg gave the Hoosiers a 65-64 lead with only 29 seconds remaining.

“(Patberg) just does an excellent job facilitating and getting (Indiana’s) players easier shots,” Close said. “That’s what we have to do. We have to let our teamwork create easier opportunities.”

Dean led UCLA in with three assists, while also putting up 16 points and going 7-for-18 from the field.

“It hurts to lose,” Dean said. “No one likes losing, and I know I hate it the most. So, we have to figure out a way to just grow over the next week and get ready for the next one.”

UCLA will next face Fresno State at home Friday. Close expects her team to improve and learn from this experience.

“I am relentlessly believing in this team, and I am relentlessly holding the standard in what I think they can become,” Close said. “I can guarantee you that we will continue to get better and fight like crazy.”

UCLA study connects types of cancer treatment to reduced cognitive functioning

UCLA researchers found chemotherapy and other radiation cancer treatments may be linked to worsened cognitive performance.

The study, published this week, showed DNA damage from radiation therapies was associated with worsened cognitive performance in patients.

Patricia Ganz, a health policy and management professor, said chemotherapy and radiation treatments kill cancer cells, as well as normal cells, by damaging the telomerase in DNA, causing cells to die from unsuccessful division. Telomerase is an enzyme that helps repair chromosomes during cell division, and their reduced levels in patients undergoing such treatments suggest that cells are more likely to die.

“When cells are dying, there is more inflammation in the body, and this in turn can affect cognitive function,” Ganz said.

Robert Schiestl, a pathology and environmental health sciences professor, said lower telomerase activity leads to DNA damage because erosion of the ends destabilizes the chromosomes. However, Schiestl states that it is still not understood why lowered telomerase activity yields DNA damage three to six years after the radiation or chemotherapy.

“It is probably similar to other studies showing delayed reproductive effects of chemicals and radiation which we have published before. We also found an increase in inflammation,” Schiestl said. “It is novel and not understood why this results in cognitive decline.”

The study looked at 94 women who had completed three to six years of breast cancer treatment with chemotherapy or radiation and had participated in a previous study that linked DNA damage to radiation treatment.

Judith Carroll, an assistant professor of psychiatry, said the researchers were interested specifically in the explanation as to why lasting symptoms were experienced by some breast cancer survivors and not others.

“The long term or lasting impact of the treatments is of growing concern, as many survivors have changes to quality of life, with increased pain, fatigue and complaints in cognitive function,” Carroll said. “These secondary health effects of the treatments experienced by a proportion of survivors are of concern to the patients and their doctors.”

Investigators used neuropsychological tests and self-reporting to measure cognitive functions. They used blood samples to measure telomerase and DNA damage.

“We then take the blood and isolate the white blood cells from the red blood cells, platelets and plasma. These cells were then split — one set was used to measure telomerase and the other to look at DNA damage,” Carroll said. “We use an assay called the telomere repeat amplification protocol to measure how effective the telomerase from these cells are at extending the telomere.”

Carroll said that DNA damage was assessed using the Comet assay. The assay is a single-cell gel electrophoresis that places cells in a gel and then runs an electrical current through the gel, which moves the broken DNA out of the cell. The more DNA damage that is in the cell, the more DNA that leaves the cell during this process. The researchers then stain the DNA and image it.

“You’ll see that those cells with more DNA damage will have what looks like a comet tail – this is the damaged DNA,” Carroll said. “Cells that remained intact with no tail have very little DNA damage. Each sample has around 100 cells scored by software to create an average amount of DNA damage per person.”

Ganz said that there has only been one other study that has looked at DNA damage in breast cancer survivors and linked it to poorer cognitive function.

“We think this is the first study to look at telomerase,” Ganz said. “All these associations are also common in people as they get older, and we think that cancer treatments may be accelerating the aging process and be leading to some of the cognitive difficulties also seen in normal aging.”

The focus of future research will be in biological aging pathways. Carroll said that biological aging is thought to be involved in many of the symptoms and diseases seen with increasing age, and these occur earlier in some individuals than others.

“By understanding this, we can then develop specific interventions that target these mechanisms,” Carroll said. “For example, if (aging) cells turn out to play a critical role in cognitive decline, then drugs that specifically target this cell type could greatly improve cognitive function.”

Men’s basketball tames Lions with strong defense in decisive 82-58 victory

The Bruins rode their best defensive effort of the season to a second straight victory.

UCLA men’s basketball (6-2) handed Loyola Marymount (8-1) its first loss of the year with an 82-58 win over the Lions at Pauley Pavilion on Sunday night. The 58-point output by LMU is tied for the lowest of any Bruin opponent this season.

UCLA clogged the paint early and often, forcing the Lions to shoot over its length on the perimeter. Bruins coach Steve Alford said they put an emphasis on shutting down guard James Batemon – the Lions’ leading scorer – since he did not trust Batemon to beat UCLA from the outside.

“We wanted to try to keep him out of the drive, keep him out of the paint because he’s so good,” Alford said. “He’s great at drawing fouls. I think he’s No. 1 in the country on free-throw makes, so we obviously wanted to try to keep him off the free-throw line, we didn’t want to foul him. We wanted him to be a jump shooter over our length because I wasn’t as sold on jump shooting as much as I was his driving, but he can post you.”

Batemon struggled to do much of anything on Sunday, being held to just seven points on 2-of-14 shooting and a 0-of-5 night from deep. As a team, LMU finished the night with a 29 percent shooting percentage and just two players made 3s on 16 attempts from beyond the arc.

The Bruins also maintained a lead throughout the night, never trailing at any point during the contest. Despite LMU’s being within 10 or so points for the first 35 minutes of the game, Alford said he was impressed by his team’s ability to slow down any momentum the Lions started to build.

“I don’t know of any big runs that they threw at us,” Alford said. “Maybe four, five, six points at the most, and I thought our guys did a good job of when that happened of attacking the basket, getting a layup or getting fouled.”

Sophomore guards Jaylen Hands and Kris Wilkes led the way for UCLA on offense, each scoring 17 points. Hands also logged 10 assists, giving him his first career double-double at UCLA in 39 total appearances with the program.

Hands said that although Sunday’s win was a step in the right direction for the Bruins, he believes the team has plenty of room for improvement moving forward.

“I think today we did a really good job of not letting up after half,” Hands said. “I think we played well for long periods of time, and we only hit five threes of 21, so if we can get that going, I think we can be even better.”

Freshman center Moses Brown recorded his first double-double since he posted three straight to open the season with a 12-point, 10-rebound performance Sunday. The 7-footer finished 6-of-7 from the floor, with five of his six baskets coming courtesy of the dunk.

Brown said he was frustrated by his recent struggles and emphasized to himself that he needed to start playing with more energy.

“I definitely didn’t like how that felt so I just learned that I have to come out with more intensity,” Brown said. “I learned that this is the next level, it’s not high school anymore, so I can’t play around with these teams.”

UCLA will return to the court to host Notre Dame on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

LA Metro may introduce alternative ride-sharing service to Westwood

This post was updated Dec. 4 at 10:31 a.m.

A new transportation service through LA Metro may allow people to schedule on-demand car rides in Westwood.

Metro on Demand, also known as MicroTransit, is a pilot project LA Metro is developing to provide car transportation at the beginning and end of trips taken on public transportation. Metro plans to implement the program in Westwood and around two dozen other areas in Los Angeles County, and is currently surveying those areas.

Riders would be able to use an app or contact a call center to schedule a vehicle to pick them up to travel anywhere in Westwood. Trips have to be under 20 minutes, and passengers will ride together during their trip, according to Metro’s website.

Brian Haas, the Metro communications manager, said that while the goal is to provide an affordable form of transportation, Metro has not calculated specific rate fares yet because it is still researching how riders would use the service. Haas added that Metro is currently working on the design phase of the project with three private partners — Via, RideCo and Transdev.

Rani Narula-Woods, Metro’s senior director of special projects, said Metro wants to improve transportation options for riders at the beginning and end of trips to help them get from a transit station to their final destination.

“We’re focused on improving those first last-mile connections,” Narula-Woods said. “We’re working on assisting those with limited access to specific metro stations.”

While passengers can take rides through Metro on Demand to anywhere and not just to transit stations, Narula-Woods said Metro is more interested in seeing the effect of this program on other Metro services.

“We’re trying to understand how this service will impact the market for Metro ridership,” she said.

Narula-Woods said Metro on Demand is similar to Mobility on Demand, which is another collaboration between Metro and private partners recently implemented in North Hollywood, El Monte and Artesia. Mobility on Demand is a national program funded by the Federal Transit Administration with 11 pilot programs around the country, including one in LA Metro.

Michael Manville, an associate urban planning professor, said Mobility on Demand could help people with lower incomes to access Metro stations more easily.

“This program could fill the gap with people who struggle to afford Uber and Lyft. Those who ride with Metro tend to be lower-income individuals,” Manville said. “Additionally, many don’t even have a smartphone or credit card.

A study published by the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies in January 2018 documented a steep decline in bus and rail ridership from 2012 to 2016. The study cited increased car ownership as the main factor in the decline but also suggested that transportation network companies like Uber and Lyft may play a role in decreased Metro ridership.

Narula-Woods said while this program could affect revenues for transportation network companies, the primary goal of the program is to address declining ridership on Metro services.

“What we’re doing is encouraging people to ride the Metro more often by leveraging emerging technology,” Narula-Woods said. “It’s important to remember that public transit has been around much longer than (transportation network companies).”

Uber did not respond to comment in time for this article.

Some UCLA students said they would use Metro on Demand instead of Uber or Lyft if it was less expensive and more convenient.

Elisa Evans, a third-year psychology student, said she would use the service if it were cheaper than ride-sharing services but added she thinks many commuters may still prefer Uber or Lyft.

“The commuter friends I have would likely keep using Uber and Lyft since they’ve proven reliable and everyone’s familiar with those services,” she added.

Numair Baseer, a fourth-year mathematics and computer science student, said he already knows other ride-sharing companies and wouldn’t use the service unless it was much more reliable.

“People are already using Uber and Lyft so we’re inclined to trust what we know,” said Baseer.

MicroTransit will be implemented towards the end of 2019 if the Metro board approves of the design phase currently in progress, Haas said.

UCLA swim and dive places fifth at Georgia Fall Invitational

The Bruins were tested this weekend.

UCLA swim and dive (3-0, 3-0 Pac-12) finished in fifth place with an overall 425.5 points in the Georgia Fall Invitational against various NCAA teams, all but one outside of the Pac-12.

“We want to be our best at Pac-12s, but even better at NCAAs,” said swimming coach Cyndi Gallagher. “That was really the focus of the meet: Let’s see what we can do.”

The Bruins came out strong on the first day, with their A team – freshman Claire Grover and juniors Kenisha Liu, Maisie Jameson and Amy Okada – earning fifth place in the 200-yard freestyle relay.

In the finals of the 50-yard freestyle, the Bruins had three swimmers place in the top 13, led by Grover with a time of 22.44.

Grover continued her momentum into the second day of the invitational.

With a time of 1:00.77 in the preliminary round of the 100-yard breaststroke, Grover placed fourth, gaining her a spot in the A-Final. She swam a 1:01.08 in the final to earn eighth place – UCLA’s best individual result that day.

The Bruins also had three B cuts on day two of the invitational. An A cut is an automatic invite to the NCAA championship meet, and the rest of the spots are filled with B cuts.

Senior Sandra Soe finished the third day with a B cut time of 16:20.87 in the mile, earning her fourth place overall.

“We really came together as a team,” Soe said. “By having so many girls swim well, we were really feeding off each other’s energy.”

Soe said her attention to detail was what fueled her success this weekend and that she remembered everything the team has worked on in practice.

On the last day of the invitational, the Bruins earned their best results of the weekend. They placed within the top four in the 1,650-yard freestyle as well as platform diving.

Senior diver Traci Shiver received second place overall in the platform event. Her score of 241.00 was a season high and qualified her for NCAA Zones.

“For me, I really need to work on the little details,” Shiver said. “I want to be more confident when diving; it helps me do a lot better in the meets.”

Gallagher said that the goal for the upcoming weeks is focusing on creating a cohesive team.

“We want to get everybody on the same page,” Gallagher said. “What we did well, what we saw and what we need to work on is what we will be sharing with the team.”

The Bruins will not compete for the rest of 2018 and will be back Jan. 7 to host Harvard and San Diego at Spieker Aquatics Center.