After a slow start and a tight fourth quarter, the Bruins turned on their jets and left the unranked Golden Bears in the dust.
No. 8 UCLA Women’s Basketball (15-3, 4-2 Pac-12) wrapped up their homestand on Sunday afternoon with an 87-70 victory over California (10-7, 1-5). The Bruins trailed her by as much as 11 points in the first quarter and struggled to pull away as they stepped up again.
However, a deciding 16-2 run over five minutes in the fourth quarter helped UCLA clinch the win, avoiding losing 4-3 in the process.
Cal competed for control early on, staging a 10-0 run and hitting a 3-pointer to go up to 15-4, starting the game 8-9 from the field, while UCLA were 2-8. Even after the Bruins started dropping shots, Golden his Bears were up at least nine points for the rest of the first frame.
UCLA started the second quarter 13-0, suddenly trailing by four after three-point shots from forward Emily Bessoir and guard Charisma Osborne. Including his one Cal 3-pointer with 35 seconds left, he took a 38-36 lead with 38 seconds left.
The Bruins trailed virtually the entire third quarter, but the Golden Bears never pulled away on a 3-point shot. Guard Gina Conti hit one over the arc, and Londyn Jones hit three more before the end of the frame.
scroll to continue
Starting with Jones’ third and final triple, UCLA hit 13 of their last 18 shots. The Bruins won him 5-5 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter as well, giving him a 29-13 advantage in the final frame.
UCLA were up one point with seven minutes to go and five with four minutes to go, and continued to pull away as Jones and Osborne drilled down a few more 3-pointers. These helped the Bruins lead at 15 and built their lead to 17 before the final buzzer.
Jones and Osborne combined for 35 points, guard Kiki Rice dropped 15 and Conti added 11. Rice he led with 12 assists, 8 rebounds and 25 plus/minus.
Nine of the ten UCLA players who checked into the game scored at least four points and nine recorded a rebound. The Bruins won his 36-24 victory and finished with 22 assists to the Golden Bears’ 13.
UCLA kicks off its four-game trip in Washington on Friday. That match will start at 7 p.m. in Seattle and will be televised on his Pac-12 in Los Angeles.
Follow Conon on Twitter. @Samkonon
Follow the All Bruins on Twitter. @FN_AllBruins
Like All Bruins on Facebook @FN.AllBruins
Subscribe to All Bruins Youtube
Read more stories from UCLA: Sports Illustrated UCLA Bruins
Read more UCLA women’s basketball stories: Sports Illustrated UCLA Women’s Basketball
