Bruins secure the No. 2 seed
It was midway through the first quarter, and UCLA already had a 13-point lead. The Bruins hadn’t yet allowed a field goal. A firstround Pac-12 tournament bye was already in place. But coach Cori Close still shouted as if there were seconds left in a championship game.
“I wanted them to feel from me that I’m going to treat it” like the postseason, Close said after UCLA’s 7754 rout of Utah (13-16, 6-12) on Sunday at Pauley Pavilion. “It’s here. You cannot rest for one second.”
No. 9 UCLA kept its focus through shooting woes and senior celebrations, and secured the program’s best Pac-12 finish in Close’s nineyear tenure. The No. 2seeded Bruins (25-4, 14-4) will face No. 7 seed USC or No. 10 seed Colorado in the Pac-12 tournament quarterfinals in Las Vegas at 6 p.m. on Friday.
Japreece Dean, who was honored during senior-day festivities along with Ally Rosenblum, had a gamehigh 16 points with eight assists, scoring just one field goal but going 14 for 14 on free throws.
With their coach imploring them to compete every possession, the Bruins overcame miserable 31.9% shooting from the field with sustained energy. They had 29 offensive rebounds and a season-high 55 total rebounds. They pulled down five offensive rebounds in one possession.
at USC 66, Colorado 55: The Trojans (16-13, 8-10) beat Colorado on senior day to wrap up the regular season and secure the No. 7 seed in the Pac-12 tournament. Freshmen Alissa Pili and Endyia Rogers each scored 20 points. Pili also had 13 rebounds for her 11th doubledouble of the season.