UCLA women’s basketball coach Cori Close believes both the Bruins and the Trojans deserve top seeds in the NCAA Tournament after No. 4 UCLA defeated No. 2 USC women’s basketball 72-67 in the Big Ten Tournament championship game Sunday in Minneapolis.
The Bruins overcame a 13-point deficit and held USC to just four field goals over the final 12 minutes to secure the win.
“We were No. 1 in the country for 13 weeks,” Close said, as reported by Stephen Holder of ESPN. “(USC) has, really, I think, shown the steadiness and the quality of their wins and how they have grown and changed. They’re an excellent team. They’re a championship-caliber team.”
Close also referenced a conversation with USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb before the teams’ first meeting of the season in February.
“Lindsay said, ‘I’m really hoping we’re going to get to do this four times,’” Close said. The rivals have now met three times this season, with USC winning the regular-season series 2-1.
Lauren Betts led UCLA women’s basketball (30-2) with 17 points, including 13 in the second half, and was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. She also recorded five rebounds, four block and four steals. Kiki Rice and Londynn Jones added 13 points each, while Rice also recorded eight assists.
“I know the amount of work that went into it and this team means everything to me,” Betts said. “The confidence that this team has (from) winning that game going into March Madness is a lot.”
The Trojans (28-3) opened the second half strong, taking a 13-point lead before going cold offensively. They missed 14 straight shots starting late in the third quarter and went just 4 of 19 in the fourth. JuJu Watkins led USC with 29 points and six rebounds. The loss snapped the Trojans’ nine-game winning streak.
“We missed shots that we usually hit,” USC’s Talia von Oelhoffen said. “It felt like every time we missed an open look they came down and capitalized on it.”
Both teams now await their seeding for the NCAA Tournament. Close hopes they’ll meet again on the national stage.
“I think it would mean a lot for us both to be No. 1 seeds,” she said. “And I hope we do get the chance to do it in Tampa a fourth time.”
Reporting by Michael Marot of the Associated Press contributed to this article.
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