How Charlisse Leger-Walker, Gianna Kneepkens

SACRAMENTO — While the UCLA girls’s basketball crew has a veteran roster that was in this precise place a season in the past, the Bruins have an totally different vibe during their current postseason run.

The No. 1-seed Bruins (34-1) will face No. 3-seed Duke (27-8) in the Elite Eight on Sunday for the prospect to go back to the Final Four a yr after UCLA beat Louisiana State to attain the Final Four before immediately struggling a blowout loss to eventual national champion UConn.

This yr, they anticipate one thing different, in large half because of an upgraded beginning lineup.

A tangible distinction is the addition of Charlisse Leger-Walker and Gianna Kneepkens. Each was the top scorer on their former squads — Washington State and Utah, respectively — and have taken on drastically different roles as arguably the fourth and fifth items of this Bruins crew.

“It’s huge we have them,” said senior Gabriela Jaquez, who has spent her complete NCAA profession with the Bruins. “They’re perfect fits here. Charlisse as a point guard has been great, and then just being a guard out there, a ready shooter, doing whatever we need, and obviously them being able to defend is really great for our team.”

With the Cougars, Leger-Walker averaged double-digit scoring and more than 10 pictures per sport in every season. With the Bruins, her manufacturing has dropped to 8.7 factors per sport on 7.1 pictures.

Where she has improved, though, is a career-high 5.7 assists per contest.

“I look at the talent we have, especially on the offensive end, there are a lot of times where I don’t have to shoot and force some of the shots that I would have to back at Washington State,” she said. “I’ve always been able to facilitate and be that connector, but this is the role I am needed in the most here.”

Kneepkens was the Utes’ top taking pictures option and Pac-12 freshman of the yr. There, she was relied on as the crew’s top three-point shooter, and after Alissa Pili left, their top scorer general.

During her graduate season, she has taken a important discount in pictures per sport, going from 12.3 discipline objectives per sport to 9.4.

“I think it tells you what their ‘why’ is, what their purpose is, why they came here,” UCLA coach Cori Close said. “It wasn’t to get their own stats. It was to be a part of something bigger than themselves.”

On a evening where neither of them did a lot taking pictures against Minnesota, though, it was their defensive size that made a important distinction against a bodily Golden Gophers crew. It was the type of protection they may not have performed a yr in the past with Londynn Jones, who transferred to USC, in the spot Leger-Walker now occupies and Angela Dugalic beginning fairly than offering invaluable depth coming off the bench.

UCLA guard Gianna Kneepkens dribbles under stress from Oklahoma State ahead Achol Akot during an NCAA event sport at Pauley Pavilion on March 23.

(Ronaldo Bolanos/Los Angeles Times)

Offensively, Leger-Walker’s presence has given the Bruins more choices to rating from throughout the ground. Known as a three-point menace at Washington State, she wants to be guarded on the perimeter but also not be left to join to other open gamers.

“But I think Charlisse, specifically, is one of the best processing point guards I’ve ever been around,” Close said. “Her ability to understand how rotations are happening in the second line, what’s the next play and if she makes one mistake, boy, she’s not making it a second time. … Having Charlisse on our team has freed Kiki [Rice] up in some ways and vice versa. So that’s been really fun to see.”

Rice has performed more of a taking pictures guard function this season with Leger-Walker taking over at level guard, which has opened her up to shoot more and drive to the ring without facilitating as often.

That freedom has given Rice her best offense season yet.

“[Leger-Walker’s] basketball IQ is insane,” Rice said. “She gets buckets, she defends super well, she does it all for us. She’s selfless, and she kind of knows when to take over. I’m grateful we’ve had her this year.”

Close said that Kneepkens performed one of her best defensive video games in the win over Minnesota, but that her size enjoying as a wing has opened up the UCLA protection to guard the perimeter all season.

“It’s just learning to play with great players,” Kneepkens said. “If that’s finding them when they’re open, then I’ll do that. Or if I need to take my shot, I’ll do that too.”

UCLA’s greatest wins have featured dominant performances from Lauren Betts and typically, its other bigs — Sienna Betts and Dugalic — enjoying at their best.

But the true depth of the Bruins has come from having long guards who can defend and change up what they need to do in any given matchup. They is likely to be the distinction going into the hardest elements of the event.

“Coming to a program also where you are surrounded by elite players, and at the end of the day we want to win and be a part of a program that can do that,” Leger-Walker said. “Whatever that role is that we have to adjust to throughout the season, I think, we really bought into that.”