UCLA coach Cori Close demands more from Bruins | College News
In Hollywood, blockbuster hits at all times get a sequel — even in ladies’s school basketball. UCLA versus USC I was an immediate traditional, match for the silver screen, however the sequel was a box-office flop that left the Bruins awestruck.
Despite the identical glitz and glamour as the unique, the ultimate scene was something however a completely satisfied ending for No. 2 UCLA, which fell 80-67 to No. 4 USC on Saturday evening at Pauley Pavilion, cementing a Trojans sweep of the season collection.
In short, it was brutal.
“I’m just really pissed off,” Bruins coach Cori Close mentioned. “We didn’t show up and do our jobs.”
Close, her face flushed with anger, crumpled the box rating in entrance of her and slammed her fist. Beside her, junior guard Gabriela Jaquez sat with reddened eyes, her voice breaking as she fielded questions.
UCLA faces “a very weird dichotomy,” Close mentioned. The Bruins opened the season undefeated and completed with simply two losses, but all she might concentrate on was how indignant she felt about their efficiency and response to the drubbing. “We let each other down today,” she mentioned.
She pointed to Jaquez and level guard Kiki Rice, who additionally sat beside her, because the exceptions, praising their relentless effort. Jaquez made performs on each ends, whereas Rice led the group with 16 factors, attacking the rim and repeatedly attending to the free-throw line.
USC guard JuJu Watkins blocks UCLA guard Gabriela Jaquez’s shot Saturday at Pauley Pavilion.
(Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)
For Rice, the frustration mirrored final yr’s Sweet 16 loss to Louisiana State within the NCAA event.
“They were fighting their butts off, trying everything to bring everybody with them,” Close mentioned. But she didn’t mince phrases about the remaining of the group, demanding “more people that can be counted on to do their jobs — period.”
Close mentioned her gamers had been ready and knew precisely what to do however didn’t execute. She emphasised that she trusts their coronary heart and work ethic however “something got in the way of us doing our job.”
“We are not attacking them as humans, we are committed to their best, and when they are operating less than their best, it is our job to get them to make a course correction,” Close mentioned.
The recreation began as many have for UCLA — the Bruins had been sluggish on offense and their opponent seized the early momentum.
Star middle Lauren Betts, sometimes a regular presence, again struggled to attain in opposition to USC’s protection. In what could have been her most irritating recreation of the season — 11 factors and 11 rebounds — she was whistled for 3 touring violations within the paint and infrequently let her frustration show as she pleaded with the officers for calls.
As if the primary loss to USC hadn’t value the Bruins enough — an undefeated season and the No. 1 rating — a second defeat denied them a Big Ten title and a prime seed within the convention event.
Close issued a acquainted call to motion, and with March upon them, the stakes are rising.
“This is the way this train is going, and if you don’t think you can make the changes to be on it, tell us now,” Close mentioned. “The way we turn it around is by people making a commitment, a choice and being counted on.”
Close hopes a second straight loss to USC will function a humbling second that forces her group to regroup earlier than it’s too late.
“The pain of where you are has to be greater than the pain it will take to change,” Close mentioned. “Do you want the pain of discipline or the pain of regret? Right now we’re dealing with the pain of regret — so what are you willing to do about it?”
The subsequent 48 hours shall be essential for UCLA because it prepares for the Big Ten event.
Initially the Bruins deliberate to take two days off, however Close adjusted the schedule, giving her gamers a day to sit down with the defeat, watch movie and assess their subsequent steps. Monday’s apply, she mentioned, can be a probability “to figure out what needs to happen next.”
Both UCLA and USC secured double byes within the event, setting the stage for a potential championship showdown — a third act of their saga. It can be UCLA’s probability to appropriate the errors of its losses, and a matchup Close would “100%” welcome.
“If you’re a competitor, yes, bring it on,” Close mentioned. “If we don’t, there’s something bigger wrong. If anyone in our locker room would answer differently, don’t come back.”
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