The UCLA Women’s basketball team got swept on the road against the Oregon schools, putting their Pac-12 title hopes in jeopardy. The good news is that they are still in a good spot for the NCAA Tournament.
The UCLA Women’s basketball team had a chance to take over the Pac-12 this past weekend, but unfortunately, they ran into two tough ranked teams as Oregon State and Oregon proved too much for the Bruins.
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Both games came down to the wire and needed extra time to decide a winner. Oregon State needed two overtimes to take out UCLA 67-64 on Friday night. UCLA was riding a 10-game win streak into the Pacific Northwest, but the Beavers kept the game close and ultimately managed to pull ahead in extra time.
Though Jordan Canada (21 points) and Monique Billings (14 points, 12 rebounds) continued to play at a high level, it was not enough as the Beavers outlasted UCLA. In that game, Oregon State shot 42.24% compared to UCLA’s 33.3%
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On Monday, things looked bleak for the Bruins halfway through the game. Oregon had a 19-point lead on UCLA, but Cori’s Close’s team fought back and forced OT. UCLA had a chance to seal the win, but a missed layup with 0:01 to go by Lajahna Drummer in regulation that kept the game tied at 90 and heading into overtime.
Despite the monster night by Canada (26 points, 13 assists) and Billings (26 points, 10 rebounds), UCLA was unable to keep up with the Ducks as the Bruins only scored 4 points in extra time.
With this loss, UCLA has pretty much taken themselves out of Pac-12 title contention for the regular season. They are currently two games behind Oregon (with two games left) and even if the Bruins and Ducks finish in a tie, Oregon’s two wins over UCLA gives them the tie-breaker.
Despite not living up to their pre-season bid for a conference championship, there are a few things that the Burins should be proud of.
First off, Jordin Canada became the Pac-12’s all-time assist leader on Monday, passing Stanford’s Sonja Henning’s record which has stood for 27 years. With Canada having a minimum of four games left (two regular season, at least one Pac-12 Tournament game and at least one NCAA Tournament game), she is going to continue to push that record, which, I can imagine, will last another 27 years and more.
Congratulations to @UCLAWBB's Jordin Canada on becoming #Pac12WBB's all-time assist leader, breaking a 27-year old record! @ncaawb #BackthePac pic.twitter.com/NVczF5q0zd
— Pac-12 Conference (@pac12) February 20, 2018
Secondly, the conference title might be out of reach, but UCLA can still get some hardware in the Pac-12 Tournament, which begins Thursday, March 31 in Seattle. Barring a meltdown in their last two games, UCLA should finish in the top four and solidify a first round bye, which would have them begin their tournament on Friday, March 4.
Third, UCLA has built up an impressive resume this year. It is projected, if the season ended right now, that the Bruins would be the 10th overall team in the Big Dance with a #3 seeding.
If the #ncaaW season ended today...@UCLAWBB would be the No. 10 overall seed and No. 3 in the Kansas City Region. pic.twitter.com/bkBvTvszX9
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) February 20, 2018
Next: The UCLA Basketball All-Time Team
Not winning the Pac-12 regular season title will be a bitter pill to swallow, but there is a lot more the Bruins are playing for. UCLA has played some fierce competition this season, especially in conference, so they should be poised and ready to go for March Madness. Go Bruins!