In the 2025 NCAA Women's Tournament, UCLA was an early exit at the hands of Tennessee, and now in 2026, the Bruins have everything they can to make sure that doesn't happen again.
The Bruins were awarded their own region in the 2026 tournament and will be able to have home-court advantage for the first two rounds. UCLA senior sharpshooter Gabriela Jaques knows that momentum and confidence are everything heading into the NCAA Tournament, but the Bruins aren't letting the wins go to their head.
"Honestly, no one in our program was talking about a winning streak because we had lost one game," Jaquez told FanSided's Sean Daily in an exclusive interview promoting her partnership with Great Clips. "I didn't even realize we had one because we are winning like we should be winning these games."
"We are just focused on one game at a time and just winning," Jaquez said. "We are not really worried about 'the streak' necessarily."
Gabriela Jaquez is focused on being an all-around player for UCLA in March Madness
The Bruins are stacked in their lineup heading into the NCAA Women's Tournament, and not only does Jaquez add a lot to the team, but so does back-to-back Women's Big Ten Player of the Year Lauren Betts.
Betts is a huge part of UCLA's success, especially in the paint, but her presence alone helps the Bruins in many ways. Jaquez is averaging 13.6 points in her fourth season with UCLA, and having a player like Betts on the court with her has certainly helped her game.
However, Jaquez has put the work in to become a consistent scorer for UCLA this season, and her ability to shoot the ball has been key for the Bruins. The senior guard has put together a career year, but it didn't come without some hard work.
"I've put in the work every year since freshman year, just getting better and better, and I think that's just really important," Jaquez said. "Overall, the mindset, for me, if I have the right mindset when shooting, the ball is probably more than not."
Whenever Jaquez has struggled shooting, though, she tries to make sure she can still be someone who contributes on the court, either with her defense or rebounding. The experience seniro knows that every shot won't always fall, but she can still help her team in other ways.
UCLA will begin its hunt for a national title on Saturday, March 21, when the Bruins take on Cal Baptist with a 10:00 p.m. EST tipoff time, 8:00 p.m. PT.
The madness continues all month long, and fans can look their best with a fantastic deal. Great Clips is making college basketball fans’ favorite month even better with the ultimate assist, a $12.99 haircut coupon offer starting March 18 through April 3. Visit GreatClips.com/MarchMadness for full terms and to register for the coupon.