UCLA storms past South Carolina to claim its first NCAA women’s basketball title
PHOENIX — Gabriela Jaquez scored 21 points, Lauren Betts added 16 and UCLA routed South Carolina 79-51 Sunday to win its first NCAA championship in women’s basketball. The near-record lopsided victory completed the Bruins’ journey through this year’s March Madness that started following a loss to UConn in last season’s Final Four. The Bruins ran through their opponents this season with their only loss coming in November, to Texas in a Thanksgiving tournament.
UCLA (37-1) was led by Betts and her fellow seniors and graduate students, like Jaquez — who played all four years with the Bruins. She also had 10 rebounds and five assists in front of her brother Jaime, who plays for the Miami Heat and flew in to attend the game to watch his alma mater win. The group that coach Cori Close put together through a combination of high school commitments and transfer portal players capped off their stellar careers with a championship.
The title is UCLA’s first since winning the 1978 AIAW championship, which was the postseason tournament for women’s basketball before the NCAA took over in 1982. The championship game loss was the second straight for the Gamecocks, who won the title in 2024. Dawn Staley and her Gamecocks (36-4) will be favored to return to the game’s biggest stage with a talented group of returnees, led by Joyce Edwards and Agot Makeer.
Like their 51-44 semifinal win over Texas, the Bruins were locked in defensively, anchored by Betts. She finished with 11 rebounds and exited the game with 3:45 left, giving Close a huge hug. Offensively, the Bruins had a much easier time than in the semifinal game that saw the team score only 20 points in the first half.
The Bruins surpassed that total in the opening 10 minutes against South Carolina. Kiki’s Rice 3-pointer just before the first-quarter buzzer made it 21-10 as the Bruins got off to a strong start and South Carolina struggled with 17% shooting, it’s poorest quarter of the season. The Bruins extended the lead to 15 points in the second quarter by clogging up the paint on defense and working the ball inside on offense for a 36-23 lead at the half.