LOS ANGELES – No. 3 UCLA returns home Sunday after a lengthy and wildly successful road trip against several Big 10 conference rivals to host No. 12 Maryland at Pauley Pavilion.
The Bruins have been on a dominant run since suffering their only defeat of the season against No. 4 Texas on Nov. 26, and their most recent stretch of games has only proved their greatness. The Bruins have played three teams currently in the top 25 in their last five games, defeating them each time.
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Led by senior center Lauren Betts, the Bruins are top 10 in the NCAA in points per game and top five in both assists per game and field goal percentage.
The Terrapins coming to town represent another top 25 team for the Bruins to take on, a consequence of playing in the stacked Big Ten conference. The Terrapins play a gritty, tough style of basketball that’s been defined by their rebounding skills and the Bruins are well aware of what will be expected of them to be able to pull out a win.
“I think they’re just really aggressive. They have a lot of great players, [they’re] well coached. They’re going to come out ready to play. They had a great game against SC and we always have to understand that because we’ve been playing well and doing well that everyone’s going to give us our best, so we have to come out ready to play and play hard and it will be a really fun game. I’m excited to be back in Pauley and play against great competition,” senior forward Gabriela Jaquez said.”
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As Jaquez alluded to, the Bruins have a target on their backs due to their recent success and the reputation they’ve earned since last season, where they reigned as the number one team in the country for most of the season and made it all the way to the Final Four.
UCLA will have to match, if not exceed, Maryland’s toughness to triumph over the Terrapins. The clear advantage the Terrapins have going into the game will be their rebounding, a field that the Bruins relatively struggle with despite having Betts patrolling the paint.
At a media availability earlier in the week, UCLA head coach Cori Close stressed that the Bruins will have to play smart and manage the ball to avoid giving the Terrapins, who average 22.5 free throw attempts per game, an advantage with easy fouls or turnovers.
“Maryland plays their buts off and Maryland rebounds and Maryland turns people over. Those are really hard things to do on a consistent basis,” Close said. “As long as I have been coaching against them, if you can rebound and take care of the ball, you’ve got a chance. But, they play so hard and rebound and turn people over in transition and they just punish you on the boards and therefore, they get to the free throw line.”
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Close also lauded praise on Maryland head coach Brenda Frese, whom Close has coached against since Close’s time as an assistant coach at Florida State University from 2004-11.
“I have so much respect for Brenda and her staff and how hard they work. I heard this the other day about her, that she always gets credit for how well she recruits; she doesn’t get nearly enough credit for how well she coaches, and I agree with that. She is a heck of a coach.”
WHERE TO WATCH
TV: NBC
Start time: 1:00 pm PST.
Venue: Pauley Pavilion
