PHOENIX — With under four minutes left to go in the 2026 NCAA women’s national championship game, UCLA’s Lauren Betts and Kiki Rice were subbed out of the game, headed to their bench and hugged their head coach Cori Close. Seconds later, senior Gabriela Jaquez hits a 3-point shot to give the Bruins a 79-45 lead. Jaquez then heads to the bench to be subbed out, waves her hands in the air to pump up the UCLA crowd and braces for a hug with Close. The UCLA student section was yelling “MVP, MVP.” In a matchup where heading into the game, they were considered the underdogs, facing a South Carolina team making its fifth national championship appearance since 2017, the Bruins looked like everything but that on Sunday afternoon in Phoenix, Arizona.
UCLA made history on Sunday afternoon at Mortgage Matchup Center, winning its first national championship in program history for the NCAA Tournament era. The Bruins won an AIAW national championship back in 1978, lead by notable women’s basketball legend Ann Meyers Drysdale.
From the first whistle, UCLA looked like a focused team on a mission. The Bruins were quick with pace, aggressive on defense and making shots. The Gamecocks on the other hand had a horrible night shooting. At halftime, South Carolina shot 26 percent from the field and 1-for-8 from the 3-point line. The Gamecocks finished the game going 18-for-62 from the field and 2-for-15 from the arc.
“UCLA had a lot to do with it,” South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley said about her team’s shooting woes. “I didn’t think we had to play perfect basketball, but we had to play better basketball. We had to make shots, create offense for our defense. We had to be better defensively, actually pushing them off their spots. I think they got to where they needed to go. We didn’t apply enough pressure for us to make an impact on the offensive side of the ball. Because you can have a good defensive possession, but give up an offensive rebound, that’s just really deflating.”
Despite glimpses of full-court press and switching to zone defense, South Carolina never found a spark and the shots never fell. The Gamecocks were also out-rebounded 49-37 and had 12 less points in the paint compared to UCLA’s 40. With 5 minutes left in the third quarter, UCLA was up by 20 points, and heading into the fourth quarter the Bruins led 61-32.
“UCLA is a quality team with very experienced players who got a taste of being in the Final Four last year. You make adjustments. You use that experience as a learning lesson and you come back sharper and you increase your chances of winning. From last year to this year, they played determined last year, but they played more determined this year. They were so close. They’ve had the experience to do that. They took advantage of it,” Staley said.
The Bruins finished the season with a 37-1 overall record, which marks the most wins in a single season for the program. They also finished the season on a 31-game win streak, marking the longest in program history.
“The confidence we came out with, we knew we were going to win. When we play together, no one can stop us,” Betts said. “No one cares about stats when you have a ring around your finger.”
Last season, Close’s squad lost in the Final Four to eventual national champions UConn, 85-51. Heading into the Final Four games, head coach Close said on Thursday that she didn’t celebrate enough last season and all their accomplishments, but she can today. Close said she believed all six of UCLA’s seniors could have been first-team All-Americans on other teams and praised their selflessness to focus on the goal of winning over themselves.
All five of the Bruins starters scored in double digits figures, and were lead by Jaquez who finished the game with 21 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. Angela Dugalic came off the bench contributing with nine points, five rebounds and four assists.. Betts won Most Outstanding Player of the 2026 women’s NCAA Tournament.
“We said all year our selflessness and work ethic would fuel us all season,” Close said to ESPN’s Holly Rowe after the game.
UCLA will lose some key pieces from this championship team, with at least four players predicted to be WNBA draft picks. But for now they celebrate, at least until the transfer portal opens tomorrow. Close did joke in the postgame press conference that the win makes the portal easier.
“We had a feeling this was our time, and this is our year,” said Rice in the postgame press conference.
For South Carolina, Staley said postgame that this loss can drive her team for next year.
“Losing in the national championship game the way we lost, I guess that will be the thing that really drives us,” Staley said. “You need something to drive you throughout the really hard times and the challenging times, and also the good times.”
from SB Nation https://ift.tt/tDBxJTw
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