March Madness: Lauren Betts and UCLA advance to the Sweet 16
In an era where No. 1 seeds dominated, UCLA was no exception.
The top-seeded Bruins led wire-to-wire, beating No. 8 seed Oklahoma State 87-68 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament Monday night at Pauley Pavilion to advance to the Sweet 16.
They will face fourth-seeded Minnesota on Friday in Sacramento.
Even though UCLA started much better than in its opening match, there were still some areas to nitpick. The Bruins were outscored 21-18 in the third quarter, Oklahoma State won the offensive rebounding battle and aside from Lauren Betts — who scored a career-high 35 points while shooting 15 of 19 — the offense fell flat at times in the second half.
But with arguably the best post player in the country, the Bruins overcame all that.
UCLA (33-1) took an 11-2 lead while the Cowgirls (24-10) went the final 4:26 without scoring and shot 0 of 8 from the field during that span. The Bruins turned that into a 25-point lead and led 46-26 at halftime.
Unlike the first-round win over California Baptist on Saturday, UCLA came out cold to start the third quarter. The Bruins missed six straight shots as Oklahoma State went on a 9-0 run to cut the deficit to 13.
UCLA guard Kiki Rice, left, fights for the ball with Oklahoma State forward Achol Akot during the Bruins’ victory Monday.
(Ronaldo Bolanos/Los Angeles Times)
The Cowgirls shot 51.4 percent from the field in the second half to stay within striking range while UCLA’s offense remained rather cold. But Oklahoma State’s leading scorer, Achol Akot (23 points), committed four fouls early in the fourth quarter and had to spend much of the quarter on the bench.
Betts scored 11 straight UCLA points in the final four minutes of the third to give the Bruins a 19 lead. Additionally, she finished the game with nine rebounds and five assists.
Gianna Kneepkens (15 points) made a few key shots in the fourth quarter to help revive the Bruins’ shooting, but it was still Betts’ dominant performance that kept UCLA well ahead. Of UCLA’s 87 points, 50 came in the paint.
UCLA’s next opponent, the Golden Gophers (24-8), advanced Sunday thanks to a buzzer-beater against No. 5 seed Mississippi. The Bruins beat Minnesota 76-58 on the road in conference play earlier this season.
