Lauren Betts is unstoppable as No. 1 UCLA Bruins crushed No. 9 Richmond Spiders 84-67
UCLA Bruins #51 Lauren Betts (C) would not be stopped and is attacking the basket and going up for a layup. Photo by Olumide Macaulay/TGSportstv1 March 23, 2025.
WESTWOOD, CA - Lauren Betts was unstoppable for the No. 1 seed UCLA Bruins scoring 30 points on 14 of 17 shooting, 14 rebounds, Kiki Rice with 23 points, Timea Gardiner with 11 points knocking off the No. 9 seed Richmond Spiders at Pauley Pavilion 84-67.
The most impressive stat of the game for UCLA, they took care of the basketball and committed 5 turnovers, compared to Richmond's 14 turnovers.
Maggie Doogan, with 27 points to lead Richmond in scoring, along with Rachell Ullstrom with 18 points and Addie Budnik with 10 points, but their defense could not stop Betts.
The first half saw the Spiders giving the Bruins fits on defense with how they moved the ball around and back door cuts leading to easy baskets, but the second half was a different game.
"That second half we really turned it around," Betts said. "I think we just changed our mentality defensively. We wanted to get stops, and you know we overcommunicated and we had each other's back and we played as a unit, and that's what's most important."
UCLA Bruins #1 Kiki Rice (G) is driving past several Richmond defenders on her way to the basket for a layup. Photo by Olumide Macaulay/TGSportstv1 March 23, 2025.
Betts driving layup gave UCLA a 2-0 lead to start the first quarter. The Bruins led 8-4 after Kiki Rice was fouled on her made layup and made her free throw.
Richmond took the lead 9-8 with a three-pointer by Maggie Doogan. Janiah Barker's jump shot at the top of the free-throw line gave the Bruins a 12-11 lead. Betts with another layup had UCLA trailing at the end of the quarter, 20-18.
The Bruins would regain the lead in the second quarter 23-22 with a layup by Betts. Kiki Rice would pass the ball to Timea Gardiner for a three-pointer to give the Bruins a 34-26 lead. The Spiders would go on a 6-2 run and trailed 36-32 with a layup by Addie Budnik.
The Spiders would tie the game at halftime 36-36 thanks to a jump shot by Rachel Ullstrom. Betts led UCLA in scoring with 14 points and Rice with 8 points. Doogan led Richmond in scoring with 16 points, and Budnik and Ullstrom each with 8 points.
"We had too many mistakes of how we were guarding certain things in the first half, and they were hot," Bruins coach Cori Close said, "and that combination was tough for us."
The Bruins broke the game wide open in the third quarter, now leading 55-43, capped off with a three-pointer by Londynn Jones that the Bruins fans standing on their feet with 5:08 left in the quarter. UCLA led by seventeen points, 60-43, with a layup by Betts.
The Bruins went on a 29-8 run to cap off the end of the third quarter with a layup by Betts to give the Bruins a 65-43.
UCLA continued the hot outside shooting to start the fourth quarter with a three-pointer by Gardiner to take a 68-45 lead. Ullstrom, with a deep three-pointer, had Richmond down 68-51.
Doogan's three-point shot from the left side of the court had Richmond down 77-58 with 4:51 left in the game. UCLA would close out Richmond and move on to the Sweet Sixteen to take on the No. 5 seed Ole Miss on Friday, March 28, in the Spokane Bracket of the NCAA Tournament.