3 Huge Takeaways from Cori Close After Michigan State Win

Here are three things that stuck out following UCLA's 86-63 win over No. 13 Michigan State.

Slowing Down Grace VanSlooten

Sloothe — Michigan State's Grace VanSlooten scores against Nebraska during the second quarter on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

This season Grace VanSlooten is averaging a very good 15.5 points per game, while shooting an impressive 50.8% from the field. Her impact has really helped the Spartans to climb so far. Unfortunately in this game, Lauren Betts was waiting at the top.

"Yeah, you know, we really, you know, the shots she hit, four of them were, you know, perimeter jump shots, you know. I've been watching Grace for a long time. She's a heck of a player. She's going to be playing at the next level. You know, I think, but the reality is she doesn't have to go against people like Lauren Betts very much. Especially in the first half, we switched all the ball screens except with Lauren and Grace so that we could keep that matchup the best we could. And I think one of the reasons we were able to do that is we were really trying to take away their right-hand drives."
Cori Close

Defense vs Good Spartan Offense

Feb 1, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins center Lauren Betts (51) reacts after a foul call in the second half against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Entering this matchup the Spartans were averaging 85.3 points per game. And as we saw, against the Bruins they could only muster 63. This was largely in part to how well UCLA played, with notable performances from Kiki Rice, Charlisse Leger-Walker and Lauren Betts.

"Yeah, I think, you know, we have ability. We're sort of big across the whole, you know, lineup. And so we went to switching everything. And I just didn't think they had the... You know, there wasn't a huge mismatch, even when we switched and they tried to roll and post up our guards. And so I think, you know, we have some luxuries in that way to be able to switch and keep people in front of us and try to keep teams from being able to hunt advantages that they usually can get. And so I think, and it's hard to simulate that. And so I think we have an advantage that way. But we also have the reigning defensive national player of the year."

Rebounding

Feb 1, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins forward Amanda Muse (33) and guard Gianna Kneepkens (8) box out Iowa Hawkeyes center Layla Hays (12) in the second half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The Bruins were able to outrebound the Spartans 48-to-28. A landslide to say the least. However, the Bruins would commit 18 turnovers in this game, which ultimately nullified this rebounding margin. Moving forward UCLA needs to be more disciplined.

"Well, I mean, it's effort. And I thought they did a great job in the second half. You know, I thought they beat us to all the loose balls and all the rebounding situations in the in the first half, you know, again. When you don't allow teams to find advantages and force rotations, you're going to have the advantage on the box outs as well. And that's not just Grace, that's everybody across the board. That is what you saw. We really respected them. We thought this was going to be a possession game. We did not do a good job taking care of the ball. But we thought if we could out-rebound them, and take care of the ball, and just get even if we just get even possessions. But if we got more possessions, I thought we had probably more weapons to be able to win."
Cori Close

Oct 8, 2025; Rosemont, Illinois, USA; UCLA Head Coach Cori Close speaks during Big Ten Women’s Basketball Media Days at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Talia Sprague-Imagn Images | Talia Sprague-Imagn Images

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