All Bruins

UCLA Dominates Big Ten Women's Basketball Postseason Honors

The Bruins are getting rewarded for an impressive season.
Travis Tyler|
Feb 1, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins head coach Cori Close in the first half against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Feb 1, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins head coach Cori Close in the first half against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

UCLA has been one of the best women's college basketball teams this season, cruising its way to its first Big Ten title and the No. 2 overall ranking with a 28-1 record.

The Bruins were the first Big Ten team to finish conference play unblemished since 2015 and just the fourth overall. When you have a season like that, the postseason awards are bound to find you, and seven UCLA players and one coach were honored when the conference announced its winners and top performers on Tuesday.

Here are the UCLA Bruins who received postseason honors from the Big Ten for their contributions this season.

Head Coach Cori Close - Big Ten Coach of the Year

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Dec 7, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins forward Angela Dugalic (32) talks with head coach Cori Close during the first half against the Oregon Ducks at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Close earned her first Big Ten Coach of the Year Award for guiding UCLA to an incredible season in just its second year in the conference. The award eluded her last season, even as she captured national Coach of the Year honors from the Associated Press, USBWA, WBCA, and the Naismith Award.

She's the only UCLA women's basketball coach to amass at least 300 career wins, and the team has played its way to its best season under her watch, fully in the mix for a national title.

Center Lauren Betts - Big Ten Player of the Year, Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, First Team All-Big Ten (coaches & media), Big Ten All-Defense

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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

Betts has been UCLA's star player all season, and the conference has rewarded her for it. She takes home her first Big Ten Player of the Year Award, along with her second straight Defensive Player of the Year award and first team all-conference and All-Defense honors.

The senior led the Bruins with 16.3 points per game while snagging 232 total rebounds and blocking 54 shots. It's not quite the record-setting season she had as a junior, but productive nonetheless.

Forward Angela Dugalic - Big Ten Sixth Player of the Year

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Feb 1, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins forward Angela Dugalic (32) ressures Iowa Hawkeyes guard Journey Houston (8) as they fight for a rebound in the second half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Angela Dugalic becomes the second straight Big Ten Sixth Player of the Year for the Bruins, joining Janiah Barker as UCLA sweeps the award in its first two seasons as a member. A former starter, the forward was relegated to the bench this year and averaged a career-high 9.1 points and 5.2 rebounds while shooting 52.1% from the floor.

Guard Kiki Rice - First Team All-Big Ten (media & coaches), Big Ten All-Defense

Rice was the other star, drawing the public eye to UCLA. The Bruins' point guard is an All-Conference player for the fourth year in a row and an All-Defense player for the second time. Rice was second on the team in scoring (15.2), rebounds (6.2), assists (4.4), and steals (1.5) per game.

Guard Gabriela Jaquez - Second Team All-Big Ten (coaches and media)

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Dec 20, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Gabriela Jaquez (11) reacts after a 3-point basket during the second half against Long Beach State Beach at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The Big Ten coaches gave Jaquez an Honorable Mention last season and now bumped her up to the second team. The younger sister of former UCLA men's basketball star Jaime Jaquez, Gabriela was the third-most productive player on the team, averaging 14.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, two assists, and 1.1 steals.

She started every game this season, playing over 30 minutes a night, and rewarded the Bruins with career-bests across the board, especially as a three-point shooter and from the foul line.

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Dec 20, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Gianna Kneepkens (8) is defended by Long Beach State Beach guard Brynna Pukis (32) and forward Kennan Ka (5) as she drives to the basket during the first half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Guard Gianna Kneepkens - Second Team All-Big Ten (media), Honorable Mention All-Big Ten (coaches)

Second team All-Big Ten isn't bad for a transfer who spent four years in the PAC-12 and Big 12 with Utah. Kneepkens didn't have to do as much at UCLA with the talent around her, but she still made major contributions as a full-time starter and one of the team's top scorers.

Forward Sienna Betts - Big Ten All-Freshman (coaches and media)

The younger Betts made quite a contribution in her debut season at UCLA, appearing in 19 games and averaging 6.8 points and four rebounds while playing around 15 or 16 minutes. She was the seventh option off the bench, but it's incredibly rare for a freshman to carve out a role on a veteran team with this much talent.

Guard Charlisse Leger-Walker - Sportsmanship

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Feb 1, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Charlisse Leger-Walker (5) is defended by Iowa Hawkeyes guard Addie Deal (7) as she goes for a loose ball in the second half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Leger-Wlaker is another transfer who made an impact on the UCLA women's team, starting all 29 games after playing four yearsat Washington State. Like Kneepkens, she entered the lineup as a scorer but did not need to do nearly as much with this UCLA team.

She still contributed well, finishing with similar numbers to Sixth Player of the Year, Angela Dugalic. But above all, Leger-Walker has been recognized for her leadership.

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Apr 3, 2025; Tampa, FL, USA; UCLA Bruins coach Cori Close poses with the AP and WBCA Coach of the Year trophies during press conference at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

to do nearly as much with this UCLA team. She still contributed well, finishing with similar numbers to Sixth Player of the Year, Angela Dugalic. But above all, Leger-Walker has been recognized for her leadership.

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Published
Travis Tyler
TRAVIS TYLER

Travis Tyler joined On SI as a writer in January 2026. He has experience contributing to FanSided’s NFL, college football, and college basketball coverage, in addition to freelance work throughout the Dallas–Fort Worth area, including high school, college, and professional sports for the Dallas Express and contributions to the College Football Dawgs, Last Word on Sports/Hockey, and The Dallas Morning News. In addition to his writing, Travis contributes video and podcasting content to Fanatics View and regularly appears as a guest analyst. He is a graduate of Michigan State University and SMU and is an avid Detroit sports fan with a deep knowledge and appreciation of sports history. Follow Travis Tyler on Twitter at @TTyler_Sports.