UCLA Women's Basketball Upsets Arizona on the Road, Pulls Away Late
The Bruins had been in games like this before.
They had played up to competition, battling in tight contests well into the second half. But as those games went on – whether it was against Arizona, Oregon State or someone else – the then-shorthanded squad tended to run out of steam late.
That was not the case in Tucson on Thursday night.
UCLA women's basketball (12-12, 7-8 Pac-12) upset No. 12 Arizona (19-6, 9-6) on the road, leading for nearly the entire game en route to a 64-46 victory. The result marked an end to a three-game losing streak and 2-7 stretch for the Bruins, who picked up their first win at the Wildcats since January 2019.
The 46 points allowed also marked UCLA's best defensive effort in conference play since December 2020.
The Bruins trailed for a mere 14 seconds in the first half, going up by as many as nine points in both the first and second quarters. Guards Chantel Horvat and Jaelynn Penn each chipped in a couple first half points, as did forward Angela Dugalic, but it was guard Natalie Chou and Charisma Osborne who led with way with 10 points apiece.
Arizona hit its final three shots of the half while UCLA missed its five, cutting the Bruins' lead to 28-27 before the break.
Penn got the Bruins back on the right track with a 3-pointer to start the third, then forward IImar'I Thomas finally got on the board with her first points of the night. UCLA got its next nine points out of its frontcourt in Thomas and Dugalic, then they passed to torch back to Osborne, who scored six in a row to put the Bruins up by 11 heading into the final frame.
Arizona kept pushing to make a comeback – first by hitting a few free throws to open the fourth, then by hitting a big 3-pointer and finally by securing a 4-point play – but UCLA answered with a string of buckets after each potential spark. While Chou hit a jumper in the paint, to get the Bruins' first counter-run started, it was Thomas who did most of the work in extending their cushion.
Thomas scored UCLA's next 10 points until Horvat hit a layup to make it a 16-point game inside of four minutes. Osborne and Horvat knocked down their free throws to put the game away while Arizona missed its final 10 shots of the night.
The Bruins shot 48% from the field and 92% from the line in the second half, while the Wildcats shot 17% and 55%, respectively. UCLA won the rebounding battle 46-28 and outscored Arizona 36-20 in the paint.
Osborne, Thomas and Chou combined for 46 points on 15-of-27 shooting and a 14-of-15 clip at the line. Thomas and Osborne also notched double-doubles with 11 and 10 rebounds, respectively, while Chou led the way with four assists.
UCLA will continue its season-ending road trip Saturday with an 11 a.m. showdown against Arizona State.
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