Cori Close's Loyalty Stance Validated After Senior-Led UCLA National Championship

A historic season for head coach Cori Close and the UCLA Bruins was capped off with a national title after taking down SEC powerhouse South Carolina on Sunday. A program that only suffered one loss finally reached their destiny just two seasons after joining a deeply stacked Big Ten Conference.

The mission was always to get to a national championship and win it, but Close did so much more for every player that has come through her program. To her, it isn't just about wins and losses, but lessons and experiences that her players can carry with them throughout their lives after basketball. She's very much a player's coach and after 15 seasons at UCLA, she's now in a class of championship winning coaches.

All season, Close has advocated for more exposure on women's sports. She's also been very vocal when it comes to the current state of college athletics, more specifically, the transfer portal. Today's world of college athletics has turned into a free agency free-for-all creating disruption for coaches to build their programs. Close even encouraged players everywhere to stay the course and remain loyal to one program by stating "the grass isn't greener on the other side, the grass is greener where you water it." After UCLA's national championship victory she credited her team's loyalty, which is a key reason they've had so much success.

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐑𝐔𝐈𝐍𝐒 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐋 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒! 🐻🏆#GoBruins pic.twitter.com/sN4kODldam
— UCLA Women's Basketball (@UCLAWBB) April 5, 2026

Her players were invested in the system and stayed the course, something that isn't easily found in the NCAA realm nowadays. Players often jump ship when things aren't going their way or they aren't seeing sufficient playing time, but look hard, because you'll have a difficult time finding this to be the case in Close's program. She's preached to her team all season that if they work hard enough good things will eventually happen. Fast forward to April and UCLA now finds themselves at the mountaintop.

UCLA's Seniors Paved the Way for Program's First NCAA Title

Perhaps one of the most impressive points that can be taken away from the Bruins' victory is the way in which they achieved it. A team led by a plethora of senior talent (Lauren Betts, Kiki Rice, Gabriela Jaquez) have now set the standard for the program for years to come. At the end of their championship run, UCLA's seniors accounted for the team's last 173 points scored. It's this very class that helped them get on a 17-game winning streak and ultimately finish the season with a 37-1 record. Statistically, this makes them one of the best senior classes in this era of women's college basketball.

Even though they brought in senior transfer talents this season (Gianna Kneepkens, Angela Ducalic, Charlisse Leger-Walker), the duo of Rice and Jaquez were a part of the program's second-ever No. 1 recruiting class. Close being able to keep the core of the program together for an entire four seasons is impressive, especially in the era of Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). The character and dedication of each of these seniors has been on full display all season and they've now reached glory at the finish line.

The seniors on UCLA scored EVERY SINGLE POINT for the Bruins in the Final Four 🤯

31 PTS - Gabriela Jaquez
30 PTS - Lauren Betts
25 PTS - Gianna Kneepkens
21 PTS - Kiki Rice
13 PTS - Angela Dugalic
10 PTS - Charlisse Leger-Walker pic.twitter.com/0glTjermo3
— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) April 5, 2026

After capturing back-to-back Big Ten titles, UCLA's senior class led by Betts, garnered national award recognition. Looking ahead, several of the Bruins' seniors are expected to be picked in the upcoming WNBA Draft.

But for the moment, their focus will surely be on cherishing the championship they worked so hard to win together.