Cori Close's Push for Women's Sports Coverage Pays Off After UCLA's Win Over USC
UCLA head coach Cori Close hasn't been quiet when it comes to pushing for more exposure of women's sports. In fact, she had previously expressed her displeasure earlier this season when her No. 2 ranked Bruins faced high-powered in-conference competitor Ohio State a few weeks back, a game that received very little media exposure.
Close called out the lack of media that was present all while crediting the ecstatic energy in the building throughout the game. That game was the only ranked match-up slated that day and yet, it received the cold shoulder from media outlets.
Close choosing to speak up about it helped shed light on the discrepancy surrounding women's sports. It's already known that women's basketball, in particular, has grown rapidly in fan popularity over the last few seasons. With young up and coming talent, the media exposure needs to grow with the sport, and frankly, for other women's sports as well.
Cori Close's Call for Change Appears to Be Gaining Traction
Cori Close's valid frustrations and willingness to express them has appeared to have already paid off in a positive way. After her team's 73-50 win over USC on Sunday, Close was met by a room full of reporters and she appreciated every moment of it. Entering a packed media room was brought to her attention given her recent comments regarding the lack of reporters at previous games.
"Keep it up. Keep it up," Close said.
"We want to grow the game. One of the things I've learned this year is, as much as we're soaring we need each other to continue to put our foot on the gas and tell the stories of these incredible women. They deserve it," she added.
The recent increase in fandom of women's basketball specifically, does not correlate with it's media coverage. Close in no way wants to discredit men's athletics and take away from those programs, but will continue to call for an even playing field when it comes to telling stories of incredible moments that occur in women's sports. Close gave an example of this in her post game presser.
In a jam-packed media room today, I asked Cori Close what that turnout means to her.
— Ira Gorawara (@IraGorawara) March 2, 2026
“(When) we won the championship, that night on every single news broadcast, there was not one women’s story in the sports section.”
She emphasized this isn’t anything against men’s coverage. pic.twitter.com/5eX2aYaify
"When we won the championship and the next day, or that night on every single news broadcast there was not one women's story in the sports section. Not one."
"It was covered that our men beat Illinois two nights before, but not that we won the championship that night. Please hear me, this is not taking anything away from men's coverage, but I think we can continue to push the envelope about how amazing these women are and just how much we're trying to grow the game," Close said.
Change can't always happen in the blink of an eye, but Sunday's post game turnout proved that progress is slowly being made and Close recognized that. She even thanked media members that were present in UCLA's media room and expressed her appreciation.
The needed increase in media exposure goes well beyond the entertainment aspect of sports. Rather, the growth in popularity can also create an opportunity for inspiration with young aspiring athletes, something Close also alluded to in her post game presser. With fair coverage and exposure, the positive impact of both men's and women's sports can reach many generations to come.
Lindsay Burke covers women’s basketball for Indiana Fever On SI and Women’s Fastbreak On SI. She graduated from Purdue University Fort Wayne with a Bachelor's Degree in journalism and a minor in media production. Early in her career she covered ECHL hockey, the NFL and college football and has since expanded her expertise to the WNBA and the Fever franchise.
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