It had an opportunity to make history. Saturday could’ve marked Indiana women’s basketball’s first victory over the No. 1 team in the country.
Instead, the Hoosiers fell to No. 1 UCLA 73-62 inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. The Hoosiers are now 10-4 overall and 2-1 in Big Ten play.
The two squads began the contest trading buckets before the Bruins went on a 9-0 run over nearly two and a half minutes. UCLA junior center Lauren Betts showed why she’s one of the best in the country in the early going, scoring 6 points in the paint as the Hoosiers failed to contain her.
Trailing by 11 with just over three minutes left in the first quarter, the Hoosiers went on their first run of the game as they scored 9 consecutive points to pull within 2 after 10 minutes of play.
However, Indiana failed to maintain its momentum as it was held scoreless for the first 7:04 of the second quarter. UCLA jumped back out to a substantial lead — this time 15.
Senior forward Karoline Striplin notched a pair of jumpers in the final minutes of the first half as the Hoosiers trailed by 12 at the break. The Cream and Crimson scored just 5 points in the second quarter while the Bruins notched 15.
Indiana responded to begin the third quarter as it held serve with UCLA, going back and forth as its deficit remained around 10. That was until the Bruins began connecting from long range, which gave them a 16-point lead in the middle stages of the quarter.
Junior guard Shay Ciezki capped the Hoosiers’ 8-0 run with an and-one to pull within 8. However, UCLA held a 12-point lead with one quarter left to play.
Indiana tried to pull closer and make a serious run over the course of the fourth quarter, but UCLA continuously responded to any buckets. The Hoosiers couldn’t pull any closer than 12 points as the Bruins earned a 11-point victory.
Betts led all scorers with 25 points and 12 rebounds while junior guard Kiki Rice notched 12. Indiana junior guard Yarden Garzon paced the Hoosiers with 19 points.
With the loss, the Cream and Crimson suffered their first blemish on their Big Ten record. The Hoosiers return to action at 8 p.m. Jan. 8 against Northwestern inside Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, Illinois. The contest will stream on Big Ten+.
Follow reporters Dalton James (@DaltonMJames) and Savannah Slone (@savrivers06) and columnist Ryan Canfield (@RyanCanfieldOnX) for updates throughout the Indiana women’s basketball season.
