UCLA Women’s Basketball Faces Tough Competition in NCAA Tournament Region with LSU and Duke
UCLA Women’s Basketball Set to Face California Baptist in NCAA Tournament
The UCLA women’s basketball team, ranked No. 1 seed in the tournament, will host No. 16 seed California Baptist on Saturday in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The Bruins, boasting a record of 31-1 and an undefeated 18-0 mark in the Big Ten Conference, recently secured the Big Ten tournament championship.
UCLA was announced as the tournament’s second overall seed, following the top-ranked UConn. The Lancers, sporting a record of 23-10, claimed the Western Athletic Conference title with a win over Abilene Christian. This marks their second NCAA tournament appearance in three seasons; they previously faced UCLA in the first round as a 15-seed in 2024.
California Baptist, based in Riverside, is led by freshman guard Lauren Olson, who averages 15.1 points per game, and junior guard Filipa Barros, who contributes 10.0 rebounds per game. The program transitioned to Division I in 2021 but was ineligible for the NCAA tournament that same year due to their ongoing transition from Division II.
In addition to the UCLA-California Baptist matchup at Pauley Pavilion, Ivy League champion Princeton will take on Oklahoma State in the first round, with the winner set to face the Bruins or the Lancers.
UCLA’s regional bracket also features strong competitors, including No. 2 seed Louisiana State, No. 3 seed Duke, and No. 5 seed Ole Miss. The Bruins are positioned in the second quadrant, where they will potentially match up against the third overall seed, Texas, which is the only team to defeat UCLA this season.
Despite going undefeated in Big Ten play and routing Iowa by 51 points in the conference tournament final, the Bruins remained ranked behind UConn for the overall top seed. Last season, UCLA’s tournament run ended in the Final Four against UConn. This year, the team is led by experienced upperclassmen, including seniors Lauren Betts, Kiki Rice, and Gabriela Jaquez, along with graduate students Charlisse Leger-Walker and Gianna Kneepkens.
