Lauren Betts, No. 1 UCLA finally pull away from Minnesota to reach Elite Eight after slow start

It wasn’t a complete dominant performance by any means, but the Bruins got the job done on Friday night.

No. 1 UCLA pulled away from No. 4 Minnesota in the second half on Friday night at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. The Bruins secured an 80-56 win over the Gophers in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament, which kept their hopes of a return trip to the Final Four alive.

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Now, UCLA will await either No. 2 LSU or No. 3 Duke in the Elite Eight on Sunday in the Sacramento Region 2.

UCLA opened the game quickly and led the entire way, but Minnesota never disappeared in the first 20 minutes. The Bruins started on a 14-6 run, but the Gophers narrowed that gap to just five points by halftime after Mara Braun hit a tough contested jumper in the final seconds. The Bruins went just 0-of-6 from the 3-point line.

But finally, the Gophers fell back. They failed to score for almost the first half of the third quarter, until finally Grace Grocholski hit a 3-pointer just before the midway point. That just about did them in. UCLA pushed its lead to 13 points briefly, and then managed to keep it at double figures at the end of the period after Kiki Rice hit a pair of free throws in the final seconds. Rice was the only Bruins player to score in the final three minutes of the period.

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UCLA then put the Gophers away for good. The Bruins started the final period on a 13-6 run to push their lead to 20 points, and they never looked back. They cruised to the 24-point win without any issue to get out of the Sweet 16.

Grocholski led Minnesota with 12 points and six rebounds while shooting 5-of-10 from the field. Sophie Hart added 11 points, though they were the only Gophers players to hit double figures. The Gophers only reached the Sweet 16, which marked the first time the program had done so since 2005, after they hit a game-winner to beat Ole Miss in the second round.

Rice finished with 21 points, and Betts had 16 points and five rebounds. Betts surpassed the 1,000-career…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/womens-college-basketball/breaking-news/article/lauren-betts-no-1-ucla-finally-pull-away-from-minnesota-to-reach-elite-eight-after-slow-start-014127989.html

Author : Ryan Young

Publish date : 2026-03-28 01:41:00

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