Gabriela Jaquez delivered on a key sequence that helped No. 1 seed UCLA hold off third-seeded LSU and send the Bruins to their first-ever Final Four with a 72-65 decision on Sunday in the Spokane Region 1 final in Spokane, Wash.
UCLA (34-2) led throughout the second half and by as many 14 points, but LSU went on repeated runs that had the Tigers within striking distance down the stretch. An 8-0 Tigers run late in the fourth quarter made the score 56-53 with 3:24 remaining.
Lauren Betts, who faced suffocating double- and triple-teams throughout her 17-point, seven-rebound performance, split a pair of free throws to push the Bruins lead back to four. Then, after LSU failed to score on the ensuing possession, Jaquez got to the foul line to sink a pair of foul shots.
On the other end, Kailyn Gilbert missed a shot and Jaquez snagged a deflection for the rebound. Jaquez then fed Betts in the low post from the wing, relocated to the corner, regained the ball from Betts and fired in a 3-pointer.
Jaquez’s shot extended the UCLA lead to an insurmountable nine-point margin and put an exclamation point on her team-high 18-point, eight-rebound performance.
LSU (31-6) got a game-high 28 points from Flau’jae Johnson. Aneesah Morrow added 15 points, but the Bruins limited the nation’s leading rebounder to seven boards before Morrow fouled out.
Morrow also came out for a stretch in the third quarter after a collision with teammate Sa’Myah Smith. For her part, Smith finished with 10 rebounds and helped limit UCLA’s Betts to 7-of-14 shooting from the floor.
Betts did her part for the Bruins defensively with six blocked shots. UCLA also got three steals from Jaquez.
The Bruins went just 21-of-55 on field-goal attempts. However, with 10-of-24 coming from 3-point range — led by Timea Gardiner’s 5-of-8 for 15 points off the bench — UCLA withstood LSU’s 25-of-67 shooting for the game.
–Field Level Media
