Lauren Betts dominates again as UCLA advances to Elite Eight showdown with LSU
SPOKANE, Wash. — When UCLA signed the nation's No. 1 recruiting class in 2022, the program-changing prospects immediately flashed their potential by leading the Bruins to the Sweet 16. Opposing coaches were impressed, telling UCLA coach Cori Close that the freshmen would be so good 'one day.'
Internally, Gabriela Jaquez squirmed each time she heard the praise.
'I'm just like, 'I don't care, I want to be good now,'' the UCLA junior guard said this week. 'Why do we have to wait?'
The wait is over.
UCLA's once vaunted freshman class has come of age, arriving in the Elite Eight as juniors after leading the Bruins to a 76-62 win over No. 5 Mississippi in the Spokane Regional 1 semifinal on Friday at Spokane Arena.
In their third consecutive Sweet 16, the Bruins (33-2) finally pushed forward to a regional final for the first time since 2018 and will play for the regional crown Sunday against No. 3 seed Louisiana State at noon PDT (ABC). The Tigers, who knocked off the Bruins in the Sweet 16 last season, took down No. 2 North Carolina State 80-73 on Friday.
Betts, a transfer addition to the talented junior class, was unstoppable with 31 points on 15-for-16 shooting with 10 rebounds as the Bruins shot a season-best 60% from the field.
Junior guard Kiki Rice, who was the No. 2-rated prospect in her high school class behind only Betts, had 13 points and seven assists. After being held scoreless from the field in the first half, Rice hit a key three-pointer early in the third quarter that capped an 8-0 run for the Bruins. The Rebels, who trailed by just one at halftime, never got the lead down to single digits after junior Londynn Jones hit a three-pointer to put the Bruins up by 12 with 6:07 to go.
Rice, Jones and Jaquez were the core of UCLA's second-ever top-ranked recruiting class, but the group has continued to transcend through key transfer additions.
None was bigger than Betts. The Stanford transfer has averaged 30.5 points and 12 rebounds in the last two games, missing only four shots from the field on 33 attempts.
UCLA lost forward Lina Sontag last spring from their original top class of recruits, and Christeen Iwuala transferred to Mississippi and scored seven points with nine rebounds against her former team. But Close brought in Janiah Barker and Timea Gardiner, the No. 3 and No. 6 prospects, respectively, in the 2022 HoopGurlz recruiting rankings.
Three years after the historic group started, UCLA now has four of the top six players in the class and six of the top 22.
'I think it's just been cool to see the growth, especially me, Londynn and Kiki being freshmen together,' Jaquez said this week. 'We were always confident in ourselves and we didn't want to be good when we were older, we want to be good now, but I think we've just grown so much and I think the experience has been a really crucial part of that.'
For two consecutive seasons, the top prospects were left licking their wounds from Sweet 16 exits. Last year's loss as the No. 2 seed to No. 3 LSU especially haunted them. All offseason, they thought about the missed opportunity to lead the program's next step.
Sunday will be a test of just how much the former No. 1 recruiting class has grown. A rematch of last year's Sweet 16 has now turned into UCLA's chance to make its first NCAA Final Four.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Who is on Ja'Marr Chase's "Mount Rushmore" as the best wide receivers in NFL history? And should he include himself next?
Who is on Ja'Marr Chase's "Mount Rushmore" as the best wide receivers in NFL history? And should he include himself next? originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase is coming off the best season of his career, and one of the best in NFL history for a receiver. Advertisement He achieved the historic "triple crown" by leading the entire NFL in receptions (127), receiving yards (1,708) and receiving touchdowns (17) last season. The milestone had only been achieved 16 times by 12 other players prior to Chase's unbelievable season in 2024. The last player to hit this feat before Chase was Los Angeles Rams wideout Cooper Kupp during the 2021 season. That year ended with the Rams beating Chase's Bengals in the Super Bowl. Prior to the 2023 season, Chase was asked by Sports Illustrated who he would put on his "Mount Rushmore" for wide receivers - or the best four players at the position in NFL history. Advertisement After starting with Calvin Johnson and Antonio Brown, Chase showed love to the recent triple crown winner at the time. "Got to put Kupp in there with the triple crown," Chase said. He added the cherry on top with Jerry Rice, an "obvious" pick for any all-time receivers list. Rice is another triple crown winner, leading the league in all three categories in 1990 with the San Francisco 49ers. Little did Chase know, he would be the next receiver to join this exclusive club just two years later. Now the question: would he update his list by putting himself in? One way to answer this is to compare his 2024 season with the two triple crowns he put in ahead of him. Advertisement Chase's season doesn't really come close to Kupp's (145 receptions, 1,947 yards, 16 touchdowns), but it holds weight head-to-head with Rice's. Ja'Marr had higher totals than Jerry in each statistic. Rice finished 1990 with 100 catches, 1,502 yards and 13 touchdowns. Rice, however, has the upper hand overall with three other seasons where he led the NFL in two of the three major categories. Chase had never led the league in any stat before last year. The easy answer is to sub himself in for either Johnson or Brown, but those are no slouches either. "Megatron" led the league in receptions and yards, but only had five touchdowns in 2012. Brown led in catches and yards two years later, but finished second in touchdowns by three. Advertisement Chase may have a ways to go before he enters the "Mount Rushmore" conversation for receivers, but with just four seasons under his belt and an elite quarterback throwing him the pigskin for years to come, Chase is on pace to have a solid argument for his inclusion by the time he retires. Related: Bengals' Tee Higgins Predicts 'Deadly' Offense in 2025 Related: Bengals Boast a Top-5 Offensive Trio via 'Triplets' Rankings This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 9, 2025, where it first appeared.
Boston Globe
6 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Could Patrice Bergeron or Zdeno Chara join Marco Sturm behind the Bruins' bench? Dream on.
Much of Sturm's success will be tied directly to July 1, the day GM Don Sweeney will pick through the NHL's annual free-agent swap meet and, ideally, hand his new coach at least a couple of bona fide point producers. A body or two with the kind of pop Sturm delivered in his playing days — eight seasons of 20-plus goals — would be just what the franchise rehab doctor ordered. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up A No. 1 center would be the gift of gifts for the new coach. What's a swap meet without a pipe dream? Advertisement Key to Sturm's success, and a point Sweeney did not address on Thursday in Advertisement The 2024-25 Bruins couldn't score enough and couldn't defend at crucial times. Other than that bit of Tesla spontaneously combusting in the driveway, you know, great ride, was it not? What an intriguing thought to have Sturm aided back there by both Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara. Like Sturm, neither of those future Hall-of-Famers ever has coached at the NHL level, but so what? All three were good pals during Sturm's five years here. All three helped create and curate the culture of discipline and professionalism and competitiveness that defined the team until it began to erode, in chunks, following the summer '23 retirements of Bergeron and Krejci. Best to think, for now, of Bergeron and Chara in coaching roles as two more pipe dreams. Bergeron in his latter playing years repeatedly evinced very little interest (read: zero) in coaching upon retirement, particularly any time soon after calling it quits. 'For now, it's the same answer: I don't think it's in the cards,' said Bergeron on Friday in an interview with the Globe. 'Never say never. Time will tell. Right now I don't see it as something I would like to pursue. I guess I'm getting started coaching two of my sons. We'll see exactly. Never say never.' All that said, who wouldn't want Bergy in the mix? Even if his job description was just 'assistant coach, special services, solely in charge of the power-play bumper.' Chara, in the late stages of his playing career here, was a tiny bit more open to something in the coaching sphere. He has been around the team more in recent months at Sweeney's behest. It has been an unofficial role, one that both have yet to define. Advertisement In my conversation with Chara last week, just days after he was 'We're still determining the specifics of the role right now. I'm some sort of advisor, mentor and … we still have to determine which part of that need is the most important," he said. 'I enjoy the part of leadership and helping guys to be better leaders and better players, and that also depends on the new coach. You need to have that conversation, like, where am I going to be needed the most?' Overall, Big Z added, he wants to help the franchise grow, inspire players, and 'just be part of it.' 'Because, to be honest, my heart is always going to be with the Bruins,' he said. 'I spent the majority of my career with the Bruins and I really care about them. When I came here in '06, and when I left in [ Advertisement 'So I am attached. I am emotionally attached and living here, so I am physically here, too. I care. I care. I want to help. I want to be part of this turnaround and make it work again … but anything I do is for a new coach and Donny to sign off on it.' Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at
Los Angeles Times
8 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
The Sports Report: Bill Plaschke shares a personal story
From Bill Plaschke: They pull giant boxing gloves over aging, sometimes shaking hands. They approach a black punching bag on weary, sometimes wobbly feet. Then they wail. They hit the bag with a left-handed jab, a right-handed reverse, a hook, another hook, an uppercut, another jab, bam, bam, bam. They end the flurry with kicks, side kicks, thrust kicks, wild kicks, their legs suddenly strong and purposeful and fueled by a strength that once seemed impossible. Outside of this small gym in a nondescript office park in Monrovia, they are elderly people dealing with the motion-melting nightmare that is Parkinson's disease. But inside the walls of Kaizen Martial Arts & Fitness, in a program known as Kaizen Kinetics, they are heavyweight champs. Ranging in age from 50 to 90, spanning the spectrum of swift strides to wheelchairs, they are the most courageous athletes I've met. I am in awe of them, perhaps because I am one of them. I, too, am living with Parkinson's disease. Continue reading here All Times Pacific NBA FINALS Oklahoma City vs. Indiana Indiana 111, at Oklahoma City 110 (box score, story)at Oklahoma City 123, Indiana 107 (box score, story)Wednesday at Indiana, 5:30 p.m., ABCFriday at Indiana, 5:30 p.m., ABCMonday at Oklahoma City, 5:30 p.m., ABCThursday, June 19 at Indiana, 5:30 p.m., ABC*Sunday, June 22 at Oklahoma City, 5 p.m., ABC* *if necessary From Benjamin Royer: Since coming to Westwood, Roch Cholowsky has had Omaha on his mind. The Big Ten Player of the Year — a projected No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 MLB draft by some analysts — turned Charles Schwab Field in Omaha into a playground during the Big Ten tournament, winning player of the tournament honors despite UCLA not claiming the championship. So far, in the NCAA tournament, Cholowsky had been uncharacteristically quiet for his standards. He still made hard plays look easy as a 'premium shortstop' — as UCLA coach John Savage glowed about his defensive skills — but his bat wasn't making its usual noise. Cholowsky finally had his moment Sunday. Cholowsky's RBI single off that strike in the fifth, a part of his two-for-five day, clinched UCLA's spot in the Men's College World Series with a 7-0 victory over Texas San Antonio. The two-game sweep of the Roadrunners gave the Bruins their sixth berth to Omaha and first since 2013, when they won it all. Continue reading here From Kevin Baxter: The Dodgers have sent Clayton Kershaw to the mound to give a slumping team a lift countless times during his 18-year career. And they've rarely been disappointed. They did it again on a sultry Sunday afternoon in St. Louis and once again Kershaw delivered, earning his first win of the season in a 7-3 victory over the Cardinals that broke a two-game losing streak and ended a slide that had seen the Dodgers lose five of their last seven. 'He's been a stopper for many years. He's been a staff ace for many years. He's going to the Hall of Fame,' Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before the game. 'So he understands. And he's going to be prepared.' Continue reading here Dodgers box score MLB scores MLB standings George Kirby struck out a career-high 14 during seven innings of two-hit ball, and the Seattle Mariners snapped their five-game losing streak with a 3-2 victory over the Angels on Sunday. Kirby (1-3) issued no walks while retiring both his first 11 and his final 10 batters. His strikeouts were the most by a Mariners pitcher since James Paxton had 16 in May 2018, and he matched Miami's Max Meyer for the most strikeouts in a major league game this season. Taylor Ward hit a two-run homer in the fourth for the Halos, who struck out 18 times overall while losing for only the second time in six games. Continue reading here Angels box score MLB scores MLB standings Denis Bouanga had a goal and two assists, Eddie Segura scored his first goal since 2020 and LAFC extended its MLS unbeaten streak to nine games with a 3-1 win over Sporting Kansas City on Sunday night at BMO Stadium. Bouanga converted from the penalty spot in the 59th to give LAFC (7-4-5), which had 56% possession and outshot Kansas City 21-5, a 2-1 lead. Dejan Joveljic scored a goal for the fourth consecutive game when he ran onto a through ball played ahead by Manu García, and scored from near the penalty spot to make it 1-0 in the 39th minute. Continue reading here LAFC summary MLS standings Coco Gauff won the French Open for the first time by defeating top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4 in Saturday's final for her second Grand Slam singles title. The second-ranked Gauff made fewer mistakes in a contest that was full of tension and momentum swings to get the better of Sabalenka for the second time in a Grand Slam final. She also came from a set down to beat the Belarusian in the 2023 U.S. Open final. Gauff raised the winner's trophy aloft, then kissed it several times. She held her hand over her heart when the U.S. national anthem played. She is the first American woman to win at Roland-Garros since Serena Williams in 2015. She then thanked her parents for doing everything 'from washing my clothes to keeping me grounded and giving me the belief that I can do it.' 'You guys probably believe in me more than myself,' Gauff said in her on-court speech. It was the first No. 1 vs. No. 2 final in Paris since 2013, when Williams defeated Maria Sharapova, and just the second in the last 30 years. Continue reading here ———— Carlos Alcaraz rallied from two sets down and saved three match points to beat Jannik Sinner 4-6, 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (10-2) on Sunday and win the French Open title for a second straight year. Alcaraz, who won his fifth Grand Slam tournament in as many finals, produced one of the greatest comebacks in the history of the clay-court tournament. It was even better than his performance here last year, when he came back from 2-1 down in sets in the final against Alexander Zverev. But this time Alcaraz emulated Novak Djokovic's feat from the 2021 final at Roland-Garros, where he fought back from two sets down to beat Stefanos Tsitsipas. Continue reading here Tennis great Stan Smith on life lessons, Arthur Ashe's legacy and his namesake shoes All times Pacific STANLEY CUP FINAL Edmonton vs. Floridaat Edmonton 4, Florida 3 (OT) (summary, story)Florida 5, at Edmonton 4 (2 OT) (summary, story)Monday at Florida, 5 p.m., TNTThursday at Florida, 5 p.m., TNTSaturday at Edmonton, 5 p.m., TNTTuesday, June 17 at Florida, 5 p.m., TNT*Friday, June 20 at Edmonton, 5 p.m., TNT* * If necessary 1888 — James McLaughlin sets the record for wins by a jockey in the Belmont Stakes, six, when he rides Sir Dixon to a 12-length victory. McLaughlin's record is matched by Eddie Arcaro in 1955. 1899 — Jim Jeffries knocks out Bob Fitzsimmons in the 11th round in New York to win the world heavyweight title. 1930 — Paavo Nurmi runs world record 6 mile (29:36.4). 1934 — Olin Dutra edges Gene Sarazen by one stroke to win the U.S. Open. 1940 — Lawson Little beats Gene Sarazen by three strokes in a playoff to win the U.S. Open golf title. 1945 — Hoop Jr. wins the Kentucky Derby, which is run one month after a national wartime government ban on racing is lifted. 1946 — Joe Louis KOs Billy Conn in 8 for heavyweight boxing title. 1973 — Secretariat, ridden by Ron Turcotte, wins the Belmont Stakes in record time to capture the Triple Crown. Secretariat sets a world record on the 1½-mile course with 2:24, and a record for largest margin of victory in the Belmont, 31 lengths. 1978 — Larry Holmes scores a 15-round split decision over Ken Norton for the WBC heavyweight title in New York. 1979 — Coastal, ridden by Ruben Hernandez, spoils Spectacular Bid's attempt at the Triple Crown with a 3¼-length victory over Golden Act. Spectacular Bid finishes third. 1984 — Swale, ridden by Laffit Pincay, wins the Belmont Stakes by four lengths over Pine Circle. Swale dies eight days later. 1984 — French Open Women's Tennis: Martina Navratilova beats Chris Evert 6-3, 6-1; 2nd women in Open Era to hold all 4 Grand Slam titles at once. 1985 — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scores 29 points to lead the Lakers to a 111-100 victory over the Boston Celtics and the NBA title in six games. 1990 — Monica Seles holds off four set points in the first set tiebreaker and goes on to become the youngest winner of the French Open, beating two-time champion Steffi Graf 7-6 (8-6), 6-4. Seles is 16 years, six months. 1991 — In the first all-American men's final at the French Open since 1954, Jim Courier rallies to beat Andre Agassi 3-6, 6-4, 2-6, 6-1, 6-4 for his first Grand Slam title. 1993 — Patrick Roy makes 18 saves and the Montreal Canadiens capture their 24th Stanley Cup, beating the Kings 4-1 in Game 5. 2001 — Stanley Cup Final, Pepsi Center, Denver, CO: Colorado Avalanche beat defending champion New Jersey Devils, 3-1 for 4-3 series win; Avalanche 2nd title. 2001 — Jennifer Capriati beats Kim Clijsters 1-6, 6-4, 12-10 to win the French Open, her second consecutive Grand Slam title. 2003 — The New Jersey Devils end the Mighty Ducks' surreal season, winning the Stanley Cup with a 3-0 victory. Mike Rupp, who had never appeared in a playoff until Game 4, scores the first goal and sets up Jeff Friesen for the other two. 2007 — Rags to Riches, a filly ridden by John Velazquez, outduels Curlin in a breathtaking stretch run and won the Belmont Stakes, becoming the first of her sex to take the final leg of the Triple Crown in more than a century. 2010 — Chicago's Patrick Kane sneaks the puck past Michael Leighton 4:10 into overtime, stunning Philadelphia and lifting the Blackhawks to a 4-3 overtime win in Game 6 for their first Stanley Cup championship since 1961. 2013 — Rafael Nadal becomes the first man to win eight titles at the same Grand Slam tournament after beating fellow Spaniard David Ferrer in the French Open final, 6-3, 6-2, 6-3. 2018 — Justify becomes the 13th Triple Crown winner by winning the Belmont Stakes with Mike Smith aboard. 2019 — French Open Men's Tennis: Rafael Nadal beats Austrian Dominic Thiem 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1; 3rd straight French singles title; 12th overall; first to win 12 singles titles at same Grand Slam; 18th major. 2022 — The controversial Saudi-backed LIV Golf Invitational Series gets underway at the Centurion Club, Hertfordshire; PGA suspends 17 participating players. 2024 — French Open Men's Tennis: Carlos Alcaraz becomes the youngest man to win grand slams on all three surfaces, coming back to beat Alexander Zverev 6-3, 2-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 in a final lasting 4 hours 15 minutes 1901 — The New York Giants set a major league record with 31 hits in beating Cincinnati 25-13. Al Selbach of the Giants went 6-for-7 with two doubles and four singles and scored four runs. 1906 — Boston snapped a 19-game losing streak by beating the St. Louis Cardinals 6-3. 1914 — Honus Wagner of the Pittsburgh Pirates got the 3,000th hit of his career off Philadelphia's Erskine Mayer in a 3-1 loss to the Phillies at the Baker Bowl. Wagner's hit, a double, came in the ninth. Wagner joined Cap Anson as the only members of the 3,000-hit club. 1935 — The St. Louis Cardinals became the 10th team in major league history to score a run in every inning in a 13-2 win over the Chicago Cubs. 1946 — Commissioner Happy Chandler imposed five-year suspensions on players who jumped to the Mexican League and three-year suspensions for those who broke the reserve clause. 1946 — The New York Giants' Mel Ott became the first manager to be ejected in both ends of a doubleheader. The Pittsburgh Pirates won both games, 2-1 and 5-1. 1963 — Playing the first Sunday night game in major league history because of excessive heat during the day, the Houston Colt .45s handed the San Francisco Giants their seventh straight loss in Houston, 3-0. Turk Farrell and Skinny Brown pitched the shutout. 1966 — Rich Rollins, Zoilo Versalles, Tony Oliva, Don Mincher and Harmon Killebrew homered in the seventh inning for the Minnesota Twins in a 9-4 victory over the Kansas City Athletics. 1979 — Nolan Ryan struck out 16 batters as the Angels beat the Detroit Tigers 9-1. It was the 21st time in his career he struck out 15 or more batters in one game. 1986 — White Sox pitcher Tom Seaver (306) and Angels hurler Don Sutton (298) had the highest composite win total (604) for opposing pitchers since 1926, when Walter Johnson (406) faced Red Faber (197). Sutton pitched a two-hit shutout to beat the White Sox 3-0. 1990 — Eddie Murray of the Dodgers tied Mickey Mantle's record by homering from each side of the plate in the same game for the 10th time in his career. The Dodgers beat the Padres 5-4 in 11 innings. 1998 — Cecil Fielder of the Angels and Yamil Benitez of the Diamondbacks each hit grand slams in the same inning in Anaheim's 10-8 win over Arizona. It was the first time both teams hit grand slams in the same inning since 1992. 2008 — Ken Griffey Jr. became the sixth player in baseball history to reach 600 homers with a drive off Mark Hendrickson in the first inning of the Cincinnati Reds' 9-4 victory over the Florida Marlins. 2014 — Lonnie Chisenhall had nine RBIs and three home runs in a five-hit game, Michael Brantley scored five times and the Cleveland Indians beat the Texas Rangers 17-7. 2015 — Chris Heston pitched the first no-hitter in his 13th career start, leading the San Francisco Giants over the New York Mets 5-0. The rookie allowed three baserunners — all on hit batters. He also had a two-run single for his first big league RBIs and finished with two more hits than the Mets. 2019 — The Nationals accomplish a very rare feat as four consecutive batters hit solo homers in the 8th inning in Petco Park in San Diego to break a 1-1 tie. Pinch-hitter Howie Kendrick starts things off against Craig Stammen, and is followed by Trea Turner, Adam Eaton and Anthony Rendon, who all go yard. This is only the ninth time in major league history this has happened, and the Nats were the last to do so, on July 27, 2017. 2019 — Former Boston Red Sox star David Ortiz shot in the back while visiting in his native Dominican Republic. 2022 — The Twins open the bottom of the 1st against the Yankees with three consecutive homers off Gerrit Cole at Target Field, by Luis Arraez, Byron Buxton and Carlos Correa. This is the first time in franchise history this has happened. Compiled by the Associated Press That concludes today's newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you'd like to see, email me at To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
