LOS ANGELES — South Carolina didn’t just come into Sunday’s contest against UCLA as the defending national champions. The No. 1 Gamecocks entered the matchup versus the fifth-ranked Bruins with a whole host of streaks on the line.
The No. 1 Gamecocks had won 43 games in a row dating back to the 2023 Final Four against Iowa, and they owned 33 straight on the road (third-longest in Division I history). They had completed two straight undefeated regular seasons, hadn’t trailed by double digits at the half since Dec. 21, 2021, to Stanford, and hadn’t trailed by 20-plus at halftime since March 30, 2019, to Baylor.
All of those streaks came to a sudden end in Los Angeles, as the No. 5 Bruins took a page out of South Carolina’s playbook. The home team put together a defensive performance that would have made Dawn Staley proud en route to a stunning 77-62 victory. It is the first victory over a top-ranked team in 20 tries for UCLA in program history.
For the first time in program history, @UCLAWBB has beaten a No. 1 ranked team 🤩#B1GWBBall x #B1GStats pic.twitter.com/7aPQjP6aKg
— Big Ten Women’s Basketball (@B1Gwbball) November 24, 2024
The Bruins feature one of the few lineups in the country that isn’t overwhelmed by South Carolina’s size. UCLA started two big guards in the backcourt (Elina Aarnisalo and Kiki Rice) and three towers in the frontcourt (Lauren Betts, Angela Dugalić and Timea Gardiner), all at least 6-foot-3, and it was the Bruins’ length that made the difference on defense. The Gamecocks couldn’t find any passing or driving lanes and had to settle for more jumpers than usual. They were scoreless through the first 5:07, had 10 points in the first quarter, and only 22 at the half.
South Carolina’s defense kept things close through the opening stretch, and the Gamecocks trailed 4-2 at the time of their first bucket. But that’s when the UCLA bench trio of Janiah Barker, Londynn Jones and Gabriela Jaquez broke the game open; Jaquez nailed a 3-pointer off a kickout from Rice, then Barker went nearly coast-to-coast for an and-one, and Jones hit 3s on back-to-back possessions, giving the Bruins a double-digit lead that they would only briefly relinquish.
It’s usually South Carolina’s depth that overwhelms opponents, but the Bruins ran eight deep and did not experience any drop-off. That allowed them to apply consistent physicality and ball pressure. The depth also enabled UCLA to play with pace on offense; the Bruins’ movement in the half-court created openings against a usually-stout Gamecocks defense, especially from deep. Six Bruins scored at least eight points, with Jones leading the way off the bench thanks to five triples.
The Bruins took a 21-point lead into intermission and maintained that margin the rest of the way. The only minor run South Carolina made was due to hot shooting from Te-Hina Paopao, as none of the Gamecocks’ bigs could find their footing against Betts and Barker. Betts had four blocks, including two truly disrespectful rejections of Chloe Kitts. South Carolina only attempted ten layups, an unexpectedly low total for a team averaging 45.6 points in the paint.
For the first time in 43 outings, the Gamecocks now go back to the drawing board. It’ll fall from the No. 1 ranking for the first time since the 2023-24 preseason poll.
This story will be updated.
(Photo: Joe Scarnici / Getty Images)
