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LOS ANGELES – The No. 11 UCLA women's basketball team will tip-off the 2019-20 campaign on Tuesday with the first-ever meeting vs. Weber State at 7 p.m. (PT) at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom.
 
GAME INFORMATION
No. 11 UCLA (0-0) vs. Weber State (0-0)
Date: Tuesday, Nov. 5
Time: 7 p.m. (PT)
Location: Los Angeles (Pauley Pavilion)
Watch: https://pac-12.com/live/ucla
Listen: http://bit.ly/2NcVFcy (PxP: Dave Marcus)
Live Stats: http://bit.ly/34wk1nz
 
SERIES HISTORY
UCLA and Weber State are meeting for the first time in program history. The Wildcats went 6-25 last season, and their young roster features five freshmen and three sophomores. Weber State fell to Western Colorado in its exhibition by a final score of 58-49. Kayla Watkins led the way with 19 points.
 
UP NEXT
The Bruins will host Loyola Marymount on Saturday, Nov. 9 at 2 p.m.
 
THE STORYLINES

• UCLA begins its ninth season under head coach Cori Close, who is 28 wins away from 200 for her career and owns an overall record of 172-99 (.635).
• The Bruins are 30-15 (.667) all-time in season openers, including 5-3 under Cori Close.
• The Bruins have won 61 of their last 69 games at Pauley Pavilion. UCLA went 11-5 at home last season.
• In 2018-19, Cori Close led UCLA to its fourth-straight 20-win season and fourth-straight trip to the Sweet 16. UCLA joins a list of eight teams in the NCAA that have made the Sweet 16 each of the past four seasons (Baylor, Mississippi State, Notre Dame, Oregon State, South Carolina, Stanford, UConn).
• UCLA returns three starters from a year ago, including 2019 All-Pac-12 selection Michaela Onyenwere, who led the team in scoring with 18.3 points per game and became the fourth Bruin in program history to score 600 or more points in a single season.
• The Bruins won 13 of their last 17 games in 2018-19 to finish 22-13 overall.
• UCLA finished fourth in the Pac-12 last season despite being picked sixth in the preseason polls.
• UCLA also brings back floor general Japreece Dean, who averaged 14.1 points, 4.9 assists and shot 92.2 percent (107-for-116) from the charity stripe, setting a UCLA single-season record for free throw percentage.
• Lindsey Corsaro started all but one game in 2018-19 and was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team after she averaged 7.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 2018-19.
• As a team, UCLA shot 73.4 percent from the free throw line last season, the best in program history.
• UCLA finished second in the NCAA and first in the Pac-12 in offensive rebounds per game (17.3), and also led the Pac-12 in both free throws made (492) and attempts (670).

 
ALL-PAC-12 SELECTIONS RETURNING

• UCLA returns three starters from last year, including 2019 All-Pac-12 honoree Michaela Onyenwere, the team's top returning scorer (18.3 PPG) and rebounder (8.5 RPG). She eclipsed the 30-point mark at Maryland last season, becoming the second Bruin ever (Nikki Blue) to score at least 30 in the Big Dance and propelling UCLA to its fourth-straight Sweet 16.
• Lindsey Corsaro made the Pac-12 All-Freshman team in 2018-19. She averaged 7.3 PPG and 4.4 RPG and scored a career-high 18 points vs. Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament.
• Granted another year of eligibility late in the 2018-19 season, Japreece Dean returns for her final year in Westwood. She finished third on the team in scoring (14.1) and averaged 4.9 assists.

 
FRESH FACES

• UCLA's top-10 recruiting class will make its debut in Westwood. The highly-touted includes McDonald's All-Americans, Jaden Owens and Charisma Osborne, as well as 6-2 forward Brynn Masikewich and defensive stopper Camryn Brown.
• After redshirting due to NCAA transfer rules, Natalie Chou will finally have an opportunity to contribute on the court. She transferred from Baylor, playing 64 career games (21 starts) for the Lady Bears and averaging 5.5 PPG and 2.6 RPG.

 
BRUINS IN THE POLLS

• UCLA was ranked No. 11 in both the Associated Press (AP) and USA TODAY Sports preseason polls.
• The Bruins were one of five Pac-12 teams ranked in both polls.
• The Pac-12 Conference boasts a trio of teams in the top-10 (Oregon, Stanford, Oregon State).

 
PRESEASON LOVE FOR THE BRUINS

• UCLA earned recognition in several preseason college basketball magazines. The Bruins were picked 11th by Street & Smith's, 12th by Lindsey's Sports and 16th by Athlon Sports. In each of those magazines, Michaela Onyenwere was recognized as a Third-Team All-American.
• The Bruins were picked as high as 10th by NCAA.com, which placed four Pac-12 teams in the top-10.

 
HARD WORK IN THE CLASSROOM

• The Bruin women's basketball program notched a 100 percent graduation rate in 2018-19, helping UCLA Athletics tally an all-time high Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 92 percent.

 
BETTER WATCH OUT

• Japreece Dean was named to the Watch List for the Nancy Lieberman Award, given to the top point guard in the NCAA. A total of 20 point guards were named to the list, five of which came from the Pac-12. This was the most out of any conference in the NCAA. In 2018-19, Dean finished third on the team in scoring with 14.1 points per game and ranked seventh in the Pac-12 in assists per game at 4.9. In the final seven games of the season, she registered 16.7 points and 6.6 assists per outing.
• Michaela Onyenwere was one of five forwards from the Pac-12 who earned a spot on the Watch List for the 2020 Cheryl Miller Award, which recognizes the top small forward in the country. Last year, she led the Bruins in scoring (18.3 PPG) and ranking second on the team in rebounds (8.5 RPG). Onyenwere hauled in 4.1 offensive boards – good for second in the Pac-12 and 11th nationally.

 
ELITE PROGRAM

• UCLA eclipsed the 20-win mark and advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight season under Cori Close.
• The Bruins averaged an astounding 17.3 offensive rebounds per game in 2018-19, ranking first in the Pac-12 and second in the NCAA. Over four of those offensive boards came from Michaela Onyenwere, who was 11th in the NCAA in that category.
• UCLA took down seven ranked opponents last year.
• The Bruins had two top-10 wins, defeating No. 2 Oregon and No. 9 Maryland.
• For the fourth-straight season, UCLA finished fourth or higher in the Pac-12 Conference.

 
ROAD WARRIORS

• UCLA finished 9-3 on the road in 2018-19.
• Five of UCLA's nine road triumphs were against ranked opponents.
• The Bruins' two top-10 road wins were the most by the program since the 1980-81 season.

 
SUCCESSFUL SCRIMMAGES

• UCLA had two closed scrimmages in late October. Per NCAA compliance rules, these could not be promoted; however, details and results could be shared following the scrimmages.
• The Bruins defeated Gonzaga in Spokane by a final count of 77-71. The Bruins shot 54.8 percent from the field and were led by Michaela Onyenwere's 24 points and six rebounds. Charisma Osborne added 12 points and went 8-for-8 from the stripe.
• UCLA led by as many as 19 points in a thrilling 67-66 win over Louisville. Five players scored in double figures for the Bruins - Onyenwere, Osborne (14);, Chou (12); Corsaro, Owens (11).