LOS ANGELES – Defending NCAA champion UCLA women’s basketball kicked off its 2026-27 season Monday with a 73-53 victory against Lehigh at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. The 11th-ranked Bruins outscored the Mountain Hawks by a 23-9 margin during the third quarter, breaking the game open in front of 4,697 fans.
UCLA was led by Sienna Betts, who totaled a game-high 15 points. Newcomers Donovyn Hunter (15) and KK Bransford (14) combined for 29 points. The Bruins posted a 40-18 advantage in paint points. Leia Edwards had 14 points and a game-high eight rebounds to lead Lehigh.
Defensively, UCLA piled up 11 steals. Somto Okafor had a game-high three. Bransford, Hunter and Bonnie Deas logged two apiece. Hunter and Timea Gardiner blocked two shots each. The Bruins registered a 41-25 rebounding edge, paced by Betts’ seven. They also had 15 fastbreak points to zero by the Mountain Hawks.
Hunter set the tone early, scoring UCLA’s first five points. Much of the Bruins' damage in the early goings was done down low, with Betts the catalyst. She scored seven of UCLA's 12 paint points, which also included an Elina Aarnisalo layup that gave them a 17-10 lead. Ryann Jennings and Olivia Fleming knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers in the final minute, however, capping a 7-0 Lehigh run that tied the score after one.
Lehigh picked up where it left off to begin the second quarter, taking its only lead on another Jennings triple. The Bruins answered emphatically, though, scoring 11 straight points. Hunter, Addy Brown and Timea Gardiner all made 3-pointers during the run. Bransford later scored her first points as a Bruin and subsequently turned a steal into two more and UCLA staked claim to a 32-27 halftime lead.
Defense quickly turned into offense on consecutive steal-and-scores by Bransford and Hunter early in the third. These would be the start of 12 straight points for the Bruins, spearheaded by seven from Aarnisalo. Hunter had six of her own in the frame and her layup off a Deas takeaway put UCLA up by a 55-36 score, where it stayed going into the final 10 minutes.
Rip and go! ⚡️ 📺: B1G+ #GoBruins | @DonovynHunter https://t.co/CAxbS9NIIW
— UCLA Women's Basketball (@UCLAWBB) November 2, 2026
The Mountain Hawks scored the fourth quarter’s first five points, but it was all Bruins from there. They turned in 10 of the next 12 points, growing their lead to a game-high 24 points, at 67-43, with 4:05 remaining.
UP NEXT: vs. UC Irvine (Nov. 5)
UCLA is back in action Thursday, when UC Irvine visits Pauley Pavilion. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. PT and B1G+ will live stream the contest.