University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Monday, March 23
Los Angeles, Calif.
7 p.m. PT
UCLA
33-1,18-0Big Ten
87
vs
68
Oklahoma State
24-10,12-6Big 12
1st quarter1
2nd quarter2
3rd quarter3
4th quarter4
FinalF
Oklahoma St.
6
20
21
21
68
UCLA
21
25
18
23
87
Photo by: Caren Nicdao
No. 1-Seed Bruins Advance to Fourth-Straight Sweet 16
March 23, 2026 | Women's Basketball
LOS ANGELES – UCLA (33-1) has booked its fourth-consecutive trip to the Sweet 16 with an 87-68 win over No. 8-seed Oklahoma State in the Second Round of the 2026 NCAA women's basketball tournament.
Senior Lauren Betts closed out her time in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial with a monstrous 35 points (15-19 FG, 5-7 FT), setting a new career high. The center added nine rebounds, five assists, a steal and a block to her final stat line.
The Bruins edged out the Cowgirls on the boards, corralling 34 rebounds to Oklahoma State's 32. UCLA also out-rebounded OSU 22-19 on the offensive glass.
Graduate guard Gianna Kneepkens was UCLA's second-leading scorer with 15, adding three 3-pointers on six attempts. Seniors Gabriela Jaquez and Kiki Rice totaled 10 points apiece; Jaquez added seven rebounds. Graduate guard Charlisse Leger-Walker finished with eight assists and zero turnovers.
The Bruins won the tip and got on their horses early. After a pair of missed layups by Kneepkens and Jaquez, the Camarillo, Calif., native came up with a steal and kicked it to Rice for the opening score. Lauren Betts scored on the next two possessions before finding Leger-Walker open for three. UCLA led 9-0 before the Cowgirls got two points on the board.
Leger-Walker blocked a 3-point attempt and left the defending half, allowing the Cowgirls a 5-on-4 advantage when they corralled the offensive board. Oklahoma State scored in the paint to stop the bleeding briefly; Lauren Betts found Jaquez posting up to get two points right back. Oklahoma State called its first timeout of the game down nine. The Cowgirls got a 3-pointer to fall from the top of the arc after getting a free throw; Kneepkens answered on the next trip down from an inbounds pass by Leger-Walker. Jaquez kept the hustle high, fighting for an offensive board after a Lauren Betts midrange shot fell halfway down and out. The second-chance effort turned into a corner three from Kneepkens, pushing UCLA's lead into double digits for the first time Monday evening. Rice got four more free throws to go before the first break.
UCLA forced a shot clock violation on the Cowgirls' final possession and led 21-6 after the first 10 minutes.
Lena Bilić introduced herself to the Cowgirls in quarter two. The freshman wing got open in the corner and knocked down her three, then went back on defense and immediately swatted Oklahoma State. Angela Dugalić skied for an offensive rebound and twirled to get a hook shot to go a possession later. Lauren Betts was then left wide open above the elbow and pulled the trigger, knocking down a long two. The center posted up and received a rainbow pass from Bilić before dropping in the layup. Bilić stayed involved and sunk her second 3-pointer of the game, forcing another timeout by the Cowgirls.
Lauren Betts tracked down an offensive board on her own miss and fed her sister on the block; Sienna Betts put her first two points on the board with the attempt. Jaquez scored after flying in for an offensive rebound; UCLA had nine offensive boards in the first half. Lauren Betts contributed two more to that rebounding total before the break, scoring two put-back layups. Jaquez also cashed in a three before heading to the locker room.
UCLA led 46-26 going into the intermission.
Lauren Betts got to the free throw line for UCLA's first point of the second half. The Bruin center got an offensive rebound off her own miss on the second attempt, which turned into a Jaquez reverse layup. Kneepkens knocked down a three on the next trip down.
The Bruins went on a 3:26 scoring drought, allowing a 9-0 run by the Cowgirls before calling for time. After regrouping, Leger-Walker got to the basket off a handoff from Dugalić and got UCLA back on track. Lauren Betts grabbed her fifth offensive board off a miss by Kneepkens and put in a layup with a shove to the back. The center added a point on the and-one attempt; she was fouled again and was 1-for-2 on the next visit to the charity stripe. She added four more points in the paint, unleashing a shimmy to lose her defender for a close-range score. The eldest Betts had 10-consecutive points for the Bruins with two more free throws before the final break.
UCLA headed into the fourth up 64-47.
Kneepkens joined Lauren Betts as the second player in double figures, scoring two and a half minutes into the final frame. She scored four-straight on jumpers to stave off a big run by the Cowgirls. Lauren Betts and Kneepkens traded buckets before Leger-Walker added a free throw.
UCLA's center was not done, scoring two-straight baskets to get to 31 points. Rice wanted in on the fun, scoring a look at the left side of the rim before attacking again and drawing a shooting foul. The point guard went 2-for-2 at the line to get into double figures; Jaquez also reached double digits with a late-game free throw.
UP NEXT: vs. No. 4-Seed Minnesota (Friday, March 27)
The Bruins advance to the Sweet Sixteen for the fourth-consecutive season; UCLA will face No. 4-seed Minnesota to open the Sacramento 2 Regional next Friday, March 27.
The Bruins and Golden Gophers tip off at 4:30 p.m. PT on ESPN.
The Sweet 16 and Elite 8 games will be played at Golden 1 Arena on Friday and Sunday.
Senior Lauren Betts closed out her time in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial with a monstrous 35 points (15-19 FG, 5-7 FT), setting a new career high. The center added nine rebounds, five assists, a steal and a block to her final stat line.
The Bruins edged out the Cowgirls on the boards, corralling 34 rebounds to Oklahoma State's 32. UCLA also out-rebounded OSU 22-19 on the offensive glass.
Graduate guard Gianna Kneepkens was UCLA's second-leading scorer with 15, adding three 3-pointers on six attempts. Seniors Gabriela Jaquez and Kiki Rice totaled 10 points apiece; Jaquez added seven rebounds. Graduate guard Charlisse Leger-Walker finished with eight assists and zero turnovers.
The Bruins won the tip and got on their horses early. After a pair of missed layups by Kneepkens and Jaquez, the Camarillo, Calif., native came up with a steal and kicked it to Rice for the opening score. Lauren Betts scored on the next two possessions before finding Leger-Walker open for three. UCLA led 9-0 before the Cowgirls got two points on the board.
Gravity down low leaves Char wide open for three! ??
— UCLA Women's Basketball (@UCLAWBB) March 24, 2026
??: ESPNU #GoBruins | @laurenbetts12 x @Char_legerwalks pic.twitter.com/vHPebknQft
Leger-Walker blocked a 3-point attempt and left the defending half, allowing the Cowgirls a 5-on-4 advantage when they corralled the offensive board. Oklahoma State scored in the paint to stop the bleeding briefly; Lauren Betts found Jaquez posting up to get two points right back. Oklahoma State called its first timeout of the game down nine. The Cowgirls got a 3-pointer to fall from the top of the arc after getting a free throw; Kneepkens answered on the next trip down from an inbounds pass by Leger-Walker. Jaquez kept the hustle high, fighting for an offensive board after a Lauren Betts midrange shot fell halfway down and out. The second-chance effort turned into a corner three from Kneepkens, pushing UCLA's lead into double digits for the first time Monday evening. Rice got four more free throws to go before the first break.
UCLA forced a shot clock violation on the Cowgirls' final possession and led 21-6 after the first 10 minutes.
Lena Bilić introduced herself to the Cowgirls in quarter two. The freshman wing got open in the corner and knocked down her three, then went back on defense and immediately swatted Oklahoma State. Angela Dugalić skied for an offensive rebound and twirled to get a hook shot to go a possession later. Lauren Betts was then left wide open above the elbow and pulled the trigger, knocking down a long two. The center posted up and received a rainbow pass from Bilić before dropping in the layup. Bilić stayed involved and sunk her second 3-pointer of the game, forcing another timeout by the Cowgirls.
BAAAAAAAAANG! ????
— UCLA Women's Basketball (@UCLAWBB) March 24, 2026
??: ESPN#GoBruins pic.twitter.com/uEFrSNlKfy
Lauren Betts tracked down an offensive board on her own miss and fed her sister on the block; Sienna Betts put her first two points on the board with the attempt. Jaquez scored after flying in for an offensive rebound; UCLA had nine offensive boards in the first half. Lauren Betts contributed two more to that rebounding total before the break, scoring two put-back layups. Jaquez also cashed in a three before heading to the locker room.
UCLA led 46-26 going into the intermission.
Lauren Betts got to the free throw line for UCLA's first point of the second half. The Bruin center got an offensive rebound off her own miss on the second attempt, which turned into a Jaquez reverse layup. Kneepkens knocked down a three on the next trip down.
The Bruins went on a 3:26 scoring drought, allowing a 9-0 run by the Cowgirls before calling for time. After regrouping, Leger-Walker got to the basket off a handoff from Dugalić and got UCLA back on track. Lauren Betts grabbed her fifth offensive board off a miss by Kneepkens and put in a layup with a shove to the back. The center added a point on the and-one attempt; she was fouled again and was 1-for-2 on the next visit to the charity stripe. She added four more points in the paint, unleashing a shimmy to lose her defender for a close-range score. The eldest Betts had 10-consecutive points for the Bruins with two more free throws before the final break.
AND-OOOOOOOONNNNNEEEE ?????????
— UCLA Women's Basketball (@UCLAWBB) March 24, 2026
??: ESPN#GoBruins | @laurenbetts12 pic.twitter.com/JFHflV2wml
UCLA headed into the fourth up 64-47.
Kneepkens joined Lauren Betts as the second player in double figures, scoring two and a half minutes into the final frame. She scored four-straight on jumpers to stave off a big run by the Cowgirls. Lauren Betts and Kneepkens traded buckets before Leger-Walker added a free throw.
UCLA's center was not done, scoring two-straight baskets to get to 31 points. Rice wanted in on the fun, scoring a look at the left side of the rim before attacking again and drawing a shooting foul. The point guard went 2-for-2 at the line to get into double figures; Jaquez also reached double digits with a late-game free throw.
UP NEXT: vs. No. 4-Seed Minnesota (Friday, March 27)
The Bruins advance to the Sweet Sixteen for the fourth-consecutive season; UCLA will face No. 4-seed Minnesota to open the Sacramento 2 Regional next Friday, March 27.
The Bruins and Golden Gophers tip off at 4:30 p.m. PT on ESPN.
The Sweet 16 and Elite 8 games will be played at Golden 1 Arena on Friday and Sunday.
Team Stats
OSU
UCLA
FG%
.433
.524
3FG%
.250
.412
FT%
.625
.737
RB
32
34
TO
11
7
STL
4
6
Game Leaders
Pts
35
FGM
15
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
C
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G/F
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballUCLA W. Basketball Postgame - vs. Oklahoma State (March 23, 2026)
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Saturday, March 21
UCLA W. Basketball Press Conference - Coach Close and Players (March 20, 2026)
Friday, March 20