ULCA is currently the top team in the Big Ten, riding a 7-0 start to conference play and an eleven-game win streak since its loss to Texas in November. UCLA beat several ranked teams in conference play in Ohio State, USC, Nebraska, and Maryland.
And yet, head coach Cori Close still sees much room for improvement.
After the win over Maryland, Close said, “The two most urgent things we need to fix is our turnover margin, our turnover percentage on possessions. And, I think, the second one is, we’re just allowing too many 3-point attempts. Those are two things we really need to focus on.”
UCLA beat Maryland despite those issues
UCLA beat Maryland handily by 30 points. Nevertheless, the issues Close pointed out were visible in the game, especially the turnovers. UCLA turned the ball over 16 times and allowed Maryland to score 17 points off those turnovers. Maryland only turned the ball over nine times.
The Bruins turn the ball over a lot despite having a veteran guard rotation. They turn the ball over 12.9 times per game on average, which has them ranked 23rd in the country in that category. The only team ranked in the top five that averages more turnovers than UCLA is UConn. Texas, Vanderbilt, and South Carolina all average fewer turnovers. When it comes to turnover margin, which Close specifically addressed after the game, UCLA ranks 153rd at 0.94—way worse than any of the other top five teams. South Carolina is the second-worst out of that group with a turnover margin of 6.35.
The Terrapins got up 23 3-pointers against UCLA—around two more than their season average of 20.7 attempts per game. UCLA shot the same number of threes but made 13 compared to Maryland’s six. At 34.6%, the Terrapins are usually a solid 3-point shooting team.
UCLA is one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country, converting 38.7% of its attempts. If the Bruins want to truly exploit that strength during the NCAA Tournament, they have to limit their opponents’ attempts, especially if they go up against a good 3-point team. UConn, for example, ranks second behind only Gonzaga in 3-point percentage. LSU, South Carolina, and Vanderbilt also rank in the top twenty in that category.
UCLA is set up well for a deep tournament run
Last season, UCLA lost in the NCAA Tournament National Semifinal, falling 85-51 to UConn, which went on to win the national championship. They were the top team in the country and had their best season in program history, but couldn’t cap it off with a championship.
This season’s team is more experienced and looking for redemption. Between Lauren Betts, Kiki Rice, Gianna Kneepkens, Gabriela Jaquez, and Charlisse Leger-Walker, the Bruins have the two-way prowess to go on a deep tournament run.
The only problem is that other teams are also very well set up. UConn still looks like the best team in the country, getting major contributions from Sarah Strong, Azzi Fudd, and freshman Blanca Quinonez. South Carolina and Texas will also be a problem in the NCAA Tournament, Vanderbilt is still undefeated, and LSU is finally finding its groove with big wins over Texas and Oklahoma.