FanPost

Women's Basketball - UCLA vs Notre Dame - Preview and Game Thread

Opponent: #4 Notre Dame (11-1)

When: Sunday, December 28, 1:00 PM PST

Where: Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles, CA

Audio: Bruin Live Audio

Watch: Pac-12 Networks

Live Stats: UCLA StatBroadcast

Official Preview: Here

After a disappointing performance against the UConn Huskies, the Bruins (4-6) still have to prove that they can compete for a full 40 minutes against elite teams. UCLA will get another chance today when they play #4 Notre Dame in the last game of the non-conference portion of their schedule.

Although the Bruins are a relatively inexperienced group, with 4 true freshmen playing significant minutes, the level of immaturity in the Bruins' performance against the Huskies was surprising, especially considering that Coach Close's team had already played a handful of top 25 teams. What stood out to me was the Bruins' apparent inability to play under control after the first 10 minutes; rather than trying to slow the game to a comfortable speed, the Bruins tried to match the Huskies' pace, and that led UCLA to some pretty poor decision-making with the ball. As a result, the Huskies had multiple 8-0 scoring runs that the Bruins couldn't find a way to overcome.

The growth in the maturity of the Bruins has to start with our two freshman point guards--they have to improve their decision-making and ball handling. But the solution goes deeper than that. UCLA needs leaders--players that can lead by example and provide a steadying influence for this inexperienced team.

The Fighting Irish are led by junior guard Jewell Loyd. Loyd is averaging 22.6 points/game this season, and she was a second team All-American selection last season. Freshman forward Brianna Turner has already established herself as one of the best freshmen in the country, averaging 14 points and nearly a block and a half per game. Sophomore forward Taya Reimer is Notre Dame's leading rebounder and adds 10.2 points/game.

If the Bruins are going to stay with the Fighting Irish this afternoon, they'll need to cut down on the 21 turnovers they coughed up against UConn. In fact, turnovers have been the Bruins' Achilles' heel all season--UCLA is averaging 19.2 turnovers/game. The Bruins will also need to do a better job of limiting second shot opportunities today. Against the Huskies, UCLA's defense was solid, but between points scored off turnovers and offensive rebounds, the Bruins gave away far too many easy points.

UCLA heads into Pac-12 games next week, and given the strength of the conference this season, Coach Close's young team has to mature quickly. Unlike the situation for the men's basketball team, this isn't a must-win game for the women's team, but UCLA can't afford to suffer another bad loss. The Bruins need to match the intensity they showed against the Huskies last week with 40 minutes of discipline and execution today.

Go BRUINS!

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of BruinsNation's (BN) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of BN's editors.

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