UCLA women’s basketball team defeats Oregon State with best ever start to season with overall record of 22-2
Markel Walker and the Bruins defeated Oregon State on the road Saturday.
By Steven Breazeale
Feb. 14, 2011 3:18 a.m.
With a win Saturday against Oregon State, this year’s UCLA women’s basketball team cemented its place in school history.
The Bruins pulled off a shaky 58-48 road win over the Beavers, improving their overall record to 22-2 and their Pac-10 record to 11-1, good for the best ever start to a season for a UCLA women’s basketball team in each category.
But the No. 9 Bruins did not have much to celebrate about after the historic win. They let a 21-point lead right after halftime almost disappear and saw the Beavers (8-16, 1-12 Pac-10) get to within seven points with three minutes left to play, highlighted by a 14-0 run.
The Beavers’ late surge came after UCLA coach Nikki Caldwell decided to keep starting junior forward Jasmine Dixon on the bench for a good chunk of the second half after Dixon poured in 14 first-half points.
“We really didn’t do what we needed to do or get what we needed to get from the bench as far as maintaining (a lead),” Caldwell said.
If it wasn’t for Oregon State missing eight of its 12 free-throw attempts in the first half, the Beavers’ run could have put them in the lead.
But once Oregon State got close, Caldwell was forced to get Dixon back into the game. Although she contributed only one more point to her total, it came at the free-throw line, and her presence in the paint was felt.
Dixon, along with sophomore forward Markel Walker, clogged the lanes and forced important turnovers late in the game with their defense. In all, the Beavers turned the ball over 25 times.
It led to a frustrating shooting night for Oregon State, which entered the game ranked third in the Pac-10 in 3-point shooting percentage, as they consistently missed from behind the arc, going just three-for-19.
“When we’re playing a 3-point team we’ve got to be on the catch and take them out of their groove,” Dixon said. “So we were doing that and we just had to focus on rotating out of it.”
With Dixon cooling off in the second half, Walker was there to pick up the slack, scoring most of her 18 total points late in the game. Walker also helped Dixon out on the boards as she pulled in eight rebounds.
With the score at 50-43 late in the game, Walker swiped one of her two steals that led to a fast-break layup, essentially icing the game.
“I was just focused on pressuring them. … I just tried pressuring them the best way I could and force turnovers and they gave it up,” Walker said.
