This post was updated Dec. 15 at 10:26 p.m.

Just as it did a month prior at the Rose Bowl, the battle for Los Angeles came down to the final moments.

But this time, the venue was the Galen Center, the sport was women’s basketball, and the Bruins came out victorious.

“Honestly, this is probably one of my harder times playing here,” said senior guard Charisma Osborne. “They did a great job of really just trying to take us out of our things, but I think we did a great job of really just taking this crosstown rivalry to heart.”

No. 10 UCLA women’s basketball (10-1, 1-0 Pac-12) handed its crosstown rival its first defeat of the season with a 59-56 road win over USC (9-1, 0-1). The Trojans trailed by three with 11.8 seconds to play, but failed to attempt a game-tying 3-point shot and instead turned the ball over in the final seconds to end their perfect start. 

The Bruins fell behind 5-0 at the start of the game after missing their first six shots from the field and first four from behind the arc. UCLA didn’t score its first points until more than three-and-a-half minutes into the contest and started the game just 2-of-11 from the field.

Despite the slow start, the blue and gold ended the first quarter leading 16-14 after an 8-0 run midway through the quarter put them ahead. The blue and gold went a perfect 4-for-4 from the field, including back-to-back midrange jumpers from Osborne, in just over a minute to earn its first lead of the game at 14-9. 

USC forward Kadi Sissoko and guard Destiny Littleton – the Trojans’ two leading scorers coming into the matchup – combined with the forward and guard combining for all 14 points for USC through the opening period.

“She’s a pro,” Close said when describing Sissoko. “(USC’s) a really good team. They hadn’t played any ranked teams at that point, but we knew we were going to draw their best effort.”

It came a quarter later, but the Trojans’ third-leading scorer coming into the game – forward Rayah Marshall – made her presence known in the second period. 

The 6-foot-4 forward scored USC’s first seven points of the quarter to tie the game at 21 and finished the quarter with nine points and four rebounds. She also proved a mismatch for UCLA’s bigs, drawing three fouls throughout the frame.

But despite Marshall warming up to start the second, the Bruins caught fire to end the quarter.

With the game tied at 22 with 4:43 remaining in the first half, the blue and gold outscored the Trojans 17-6. The Bruins used their second 8-0 run of the game to stretch the run.

After Osborne finished a layup nearly eight minutes into the second quarter, UCLA followed her two missed jump shots on the ensuing possession with a straight-away three pointer from redshirt sophomore forward Emily Bessoir. Seconds later, freshman guard Kiki Rice took a USC turnover coast-to-coast for an acrobatic and-one layup and free throw to complete the Bruins’ eight-point spurt within 42 seconds.

Rice – who led all Bruins with 13 first quarter points – said earlier matchups against talented opponents helped UCLA succeed in its conference opener on the road.

“Playing a ton of tough teams early on, it was super helpful in preparing us for a big rivalry game like this,” Rice said. “We went out to South Carolina and played in a hostile environment like that, so we were used to that coming in here.”

The blue and gold led 39-28 at halftime, but USC cut the lead to three with under two minutes left in the third.

Osborne responded to her 0-4 start to the third quarter with a corner three and putback layup to keep the lead at two possessions. Osborne was 4-of-17 from the field and 0-of-6 from deep before the pair of makes, but was still the Bruins’ leading scorer heading into the fourth quarter with 14 points.

UCLA entered the final frame with a 52-44 lead despite shooting 36.2% from the field and 15.8% from behind the arc, largely because of 21 second-chance points through the three quarters. The blue and gold also held the Trojans to 34.8% shooting of its own heading into the fourth.

The Bruins’ shooting struggles reached their peak in the final frame, as they missed their first 10 shots of the quarter and watched their eight-point lead shrink to one. 

A pair of 3-pointers, including a corner make from Marshall, cut the score to 52-51 and forced Close to call timeout with four minutes remaining. Marshall finished the game with 15 points and 10 rebounds for USC.

Both sides traded baskets until the final moments, with Sissoko scoring the final basket of her 20-point performance to cut the UCLA lead to three with 90 seconds left. But neither side collected another basket during the remainder of the game, allowing the Bruins to escape the Galen Center with a three-point win.

Despite shooting 32.9% from the field for the game, UCLA moves to 10-1 with the victory. Close said her team will learn from playing in a grueling, defensive battle.

“That’s why you love to play in these games – you can feel it differently, and you can learn from it differently,” Close said. “They’ve got to develop the discipline and the skill to truly reach their potential. These are way better teachable moments.”