One call short of a season-high in fouls, the Bruins stopped and started at the mercy of the referees’ whistles.

In the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 on Monday at Pauley Pavilion, No. 4 seed UCLA women’s basketball and No. 5 seed Oklahoma combined for 55 fouls on the night.

Last year, the Bruins competed with seven active players at one point, managing foul trouble with a particularly short bench. Coach Cori Close joked at the beginning of this season that she had to learn how to substitute again with the influx of five new freshmen – three of whom are forwards – and the return of two more bigs from injury in redshirt sophomore Emily Bessoir and senior Brynn Masikewich.

Bessoir – who received the starting nod in her second season at UCLA after recovering from an ACL injury – picked up three fouls in the first quarter against the Sooners and only saw 14 minutes of action throughout the contest. The Germany native and the Bruins’ third leading scorer who normally averages 25.4 minutes per game was relegated to the bench early on.

Yet, the Bruins were able to address foul trouble and stall a 26-point third-quarter Sooner comeback with the privilege of a deep bench to draw from. The “next person up” mentality, according to freshman forward Christeen Iwuala, has nurtured the versatility and depth the Bruins displayed in the matchup against the Sooners.

“Coach really instills that we always have to have the mentality that it can be your time any time, so just always be ready,” Iwuala said. “Whenever someone’s in trouble, we already have the next person up.”

One of Iwaula’s freshman forward counterparts, Lina Sontag, was also tasked with compensating for Bessoir’s missed minutes. Also from Germany, Sontag averages 17.4 minutes per game, and her defensive intensity has her notched in a tie for a team-high in blocks alongside the third most steals this season.

Impacting the game in the paint, however, has required some adjustment for the international player.

“Usually I’m not a forward. I’m a guard,” Sontag said. “Coach Shannon has been really great in trying to figure out my go-to moves in the post, … showing me how to defend the post, how to slide my feet.”

Bessoir acknowledged the strides Sontag has made throughout the season and lauded her arsenal of skills on both ends of the ball.

“Coming from Europe and playing in the international level, the foul system is a bit different, so I know she’s been struggling a bit with defending without fouling,” Bessoir said. “But she’s so versatile with her size, being able to play the guard, defend the post player as well, post-up (and) shoot threes. Her growth has been amazing – she’s such a spark off the bench.”

Sontag eventually fouled out in the fourth quarter on Monday, but yet another rookie was slotted and ready in the rotation. Freshman forward Gabriela Jaquez – who made history Monday alongside her brother as the first sibling duo to advance to the Sweet 16 in the same year for the same school – saw increased minutes against Oklahoma and capitalized on the opportunity to claim the second-highest plus/minus on the court.

The newcomer similarly embraces her role off the bench and said she prioritizes executing whatever her team needs at the moment.

“This game especially, I had to play more of the four (position), which is fine – I’m just doing whatever the team needs me to do to win,” Jaquez said. “The most important thing for me is just going out there, getting rebounds, deflections (and) doing the little things.”

The willingness of the freshmen to grow in their roles and find ways to contribute to the success of the team has not gone unnoticed by Masikewich. The forward has been with the program since 2019 and endured injury-related setbacks three times throughout her collegiate career, but she was finally cleared to play this season.

The veteran said her advice for the freshman has been that composure and self-confidence are key, but so is tapping back into the joy of the game of basketball.

“If you have fun while doing it, the game comes naturally because we have been doing it for so long,” Masikewich said. “Trust yourself. Trust your abilities. But you know, crack a smile here and there.”

In her first March Madness, Iwuala seems to have internalized Masikewich’s message.

“I just take every game for what it is: We’re just hooping,” Iwuala said. “So just hoop.”