Behind well-rounded showings, women’s basketball romps to victory over Riverside

This post was updated Nov. 9 at 10:11 p.m.

Charisma Osborne contested the rebound on her jumper, attempting to tip it to her teammates. 

Instead, UC Riverside forward Matehya Bryant came down with the rock. The rest of the Bruins readied for the defensive possession on the other end of the court.

But Osborne wasn’t done yet. The fifth-year guard wrested the ball back, elevating for the layup and finishing off the glass.

The remainder of the night proceeded in similar fashion as No. 4 UCLA women’s basketball (2-0) routed UC Riverside (0-2) 90-52 on Thursday at Pauley Pavilion. Double-digit scoring from five different players flung the Bruins’ flawless home record against the Highlanders to 8-0. Osborne contributed an all-around effort with 13 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, and a pair of blocks and steals. 

Coach Cori Close said although the ability of her deep squad to convert on possessions and generate scoring is promising, the Bruins still have bigger-picture strides to make in this nonconference stretch.

“I love the balance in how many people can score the ball for us on any given night,” Close said. “I just think there’s so much to look forward to in who we can become, and in that vein, we still don’t have the consistency or the habits that we need to be at the level that we want to get to.”

UCLA orchestrated the tempo of the entire contest, often playing in transition with the help of its 52-22 advantage on the boards. Sophomore guards Kiki Rice and Londynn Jones notched 18 and 15 points, respectively, while sophomore forward Gabriela Jaquez pitched in 18 points in her first start of the season. Sophomore center Lauren Betts notched her second career double-double with 14 points and 15 rebounds.

Rice, who is handling most point guard responsibilities this season, said learning from the experience of former guard Gina Conti last year has eased the transition to her primary signal-calling role.

“I’m definitely becoming more comfortable this year leading the team,” Rice said. “It was good to have that year to learn from Gina, who had been a point guard at the college level for a long time. But I definitely just feel really confident out there continuing to work on my communication.”

Playing without senior forward Emily Bessoir and redshirt junior forward Angela Dugalić – who are currently representing Germany and Serbia, respectively, in the Eurobasket overseas – the Bruins still benefited from ample depth as sophomore forward Christeen Iwuala went 3-for-5 in her season debut after returning from injury.

The Bruins commenced the game with an unanswered 20-0 tear, keeping the Highlanders off both the scoreboard and the boards for nearly the entire first frame. In a display of veteran-newcomer duality, Osborne capped off her eight-point and six-rebound quarter with a made three-pointer, while freshman forward Amanda Muse converted a layup in transition to propel the Bruins to a 25-2 lead by the end of the opening quarter.

The Bruins improved on their 45% shooting clip in the second frame, going 53% from the field as three players reached double figures by the end of the first half. The Bruins tallied 12 assists on 17 made field goals, mirroring their rate of 29 assists on 35 made field goals from Monday. 

Barely halfway through the third quarter, Osborne and Betts each secured their double-double. But the Bruins’ momentum stalled slightly as they committed four turnovers and went cold for the final four minutes of the frame. The Highlanders outscored the Bruins 16-13 to come within 26 points of the hosts.

Jaquez said the Bruins are working to improve upon their communication and execute  scouting reports to signal where the shooters stand on the floor.

“We just have to have better awareness,” Jaquez said. “Coach Cori has been emphasizing it, and we just need to be doing a better job of talking about where the shooters are and not staying content where the score was. We needed to keep going at them and getting stops.” 

UCLA regained command in the fourth quarter, ballooning its lead to 90-52 behind a 28-point final frame. Senior forward Izzy Anstey nabbed the final say as she sunk a corner jumper and grabbed the ensuing defensive rebound.

Despite the final advantage, Close said she is urging her program to reflect on the necessary areas of improvement in these nonconference contests. 

“That’s my challenge to this team: What have you learned about yourself so far, and what championship habits do you need to address in terms of your consistency?” Close said. “And we’ll just keep moving forward.”