UCLA kicked off the new year with a victory against its first Big Ten top-25 opponent.

New Year’s Day celebrations in Pauley Pavilion kicked off as No. 1 UCLA (13-0, 3-0 Big Ten) defeated No. 24 Michigan (10-4, 1-2) 86-70. The match marked UCLA’s first Big Ten conference match against a ranked opponent and its third conference win. 

“We’re the new kids on the block. We got the biggest target on our back, and we only get one shot,” said coach Cori Close. “I do not want this team to settle because of a lack of character. This conference is going to reveal. And I just hope our players do the work, so that they like what it shows.”

The game opened with a back-and-forth first quarter with each team taking a turn holding the power.  UCLA had a quick start to the game, putting up 11 points within the first three minutes while Michigan put up only two.

After the Wolverines kept the Bruins off the board for the next three minutes, a layup from Michigan guard Jordan Hobbs tied the game 11-11 with four minutes remaining in the first frame.

“We’ve just got to be tougher. I think that we just have to regroup tomorrow and just go over the film and figure out what went wrong during the game,” said junior center Lauren Betts. “We’re a bunch of talented people, but I think once we start actually playing together, it’ll go back to how it was before. But, I think we just needed a little reminder today.”

A layup by junior forward Gabriela Jaquez gave UCLA a two-point cushion heading into the second quarter. Jaquez and junior guard Kiki Rice led the Bruins in scoring in the first half as they each scored eight points. 

Rice went on to be the Bruins’ leading scorer of the match and notched a double-double with 16 points and 10 assists in the game. The Nancy Lieberman Point Guard of the Year Award candidate recorded four assists above her season-high of six, which she earned against Fresno State on Nov. 30, and her first double-double of the season.

Alongside Rice, Betts earned her eighth double-double of the season, putting up 13 points and 10 rebounds. Betts is now tied for the fifth-highest number of double-doubles in the NCAA so far this season. 

Although Michigan was able to keep UCLA under control in the first quarter, the Bruins broke through the Wolverines’ defense in the second quarter. A drastic 17.9% improvement in UCLA’s field goal percentage helped the Bruins reach as high as a 12-point lead shooting 75% in the second frame. 

“I think we’re well enough to know where we’re doing things wrong,” said junior guard Londynn Jones. “I think it’s really important on making that adjustment. But I think that’s what you saw, was the adjustment.”

Meanwhile, Michigan logged identical 37.5% field goal percentages across both quarters with one new Wolverine keeping her team in the game. Freshman Syla Swords rose as the Wolverines’ leading scorer in the first half, scoring 18 of Michigan’s 29 points. Swords – who became the youngest basketball player in Canadian history at the 2024 Paris Olympics – sat nine points below her career-high 27 points by the end of the first half.  

“She’s a complete player. She plays both sides of the ball. She’s a leader. She is unselfish. She will do whatever the team needs her to do,” said Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico. “I think her career before here has prepared her for these moments, but she’s an absolute worker, and she’s deserving of everything that comes her way.”

A fourth quarter 3-pointer from the five-star, No. 4 recruit set Swords’ new career-high, who finished the game with 30 points. But, her efforts were not enough to overcome UCLA. 

The Bruins saw a 43.2% decrease in their field goal percentage in the third quarter compared to the second. However, UCLA responded with 29 points in the fourth quarter, which was the most for a quarter through the entire game. The Wolverines never caught back up to the undefeated Bruins after Swords tied the game in the first quarter. 

UCLA will continue on a series of conference games as it faces Indiana – its fourth Big Ten opponent of the season – at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Saturday morning.