This post was updated Feb. 2 at 10:38 p.m.

Victory looked out of the Bruins’ reach as they trailed by seven-tenths of a point heading into the final rotation.

But, UCLA’s floor rotation lived up to its self-proclaimed “Best Show in LA” title to reclaim the lead.

Earning the nation’s highest floor score of the year, No. 6 UCLA gymnastics (6-2, 3-0 Big Ten) upset No. 5 Michigan State (5-2, 2-1 Big Ten)  – the reigning Big Ten champions – at the last minute in Pauley Pavilion on Saturday. The 49.800 floor total was also the Bruins’ best floor score since February 2020, when they fell to the Utes by less than a tenth of a point.

“That was the definition of not giving up,” said graduate student Chae Campbell. “We’ve been really dialing in details, so that was nice to see in a moment where it really counted.”

The judges teased the Bruins with perfection twice on floor, awarding Campbell and graduate student Brooklyn Moors back-to-back 9.975s. But, the judges could not find a mistake in junior Jordan Chiles’ perfect anchoring routine. The 10 mark was Chiles’ fifth on floor in her career.

UCLA only counted 9.900 or higher scores in the final rotation, including senior Emma Malabuyo’s 9.900 and freshman Macy McGowan’s career-high 9.950.

McGowan notched another career-high on vault to contribute to the Bruins’ 49.350 season-high on the event. But, McGowan was not the only freshman to make a name for themselves on the collegiate stage.

After an ankle injury kept Riley Jenkins on the sidelines for the first four weeks of the season, the freshman made her collegiate debut Saturday on vault. She earned a 9.850 and added a third 10 start value to the Bruins’ repertoire on vault.

“Coming in as a freshman, you really want to hit the ground running. And literally, on day one, she had a setback,” said coach Janelle McDonald. “What she’s been doing in the gym has been phenomenal. And so it was really special to see her go out there, really attack her vault and be able to hit it for the team today.”

Graduate student Brooklyn Moors, senior Emily Lee and Campbell also added a trio of 9.800 or higher scores, while Chiles tied her 9.925 season-high to round out the Bruins’ first rotation.

The rotation marked UCLA’s fifth consecutive week notching a season-high on vault and carved a path to victory for the Bruins. But, Michigan State’s vault lineup took it to the next level.

Boasting six vaults with 10 start values, the event has been the Spartans’ strongest this season. Saturday’s meet proved to be no different as Michigan State’s nation-leading 49.600 vault total soared the squad to the lead after the second rotation. 

Five stuck Yurchenko one and a halves – including back-to-back 9.950s from Nikki Smith and Olivia Zsarmani – pushed Michigan State four-tenths of a point ahead of UCLA. 

“Being able to stay in our Bruin bubble was our biggest thing,” Chiles said. “I don’t think we really paid attention to the scores after beam. We just were like, ‘OK, we’re just going to go and put on a floor party like we normally do and just see where everything turns out.’”

Meanwhile, a quartet of 9.850s from Campbell, freshman Mika Webster-Longin, Malabuyo and graduate student Frida Esparza marked the apex of the Bruins’ bar rotation. Chiles struggled on her half pirouette on the low bar, posting a 9.250 score to mark her second consecutive dropped score on the event in the last two meets.

In contrast to UCLA’s vault lineup, the Bruins’ beam totals have progressively dipped through the last three meets. 

A fall from junior Ciena Alipio – who has been a beam regular throughout her entire collegiate career – and uncharacteristically low scores from veterans Campbell and Moors contributed to UCLA’s lowest beam score of the season.

“Even though it’s not like we’re not going lights out on all four events yet, I’m really excited about the grit and the fight and the belief this team has,” McDonald said. “I feel like it’s showing up in every moment.”

Despite the team’s declining scores on the event, Chiles flashed all 10 of her fingers at the judges table to urge for a perfect 10 after Malabuyo’s routine. The 2024 Philippines Olympian was the only Bruin to score above a 9.900 – extending her four-meet stretch reaching the mark.

Ultimately, two back-to-back rotations ridden with mistakes were not enough to end UCLA’s undefeated conference streak. 

The Bruins will continue their run in the Big Ten against former Pac-12 opponent Washington on Friday in Seattle.