Senior forward Timea Gardiner will redshirt the 2025-2026 campaign because of injury, the UCLA women’s basketball player announced Saturday in an Instagram statement. 

Gardiner is recovering from an undisclosed knee injury suffered in the offseason that has kept her benched for the entirety of the season. The Bruins’ staff had yet to indicate prior to Saturday if or when the senior would be returning to the court this year, but Gardiner’s announcement officially ensures she will not see any playing time through the rest of the season. 

By medically redshirting, Gardiner will receive an extra year of eligibility after what otherwise would have been her last campaign at the collegiate level.

“I’m grateful to be supported and surrounded by amazing staff that’s allowing me to take my time during this process,” Gardiner wrote in an Instagram statement. “This decision came down to me being 100% for my teammates, myself and my future.”

The Ogden, Utah, local joined coach Cori Close’s squad in Westwood for the 2024-2025 campaign after playing two seasons at Oregon State. Gardiner averaged 7.6 points per contest off the bench and maintained a team-high 39.5% clip from beyond the arc last season for UCLA.

Prior to becoming a Bruin, Gardiner was named the 2024 Pac-12 Sixth Player of the Year for her contributions, including 10.2 points per game, while coming off the bench for the Beavers. 

“Timea is a perfect fit for us,” Close said in a statement at the time of Gardiner’s transfer in 2024. “She is a versatile forward, an elite shooter, passionate about winning and becoming a pro, and she has a high basketball IQ. All that, and her character is even better.”

The Bruins’ frontcourt already suffers from low numbers on a guard-heavy roster, and the absence of Gardiner and freshman forward Sienna Betts until Dec. 16 forced other members of the team to step up.

Much of the work in the paint this season has fallen on senior center Lauren Betts and graduate student forward Angela Dugalić, who has consistently been Close’s go-to off the bench. Senior guard Gabriela Jaquez has also been playing small forward for most of the year as one of four guards frequenting the starting lineup.

The return of Sienna Betts, whose lower leg injury sidelined her for the opening half of the season, has additionally given Close more tools to work with on the interior. 

What Gardiner’s continued recovery process looks like has not been disclosed. 

“She got some really great news in her testing, but with the kind of surgery she had … it’s really important for her long term that we are really careful in how we bring her back,” Close said during practice Jan. 9.

The senior has maintained a present role on the team even if absent from the court, and Gardiner has a unique dance with every starter that she does with them when the opening lineup is announced at home games. 

Gardiner reiterated her commitment to UCLA in her post, stating that she would return for the 2026-2027 campaign.