Balance has become a game of honesty.

After seven weeks of breaking records and earning perfect 10s, the Bruins understand that responsibility involves knowing when to take a step back.

No. 5 UCLA gymnastics (9-2, 5-0 Big Ten) will face Illinois (4-7, 1-4) in Champaign on Sunday. And ahead of the matchup in the Prairie State, the Bruins have emphasized balancing performance and rest in this week’s practice.

“We’re hitting that point of the season where it could be beneficial to rest some people here and there,” said coach Janelle McDonald. “We’re kind of at that point where we’re sort of like, ‘Okay, are there days that we need to rest?’”

Although the Bruins may be feeling the fatigue of seven straight weeks of competition, the Fighting Illini enter Sunday’s meet amid a condensed stretch of competition, coming off a loss against Nebraska last Sunday, and will face a trio of squads in the Mizzou Quad on Friday.

As UCLA balances decisions regarding who needs to refuel versus who is ready to perform, lineup changes are on the horizon, requiring the Bruins to be flexible.

“When you’re in and out of a lineup, or you’re right on the cusp of making it, your role is so important because that role is what elevates the team, and it keeps everybody pushing,” McDonald said. “They’re showing up every day, fighting to be ready for their team, and when they’re called upon, I know that they’re going to be ready to jump in and do the job.”

McDonald added that the squad ensures all teammates’ returns to competing after recuperation are notable, earned and supported.

UCLA snagged a top-10 win against No. 9 Michigan, earning a 197.725 mark on Feb. 14, and senior Jordan Chiles logged her fourth-straight perfect 10 on floor.

Chiles said her instant fall to the floor after her score was released was a product of perseverance and stamina.

“I’ve been sick this last week. I was definitely under the weather, and I didn’t really get to practice much,” Chiles said after the Michigan victory. “That collapse was like a relief. … Not every routine I think (is) perfect in my head, but to the judges, it’s perfect to them, so it means everything.”

The Bruins currently hold top-10 rankings on every event, including No. 5 in vault, No. 4 in bars, No. 3 in beam and No. 8 in floor.

And while the Bruins are maintaining balance, they are not forgetting to uphold what freshman Tiana Sumanasekera said is diversity from everyone’s individual styles and pieces of their identity to enrich the team.

“We’re all family here, and anybody you meet, it’s like we’ve already met in a past life or something, so you can trust anybody here,” the freshman said. “The legacy that has come from UCLA gymnastics itself is so big, and we want to continue to build on that and keep that legacy going.”