This post was updated March 7 at 2:29 p.m.

INDIANAPOLIS – Twenty-four consecutive wins.

No. 1 seed UCLA women’s basketball (30-1, 18-0 Big Ten) achieved its longest winning streak in program history with a 72-62 victory over No. 5 seed Ohio State (26-7, 13-5) at Gainbridge Fieldhouse to advance to the final of the Big Ten tournament. The Bruins, playing in their 10th conference tournament semifinal in 11 seasons, never trailed the Buckeyes en route to its second championship game bid in as many seasons in the Big Ten.

“I challenged our bench. I said, ‘If nothing else, when you come in you should have pride to get a passion play,’” said coach Cori Close. “For us, a passion play is seven nonstatistical categories that we believe lead to winning possessions. … Where I’m really most proud of our thriving is the way in which everybody made a contribution and chose to add to winning possessions.”

First quarter turnovers left UCLA trailing against Washington to open tournament play. And Saturday morning started no differently for the Bruins, who were forced to forfeit the opening possession – which senior center Lauren Betts won off the jump ball – after senior guard Gabriela Jaquez was called for a three-second violation. 

That was where the comparisons to yesterday’s first quarter ended, though, and the seemingly out-of-rhythm Bruins who recorded their lowest scoring quarter of the season Friday were nowhere to be found. 

UCLA had already earned six points – the same number they scored across the entire first frame yesterday – just over three minutes into the first quarter, and its unanswered lead was only quelled by a 3-pointer from Ohio State guard Chance Gray. 

“We reiterated over these past 24 hours about how this time of year you have to come out strong,” said senior guard Kiki Rice. “Every single team you play is going to be a high level team, so you don’t want to get yourself down early.”

The Bruins’ two-three zone kept the Buckeyes silent from inside the arc, and the latter found their only points in the first quarter on the perimeter or at the free-throw line. 

Shutting down guard Jaloni Cambridge, whose 17 points helped fuel Ohio State to its quarterfinal win over No. 4 seed Minnesota the day prior, proved to be a key part of muting the Buckeyes’ paint production. 

Cambridge finally got her first points three minutes into the second quarter on a midrange jumper that sent her sliding on her back across the floor. That would be the only time she would see one of her six attempts across the first two stanzas fall through the net, with Gray taking on the brunt of the Buckeyes’ offensive load. 

While Gray’s proficient 3-point shooting on a 60% clip made her the highest scorer on the court in the first half with 11 points, the offensive depth of UCLA’s rotation allowed it to enter the break with a 32-21 lead. Seven Bruins ended the first half with points on the board, and by the end of the game, five of those players had reached double-digit figures.

“This group of girls that we have together is not normal,” Betts said. “To be in these types of games, you’re definitely going to need every single person. I’m proud of how everyone had the confidence to step up and do what was needed when we needed them. … It speaks to the depth of our team.”

The disparities in the opponents’ depth manifested in the Bruins’ 44.4% field goal shooting in comparison to the Buckeyes’ 36.8% clip. The Buckeyes’ shooting woes were further perpetuated by a strong defensive front from the Bruins, who racked up six steals and three blocks in the first two frames alone. By the end of the game, seven of the eight UCLA athletes who played more than two minutes had recorded a steal.

The only major statistical category where the Buckeyes managed to find an edge over the Bruins was 3-point shooting, and the latter’s struggles on the perimeter – which began the game prior when they shot a season-low 10% from the field – continued. Graduate student guard Gianna Kneepkens, a 44.5% 3-point shooter, has been 3-for-13 from beyond the arc thus far in the tournament, with her three makes coming in Saturday’s game.

Kneepkens, who starts for UCLA at the power forward position, proved valuable offensively even while struggling to find her usual success on the perimeter, ending the game with 13 points off 5-for-13 shooting.

Ohio State opened the second half with a full-court press that proved ineffective in stymieing UCLA’s momentum. Even while the Buckeyes recorded 100% shooting from the field across the first six minutes of the third frame, six turnovers meant they only took 10 field goal attempts across the quarter. UCLA forced 15 total turnovers on the night while recording 12 of its own. 

“I was really proud of only 12 turnovers,” Close said. “We had seven at the half and really challenged them to do a great job of taking care of the basketball and only had five in the second half.” 

Despite outrebounding the Bruins in the second half 17 to 15, the Buckeyes struggled to convert boards into buckets. Freshman forward Sienna Betts helped keep UCLA in possession of the ball in the first half with two boards across seven minutes but saw limited playing time in the final two quarters.

Instead, it was Rice and Betts’ rebounding that paved the way for the Bruins, with the duo recording eight and nine rebounds, respectively. Rice’s versatility was on full display from the opening frame, as she put the Bruins on the board with shots fired across the field to end the game with a team-high 17 points.

[Related: Championed by Campion: Kiki Rice is longtime key piece underlying women’s basketball’s success]

Center Elsa Lemmilä heated up in the fourth quarter, recording six points across the final frame to help keep her team oscillating within 13 points of UCLA. A vocal base of Ohio State fans turned out to Gainbridge Fieldhouse – which is just under a three-hour drive from Columbus – in combination with a number of No. 2 seed Iowa fans who pledged their allegiance to the underdogs, taking to their feet when a media timeout with less than five minutes paused the game with the Buckeyes within eight points of the Bruins.

Graduate student forward Angela Dugalić continued to prove the merit of the Big Ten Sixth Player of the Year honor she earned earlier this week, and she downed a 3-point attempt after a successful defensive stop from her team.

“Every single time she comes in the game she gives us a spark,” Rice said. “She offensive rebounded really well both today and yesterday. She hustles, she defends, knocks down shots, and the way that she comes in and impacts the game is something that we’re really grateful to have off the bench.”

With less than two minutes remaining in the game, Close’s appeals to the referees after a fifth and final foul was called on graduate student guard Charlisse Leger-Walker could be heard from the stands. Ohio State narrowed its deficit to just seven points with two successful free throws from Cambridge. 

That was as close as the Buckeyes would get to their opponent, and the experience the Bruins boast from a starting lineup of graduating players has proven unbeatable in the postseason.

“You can see all around we have a veteran group,” Rice said. “So in those moments where maybe they just went on a run or this seems like it’s a key possession, we have a ton of confidence in each other to make the right play, to knock down a shot and get the look we want to get.”