No. 1-seeded UCLA women’s basketball (34-1, 18-0 Big Ten) faces No. 3-seeded Duke (27-8, 16-2 ACC) in the Elite Eight in Sacramento on Sunday. The winner of the matchup will earn a bid to the Final Four in Phoenix.

Duke is coming off an 87-85 upset over No. 2-seeded LSU. The Blue Devils led almost the entire game, but were down 85-84 with 2.6 seconds left when a 3-pointer touched every inch of the rim before falling in and securing the victory.

UCLA defeated No. 4-seeded Minnesota 80-56, bringing its win-streak to 28 games in a row, continuing to break a program record. The Bruins are looking to return to the Final Four for the second year in a row with a repeat of the 89-59 victory over the Blue Devils earlier this season.

Here is a breakdown of the matchup.

Personnel:
Coach: Kara Lawson
Bigs/Forwards: F Toby Fournier, F Delaney Thomas, C Arianna Roberson
Guards: G Ashlon Jackson, G Taina Mair, G Riley Nelson
Best Player: F Toby Fournier
X-Factor: G Ashlon Jackson

Stat Profile:
Points per game: 74.5
Field goal percentage: 44%
Points allowed per game: 59.4
Field goal percentage allowed: 37.2%

Frontcourt

The Blue Devils’ key player is 6-foot-2 forward Toby Fournier. Fournier made a name for herself from her ability to throw down dunks, but she has shown there is more to her game – leading the Blue Devils in points and rebounds.

The Toronto local averages 17.5 points and eight rebounds per game on a 52.7% clip from the field. She has also recorded 78 blocks through the season, making her a defensive threat as well.

She has stumbled a couple of times this season against ranked opponents, scoring only seven points in the ACC Championship against then-No. 12 Louisville and six points against then-No. 21 North Carolina. With this said, when the UCLA faced Duke on Nov. 27, Fournier had 17 points and 10 rebounds on 7-for-14 shooting from the field.

One of her biggest weaknesses is her performance at the free throw line. Fournier shoots only 58.1% from the charity stripe, despite going 10-for-12 from the free throw line against the Tigers. If the Bruins have to resort to intentional fouling towards the end of the game, she is a good target for them.

Fournier is backed by 6-foot-3 forward Delaney Thomas, who averages 11 points and 6.3 rebounds on an impressive 61.5% clip from the field. Thomas was dealing with foul trouble in the game against LSU, playing only 18 minutes despite averaging 26.8 per contest. Regardless, she finished with seven points on 3-for-4 shooting from the field.

Thomas’ consistency and ability to finish makes her someone coach Cori Close’s squad has to watch out for.

Also supporting the frontcourt is 6-foot-4 center Arianna Roberson, who comes in off the bench. Roberson averages 8.3 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, but, like Fournier, is a liability at the free throw line, shooting just 59.7% through the season.

In the previous matchup between these squads, Roberson played only 11 minutes, but as one of the tallest Blue Devils, she will likely see more court time to guard 6-foot-7 senior center Lauren Betts, who was out for the previous matchup.

Betts, a Naismith Player of the Year Finalist and Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Finalist, leads UCLA in scoring and rebounding, averaging 17.1 points and 8.6 rebounds per game on a 57.7% clip from the field. The First Team All-American member has shown her consistency throughout the season, scoring in single digits in only four games.

Betts may have been out the last time these squads faced, but she has come out firing through the first three games of the tournament, scoring 22, 35 and 16 points, respectively, and will likely make an impact for the Bruins in the rematch. Betts is joined by the Big Ten Sixth Player of the Year, forward Angelia Dugalić, who is coming off a crucial 13-point and 10-rebound performance against Minnesota in the Sweet Sixteen.

The Bruins’ frontcourt is a tough one to matchup against, and the Blue Devils have yet to face Betts this season, giving the Bruins this advantage.

Backcourt

Not many players can make a shot when it matters most. And Ashlon Jackson did just that against LSU.

Jackson averages 11.5 points and has 159 assists throughout the season, but in the Sweet Sixteen matchup against the Tigers, she had 19 points and 5 assists, including the game-winning shot to beat the buzzer.

Jackson leads Duke in 3-pointers made, with 73 on the season, but shoots at only a 31.3% rate from behind the arc. The biggest 3-point threat on the Blue Devils starting squad is Taina Mair, who knocks down deep shots off a 34.7% clip.

Mair scored 22 points against LSU, tied for the highest mark on the Duke squad. She shot 8-for-18 from the field and 4-for-10 from the 3-point line. She averages 11.3 points and a team-high 5.6 assists per game while also leading the Blue Devils in steals, recording 85 across the season.

The final starter on coach Kara Lawson’s team is Riley Nelson, who stepped into the starting lineup after Jadyn Donovan was ruled out for the season due to lower body injuries. Nelson averages 9.3 points per game and shoots 34.1% from behind the arc.

The Bruins’ guardplay consists of four projected first-round draft picks in the upcoming WNBA draft – graduate students Charlisse Leger-Walker and Gianna Kneepkens and seniors Gabriela Jaquez and Kiki Rice.

All four starting UCLA guards shoot above 36.2% from the 3-point line, led by Kneepkens’ 43.3% clip with 81 shots made from deep. The last time these squads faced off, all four guards had double-digit points, with Jaquez and Leger-Walker scoring 23 and 20 points, respectively.

Rice led the way for the Bruins against the Golden Gophers, scoring 21 points on 7-for-12 shooting from the field and a perfect 6-for-6 performance from the charity stripe.

The Bruins’ may have a little trouble containing Fournier or Thomas, as the Blue Devils play a three-guard front. But this also goes the other way, with Duke possibly struggling against Close’s four-guard offense.

Overall

UCLA is defeating opponents by a margin of 28.5, but it was able to take down Duke by 30 without Lauren Betts. And although Duke has improved throughout the season, Close’s squad boasts advantages over Lawson’s in most categories.

The Bruins average 85.3 points per game while holding opponents to 56.9 points. The Blue Devils, on the other hand, score 74.5 points per game and allow 59.4 points from their opposition.

Close’s squad also shoots at a higher clip than Lawson’s, boasting a 51.3% clip from the field and a 37.2% rate from behind the arc. Lawson’s team shoots 44% from the field and 33.1% from the field.

Anything can happen in March Madness, but if the Bruins play the way they have all season, a repeat trip to the Final Four could be on the horizon.