LOS ANGELES (AP) — UCLA may be the defending national champions, but the Bruins are putting the past behind them as they work to meld seven new players and create a different identity.
The 11th-ranked Bruins opened the season with a 73-53 win over Lehigh on Monday.
After going 37-1 last season and then having five of six players taken in the first round of the WNBA draft, led by Lauren Betts, the Bruins got contributions from multiple players. Sienna
Betts had 15 points and seven rebounds, TCU transfer Donovyn Hunter scored 14 points and Notre Dame transfer KK Bransford added 10 points.
“This group doesn’t have one person that’s going to put you on their back and just sort of carry the load and make up for everything,” coach Cori Close said. “I don’t think they’re a real confident group yet. They’re a hopeful group.”
The Bruins were coming off an 81-64 exhibition loss to No. 6 Texas.
“That loss really fired us up and it really exposed our weaknesses, which is good,” Betts said. “It’s what we want. A loss this early in the season is going to really propel us forward.”
Among the newcomers are Addy Brown, who left Iowa State, and Arkansas transfer Bonnie Deas. Brown had nine points and six rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench. Deas had three points and two steals.
Hunter — now on her third school after starting at Oregon State — believes getting everyone on the same page will happen eventually.
“If everyone just has the mindset of ‘Do what I’m really good at and give 100% into that,' I think things will flow through,” she said.
Close didn't like her team's first-half execution, given that they'd had three days to prepare. The game was tied after the first quarter and UCLA only led by five at halftime.
Lehigh had 13 of its 23 3-point attempts in the first half — well over UCLA's goal of holding the Mountain Hawks to 15 or less.
“We just weren't dictating,” Close said.
That didn't bother most of the crowd of 4,697 at Pauley Pavilion. It was Field Trip Day, with schoolchildren filling both ends of the arena and cheering the Bruins in ear-splitting fashion.
Close had company near her on the bench. UCLA is selling the first six seats on either side of the scorers' table to the public for the first time, leaving fans one empty space away from Close and her staff.
“It's people that we really know and who are really part of our family,” she said. “We need to take every opportunity to monetize and capitalize on the growth in women’s sports.”
Unlike UCLA men's coach Mick Cronin, Close isn't a coach who routinely drops profanity.
“I just use it as an opportunity to talk trash to them,” she said, jokingly. “They can handle it.”
The Bruins' early schedule won't likely have them facing a ranked team until playing No. 4 Duke in mid-December on the same Phoenix court where they beat South Carolina 79-51 for the first NCAA title in program history.
“I’ve said to people all along that I thought this group was going to take a little time with so many new things," Close said. "Right now we’re a lot of hopeful pieces that are really good.”
___
Sign up for Top 25 poll alerts here, visit the Top 25 here and see AP’s full college basketball coverage here
