Cori Close first praised her team for battling back in the third quarter at USC before laying on some criticism. The UCLA women’s basketball team was out-toughed, she said, then went on to quote late North Carolina State coach Kay Yow:
“You can swish your feet in the pity pond, but no swimming laps,” Close said. “And there’s no time for us to swim laps. I love this team. I believe in our team, and I believe that we’ll let this loss teach our hearts.”
The top-ranked Bruins (23-1 overall, 11-1 Big Ten) were dealt their first loss of the season by their crosstown rival when the No. 6 Trojans beat them, 71-60, on Thursday night at the Galen Center. They will be forced to respond quickly when No. 22 Michigan State rolls into Pauley Pavilion on Sunday night as part of one of the most difficult stretches on the schedule.
“Awesome,” Close said when this fact was brought up during Thursday’s postgame press conference. Some in the room laughed, but the coach – who surpassed 300 career wins this season – wasn’t smiling.
“I’m dead serious,” she said. “Because there’s no margin for errors, there’s no margin to rest. You either choose to get better, or you don’t.”
“They don’t want to have any cupcakes when you’re trying to respond and be the best. When you just got your butt kicked in the fourth quarter against your crosstown rival, bring it on. Give me the best you got because I want to step up into that space.”
JuJu Watkins was everywhere for USC in that game, finishing with an impressive, lengthy stat line of 38 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and eight blocked shots. She shot 6 for 9 from 3-point range.
While Michigan State (19-5, 9-4) doesn’t have a player who will bring the fire quite like that, the Spartans do have offensive power in Julia Ayrault, Grace VanSlooten and Theron Hallock, all of whom average at least 13 points per game.
The Spartans scored 91 points in their most recent win against Wisconsin.
“It sucks right now, but we have a game on Sunday,” UCLA point guard Kiki Rice said Thursday. “We have to regroup, watch the film and get back for Michigan State, who’s a really good team as well.”
UCLA will have to tighten up in all four quarters to get through the remainder of the season unscathed. The Bruins were out-rebounded 15-12 in the fourth quarter and pulled down six defensive rebounds to the Trojans’ 10 while being outscored 24-8 in the period.
They’ll need to react to the double-teams and defensive efforts like the ones they saw against USC. And giving up 24 points in a single quarter will have to be avoided, too. Close said she’s going to get the team fatigued in practice to work on their decision-making while tired and keep them working as a team.
“This is the hardest-working team I have ever coached in 32 years of coaching. They will respond,” said Close, whose team will host a rematch with USC on March 1 and could meet the Trojans again in the Big Ten Tournament as well. “This was like a dress rehearsal for a Final Four. We got a dress rehearsal and we get more. And good, because that’s where we want to be.”
No. 22 Michigan State (19-5, 9-4) at No. 1 UCLA (23-1, 11-1)
When: 6 p.m. Sunday
Where: Pauley Pavilion
TV: Big Ten Network