2023–24 UCLA Bruins women's basketball team

The 2023–24 UCLA Bruins women's basketball team represented the University of California, Los Angeles during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Bruins were led by 13th-year head coach Cori Close. They played their home games at Pauley Pavilion and competed as members of the Pac-12 Conference.

2023–24 UCLA Bruins women's basketball
NCAA tournament, Sweet Sixteen
ConferencePac-12 Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 9
APNo. 10
Record27–7 (13–5 Pac-12)
Head coach
Associate head coachShannon Perry-LeBeauf
Assistant coaches
  • Tasha Brown
  • Tony Newnan
  • Soh Matsuura
Home arenaPauley Pavilion
(Capacity: 13,800)
Seasons
2023–24 Pac-12 Conference women's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 9 Stanford 15 3   .833 30 6   .833
No. 5 USC 13 5   .722 29 6   .829
No. 10 UCLA 13 5   .722 27 7   .794
No. 8 Oregon State 12 6   .667 27 8   .771
No. 15 Colorado 11 7   .611 24 10   .706
No. 22 Utah 11 7   .611 23 11   .676
Arizona 8 10   .444 18 16   .529
California 7 11   .389 19 15   .559
Washington State 7 11   .389 21 15   .583
Washington 6 12   .333 16 15   .516
Arizona State 3 15   .167 11 20   .355
Oregon 2 16   .111 11 21   .344
2024 Pac-12 tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll

This was also the last season for UCLA played in the Pac-12 Conference before moving to the Big Ten Conference on August 1, 2024.

Prior to the season, the Bruins secured the signing of highly touted center Lauren Betts, the former top-ranked high school recruit in the country who was transferring to UCLA from conference rival Stanford after one season in which she received limited playing time.[1]

Previous season

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UCLA finished the season 27–10, 11–7 in Pac-12 play, to finish in a tie for fourth place. As the fifth seed in the Pac-12 tournament, they defeated Arizona State in the first round, Arizona in the quarterfinals, and Stanford in the semifinals before losing in the championship game to Washington State. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as a 4th seed in the Greenville Regional 1, where they defeated Sacramento State in the first round and Oklahoma in the second round to advance to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 2019, where they lost to 1-seed South Carolina.

Offseason

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Departures

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UCLA departures
Name Num. Pos. Height Year Hometown Reason for departure
Brynn Masikewich 5 F 6'3" Senior Calgary, AB Graduate transferred to DePaul
Gina Conti 10 G 5'11" GS Senior Grove City, OH Graduated

Incoming

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UCLA incoming transfers
Name Num Pos. Height Year Hometown Previous school
Lauren Betts 51 C 6'7" Sophomore Centennial, CO Stanford

Recruiting

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US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Amanda Muse
P
Brentwood, CA Heritage High School 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN:    ESPN grade: 95
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2023 Player Commits". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on November 17, 2023.

Recruiting class of 2024

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US college sports recruiting information for 2024 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Kendall Dudley
W
Centreville, VA Sidwell Friends School 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN:    ESPN grade: 97
Avary Cain
G
Santa Maria, CA Saint Joseph High School 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN:    ESPN grade: 96
Zania Socka-Nguemen
F
Washington, D.C. Sidwell Friends School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN:    ESPN grade: 96
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Roster

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2023–24 UCLA Bruins women's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Year Previous school Hometown
G 1 Kiki Rice 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) So Sidwell Friends Bethesda, MD
G 3 Londynn Jones 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) So Centennial Riverside, CA
F 11 Emily Bessoir   6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) RS Jr Wilhelm-Hausenstein Gymnasium Munich, Germany
G 20 Charisma Osborne 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) GS Windward School Moreno Valley, CA
F 21 Lina Sontag 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) So Schadow-Gymnasium Kleinmachnow, Germany
F 22 Christeen Iwuala 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) So Ronald Reagan San Antonio, TX
F 23 Gabriela Jaquez 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) So Camarillo Camarillo, CA
F 32 Angela Dugalić 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) RS Jr Maine West
Oregon
Des Plaines, IL
F 33 Amanda Muse 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) Fr Heritage Brentwood, CA
G 35 Camryn Brown 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) GS Prestonwood Christian Lewisville, TX
F 43 Izzy Anstey   6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) RS Jr Caulfield Melbourne, Australia
C 51 Lauren Betts 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) So Grandview
Stanford
Centennial, CO
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: April 2, 2024

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 6, 2023*
5:30 p.m., P12N
No. 4 Purdue W 92–49  1–0
 20  tied   7  Betts   10  Rice  Pauley Pavilion (2,157)
Los Angeles, CA
November 9, 2023*
7:00 p.m.
No. 4 UC Riverside W 90–52  2–0
 18  tied   15  Betts   5  Osborne  Pauley Pavilion (1,431)
Los Angeles, CA
November 12, 2023*
2:00 p.m.
No. 4 Bellarmine W 113–64  3–0
 30  Jaquez   12  Jaquez   4  tied  Pauley Pavilion (1,625)
Los Angeles, CA
November 17, 2023*
11:30 a.m., P12N
No. 3 Princeton W 77–74  4–0
 22  Betts   10  Betts   3  tied  Pauley Pavilion (6,243)
Los Angeles, CA
November 24, 2023*
4:30 p.m., FloSports
No. 2 vs. No. 6 UConn
Cayman Islands Classic
W 78–67  5–0
 24  Rice   11  Rice   8  Rice  John Gray Gymnasium (300)
George Town, Cayman Islands
November 25, 2023*
10:30 a.m., FloSports
No. 2 vs. Niagara
Cayman Islands Classic
W 97–46  6–0
 23  Jaquez   7  tied   8  Rice  John Gray Gymnasium (300)
George Town, Cayman Islands
December 3, 2023*
12:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+
No. 2 at Arkansas W 81–66  7–0
 20  Betts   11  Jaquez   6  Osborne  Bud Walton Arena (4,261)
Fayetteville, AR
December 7, 2023*
7:00 p.m.
No. 2 Cal State Northridge W 111–48  8–0
 18  tied   10  Rice   10  Rice  Pauley Pavilion (2,493)
Los Angeles, CA
December 10, 2023*
9:00 a.m., ESPN2
No. 2 vs. No. 20 Florida State
Basketball Hall of Fame Women's Showcase
W 95–78  9–0
 22  Betts   18  Betts   6  Rice  Mohegan Sun Arena 
Uncasville, CT
December 18, 2023*
3:30 p.m., FS1
No. 2 at No. 13 Ohio State W 77–71  10–0
 19  Osborne   11  Betts   4  tied  Value City Arena (6,800)
Columbus, OH
December 21, 2023*
1:00 p.m.
No. 2 Hawaii W 85–46  11–0
 17  Osborne   7  Betts   6  Rice  Pauley Pavilion (2,142)
Los Angeles, CA
Pac-12 regular season
December 30, 2023
5:00 p.m., P12N
No. 2 No. 6 USC
Rivalry
W 71–64  12–0
(1–0)
 21  Jones   8  Betts   6  Osborne  Pauley Pavilion (13,659)
Los Angeles, CA
January 5, 2024
7:00 p.m., P12N
No. 2 Oregon W 75–49  13–0
(2–0)
 17  Dugalić   11  Betts   10  Rice  Pauley Pavilion (3,415)
Los Angeles, CA
January 7, 2024
1:00 p.m., P12N
No. 2 Oregon State W 65–54  14–0
(3–0)
 15  Osborne   8  tied   4  Osborne  Pauley Pavilion (3,623)
Los Angeles, CA
January 14, 2024
2:00 p.m., P12N
No. 2 at No. 9 USC
Rivalry
L 65–73  14–1
(3–1)
 25  Osborne   10  Dugalic   4  Osborne  Galen Center (10,258)
Los Angeles, CA
January 19, 2024
5:00 p.m., P12N
No. 5 at No. 3 Colorado W 76–68  15–1
(4–1)
 22  Osborne   13  tied   2  tied  CU Events Center (11,338)
Boulder, CO
January 22, 2024
4:00 p.m., ESPN2
No. 2 at No. 16 Utah L 81–94 OT 15–2
(4–2)
 21  Jaquez   7  Rice   3  tied  Jon M. Huntsman Center (5,261)
Salt Lake City, UT
January 26, 2024
7:00 p.m., P12N
No. 2 Washington W 62–44  16–2
(5–2)
 17  Osborne   13  Dugalić   6  Osborne  Pauley Pavilion (3,563)
Los Angeles, CA
January 28, 2024
1:00 p.m., P12N
No. 2 Washington State L 82–85  16–3
(5–3)
 25  Rice   6  tied   5  tied  Pauley Pavilion (7,241)
Los Angeles, CA
February 2, 2024
7:00 p.m., P12N
No. 7 at California W 78–58  17–3
(6–3)
 32  Osborne   4  tied   4  Osborne  Haas Pavilion (3,784)
Berkeley, CA
February 4, 2024
1:00 p.m., ESPN2
No. 7 at No. 4 Stanford L 60–80  17–4
(6–4)
 13  tied   5  tied   3  Jones  Maples Pavilion (7,207)
Stanford, CA
February 9, 2024
8:00 p.m., P12N
No. 9 Arizona W 66–58  18–4
(7–4)
 21  Jaquez   15  Jaquez   6  tied  Pauley Pavilion (5,210)
Los Angeles, CA
February 11, 2024
12:00 p.m., P12N
No. 9 Arizona State W 78–45  19–4
(8–4)
 18  Betts   8  Rice   5  Brown  Pauley Pavilion (3,182)
Los Angeles, CA
February 16, 2024
7:00 p.m., P12N
No. 9 at No. 11 Oregon State L 77–79  19–5
(8–5)
 24  Betts   7  Betts   5  Rice  Gill Coliseum (8,525)
Corvallis, OR
February 18, 2024
2:00 p.m., P12N
No. 9 at Oregon W 74–55  20–5
(9–5)
 17  Betts   12  Osborne   6  Osborne  Matthew Knight Arena (6,792)
Eugene, OR
February 22, 2024
6:30 p.m., ESPN
No. 12 No. 18 Utah W 82–52  21–5
(10–5)
 23  Jones   9  Dugalic   7  Osborne  Pauley Pavilion (3,711)
Los Angeles, CA
February 26, 2024
6:00 p.m., ESPN2
No. 8 No. 13 Colorado
Senior Night
W 53–45  22–5
(11–5)
 20  Rice   9  tied   4  Rice  Pauley Pavilion (5,319)
Los Angeles, CA
February 29, 2024
6:00 p.m., P12N
No. 8 at Arizona State W 70–41  23–5
(12–5)
 20  Betts   11  Betts   7  Rice  Desert Financial Arena (1,871)
Tempe, AZ
March 2, 2024
5:00 p.m., P12N
No. 8 at Arizona W 61–41  24–5
(13–5)
 16  Jones   12  Betts   6  Rice  McKale Center (7,845)
Tucson, AZ
Pac-12 women's tournament
March 7, 2024
8:30 p.m., P12N
(3) No. 7 vs. (6) No. 22 Utah
Quarterfinals
W 67–57  25–5
 17  Dugalić   9  Rice   3  tied  MGM Grand Garden Arena (4,901)
Paradise, NV
March 8, 2024
7:30 p.m., P12N
(3) No. 7 vs. (2) No. 5 USC
Semifinals/Rivalry
L 70–80 2OT 25–6
 21  Osborne   18  Betts   6  Rice  MGM Grand Garden Arena (5,713)
Paradise, NV
NCAA women's tournament
March 23, 2024*
6:30 p.m., ESPN2
(2 A2) No. 6 (15 A2) California Baptist
First round
W 84–55  26–6
 20  Rice   15  Osborne   9  Osborne  Pauley Pavilion (8,841)
Los Angeles, CA
March 25, 2024*
5:30 p.m., ESPN2
(2 A2) No. 6 (7 A2) No. 24 Creighton
Second round
W 67–63  27–6
 24  Rice   10  Betts   4  Osborne  Pauley Pavilion (7,839)
Los Angeles, CA
March 30, 2024*
10:00 a.m., ABC
(2 A2) No. 6 vs. (3 A2) No. 8 LSU
Sweet Sixteen
L 69–78  27–7
 14  tied   17  Betts   5  Rice  MVP Arena 
Albany, NY
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
A2=Albany 2.
All times are in Pacific Time.

Source:[2]

Rankings

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Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
т = Tied with team above or below ( ) = First-place votes
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516171819Final
AP432222222 (1)2 (1)5279912876610
Coaches8322222222481091287889

*The preseason and week 1 polls were the same.
^Coaches did not release a week 2 poll.

Awards and honors

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  • February 29, 2024 – Coach Cori Close is the recipient of the 2024 WBCA Carol Eckman Integrity in Coaching Award
  • March 5, 2024 – Lauren Betts, Kiki Rice, and Charisma Osborne named to the All-Pac-12 Team
  • March 5, 2024 – Lauren Betts and Charisma Osborne named to the Pac-12 All-Defensive Team
  • April 15, 2024 – Charisma Osborne is selected by the Phoenix Mercury with the 25th pick in the 2024 WNBA draft

References

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  1. ^ Connon, Sam (April 18, 2023). "Stanford Transfer Lauren Betts Commits to UCLA Women's Basketball". FanNation. Retrieved February 6, 2024 – via si.com.
  2. ^ "2023-24 Women's Basketball Schedule". UCLA Athletics. Retrieved April 2, 2024.