UCLA Women Rise to Third With a Win

UCLA struggled but pulled away in the final minutes to beat Washington State, 68-63, and move up to third place in Pacific 10 Conference women’s basketball Sunday at Pauley Pavilion.

Point guard Nikki Blue led the Bruins (15-7 overall, 9-4 Pacific 10) with a game-high 22 points in addition to seven assists, six steals and five rebounds while playing all 40 minutes. Shooting guard Lisa Willis had 16 points, 10 rebounds, six steals and four assists for UCLA.

First-half turnovers and poor shooting plagued the Bruins, who trailed, 35-29, at halftime. UCLA quickly took a 40-37 lead in the second half but couldn’t shake the Cougars.

After a 58-58 tie, the Bruins outscored Washington State, 10-5, in the last 3 minutes 24 seconds. Willis’ basket gave UCLA a 62-58 lead with 2:15 left, and free throws by Blue and Amanda Livingston made it 66-58 -- UCLA’s biggest lead -- with 26 seconds left.

The victory put UCLA one game behind second-place USC (16-6, 10-3) in the standings and half a game ahead of Oregon (15-6, 8-4). Washington State (5-17, 1-12), led by Adriane Ferguson’s 19 points and nine rebounds, is in last place.