Sweet 16 finally sweet for UCLA women

After the last two seasons, you’d certainly forgive the UCLA women’s basketball team for thinking the Sweet 16 was an ironic name.

The Bruins reached the NCAA tournament’s second weekend two straight years only to bow out there, but the program-record third straight Sweet 16 appearance proved to be the charm.

Third-seeded UCLA upset second-seeded Texas 84-75 on Friday at the Sprint Center, reaching the regional championship game for the second time in program history and the first time since 1999.

“It was starting to feel like Groundhog Day, so we had to turn that around,” said senior Monique Billings, who finished with 17 points and a team-high eight rebounds. “That’s what we did. That’s what we came to UCLA to do. I can speak for the seniors, Jordin [Canada] and I, that was our vision. It’s been a journey and we’re not done yet.”

The Bruins (27-7) advanced to the Elite Eight where they will face top-seeded Mississippi State (35-1) — last year’s tournament runner-up, who trounced North Carolina State 71-57 in Friday’s first regional semifinal — for a shot at the Final Four next weekend in Columbus, Ohio. Tip-off is Sunday at 4:30 p.m. PDT on ESPN.

To earn that chance, the Bruins won the rebounding battle 38-34, not an easy feat given that the Longhorns (28-7) rank second in Division I with a plus-11.4 margin.

UCLA also parlayed 21 Texas turnovers into 31 points — many courtesy of Canada, who finished with game highs of 22 points, eight assists and five steals.

Despite two early fouls by junior Kennedy Burke and freshman Michaela Onyenwere, the Bruins broke on top after finishing the first quarter with a 7-0 run — fueled by Austin native and Texas Tech transfer Japreece Dean’s layup and three-pointer — for a 19-11 lead.

The Longhorns committed 15 first-half turnovers, including eight in the second quarter, but stayed within eight points at halftime.

And that lead was gone within the opening two minutes of the second half as Texas sprinted from the locker room a 9-0 run. Four Longhorns scored before junior Lashann Higgs’ layup gave Texas its first lead at the 8:08 mark in the third quarter.

It felt similar to the Sweet 16 showdown between the teams in 2016, when the Bruins coughed up a six-point lead entering the fourth quarter. Canada made sure history didn’t repeat itself.

“When they came out on their run, I didn’t have any doubt,” she said. “We’ve been here before. We’ve been through adversity. We know the game is a game of runs … and it’s all about how we stay composed. I thought that was the difference between this time and two years ago.”

Canada had only two points at halftime and had missed all five field-goal tries, though she did dish six assists, but she got her offense cranked up after Texas pulled in front. She restored UCLA’s lead with a three, then added three baskets in less than a minute midway through the third quarter as the Bruins reasserted control 52-45.

“The second half, [Canada] decided to take over and, when she gets going, it’s going to be a tough matchup,” Texas senior Brooke McCarty said.

Having withstood the Longhorns’ best haymaker, the Bruins took a 10-point lead into the fourth quarter. Canada made sure that was plenty, racking up 11 points in the period as the Longhorns’ comeback bid fell well short.

“UCLA was really good tonight,” Texas coach Karen Aston said. “Sometimes you want to, as a coach, blame your kids or try to figure out what went wrong. But I think a lot of what went wrong was that UCLA was really exceptional tonight.”

If there was a signature moment, it came with a minute remaining when Canada drove the lane, absorbed contact, contorted in midair and flipped in a layup back over her shoulder.

“She is good in all facets,” UCLA coach Cori Close said. “Today, in the second half, you saw the spectacular.”

Only moments earlier, Texas hit back-to-back threes to pull within 76-72, but after three straight scores, including Canada’s circus shot and a fastbreak and-one layup 18 seconds later, UCLA’s 82-72 lead was insurmountable.

“I just let the game come to me in the second half,” Canada said. “… My shots weren’t falling, so I tried to get my teammates involved in the first half.”

Burke finished with 15 points and five rebounds in what Close called a difference-making performance.

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