WOMEN’S BASKETBALL : Georgia Runs Away From UCLA, 78-42

Having played just three games in the last month, you’d figure the University of Georgia women’s basketball team would be at least slightly rusty heading into its NCAA West Regional semifinal game against UCLA Thursday night.

Guess again.

The Bulldogs destroyed the Bruins in the first half and then ran through the motions in the second on the way to a 78-42 victory in Pauley Pavilion.

UCLA Coach Billie Moore figured the only way the Bruins would have a chance against the heavily favored Bulldogs would be to force them into a half-court game.

They played one, all right.

Georgia’s 1-3-1, half-court trap in the first half shut down the Bruins, who failed to score during one seven-minute stretch.

The Bulldogs, meanwhile, ran off 19 straight points late in the first half, including six each by Janet Harris and Teresa Edwards, to take a 43-14 halftime lead, one that UCLA failed to challenge in the second half.

Wherever the Bruins went, it seemed as if two Bulldogs were there, swarming around the ball. Georgia forced 21 UCLA turnovers in the first half, 32 in the game, and many of those led to easy, fast-break baskets.

Edwards, a member of last summer’s Olympic team, led the Bulldogs (27-4) with a game-high 21 points and 7 assists, while Harris, a three-time All-American forward, added 17 points.

Georgia shot 55% from the field (36 of 65), while harassing the Bruins into a poor-shooting night (35% on 20 of 56 shots).

“A lot of credit has to go to their defense,” Moore said. “They pressured the ball and really took us out of our offense in the first half. But we also did an excellent job of helping them.”

UCLA (20-10) had only one player score in double figures, center Annette Keur, with 14 points. With the exception of the first eight minutes of the second half, when Georgia called off its press and UCLA scored eight straight points, the Bruins were completely outmatched.