Virginia Too Tough for UCLA : Women’s basketball: Bruins lose to No. 6 Cavaliers, 77-55, and USC beats Maryland, 68-62, in Pac-10/ACC Challenge.

UCLA Coach Kathy Olivier was asked to assess her team’s performance against No. 6 Virginia and her response was immediate.

“I loved us for 30 minutes,” she said. “But that last 10 minutes. . . .”

In those 10 minutes Virginia seemed to pick up the pace. The Cavaliers took control of a close game and turned it into a 77-55 rout before 1,137 in the second game of the Pac-10/ACC Challenge at Pauley Pavilion.

The unranked Bruins (4-4) out-hustled the Cavaliers throughout the first half and into the second.

But with the score tied, 47-47, with 9:43 to play, and with point guard Erica Gomez on the bench with four fouls, Tora Suber made a three-point basket to spark an 18-2 run that gave the Cavaliers a 65-49 lead with 6:20 left.

The Bruins never recovered.

“We just needed some help from the bench and we didn’t quite get it,” Olivier said.

Virginia (7-2) got plenty of help from its bench.

The Cavaliers, who got a team-high 17 points from Suber, had five players score in double figures, including reserves Jeffra Gausepohl (11 points) and Mimi McKinney (10 points).

UCLA, which shot only 33% and was outrebounded, 48-35, got 12 points apiece from Kisa Hughes, Tawana Grimes and Zrinka Kristich.

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USC geared up for tonight’s game against Virginia by opening a 14-point halftime lead and holding on to defeat Maryland, 68-62.

Forward Stephanie Cross almost got the Terrapins back in the game, scoring 20 of her 27 points in the second half.

With Maryland trailing, 54-44, Cross scored her team’s remaining 18 points. Her three-point basket with 23 seconds left cut the Trojans’ lead to 66-62.

But USC (5-2) got the ball to Tina Thompson under the basket with 14 seconds remaining and she scored to clinch the victory and drop Maryland to 5-3.

Thompson, who made 10 of 22 shots from the field, had a team-high 25 points and 13 rebounds.