Bad Start Spurred UCLA’s Hot Streak

UCLA’s women’s basketball team, in a year it expected to be an NCAA tournament team, struggled in the start of the season. The Bruins opened with losses to St. Mary’s, George Washington and Notre Dame.

They became 2-4 when they lost at North Carolina in overtime. But that one changed her team, Coach Kathy Olivier said.

UCLA has won 10 of 12 since that loss and won five of those by six or fewer points.

The Bruins are 12-6 overall, 7-2 in the Pac-10, and meet another 7-2 conference team, Oregon, tonight at 7:30 in Pauley Pavilion. A victory would give the Bruins sole possession of second place.

So what happened at North Carolina?

“It was the mood in our locker room after that game, the anger the players showed me. . . . They felt they’d had that game won and let it slip away,” Olivier said of the Dec. 18 game at Chapel Hill, N.C.

“It was like they made a commitment that night it wasn’t going to happen any more.”

Two nights later, the Bruins beat Duke, 93-83.

They also beat Oregon at Eugene, 80-75. But the Ducks have won five in a row since, including a two-pointer over Arizona.

Sophomore center Maylana Martin continues to supply most of UCLA’s production. She’s the Pac-10’s No. 2 scorer (19.5 points) and rebounder (8.1).

Pac-10 Notes

USC (3-6, 8-10) plays host to Oregon State (1-8, 6-12) tonight and to Oregon Sunday at 2. Sunday’s Oregon State-UCLA game also begins at 2.