U.S. Women’s Basketball Team Provides UCLA Ultimate Test

It may be only an exhibition game, but to Coach Kathy Olivier, it’s a no-lose situation. Even if her UCLA women’s basketball squad gets pounded by the U.S. national team in the Bruins’ exhibition opener tonight at 7:30 in Pauley Pavilion.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun for our team to play against the best,” said Olivier, whose Bruins are considered a top-five pick nationally and were selected as the Pac-10 favorite in a media poll this week. “Stanford played them first and Tara [VanDerveer, the Cardinal coach] said that if we stayed within 50, to consider it a win.”

Monday night, Stanford fell by 43 points, 101-58.

And with UCLA without the services of three injured starters--senior point guard Erica Gomez, who had shoulder surgery and is out until January; junior guard LaCresha Flannigan, out four to six weeks after undergoing knee surgery, and senior forward Maylana Martin, still recovering from back surgery in the spring, things could get ugly.

But that’s not the point of playing the women’s dream team.

Rather, as Olivier said, it’s to give the Bruins, who went 26-8 last year and just missed advancing to the Final Four, some experience.

The UCLA exhibition will be the second of a 12-game NCAA Division I tour for the national team, which includes 10 Olympic or World Championship gold medalists. Team members include former UCLA All-American Natalie Williams, who plays for the Utah Starzz; former USC and current Spark center Lisa Leslie, Sacramento Monarch guard Ruthie Bolton-Holifield, Washington Mystic forward Chamique Holdsclaw and Charlotte Sting guard Dawn Staley.