INDIANAPOLIS — Four days after revealing to each other what they could do better during a players-only film session, the UCLA Bruins found a few more talking points.
Their bad-shot-taking offense was disjointed. Their defense was vulnerable. Their lead over what was supposed to be a heavily overmatched opponent was shaky.
Fortunately, they could rely on what continues to be a formidable formula. All they had to do was get the ball to Lauren Betts.
UCLA’s center made the plays her team needed on both ends of the court Friday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse during the second-seeded Bruins’ 85-74 victory over 10th-seeded Nebraska in a Big Ten women’s basketball tournament quarterfinal.
Overpowering the Cornhuskers inside with layups and put-backs while also overwhelming them defensively, Betts rolled up 28 points on 11-for-15 shooting to go with 13 rebounds, seven blocked shots, five assists and three steals to help UCLA bounce back from its deflating loss to USC on Sunday.
“Obviously, I learned a lot from the last game,” Betts said of her 11-point performance against the Trojans, “and I just wanted to kind of earn some of that trust back for my teammates and my coaches. I just thought today honestly more than anything, I’m just proud of my communication and my leadership. That’s all I really wanted to focus on.”
Players called a meeting the morning after the USC game to discuss how they needed to improve, and point guard Kiki Rice said the team responded with one of its best practices in recent months. But that crisp play did not carry over against the Cornhuskers.
UCLA showed an overreliance on three-pointers, making just six of 29 shots from beyond the arc, and had trouble sustaining momentum. The Bruins might have been in serious trouble if forward Gabriela Jaquez didn’t provide a strong complement to Betts with a season-high 23 points and nine rebounds.
More introspection might be needed after UCLA (28-2) advanced to a Saturday semifinal, where it will facethird-seeded Ohio State.
Bruins coach Cori Close acknowledged her team took too many three-pointers, particularly early in possessions.
“We have a very coachable team,” Close said, “but that was way too many threes and especially way too many threes off the bounce in the first 15 seconds of the shot clock.”
Betts was practically unstoppable every time she touched the ball. She drew so much attention on one possession midway through the fourth quarter that she passed out of the post to a wide-open Rice, who buried a three-pointer to push the Bruins’ lead into double digits. The next time Betts got the ball, she turned to score and was fouled, roaring as she pumped her arms in celebration.
Betts praised her teammates for their response after the players-only meeting, saying she saw progress in the way Timea Gardiner grabbed seven rebounds and Rice communicated on the way to 14 points and nine assists.
“Obviously, it’s we over me at this point,” Betts said. “It’s March, and we need to win games, and that’s all that matters right now. You’ve got to at this point just put your pride aside and do what the team needs you to do, and I thought everyone stepped up today. So I’m really proud of everyone.”
Guard Britt Prince scored 24 points for the Cornhuskers (21-11), who shot 48.4% to the Bruins’ 44.1% but committed four more turnovers and grabbed 12 fewer rebounds.
UCLA was fortunate to hold a 41-39 halftime lead given the way the game was trending.
After Nebraska rolled off seven consecutive points to open the second quarter, Close called timeout but could not stop her team’s sloppy play.
Among UCLA’s six turnovers in the second quarter were Rice throwing a bad pass that was stolen and barreling into Callin Hake for a charging call. With Rice having picked up her second foul, Close turned to freshman Elina Aarnisalo to run the offense for the final 7½ minutes of the second quarter before Rice returned with more composed play.
Even with Betts and Jaquez combining for 27 points in the first half on an almost perfect nine-for-11 shooting, Nebraska found enough counters to surge into a 39-38 lead late in the second quarter on Prince’s three-pointer.
Betts made sure the Bruins were on top at halftime by scoring on a put-back and blocking a shot by Alexis Markowski with four seconds left in the second quarter.
“Honestly, my main focus is to just disrupt people’s offense,” Betts said. “I wanted to make it as difficult as possible for them. Obviously, Markowski, she’s a great player and a lot of respect to her. I wanted to make it as difficult for them as possible tonight knowing that’s their go-to player.”
UCLA discovered that what it needed Friday was something it already had.
