In a matchup that had all the makings of a trap game, the No. 4 UCLA women’s basketball team is the one that pounced Wednesday.
Coming off a victory at No. 19 Ohio State and days before a crosstown showdown with No. 17 USC, the Bruins jumped all over Penn State for a 97-61 Big Ten victory in University Park, Pa.
The Bruins (13-1, 3-0 Big Ten) have won seven in a row since suffering a 75-56 loss to current No. 2 Texas on Nov. 26 in Las Vegas.
Center Lauren Betts, who had 16 points at the half, led the Bruins with 25 points on 11-of-19 shooting and seven rebounds. Gianna Kneepkens paced the Bruins from long range, her 5-of-9 shooting from beyond the arc part of her 17 points and UCLA’s 50% (9 for 18) shooting from deep.
UCLA, which shot 53% (36 of 68) from the field, needed less than three minutes to jump out to a 13-2 advantage and never looked back. By the time the first quarter had ended, the lead had blossomed to 29-12.
Back-to-back layups by Amanda Muse midway through the second quarter ran the score to 40-16, UCLA’s biggest lead of the first half.
That grew even more in the third quarter, the Bruins pushing it to a 30-point lead on Betts’ short jumper with 1:49 left as part of a 9-0 run to finish the frame.
Guard play was significant for UCLA. Kiki Rice finished with 16 points and six assists. Clarisse Leger-Walker scored just two points but dished out eight assists without a turnover in 22 minutes. The Bruins committed just eight turnovers to the Nittany Lions’ 18.
Gracie Merkle scored 15 points to lead Penn State (7-7, 0-3), which made just 4 of 19 (21%) of its 3-pointers.
The Bruins will come home and turn their attention to the Trojans (10-3, 2-0), whom they host at 5 p.m. Saturday at Pauley Pavilion. USC is coming off a 74-66 victory against previously unbeaten No. 20 Nebraska.