UCLA clamps down after halftime, steamrolls Cal Baptist 96-43 in March Madness

By Canadian Press on March 21, 2026.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — After giving up five 3-pointers in a competitive first half, UCLA had seen enough. The Bruins allowed just one in a dominant second half on the way to a 96-43 rout of Cal Baptist in the opening round of March Madness on Saturday night.

The top-seeded Bruins (32-1) were led by Lauren Betts with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Kiki Rice had 18 points — making all 10 of her free throws — to go with seven assists as UCLA opened its bid to return to the Final Four for a second straight year.

UCLA advanced to a second-round matchup against Oklahoma State (24-9) on Monday.

Buoyed by their raucous fans who traveled 67 miles from Riverside, the scrappy Lancers (23-10) kept it close for 20 minutes. They led by three points early before UCLA’s 14-3 run put the Bruins back in front to end the first quarter ahead 23-15.

After two straight baskets by Betts pushed UCLA’s lead to 12, Chance Bucher hit back-to-back 3-pointers that got the Lancers within six early in the second quarter. Their sixth 3 of the half left Cal Baptist trailing by five before UCLA went into halftime ahead 44-34.

Then the Bruins got down to business.

They outscored the Lancers 52-9 over the final two quarters. Cal Baptist finished 6 of 30 from 3-point range.

Bucher had 11 points as the only player in double figures for the WAC regular season and tournament champion Lancers.

They were hampered when WAC defensive player of the year Emma Johansson picked up three fouls in nine minutes to start the game. She managed just one block after being the Division I leader in total blocks this season.

In 2024, the Lancers were making their NCAA Tournament debut and were beaten 84-55 by the Bruins at Pauley Pavilion.

Cal Baptist’s men’s team also made March Madness and lost to Kansas 68-65 on Friday.

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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

Beth Harris, The Associated Press

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