Bruins Head to Pullman, Seek Regular Season Sweep of Cougars

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GAME INFORMATION
No. 5 UCLA (10-2, 8-2) vs. Washington State (8-6, 6-5)
Date: Friday, Feb. 5
Time: 12:00 p.m. PT
Location: Pullman, Wash. (Beasley Coliseum)
Watch: WSU Live Stream
Listen: ucla.leanplayer.com (Play-By-Play: Dave Marcus)

THIS WEEK'S MATCHUP: No. 5 UCLA vs. Washington State
UCLA is back in action on Friday, Feb. 5 with a matchup against Washington State in Pullman. Tip-off is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. PT. The action will be streamed on an in-house feed from WSU. Dave Marcus' radio broadcast can be heard at ucla.leanplayer.com. This is the second matchup of the year between the Bruins and Cougars, with UCLA securing a hard-fought, overtime victory on Jan. 17 (68-66). Charisma Osborne led all scores with 28 points.

A WIN WOULD...
• Improve the Bruins to 11-2 overall and 9-2 in Pac-12 play, and earn the Bruins their sixth-straight victory.
• Ensure a regular-season sweep of Washington State.
• Extend UCLA's winning streak over the Cougars to seven games, dating back to February 2017.

LAST TIME OUT: No. 5 UCLA 60, Arizona State 57 (Jan. 29)
Charisma Osborne poured in a game-high 27 points as the No. 5 UCLA women's basketball team held off Arizona State, 60-57, Friday evening at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. Osborne scored 13 points in the fourth quarter for the Bruins (10-2, 8-2 in Pac-12 play), who saw an 18-point lead erased over the course of the second and third quarters. Emily Bessor added 12 points off the bench. Osborne (3-4) and Bessoir (2-4) accounted for each of the team's made 3-pointers. Taya Hanson of the Sun Devils (8-5, 4-5) was the only other player to score in double figures during a game in which Arizona State shot 36% from the field (18 of 50) and UCLA just 32% (18 of 56). The Bruins converted seven of their final 13 shots, however, making the difference.

NOTES ON THE BRUINS
Individual Notes
• Michaela Onyenwere has scored 1,654 points in her UCLA career and is currently 14th on the program's all-time scoring list. Lisa Willis ('06) is 13th with 1,677 points. Ann Meyers Drysdale ('78) is 12th with 1,685 points.
• Charisma Osborne has recorded at least 20 points in each of her last five games, averaging 24.6 points in the stretch.
• Charisma Osborne leads the Pac-12 in scoring with 19.3 points per game.
• Michaela Onyenwere notched her 31st-career double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds against Stanford (Jan. 22).
• Michaela Onyenwere is fifth in the Pac-12 in scoring (17.1 ppg) and second in rebounding (8.8). She is the only player in the Conference in the top 5 in both categories.
• Charisma Osborne leads the Pac-12 in three-pointers made per game (2.83).

Team Notes
• UCLA enters Sunday's game at No. 5 in the AP Poll for the second-consecutive week; it is the 17th time in program history the Bruins have been ranked in the top five in the weekly national ranks.
• With the team's win over then-No. 8 Oregon (Jan. 3), the Bruins have now recorded a victory over a top-10 opponent in each of the last six seasons. UCLA's second top-10 road victory this season came against then-No. 5 Stanford (Jan. 22).
• UCLA is the only team with multiple players (Osborne, 1st - 19.3 ppg, Onyenwere, 5th - 17.1) among the Pac-12's top 5 scorers.
• UCLA leads the Pac-12 with four Player of the Week honorees (Osborne - Jan. 25 Chou - Jan. 11, Onyenwere - Jan. 4, Osborne - Nov. 30).
• UCLA is eighth in the country and leads the Pac-12 in offensive rebounds per game (17.2).
• The Bruins lead the Pac-12 in fewest turnovers per game (11.4), good for seventh in the country.
• UCLA is averaging 9.4 steals per contest, the second-most in the Pac-12.

WELCOME TO WESTWOOD, DOMINIQUE DARIUS
High school senior Dominique Darius has enrolled early at UCLA and has joined the women's basketball team's active roster, the team announced on Dec. 28. The Jacksonville, Fla., native is ranked 26th on ESPN's 2021 HoopGurlz Recruiting Rankings. She arrives in Westwood by way of Blair Academy (NJ), where she helped lead the Buccaneers to an NJISAA State title in 2020. As a junior, Darius put up 15.8 points per game in Blair's 26-5 campaign. She has scored 10 points across her first five games as a Bruin.

AP POLL PROMINENCE
The Bruins earned the No. 5 ranking in the most recent Associated Press (AP) Poll for the second-straight week. The Bruins are one of four Pac-12 teams that cracked the top 25 on the Feb. 1 edition of the poll, with Stanford (No. 6), Arizona (No. 9), and Oregon (No. 12) also joining the list. It's the 17th time in program history that the Bruins have been ranked in the top 5. UCLA has now been ranked in the AP Top 25 in 34 straight weeks and has secured a top-11 ranking in each of the last 31 weeks.

FRESHMAN PHENOM
UCLA freshman Emily Bessoir has already made a huge impact in her brief time with the program thus far. At 6'4", she is the tallest player on the Bruins' active roster and has a commanding presence in the post. That said, she has strong ball-handling skills and can lead a fastbreak for the Bruins off a rebound. Bessoir was named to ESPN's Newcomer Impact Rankings for the upcoming season. The Munich, Germany, native is averaging 9.0 points per game this season and has scored in double figures in five games this season.

WATCH LIST RECOGNITION
Senior forward Michaela Onyenwere and sophomore guard Charisma Osborne have been named to several preseason watch lists for various national awards. Both players were also named to the Preseason All-Pac-12 team.
• Onyenwere: Preseason AP All-American, Preseason All-Pac-12, Wooden Award (most outstanding player)Naismith Trophy Watch List (collegiate player of the year), Cheryl Miller Award Watch List (nation's best small forward)
• Osborne: Preseason All-Pac-12, Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Watch List (nation's best shooting guard)