Bruins Down CSUN, 73-46, at Pauley
LOS ANGELES – UCLA outscored CSUN, 60-29 in the final three quarters and surged to a strong victory over the Matadors by a score of 73-46 on Thursday evening at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. IImar'I Thomas recorded her 39th-career game with at least 20 points, tallying a game-high 21. Charisma Osborne added 19 points, eight rebounds, and four assists in the victory.
The teams exchanged baskets to start the game before Osborne canned a triple to put the Bruins up, 5-2 (8:13). Both offenses stalled ahead of the first media timeout, with UCLA holding an 8-5 advantage at the 4:40 mark. The Matadors went on to score back-to-back buckets in the paint to tie the game, forcing a timeout from The Michael Price Family UCLA Women's Head Basketball Coach Cori Close. CSUN knocked down a pair of triples following the timeout and took a 17-11 lead before Osborne answered with a mid-range jumper to end the quarter.
CSUN scored first in the second quarter by way of a jumper from Jordyn Jackson (8:46). Izzy Anstey responded with a clean jumper and Thomas converted inside to cut the Matadors' lead to 19-17 (7:16). CSUN was strong from long range in the second quarter, hitting a pair of triples to take a 25-19 lead midway through the frame. Chantel Horvat gave the Bruins a spark off the bench, converting a strong baseline drive to make it a four-point game. Osborne hit free throws on back-to-back possessions to put the Bruins back ahead, 27-26 (2:23). UCLA continued to surge and ended the half with a triple from Dominique Onu, putting the Bruins up, 34-26, after the first 20 minutes.
The Bruins ended the first half on a 13-0 run in the final 3:06. Osborne connected on seven free throws in the opening 20 minutes and finished with 12 points.
Over two minutes elapsed before CSUN scored the first bucket of the third quarter, a lay-in from Kayanna Spriggs. Osborne immediately answered with a layup of her own and followed with her second triple of the ballgame, putting the Bruins ahead, 39-30 (6:10). The Bruins led by five before Horvat converted a three-point play to make it 42-34 with 3:55 to play in the frame. Buckets from Thomas and Osborne pushed the lead to 50-34 before Anaiyah Tu'ua stopped the bleeding with a short jumper. Thomas continued her dominant quarter with a layup inside to make it 52-36 after three.
A triple from Jaelynn Penn put the Bruins ahead, 57-38 at the 7:02 mark in the fourth. UCLA continued to break the game open, leading 61-43 before Jaelynn Penn put in a layup off a turnover (4:04). The Bruins went on to close out the contest and won by a score of 73-46.
Up Next
The Bruins are back in action at Pauley Pavilion with a matchup against Virginia on Sunday, Nov. 21. Tip-off is scheduled for 3:00pm PT on Pac-12 Network.