No. 15 Bruins Make Quick Trip to Santa Barbara Saturday

by uclabruins.com
Dec 2, 2022

LOS ANGELES – The No. 15 UCLA Women's Basketball team (7-1) head up to Santa Barbara to take on the Gauchos (5-1) on Saturday, Dec. 3, at 7 p.m. PST. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ and broadcast to UCLA's digital radio station, which you can listen to here.
 
GAME INFORMATION
 
Venue: The Thunderdome
Location: Santa Barbara, Calif.
Tip-off Time: 7 p.m. PST
TV: ESPN+
TV Talent: Max Kelton (PxP)
Radio: ucla.leanplayer.com
Radio Talent: Dave Marcus (PxP)
 
LAST TIME OUT (at No. 1 South Carolina, Nov. 29)
 
The Bruins played in front of a crowd of 12,501 inside Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, S.C. against the top-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks on Tuesday, Nov. 29. UCLA led through the first half before South Carolina tied the game to end the third, marking the start of a one-quarter battle for the game. Despite its best effort, UCLA was outsized and outscored 26-17 in the fourth quarter, dropping to the Gamecocks 64-73 in the top-15 matchup.
 
KEY NOTES ON THE BRUINS

• UCLA has made 127 free throws through eight games (2nd - Pac-12, 10th - NCAA), shooting 76.5% on the year (127-for-166 FT). The Bruins rank 16th in the nation in offensive rebounds per game (16.2), trailing only Washington (17.0) in the Pac-12.
• Charisma Osborne has scored a conference-high 165 points (10th in the NCAA) through eight games, averaging 20.6 ppg (T-1st - Pac-12, 16th - NCAA). She is first in both field goal attempts (128) and field goals made (57) in the Pac-12. Osborne ranks 2nd in minutes played (266), 3rd in FTM (36) and 4th in FT% (87.8%), 3PM (15), and defensive rebounds (47) in the Conference. She also ranks 8th in total rebounds (56) and 10th in rebounds per game (7.0 rpg) in the Pac-12.
• Kiki Rice has started all eight games of her first collegiate season, averaging 29.9 minutes per game, and is immediately impacting the game. The freshman floor general leads the team in assists with 3.5 apg (T-6th in Pac-12). Rice ranks 2nd in the Conference, 12th in the nation for assists among first year players.
• Redshirt-sophomore Emily Bessoir continues to be a key contributor in the frontcourt for the Bruins as a versatile stretch big. The German forward ranks third on the team in points (8.8 ppg) and 3rd in rebounds (4.9 rpg) in 25.6 minutes per game. Bessoir has knocked down 11 three-pointers out of her 34 attempts (.324 3FG%).
• Graduate transfer Gina Conti suited up in the starting lineup for the first time in a Bruin uniform on Nov. 13 versus Troy and has since made six consecutive starts for UCLA. Her starting lineup appearance vs. No. 11/12 Tennessee marked Conti's 100th career start. Conti had a season-high 6 assists in UCLA's 72-60 win over Jackson State (Nov. 25) and has led the team in assists on three occassions through the first month of play. Conti ranks 4th in the Pac-12 in assist/turnover ratio (2.20 A/TO).
 
BRUINS AMONG THE RANKS
 
• After beginning the season unranked for the first time since the 2015-16 season, the Bruins found their way back into both the Associated Press (AP) Poll (No. 20, Week 3 - Nov. 21, 2022) and the USA Today Coaches Poll (No. 21, Week 3 - Nov. 22, 2022) to start the third week of the 2022-23 season.
• UCLA handled No. 11/12 Tennessee on Nov. 20 (W, 80-63) for its first ranked win since Feb. 19, 2021 when the Bruins took down then-No. 13 Oregon 83-56 inside Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom.
• The Bruins cracked the top 15 in Week 4 of the AP Poll, sitting at the No. 15 spot after taking down Marquette in the championship game of the Women's Battle 4 Atlantis Tournament (W - OT, 66-58) and Jackson State at home (W, 72-60).
• Marquette has broken into the top 25 in both the AP Poll (No. 24) and USA Today Coaches Poll (No. 24) after battling the Bruins in overtime in The Bahamas.
• The Pac-12 boasts five programs in the top 25 in both the AP and USA Today Coaches polls (No. 2/2 Stanford, No. 14/13 Arizona, No. 15/17 UCLA, No. 16/16 Utah, No. 19/19 Oregon).
 
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
 
The UCLA women's basketball team is scheduled to play a 30-game regular-season campaign. The Bruins will host 16 home games throughout the season, play 11 games on the road, and participate in three contests at a neutral site (the team played in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in The Bahamas in mid-November).
 
UCLA's complete 2022-23 women's basketball schedule is available here.