By no means was the feat easy. Reduced to seven players going up against 11, the UCLA women's basketball team put its fortitude to the test, countering brute and brawn with huffs and puffs in a high-octane 78-71 victory over San Diego State Wednesday night at Collins Court. The Bruins may have led by as many as 16 points (thanks to a whopping 22-0 run in the first half), but the game went down to the wire. In the end, it was Rebekah Gardner and Atonye Nyingifa who steered the team to victory, and not surprisingly, logged in the most minutes on the floor. Gardner (39 minutes) made her mark with 20 points and eight rebounds, while Nyingifa (38 minutes) notched her fourth double-double of the year with a career-high 21 points to go along with 11 rebounds.
In the spirit of the final exam craze creeping through the campus, the cram notes for tonight's game are as follows:
The Defense
Simply put, the Bruins can chalk this win to their ability to come through on the defensive end. The Aztecs jumped out to 6-0 lead to open the game, until of course the Bruins went on their 22-0 tear, one made possible by a series of steals and contested shots. And again, when San Diego State seemed to be the aggressor early in the second half, UCLA tightened the screws on defense.
"I give my assistant coaches a lot of credit. They suggested the adjustment with when we go to zone defense and when we go to player-to-player defense," coach Cori Close said. "And our players, they locked in mentally when we made those defensive shifts. They made the mental shifts with the assistant coaches, and that was the difference in the game."
The Size Disparity
It was quite clear the Aztecs had every intention of exploiting UCLA's shortage in players with their 11-player rotation, seven of whom fit under the "6-footer" category. Undoubtedly, SDSU's size advantage wore out the Bruins at periods in the game. But Mariah Williams may have summed it up best:
"I've been playing against players way bigger than me since I was two years old, so I'm used to it," the 5-foot-4 guard said. "But if you really want it more than the other team, height and size won't matter; there were a couple times when I was boxing out the biggest player out there. If you want it more, you go get it."
The Mariah Williams Effect
True to her words, Williams certainly wasn't shy about establishing a presence on the court. She may not exactly be billed as the Bruins' go-to scorer, but the junior guard made it a point to drive to the basket. She only shot 2-of-3 from the field, but drew plenty of contact, enough to go 7-of-8 from the free-throw line. Williams did have five turnovers, but certainly provided a needed spark with a season-high 11 points and four assists.
"After the West Virginia game, I re-evaluated how the season is going so far, and I think I can help this team by being more aggressive" Williams said. "The team depends on my defensive ability, but if I'm not a factor on the offensive end, it's pretty much 5-on-4 at that point, so me being aggressive on offense helps us a bit."
