PASADENA, CA – Trailing by as many as 11 in the fourth quarter, No. 22 Arizona Women’s Basketball (17-5, 7-4) rallied to beat No. 14 UCLA (17-6, 6-5) by a 71-66 final.
Entering Friday night’s action hoping to rebound from their loss to Washington State, No. 22 Arizona Basketball returned to the hardwood with a tough test at hand against No. 14 UCLA.
Traveling to Pasadena to take on conference foe, UCLA, the Wildcats were looking for another marquee win on the season.
Despite trailing for much of the game, the Wildcats used a hot fourth quarter in which they scored 19 points and shot a combined 43.8 percent from the field, including 1-3 (33.3) from three. Erasing an 11-point deficit, the Wildcat beat UCLA with an impressive, 71-66 overtime win.
Overall, it was a combined effort in this one as the Wildcats had three players finish in double-figures; however, it was Arizona’s Shaina Pellington who led the way, scoring 21 points, three rebounds, and three assists on 8-17 shooting.
Despite No. 14 UCLA leading for most of the game, No. 22 Arizona Women’s Basketball used a strong fourth-quarter surge to come away with the win.
Looking to get back on track after their loss to Washington State, the Wildcats had a significant challenge on their hands as they took on the No. 14-ranked Bruins!
And from the tip, the Wildcats felt the fight from UCLA. Falling behind by as many as five in the first quarter, the Wildcats’ offense struggled to generate points as the shots did not fall.
Unfortunately in the second quarter, Arizona’s offensive woes continued, especially as the Wildcats fell behind by as many as 12 before Arizona responded with a 7-1 run to close out the quarter to make it 29-23 at halftime.
Hoping to shake off the rust a bit, the Wildcats responded in a big way in the second half, opening the third quarter with a 9-2 run to take the lead at 32-31. Unfortunately, UCLA would pull away a bit, outscoring Arizona 18-10 over the final 6:58 in the quarter to lead 49-42.
Needing to show a bit of life in the fourth quarter, unfortunately, it was the Bruins who would continue their strong play, building a 61-50 lead with 4:49 to play.
With things looking bleak, Arizona’s offense finally came alive, closing the game out on an 11-0 run to send this one to overtime!
Hoping to carry that momentum into OT, the Wildcats got the lead from the tip and never looked back, outscoring the Bruins 10-5 in the quarter to come away with the hard-fought, 71-66 win!
ROAD. WARRIORS.#MadeForIt x #LeaveALegacy pic.twitter.com/iN2vcQzviJ
— Arizona Basketball (@ArizonaWBB) February 4, 2023
With the victory, the Wildcats improve to 17-5 (7-4) on the season and will resume basketball action on Sunday when they complete their conference road trip against Southern California! Tip-off against the Trojans is set for 1:00 PM MST.
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