Lauren Betts is hoping to exact revenge when UCLA takes on USC on Saturday evening in not only the battle for bragging rights in Southern California, but to determine the winner of the Big Ten.
The winner of the game will go on to claim the Big Ten regular season championship crown before what should be one of the more exciting college basketball playoffs in years. The Bruins did not only lose just their last game to the Trojans, but have lost their last three against their Los Angeles rivals, but come in to the winner-takes-all game as the betting favorites.
Both Betts and USC’s JuJu Watkins dominated in their last game, but it was Wooden Award favorite Watkins who led her team to the win, scoring 38 points and having 11 rebounds in a nine-point win.
Betts had 18 points and 13 rebounds in the game, but it wasn’t enough as they fell to a disappointing loss… something she has not forgotten about as she warned they have learned important lessons from that contest.
Betts said: “I’m excited for our team to redeem ourselves. I think we learned a lot from the last time we played them. We’ve gotten so much better.”
The game will be a sold-out affair on Saturday evening, with thousands sure to be tuning in to the huge game in Los Angeles.
“That gets me very excited about where we’ve brought the entire game,” UCLA coach Cori Close said Friday after practice. “Little kids, this is going to be all they know, is that the best college women’s basketball is being played through LA.”
UCLA Bruins center Lauren Betts will need another big performance for her team to end it’s drought against USC
The Trojans (25-2, 16-1) are 4-1 against Top 10 opponents – their only loss coming to USC in the game last month, while being 2-0 on the road against such opposition this season.
Watkins and Betts are both having sensational seasons, and both are set to return to college basketball for the 2025/26 season.
The former is in just her sophomore season, putting in a dominant year with the Trojans, while Betts has decided to return to school for her senior year instead of entering the WNBA Draft.
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