LOS ANGELES (AP) — Lauren Betts had a career-high 22 points and 10 rebounds, and No. 3 UCLA pulled away in the fourth quarter to hold off Princeton 77-74 on Friday and avoid the upset bug among the top 10 teams in the AP poll.
Only No. 1 South Carolina and the Bruins (3-0) haven’t lost yet.
The Bruins (4-0) got their toughest test yet after opening the season with three blowouts in which their average margin of victory was 43 points.
Charisma Osborne scored 13 of her 21 points in the fourth for UCLA. Kiki Rice added 13 points and Gabriela Jaquez had 11 points.
The Tigers (2-1) were led by Kaitlyn Chen with 24 points and Skye Belker with 20 points. Chen is a senior from nearby San Marino and Belker is a freshman from Los Angeles. Madison St. Rose added 15 points and freshman Mari Bickley had 10.
The Tigers fell to 3-31 all-time against nationally ranked teams, but they didn’t go away easily.
Chen and Bickley combined to score six in a row for a 66-64 lead in the fourth, when it was a two-point game most of the way.
Osborne made a 3-pointer and the Bruins made 9 of 10 free throws for a 76-72 lead.
The Tigers closed to 76-74. Chen missed a jumper and Osborne picked up her fourth foul on St. Rose, who made both free throws. The Tigers fouled Rice, who made the first and missed the second with five seconds left. Chen wasn’t close on a potential tying 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Princeton ran off seven in a row to lead 49-43 in the third. The Bruins answered with a 13-7 run to close the quarter, capped by two free throws from Rice that tied it at 56-all. Betts scored nine in the spurt, including seven in a row.
Down nine points in the first quarter, the Tigers came roaring back. They outscored UCLA 27-15 in the second to lead 35-32 at halftime. Belker and Bickley combined to score 15 of Princeton’s final 17 points going into the break.
BIG PICTURE
Princeton: The Tigers are looking to make back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances and they withstood the pressure down the stretch on the road.
UCLA: The Bruins kept their cool when it came down to the finish even though their veteran leader Osborne wasn’t much of a factor early.
UP NEXT
Princeton: Visits San Diego on Sunday in the third of five straight away games.
UCLA: Plays No. 8 UConn on Nov. 24 in the first of two games in the Cayman Islands.
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AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball
