INDIANAPOLIS — Big Ten Player of the Year Lauren Betts had 26 points and eight rebounds and Kiki Rice added 18 points and six assists to help No. 2 UCLA overcome a sluggish start and beat Washington 78-60 in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals on Friday.
The regular-season champion and top-seeded Bruins (29-1) won their 23rd consecutive game, matching last season’s mark for the longest winning streak in school history. UCLA also has won 22 straight Big Ten games, a streak that began with last year’s march to the conference tournament crown.
The Bruins will play No. 11 Ohio State (26-6) in Saturday’s first semifinal (1 p.m., BTN).
Avery Howell scored 18 points to lead the Huskies (21-10). Brynn McGaughy had 12 points and all-conference guard Sayvia Sellers had 10 points on 3-of-11 shooting after scoring 25 in Thursday’s win over USC. Washington had a two-game winning streak snapped with its second loss to the Bruins this season.
Still, this game didn’t follow the expected script in front of a sparse, midday crowd in Indianapolis.
Washington charged out to a 13-6 lead after one quarter and UCLA coach Cori Close called timeout when the Huskies extended the margin to 22-12 with 6:26 left in the second.
The game then turned quickly. UCLA responded to the stoppage with 15 consecutive points while allowing just one basket the rest of the half as they rallied to take a 27-24 halftime lead.
The Huskies started fast again in the third quarter, retaking a 34-33 lead on Elle Ladine’s 3-pointer.
But Kiki Rice answered with the Bruins’ first 3 of the game before making two free throws, and Betts scored in the post to give UCLA a 40-34 edge. Washington continued to stay close — until UCLA closed the quarter with a 7-0 spurt to make it 49-41 and pulled away in the fourth.
Ohio State 60, Minnesota 55
Elsa Lemmila had 17 points and 11 rebounds, Jaloni Cambridge also scored 17 and No. 11 Ohio State beat No. 19 Minnesota in Friday’s second quarterfinal.
Fourth-seeded Ohio State (26-6) plays No. 1 seed and second-ranked UCLA — which beat the Buckeyes 82-75 on Dec. 28 — in a semifinal Saturday.
Cambridge added six assists, five rebounds and three steals. Chance Gray hit three 3-pointers and finished with 13 points.
Mara Braun hit a 3-pointer that cut Minnesota’s deficit to 58-55 with 1:32 left in the game. Neither team scored again until Cambridge made a jumper with 16 seconds left.
Grace Grocholski led No. 5 seed Minnesota (22-9) with 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Sophie Hart had 12 points and a career-high 19 rebounds and Amaya Battle added 10 points. Hart has 1,000 career points, 966 for the Gophers. Tori McKinney had two points on 1-for-4 shooting in just 16 foul-plagued minutes.
Kennedy Cambridge had six of Ohio State’s 12 steals and added five points, four assists and three rebounds.
Ohio State, which lost 71-64 at Minnesota on Feb. 18, has won 10 of 11 against the Gophers and leads the series 66-17, 11-2 at neutral sites.
Big Ten Tournament schedule
Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
Friday’s quarterfinals
- (1) UCLA 78, (8) Washington 60
- (5) Ohio State 60, (4) Minnesota 55
- (2) Iowa vs. (10) Illinois, 5:30 p.m.
- (3) Michigan vs. (11) Oregon, 8 p.m. (approx.)
Saturday’s semifinals
Games on BTN and the Fox Sports app
- UCLA vs. Ohio State, 1 p.m.
- Iowa/Illinois winner vs. Michigan/Oregon winner, 3:30 p.m. (approx.)
Sunday’s final
- Semifinal winners, 1:15 p.m., CBS-2
