UCLA beats Texas 51–44 in Final Four to advance to first NCAA women's national title game 2026.
CLEVELAND — For the first time in program history, UCLA is heading to the NCAA women’s championship game — and they got there with grit, defense and one massive block.
Texas had clawed back to within three in the final seconds Friday night when UCLA center Lauren Betts erased a would-be Madison Booker layup with just 18.1 seconds left, sealing a bruising 51–44 victory at Mortgage Matchup Arena.
“My job today was to help however I could in the paint,” Betts said, laughing as she recalled the game-saving stop. “As soon as I saw her coming downhill, I thought, ‘Please block this. Don’t let her score.’”
Betts delivered far more than a single moment. The 6-foot-7 sophomore, who transferred from Stanford, finished with a 16-point, 11-rebound double-double and added three blocks in the defensive slugfest.
Neither team found much rhythm offensively — UCLA shot 41%, while Texas managed just 31%. But the Longhorns stayed close by forcing 23 UCLA turnovers, turning them into 15 points. UCLA countered with its own defensive pressure, holding Texas star Madison Booker to 3-for-23 shooting.
“It definitely was not a pretty game,” UCLA coach Cori Close admitted. “I wanted to apologize to the fans for the rugby match and the 23 turnovers. But credit to Texas — they forced us into that kind of battle.”
Booker said she was baffled by her off night but grateful for her teammates’ support.
“Every shot felt good coming off my hand,” she said. “It just felt weird when they didn’t fall.”
Longhorns point guard Rori Harmon came to her defense.
Texas ends its season 35–4, falling in the national semifinals for the second straight year.
UCLA now turns its attention to a powerhouse matchup: South Carolina, which snapped UConn’s remarkable 54-game winning streak in the other semifinal. The Bruins will play for their first national title Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET.
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