Gabriela Jaquez Shines as UCLA’s Depth Overwhelms Purdue
LOS ANGELES - Gabriela Jaquez is putting together the kind of senior season that turns heads - and not just because of her name. The UCLA forward has been steadily expanding her game all year, but Wednesday night’s performance against Purdue was something else entirely. This wasn’t just a good night - it was a clinic.
Jaquez poured in a team-high 25 points and did it with surgical precision. She missed just one shot all night, going 10-for-11 from the field, drilling all three of her three-point attempts, and knocking down both of her free throws. It was the kind of efficient, confident scoring that makes you sit up and take notice.
“Shooting the shots that I’ve practiced all the time and I got a lot on transition, which is my favorite way to score,” Jaquez said postgame. “When you get in a rhythm, see the ball go into the basket a couple times, you feel it. I think I just felt it and had a good rhythm tonight and the ball went in.”
That rhythm? It’s becoming a theme.
A Bruin Arsenal That Keeps Getting Deeper
Jaquez’s emergence as a perimeter threat is just one piece of the puzzle for a UCLA team that looks more dangerous by the week. Last season, the Bruins leaned heavily on the dominant presence of 6-foot-7 center Lauren Betts, who could tilt the floor in UCLA’s favor just by stepping into the paint. And she’s still doing that - her size, touch, and instincts make her a matchup nightmare down low.
But now, the Bruins have surrounded Betts with a fleet of scorers who can burn you from just about anywhere on the floor.
Kiki Rice continues to be a steady contributor, but the additions of graduate guard Gianna Kneepkens and senior guard Charlisse Leger-Walker have added serious firepower. Kneepkens dropped 14 points on Wednesday, while Leger-Walker chipped in 15. Both can stretch the defense from deep, and when you combine that with Jaquez’s hot hand, it’s a pick-your-poison situation for opposing defenses.
“I think it’s just really hard for other teams to guard us when they’re so focused on double-teams, triple-teams [on Betts] when we have such threats on the perimeter,” Betts said. “It’s just really tough to guard them and I’m glad they’re all on my team.”
It’s not just the volume of options - it’s how seamlessly they fit together. Betts draws attention in the post, and the shooters make you pay for it.
If you stay home on the perimeter, Betts goes to work inside. It’s a classic inside-out attack, and when it’s clicking, it’s nearly impossible to stop.
Still Room to Grow - and That’s the Scary Part
UCLA’s 96-48 win over Purdue was as lopsided as the score suggests, but head coach Cori Close wasn’t ready to hand out gold stars across the board. Even on a night when the Bruins honored the legacy of John Wooden, Close was laser-focused on the details - especially on the defensive end.
She liked what she saw in terms of deflections and activity, but the third quarter raised a red flag. That’s when Purdue managed to put up 18 points - their best stretch of the game - and Close wasn’t thrilled with the way her team responded.
“We cannot have a lack of discipline. Period,” Close said.
“I need to be able to count on this group to do your job and you saw that in the third quarter. It was a lackadaisical sort of, we were behind every play.
It’s very difficult. If it was easy, a lot of teams would do it.”
That’s the mindset of a coach who knows her team is good - and wants them to be great. UCLA is now 18-1 overall and a perfect 8-0 in conference play. Ranked No. 3 in the country, they’re playing with the kind of confidence and cohesion that makes them a legitimate national title contender.
But Close isn’t letting them get comfortable. Not with March looming.
The Bottom Line
Gabriela Jaquez is blossoming into a complete scorer at exactly the right time, and UCLA’s offense is operating like a well-oiled machine. With Betts anchoring the paint and a cadre of shooters spacing the floor, the Bruins are a matchup nightmare. And if they can clean up the lapses on the defensive end, this team has the tools - and the mindset - to make a serious run.
For now, they’ll take the win. But don’t mistake dominance for satisfaction. In Westwood, the bar is set higher - and this team knows it.