Sports
UCLA opens its NCAA tournament title bid with dominant win over California Baptist
The adage goes, it doesn’t have to be pretty. But for the UCLA women’s basketball team, that’s not the philosophy. Coach Cori Close preaches thriving, not surviving, and that’s been evident in the Bruins’ lopsided victory margin all season.
That’s why leading by 10 points at halftime against a No. 16 seed was likely alarming. So much so that UCLA locked in for a 31-4 third quarter in one of its most dominant periods all season en route to a first-round NCAA tournament win.
UCLA (32-1) took down California Baptist 96-43 at Pauley Pavilion, advancing to Monday’s second-round contest against No. 8 seed Oklahoma State (24-9) for a spot in the Sweet 16.
Senior Lauren Betts earned a double-double with 22 points with 10 rebounds, while her sister, freshman Sienna Betts, had her first career double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
UCLA center Lauren Betts drives against California Baptist forward Grace Schmidt in the first half Saturday.
(Jessie Alcheh / Associated Press)
“I think in the locker room, it was made very clear to us that we needed to do a better job, and that was before the coaches came in,” said Angela Dugalic (10 points, 11 rebounds). “We took accountability of what we needed to fix, which was a lot of things, honestly.
“All my teammates, from seniors to [sophomore] Amanda [Muse] even said something. And Sienna.”
It was the Bruins’ 26th consecutive win, with the team’s most recent loss in November against fellow No. 1 seed Texas.
California Baptist (23-11) had the eighth-worst NET ranking of any NCAA tournament team, but the Lancers have a couple of areas where they excel. It was not enough to beat a No. 1 seed that just needed some time to shake off the rust, but it was enough to fend off a more lopsided score other No. 16 seeds endured across the nation.
“In my opinion, that’s the best team in the country,” Lancers coach Jarrod Olson said. “… For 20 minutes, we gave them all they could handle.”
A No. 16 seed has not upset a No. 1 seed in the women’s NCAA tournament since 1998.
The Bruins took the lead with 3:51 left in the first quarter as a part of a 10-0 run after starting the game one for five. While the Lancers clawed back to within five points, the gap only widened from there.
“We did need to come out more aggressive,” said Charlisse Leger-Walker (eight points, five rebounds, five assists). “I think we were having too many mental lapses in the scout and how we wanted to game plan. We kind of felt that momentum from the first half, and they were true to how the scout was for them, and hitting a lot of three-pointers, we were on the back foot a little bit.”
But, as California Baptist’s Chance Bucher (team-high 11 points) said after the game, the Bruins are a No. 1 seed for a reason.
UCLA’s size overwhelmed California Baptist, whose tallest player is 6-foot-3 Emma Johansson. Johansson, who entered Saturday second in the country with 2.86 blocks per game, picked up just one block and one rebound with four fouls. The Bruins’ 62-21 rebounding advantage came from the significant height gap across all positions. UCLA also nabbed a season-high 21 offensive boards.
“I’m really proud of that,” Sienna Betts said. “Offense is not always going to fall and not always going to be perfect, and it’s important to be able to rely on the little things and crash like that.”
UCLA guard Kiki Rice consults with coach Cori Close on a play against California Baptist at Pauley Pavilion on Saturday.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
The Bruins finished with 54 points in the paint to the Lancers’ 14, along with 30 second-chance points compared to California Baptist’s eight.
The Lancers rely heavily on their three-point shot, with the eighth-most in the NCAA at 28.3 attempts per game. They went six for 30 (20%) from deep, which kept the deficit from getting out of hand early, but the Lancers couldn’t maintain their early strong shooting pace.
UCLA started the third quarter on a 15-0 run. The Lancers didn’t score until the 7:20 mark. The Bruins shot 10 for 16 from the field and their 31 points were tied for their second most in a quarter this season. They finished the game on a 21-2 run.
“Unfortunately,” Olson said, “Whatever Cori said to them at halftime, it kind of got them going in the second half, we had a hard time scoring.”
The million dollar question: what did Close say to get the Bruins back on track?
“It was spirited,” Close said. “It was spirited. It was unacceptable. It’s not the fact that we missed shots. Those are not the things that get me really fired up. It’s when we don’t execute the scouting report; when we are lackadaisical; when we don’t communicate; when we are not connected.”
California Baptist’s 25% shooting from the floor was the lowest field-goal percentage UCLA has allowed all season, but they shot 38% in the first half, including 37.5% from three-point range, which negated having fewer possessions.
“You have to respect everyone, no matter what number is in front of their names,” Gianna Kneepkens said. “It really doesn’t matter, because like if you lose, you’re done, the stakes are automatically higher no matter what.”
On Monday, the Bruins will face a Power Four conference foe coming off an impressive first-round performance. The Bruins are 1-1 all-time against Oklahoma State, having last met in a 71-59 win in 2018.
The Cowgirls, who have the 29th-best NET ranking, are led by forward Achol Akot, who paced Oklahoma State with 28 points in its first-round win over Princeton. They have the 14th-best offense in the nation, averaging 81.5 points per game.
That will be a much more engaging matchup for the Bruins’ interior players, who won’t get a half to get back into the game.
On Saturday, even as one of the most experienced teams in the nation, UCLA got an important reminder.
“It’s March Madness,” Kneepkens said. “That means anything can happen.”
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Los Angeles Rams star Puka Nacua has reportedly been accused of biting a woman and making anti-Semitic comments, according to TMZ.
The woman made the allegations in a rejected application for a temporary restraining order after an alleged incident on Dec. 31 in Los Angeles.
Nacua’s attorney, Levi McCathern, said, according to TMZ, that “the whole claim is nothing more than a shakedown attempt” and that the bite “left nothing more than a temporary mark.”
NFL Network reporter Jamie Erdahl interviews Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua (17) after the game against the Arizona Cardinals in the second half at SoFi Stadium on Dec. 28, 2024 in Inglewood, California. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
A hearing is scheduled for April 14.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Nacua’s agent and the Rams for comment.
Nacua previously apologized for performing an “antisemitic” act on a YouTube stream in December.
UPSCALE SHOPPING DISTRICT ROCKED BY ALLEGED ANTISEMITIC BEATING AS LAWYER, 2 OTHERS CHARGED
Puka Nacua of the Los Angeles Rams reacts during the second quarter against the Indianapolis Colts at SoFi Stadium on Sept. 28, 2025 in Inglewood, California. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Nacua discussed touchdown celebrations on YouTuber Adin Ross’ stream, as Nacua’s Rams are set for a Thursday night affair in Seattle against the Seahawks.
Many, however, believed the celebration perpetuated a harmful anti-Jewish stereotype.
In the video, Ross instructed Nacua to spike the ball, flex and then rub his hands together. Ross, who is Jewish, has referred to the movement as his own “dance” or “emote.”
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua reacts following an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Inglewood, Calif. The Rams won 44-42. (Eric Thayer/AP Photo)
Nacua received overwhelming pushback and issued an apology Thursday, hours before his Rams took on the Seattle Seahawks.
“When I appeared the other day on a social media livestream, it was suggested to me to perform a specific movement as part of my next touchdown celebration. At the time, I had no idea this act was antisemitic in nature and perpetuated harmful stereotypes against Jewish people,” Nacua said in a “Stand Up to Jewish Hate” graphic. “I deeply apologize to anyone who was offended by my actions as I do not stand for any form of racism, bigotry or hate of another group of people.”
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL, SOFTBALL SCORES
Tuesday’s Results
BASEBALL
CITY SECTION
El Camino Real 8, Birmingham 3
SOUTHERN SECTION
AAE 19, Victor Valley Christian 5
Adelanto 11, Silverado 3
Alhambra 8, Bell Gardens 0
Aliso Niguel 7, Tesoro 4
Arcadia 10, Pasadena 0
Alta Loma 6, Colony 5
Beverly Hills 5, Lawndale 4
Buena 4, Ventura 0
Burbank Burroughs 6, Muir 0
Cajon 7, Riverside Prep 3
Calabasas 10, Thousand Oaks 9
Capistrano Valley 14, El Toro 8
Capistrano Valley Christian 6, Western Christian 4
Cathedral 1, Bishop Montgomery 0
Cerritos 7, Artesia 0
Charter Oak 13, Walnut 5
Chino 5, Montclair 4
Chino Hills 12, La Serna 3
CIMSA 12, Silver Valley 5
Claremont 12, Rowland 0
Colton 5, Fontana 2
Culver City 11, Inglewood 3
Damien 8, La Habra 3
Desert Christian 6, Vasquez 1
Desert Hot Springs 5, Banning 4
Diamond Bar 7, Knight 0
Don Lugo 11, Diamond Ranch 1
Downey Calvary Chapel 7, Fairmont Prep 6
El Modena 3, Villa Park 0
Elsinore 9, Temescal Canyon 1
Environmental Charter 17, Compton Early College 7
Fallbrook 8, Rancho Buena Vista 5
Firebaugh 6, Lynwood 5
Fountain Valley 1, Corona del Mar 0
Fullerton 7, Ocean View 5
Glenn 4, Whitney 3
Grace 14, Cate 2
Granite Hills 6, Victor Valley 1
Hawthorne 3, Compton Centennial 2
Irvine 3, Woodbridge 2
Laguna Beach 17, St. Margaret’s 2
Laguna Hills 3, Costa Mesa 1
La Mirada 5, Gahr 1
La Salle 15, Gardena Serra 0
La Sierra 11, West Valley 2
Los Alamitos 4, Marina 0
Los Altos 13, West Covina 2
Los Amigos 15, Santa Ana Valley 9
Magnolia 8, Graden Grove Santiago 4
Maranatha 14, Heritage Christian 2
Mary Star of the Sea 23, St. Genevieve 11
Montebello 13, Mark Keppel 0
Murrieta Valley 6, Murrieta Mesa 5
Newport Harbor 9, Edison 0
Norte Vista 22, Bethel Christian 1
Norwalk 7, Mayfair 4
Nuview Bridge 20, California Military Institute 0
Oaks Christian 5, Newbury Park 2
Oakwood 15, Milken 10
Ontario 5, Chaffey 0
Orange 7, Anaheim 5
Oxnard 3, Santa Barbara 1
Oxnard Pacifica 9, Rio Mesa 2
PACS 14, Faith Baptist 3
Paraclete 13, St. Anthony 1
Paramount 9, Dominguez 6
Riverside North 5, Vista del Lago 1
Rosamond 2, California City 1
Royal 8, Foothill Tech 1
Sage Hill 1, Irvine University 0
San Juan Hills 3, Mission Viejo 2
San Marino 4, Monrovia 1
Santa Monica 10, Leuzinger 1
Savanna 7, Loara 5
Schurr 10, San Gabriel 0
Segerstrom 8, Buena Park 6
Shalhevet 7, Animo leadership 0
Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 10, Crespi 0
Sierra Canyon 8, Chaminade 2
South Hills 4, San Dimas 0
St. Bernard 5, Bishop Amat 4
St. Bonaventure 8, Thacher 3
St. Francis 6, Alemany 4
St. Monica 21, Pasadena Marshall 3
St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy 19, Verbum Dei 0
Tahquitz 3, San Jacinto 1
Temecula Prep 16, United Christian Academy 4
Temecula Valley 13, Chaparral 0
Trabuco Hills 8, San Clemente 1
Tustin 11, Santa Ana Calvary Chapel 6
Village Christian 13, Valley Christian 11
Vista Murrieta 4, Great Oak 2
Warren 2, Bellflower 0
Westlake 2, Agoura 1
Westminster La Quinta 7, Century 2
Whittier Christian 11, St. Paul 3
YULA 8, Santa Monica Pacifica Christian 7
INTERSECTIONAL
Anza Hamilton 17, Bonsall 7
Bishop Union 11, Frazier Mountain 0
Boron 17, Desert 1
Carson 4, Ramona 3
Eastvale Roosevelt 3, Nevada McQueen 1
Esperanza 14, Arkansas Prairie Grove 4
Grand Terrace 6, Nevada McQueen 0
Immanuel Christian 21, Trona 9
Missouri Lincoln 13, Grand Terrace 1
Northview 10, Spanish Springs 4
Oregon Lakeridge 5, La Palma Kennedy 4
Oregon West Linn 3, Citrus Valley 2
Quartz Hill 15, Oregon Bend 2
SOFTBALL
CITY SECTION
CALS Early College 0, East College Prep 0
Central City Value 40, Discovery 11
SOUTHERN SECTION
Alemany 4, Vasquez 0
Aliso Niguel 11, Redondo Union 4
Anaheim Canyon 7, Segerstrom 1
Ayala 5, Bonita 0
Banning 8, Desert Hot Springs 3
Barstow 14, Ridgecrest Burroughs 7
Beaumont 6, Rancho Cucamonga 2
Bell Gardens 14, San Gabriel 3
Bethel Christian 26, Norte Vista 4
California City 15, Rosamond 3
California Military 21, Nuview Bridge 2
Cantwell-Sacred Heart 9, St. Monica 4
Cerritos 11, El Rancho 4
Channel Islands 15, Carpinteria 4
Chino 11, Montclair 0
Chino Hills 12, Temescal Canyon 5
CIMSA 19, Silver Valley 4
Claremont 6, Northview 4
Cornerstone Christian 14, Packinghouse Christian 8
Corona Santiago 8, Colony 5
Covina 4, Buena Park 3
Cypress 8, El Modena 2
Don Lugo 3, Diamond Ranch 2
Downey 10, Corona 2
Edison 9, Corona del Mar 0
El Dorado 3, Yorba Linda 0
El Toro 2, Tesoro 1
Esperanza 21, Troy 2
Fillmore 5, Santa Paula 4
Hart 11, Golden Valley 1
Hawthorne 15, Compton Centennial 0
Hueneme 11, Nordhoff 5
Huntington Beach 17, Fountain Valley 0
La Habra 9, Garden Grove Pacifica 4
Lakewood 15, Long Beach Cabrillo 1
La Palma Kennedy 2, Gahr 0
La Salle 11, Flintridge Sacred Heart 3
Lawndale 30, Beverly Hills 20
Lennox Academy 14, HMSA 3
Long Beach Poly 15, Long Beach Wilson 5
Los Alamitos 10, Newport Harbor 0
Los Altos 12, Alta Loma 0
Maranatha 15, Duarte 5
Mary Star of the Sea 21, St. Anthony 5
Mira Costa 7, South Torrance 2
Mission Viejo 5, Sunny Hills 3
Montebello 10, Mark Keppel 9
Monrovia 4, San Marino 3
Murrieta Mesa 7, Great Oak 0
Murrieta Valley 13, Temecula Valley 2
Oak Park 16, Royal 12
Oaks Christian 9, Newbury Park 3
Ontario 11, Chaffey 1
Placentia Valencia 8, Tustin 4
Ramona Convent 10, Bishop Conaty-Loreto 0
Rio Hondo Prep 12, Mayfield 8
Rio Mesa 14, Oxnard Pacifica 0
Rosary Academy 7, Irvine University 6
Sacred Heart of Jesus 12, St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy 1
Santa Ana Foothill 6, Crean Lutheran 1
Santa Clara 4, Foothill Tech 2
Santa Monica 8, Leuzinger 4
Saugus 11, West Ranch 8
Schurr 11, Alhambra 1
Serrano 14, Riverside Notre Dame 4
Sierra Canyon 4, Chaminade 3
Silverado 22, Adelanto 3
Simi Valley 8, Camarillo 2
St. Genevieve 18, St. Bernard 3
St. Paul 14, Bishop Montgomery 2
Temecula Prep 16, Santa Rosa Academy 7
Thousand Oaks 30, Calabasas 0
Valencia 8, Castaic 6
Ventura 12, Buena 7
Victor Valley 8, Granite Hills 4
Westlake 1, Agoura 0
Westminster 15 Long Beach Jordan 5
Whittier Christian 16, Village Christian 5
Wiseburn-Da Vinci 22, Downey Calvary Chapel 1
INTERSECTIONAL
Boron 16, Desert 1
Canyon Country Canyon 15, Arleta 5
Compton Early College 23, Environmental Charter 19
Immanuel Christian 12, Trona 10
Jesuit 5, Trabuco Hills 4
Santa Margarita 1, Jesuit 0
Sports
Trump admin says SJSU now faces ‘impending enforcement’ for transgender volleyball scandal conflict
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
FIRST ON FOX: President Donald Trump’s Department of Education said it has notified San Jose State University (SJSU) that it faces “impending enforcement action” for its “refusal to comply with Title IX.”
SJSU and the California State University (CSU) system filed a lawsuit earlier in March to challenge an Education Department investigation that determined the university violated Title IX in its handling of a biological male transgender volleyball player on a women’s team from 2022-24.
Now, the administration is cracking down against that resistance.
“We have provided SJSU with multiple opportunities to resolve its Title IX violations with common sense actions: separating male and female athletes based on their biological sex, keeping men out of women’s locker rooms and bathrooms, restoring rightfully-earned titles and accolades to female athletes, and apologizing to the women forced to forfeit competitions to protect themselves,” Kimberly Richey, the department’s assistant secretary for civil rights, said in an announcement.
“Yet, SJSU remains obstinate, choosing a radical ideology over safety, dignity, and fairness for its own students. With today’s action, the Department is putting the university on notice: comply with the law or risk losing its federal funding.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to SJSU and CSU for a response.
Brooke Slusser and Blaire Fleming of the San Jose State Spartans call a play against the Air Force Falcons on Oct. 19, 2024, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. (Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)
The conflict between Trump’s administration and the school stems back to the 2024 season, when a national controversy involving transgender player Blaire Fleming triggered an election-cycle media firestorm, all during Trump’s third White House campaign.
The Education Department’s investigation has claimed, “SJSU actively recruited and allowed a male to compete on the women’s indoor and beach volleyball teams and reportedly instructed members of the coaching staff not to tell the female players that the athlete was a male.”
The investigation added that “on multiple occasions, the male athlete spiked the ball so forcefully that it knocked females on the opposing team to the ground.”
One of the standout details of the investigation’s findings was that a female SJSU player “discovered that the male student had conspired to have a member of the opposing team spike her in the face during an upcoming match. SJSU did not investigate the conspiracy, but later subjected this female athlete to a Title IX complaint for reportedly ‘misgendering’ the male athlete when discussing this incident in online videos and interviews.”
Former SJSU co-captain Brooke Slusser has included those allegations in her ongoing lawsuit against representatives of SJSU and CSU.
UNIVERSITY LEADER ADMITS SCHOOLS ARE ‘NOT A POLITICAL PARTY’ IN WARNING TO ELITE CAMPUSES
After SJSU and CSU announced they were suing the Trump administration to challenge the findings, Slusser, and other former NCAA players, came forward about their alleged experience during the scandal, and how it affected them, in recent interviews with Fox News Digital.
Slusser, who shared an apartment with Fleming at SJSU without knowing the athlete’s birth sex, became the subject of viral debate after her interview reflecting on the experience sharing spaces with Fleming.
“You find out you’re just chilling in a bed with a man that you have no idea about… I [was] unknowingly sharing a bed at that time with a man,” Slusser said, also alleging SJSU volleyball coach Todd Kress encouraged her to live in the same apartment as the trans teammate when another group of players was also looking for a final tenant.
Former Utah State volleyball star Kaylie Ray told Fox News Digital that during matches against SJSU and Fleming in 2022 and ’23, before Fleming’s birth sex was known, she had teammates suffer finger injuries from the trans athlete’s spikes.
“I had teammates who had seriously jammed their fingers, luckily not broken, but a handful of girls who had sustained minor injuries from the male player,” Ray said, adding, “We knew that if the male athlete had a phenomenal game, there was nothing we could do to stop that person.”
Ray’s Utah State team became one of five teams to forfeit at least one game to SJSU in 2024, seemingly in protest of Fleming. She says the forfeit impacted her team’s hopes of winning their fourth straight Mountain West championship.
Meanwhile, the University of Wyoming forfeited two matches to SJSU in 2024. Former Cowgirls player Macey Boggs told Fox News Digital that the decisions to forfeit the games “permanently ruined” friendships among her teammates.
“There were some of the girls who I really enjoyed, and we got along great, and then this situation came up, some conflict came up, and ultimately we went in separate directions because of that… as soon as we played in our last game, we all went in separate directions… it was hard to maintain those relationships,” Boggs said.
SJSU was plagued by a separate Title IX violation in sports that it had to resolve with the Biden administration in 2021. The university ultimately came to a $1.6 million resolution with the Department of Justice in 2021.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
The DOJ found that SJSU failed for more than a decade to respond adequately to reports of sexual harassment, including sexual assault, of female student-athletes by an athletic trainer then working at SJSU, beginning in 2009 when female student-athletes reported that the trainer subjected them to repeated, unwelcome sexual touching.
The department and SJSU entered into a comprehensive agreement to address the findings of the investigation, which began in June 2020 during Trump’s first term.
Now, Trump’s current administration is giving the school 10 more days to comply with a series of resolution agreements to resolve the volleyball situation, or face enforcement action, including referral to the DOJ and termination of SJSU’s federal funding.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Risk of severe storms across SE Michigan on Thursday — here’s what to know
1 dead in house fire in San Francisco’s Portola neighborhood
Convicted SMU Stalker Sues Dallas County For 183-Day Jail Overstay
TSA wait times hit
More record breaking temperatures across the Denver metro area
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Indiana Members Credit Union announced as new anchor tenant at Bottleworks District
LaGuardia Crash Timeline: Moments Before Air Canada Plane Collided With Fire Truck
Chicago alderwoman apologizes for ‘wrong place at the wrong time’ comment on slain student
Fake Euronews website targets Hungary election with false claims
An air traffic controller was juggling extra roles during the LaGuardia plane crash
Iran War: Pentagon set to send thousands of elite 82nd Airborne troops to region | BBC News
-
Detroit, MI7 days agoDrummer Brian Pastoria, longtime Detroit music advocate, dies at 68
-
Georgia1 week agoHow ICE plans for a detention warehouse pushed a Georgia town to fight back | CNN Politics
-
Movie Reviews6 days ago‘Youth’ Twitter review: Ken Karunaas impresses audiences; Suraj Venjaramoodu adds charm; music wins praise | – The Times of India
-
Education1 week agoVideo: Turning Point USA Clubs Expand to High Schools Across America
-
Sports4 days agoIOC addresses execution of 19-year-old Iranian wrestler Saleh Mohammadi
-
Science1 week agoIndustrial chemicals have reached the middle of the oceans, new study shows
-
Science1 week agoHow a Melting Glacier in Antarctica Could Affect Tens of Millions Around the Globe
-
Culture1 week agoTest Your Memory of Great Lines From Classic Irish Poems