Sports
Commentary: UCLA women prove they’re tough enough to handle any Final Four test
SACRAMENTO — The team that can’t stop dancing won’t stop dancing.
The top-seeded UCLA women’s basketball team beat Duke 70-58 in the Elite Eight. It wasn’t balletic, but beautiful.
Sunday’s game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento wasn’t a fun, free-flowing joy ride that so many of the Bruins’ wins have been this season.
It was a rattling, teeth-gritting, heart-thumping roller-coaster ride — weeeeee!
The Bruins weren’t having fun, exactly. They were having the time of their lives.
And in the end, they shoved their way to the front of the stage — and back to the Final Four.
Now the TikTok countdown is on before final exams in Phoenix, where redemption and legacy and a rematch await with either winner of the No. 1 Texas vs. No. 2 Michigan tussle in the Fort Worth Regional final.
And any questions — ahem, mine — about how the barely-battled-tested boogie-down Bruins respond to a significant stress test were answered.
The Bruins are built for this.
They’re not just talented. And they’re not just talented dancers (and postgame, Lauren Betts, Charlisse Leger-Walker and Gabriela Jaquez reprised the routine that went viral when they did it with the UCLA Dance Team during halftime of a men’s game this season).
They’re tough. And they’re locked in.
And unlike last season, when their program’s Final Four debut ended in a 85-51 national semifinal blowout loss to eventual champion Connecticut, they’re ready for what comes next.
They let us know in the second half Sunday.
Duke came floating in, still buzzing from Friday’s buzzer-beater in the Sweet 16. That slow-motion-in-real-time three-pointer by Ashlon Jackson that rolled around and around the rim as though the basketball gods needed just a little more time to determine UCLA’s opponent Sunday.
UCLA’s Lauren Betts, left, Gabriela Jaquez celebrate after the Bruins defeated Duke on Sunday to advance to the Final Four.
(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)
It was to be Duke, who proved a dangerous No. 3 seed. The Bruins weren’t prepared for the Blue Devils to be so prepared for them, trailing at the break for just the second time this season. The first time was in November against Texas, when the Bruins — now a program-record 35-1 — suffered their only loss this season.
Still their only loss.
Even a fool could read the determination on the Bruins’ faces as they roared back from a 39-31 halftime deficit; they’d come so far together, but they so badly wanted to go further.
No one was ready to get off the ride, not least the six seniors who played the entirety of the second half, seizing momentum and the moment and hitting the Blue Devils (27-9) with a white-knuckled flurry of activity.
“Compliment them,” Duke coach Kara Lawson said, “for turning up their defensive intensity.”
There were 50-50 balls in name only, because UCLA seemed to be winning 100% of them.
UCLA players were ripping away passes. They were diving all over the floor and were all over the boards. They ratcheted up the intensity so much it spread into the stands, where the largely pro-Bruins crowd of 9,627 cheered deliriously.
Shots started falling. Turnovers stopped cascading. UCLA found its rhythm.
And UCLA’s 6-foot-7 star center Betts did what she does, with 15 points, eight rebounds and two blocks in the second half, of which she played all 20 minutes.
“I was just pretty mad,” she said. “You know, my senior season is on the line, so I kind of got to wake up a little bit.”
Angela Dugalic continued to be the matchup nightmare she has been all March; the 6-4 sixth woman scored 15 timely points to take some pressure off Betts.
UCLA coach Cori Close watches play during the Bruins’ win over Duke on Sunday.
(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
“I’m just so proud of her,” Betts said. “The confidence and her poise … you could get in your head in moments when we’re down … but she did all the right things and what we needed at the time.”
It was an entertaining Elite Eight clash that was brought to you by two coaches who staged, like up-and-coming chefs, under two of the greatest leaders the sports world has known.
UCLA coach Cori Close and Lawson committed to making sure we won’t lose John Wooden’s and Pat Summitt’s recipes — never mind all the seismic, disorienting shifts happening in college sports.
A former Tennessee star, Lawson brings Summitt’s brand crackling intensity to Duke, a mindset that she’s said calls for supreme confidence, chasing excellence and holding oneself to an all-around standard of success.
UCLA’s bench was uplifted all season by Close’s warm intentionality, learned from years of mentorship from Wooden. The main ingredients, she’ll tell you, requiring a dollop of growth, gratitude, of giving and not taking.
“[Our] team culture is not this nebulous thing or phrases on a wall,” Close said. “It’s a group of people that are willing to be committed to the hard, right behaviors over and over again. I cannot tell you how many times throughout that game we referred to our values, who we are, what our identity was, what we had to get back to.
“… I’m just really humbled and thankful to be a part of a team and staff that cares about things from the inside out. What you saw on the court is a reflection and a byproduct of what’s happened on the inside.”
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UFC fighter Tim Means was arrested earlier in the week on a child abuse charge in New Mexico, according to online court records.
Means was arrested on Wednesday and booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center in Albuquerque. He didn’t appear to have an attorney listed. Fox News Digital reached out to the UFC for comment.
ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. TAKE THE DON’T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW!
Tim Means reacts after his TKO victory over Andre Fialho of Portugal in a welterweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nev., on Sept. 23, 2023. (Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC/Getty Images)
The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call about a physical altercation at a Tijeras home, the Albuquerque Journal reported, citing a criminal complaint. The alleged victim, a teenager, reportedly told dispatchers that the two had been in a spat over chores when he headbutted her.
Means was accused of grabbing the teen in a “strangulation matter.” The mixed martial artist allegedly got angrier, threw a potato at the alleged victim and punched her in the face, according to the paper.
Thiago Alves fights Tim Means during UFC Fight Night at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 7, 2019. (Amber Searls/USA TODAY Sports)
“Let it be known that there were visible hand and red marks on (the teen’s) neck, indicating she was strangled,” according to the complaint. “There was blood on and in her nose where she was head-butted and several red marks indicated she was hit in the face and on her cheek.”
Means, 42, started his MMA career in 2004 and has appeared in King of the Cage, Legacy FC and UFC. He last fought in UFC in 2024, losing to Court McGee via submission at UFC 307.
Tim Means reacts after a loss to Alex Morono in a welterweight bout during UFC Fight Night at Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C., on May 13, 2023. (Jim Dedmon/USA TODAY Sports)
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He’s set for a status hearing on May 26.
Seeing Tripp King flick a rubber ball toward the net with his stick is like spotting an unidentified flying object and wondering if you missed it because the shot happens faster than the blink of an eye.
His lacrosse coach at Loyola High, Jimmy Borell, brings out one of those baseball radar guns twice a year to clock how fast his players can send that ball through a net.
King’s right hand delivers the ball at 100 mph and his left hand at 90 mph.
“I pray he doesn’t cut the net,” Borell said.
In a sport that’s beloved on the East Coast, King is helping bring respect to lacrosse players learning the game on the West Coast.
He started lacrosse in kindergarten, showing up to participate in South Bay Lacrosse Club. By first grade, he was wearing lacrosse pads. He also played football and basketball. When he reached Loyola as a freshman, he was still a three-sport athlete, but he had become so talented in lacrosse that it became his focus.
“I always loved the speed of lacrosse,” said the junior. “I see that similarity in basketball. It’s always pulled me knowing you have to be good at everything instead of one particular skill.”
At 6 feet 1 and 200 pounds with the thick calves of a football player, he’s an attacker that every opponent must track. He’ll stand behind the net ready to receive the ball and make a pass to teammates who will quickly get the ball back to him for a goal with one flick of his wrist.
He had 102 points during the regular season (65 goals, 37 assists) for a Loyola team seeded No. 1 for the seven-team Southern Section Division 1 playoffs that begin this week. Loyola has a bye in the opening round and won’t play until May 9.
“He’s pretty special,” Borell said. “He’s got the tangibles, very skilled, can use both of his hands and has a very quick step.”
He’s committed to North Carolina, which is a dream come true since he was born to be a Tar Heel. Both of his parents went to North Carolina.
Tripp King, wearing No. 11, is an attacker for Loyola’s No. 1-ranked lacrosse team.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
“I’ve grown up a Tar Heel,” he said.
He’s also a kind, friendly future Tar Heel, something you can’t always say about lacrosse players who often feel they are either entitled or frustrated when people don’t pay enough attention to them.
Classmates swear by King.
“Nice,” is what several told me.
He returns to the South Bay Lacrosse Club to give back, working with young players just like when somebody helped him as a 5-year-old.
He’s someone ready to head to the East Coast determined to be proof of how determined West Coast players have become.
“A lot of the stereotypes of the West Coast are surfer boy or doesn’t take it seriously,” he said. “We’ve made it an atmosphere at Loyola where every day we’re waking up at 5 o’clock for 6 a.m. practices. We’re getting in extra work before and after practice. I think that lazier, not tough stereotype isn’t true. The West Coast is growing.”
King lives in Manhattan Beach, where celebrities and pro athletes can be seen walking or riding bikes on any given day.
King is only 17, but if he’s taking a walk or riding a bike, pay attention, because one day, he’s going to be recognized as lacrosse trendsetter from the West Coast.
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The 2026 UFL season kicked off on March 27 on FOX UFL Friday, and it consists of a 10-week regular season ending on May 31, followed by playoffs starting the week of June 7 and the championship game later that month.
There are new teams, new coaches, new players and new uniforms this season — and that’s just the beginning.
The league’s media partners — FOX, FS1, ABC, ESPN and ESPN2 — combine to broadcast all 43 games during the UFL’s third season. Select games in Spanish will also air across FOX Deportes and ESPN Deportes.
Here are the full 2026 schedules for all eight teams:
Week 1 (March 27-29)
Week 2 (April 3-7)
Week 3 (April 10-12)
Week 4 (April 16-18)
Week 5 (April 24-26)
Week 6 (April 30-May 3)
- St. Louis Battlehawks @ Louisville Kings (Thursday, April 30 at 8 p.m. ET on FS1)
- Houston Gamblers @ Columbus Aviators (Friday, May 1 at 8 p.m. ET on FOX)
- Dallas Renegades @ DC Defenders (Saturday, May 2 at noon ET on ABC)
- Birmingham Stallions @ Orlando Storm (Sunday, May 3 at 4 p.m. ET on FOX)
Week 7 (May 8-10)
- Columbus Aviators @ St. Louis Battlehawks (Friday, May 8 at 8 p.m. ET on FOX)
- Louisville Kings @ DC Defenders (Saturday, May 9 at 1:30 p.m. ET on FOX)
- Dallas Renegades @ Birmingham Stallions (Saturday, May 9 at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN)
- Orlando Storm @ Houston Gamblers (Sunday, May 10 at 6 p.m. ET on FS1)
Week 8 (May 15-17)
- Orlando Storm @ Dallas Renegades (Friday, May 15 at 8 p.m. ET on FOX)
- DC Defenders @ Louisville Kings (Saturday, May 16 at noon ET on ABC)
- Houston Gamblers @ St. Louis Battlehawks (Saturday, May 16 at 3 p.m. ET on ABC)
- Columbus Aviators @ Birmingham Stallions (Sunday, May 17 at 1 p.m. ET on FOX)
Week 9 (May 22-24)
- DC Defenders @ Orlando Storm (Friday, May 22 at 8 p.m. ET on FOX)
- Birmingham Stallions @ Columbus Aviators (Saturday, May 23 at 3 p.m. ET on ABC)
- Dallas Renegades @ Louisville Kings (Sunday, May 24 at 4 p.m. ET on FOX)
- St. Louis Battlehawks @ Houston Gamblers (Sunday, May 24 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2)
Week 10 (May 29-31)
- Dallas Renegades @ St. Louis Battlehawks (Friday, May 29 at 8 p.m. ET on FOX)
- Houston Gamblers @ Birmingham Stallions (Saturday, May 30 at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN2)
- Orlando Storm @ DC Defenders (Sunday, May 31 at noon ET on ABC)
- Louisville Kings @ Columbus Aviators (Sunday, May 31 at 6 p.m. ET on FOX)
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