The UCLA women’s basketball team won its first NCAA championship in April. Now, it’s vying to stay on top.

Based on Thursday’s practice, after which UCLA spoke with the media for the first time since its dominant title run, it’s clear that the Bruins intend to remain on top, even with a target on their back and a revamped roster.

Success leaves clues

One would think a defending champion pursuing a repeat would, well, just try to run it back.

But not Cori Close’s bunch.

Entering her 16th season as coach, Close is emphatic about the importance of process over outcome — or journey over destination — and leaning into the beauty of the grind.

“We get to walk out and live out what we learn from the championship run,” Close said. “But we’re also not trying to repeat a championship outcome. We’re trying to repeat a championship process. And success leaves clues. There are things that we want to make sure we carry over from what we learn.

“But this is a new art project. This is a new identity. This is a new chance. The standards don’t change, but the way we go about it is going to be unique to this team, and that’s really fun to explore.”

The 98%

Part of the “championship process” Bruins fans can expect to hear about is the “98%.”

Close repeated it. Players repeated it. It’s a mentality Close wants the Bruins to keep in mind throughout the season.

“What I mean by that is 98% of the game is played without the ball,” Close explained. “Can you become a better screener? Can you learn someone else’s tendencies? Can you talk more on defense? Can you become a better rebounder? How many ways can we learn from each other and be better ‘98%’ players? And if we do that, we’ll be on our way.”

Possessing the ball — the 2% — does matter. But players who can thrive without the ball will establish a team that, in Close’s eyes, can be difficult to beat.

Sienna Betts’ role

UCLA forward Sienna Betts, left, speaks to her older sister, UCLA center Lauren Betts, before a game in December.

(Caroline Brehman / Associated Press)

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Sienna Betts, the younger sister of departed UCLA star Lauren Betts, is set to have a key role as a returning sophomore on a team with many new players.

“It’s going to be different,” Sienna said, referencing the Bruins losing six players to the WNBA. “But I mean, I’m excited. And it’s not the first time I’ve been in a position like this; I mean, not at this level, obviously. So, I’m just excited to be in this new role. And I have coaches who are here to help me.

“I’m just planning on doing whatever Coach Cori needs from me, whatever the team needs.”

The 6-foot-4 forward is primed to be the Bruins’ anchor in the paint. She demonstrated her leadership during Thursday’s practice as well as some bully ball inside.

Betts, who is left-handed, mentioned her focus on right-handed shooting this offseason in preparing for increased touches. She averaged six points and four rebounds over 28 games as a freshman. Close said she is improving quickly.

“The younger players have grown into new roles,” Close said. “I think you could see glimpses of that [with] how Sienna’s already started to do that, even maybe ahead of where I thought she’d be at this point.”

Elina Aarnisalo’s return

UCLA guard Elina Aarnisalo controls the ball in the Sweet 16 of the 2025 NCAA tournament.

(Young Kwak / Associated Press)

Elina Aarnisalo, who played for UCLA as a freshman in 2024-25, is back in Westwood after spending her sophomore season with North Carolina.

The 5-10 guard averaged 5.1 points, 3.4 assists and 2.2 rebounds as a freshman and saw her scoring double (10.2) in Chapel Hill. Aarnisalo, a native of Finland, said she is more confident, not only as a player but also as a communicator.

“There’s going to be a lot of spots on the team open now after a big draft class,” Aarnisalo said. “And a lot of seniors leaving, that obviously interested me too. Talking with Cori [about] what my role could be on this team and what we could accomplish this year … just knowing the standards at UCLA, how we practice, how they focus on individual work; I’ve seen it, and I’ve seen my old teammates [and] how they’ve succeeded in this environment, which is why I wanted to come back.”

Aarnisalo averaged 21 minutes per game as a freshman and 27 as a sophomore. She stands a good chance of receiving even more playing time.

New faces, same goal

Former Texas Christian guard Donovyn Hunter is among the new players on the UCLA roster.

(Tony Gutierrez / Associated Press)

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The Bruins will look starkly different after essentially exchanging six WNBA-ready players for five enticing transfers.

Those newcomers are Texas Christian guard Donovyn Hunter, Iowa State forward Addy Brown, Arkansas guard Bonnie Deas, Notre Dame guard KK Bransford and Aarnisalo.

“These girls are obviously really talented, come from really different programs,” Betts said. “It takes a second to adjust to Coach Cori’s rhythm, and her offense, and just how she runs practice and games. But I think they’re doing a great job integrating in, and they’re all just great human beings off the court and on the court. So, I’m really excited for this group.”

Close acknowledged she has been very busy. She had to retool the roster while simultaneously celebrating the previous one.

“I’m not complaining, but it has been a great challenge and an incredible, intense thing,” Close said. “I mean, literally, the minute after the UCLA women embrace new players, tougher standards in bid to repeat as champs game, we are on the phone with recruits from the locker room, and the next day, the transfer portal opens. So, I mean, this has been nonstop.”

UCLA’s first test is north of the border

The Bruins will face Canada’s women’s national team in an exhibition next Wednesday in Victoria, British Columbia.

While UCLA is far from a polished product, facing Canada’s best is, if anything, a great opportunity to gain even more exposure and improve team chemistry.

“We’re trying to get better. We’re trying to get more physical,” Aarnisalo said. “So we’re going to be in better shape when the actual game starts and the season starts. So it’s an everyday process.”

Timea Gardiner trending upward

Bruins forward Timea Gardiner is expected to play in Canada after missing last season as a medical redshirt because of a knee injury.

Gardiner, who transferred to UCLA in 2024 after two years at Oregon State, averaged 7.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 18 minutes per game in her first season with the Bruins.

A lot of history has a chance to be made when it comes to the MLB MVP awards this season. 

Let’s check out the odds for the AL and NL MVP race at FanDuel Sportsbook as of July 16.

This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports.

American League MVP

Yordan Alvarez: -165 (bet $10 to win $16.06 total)
Junior Caminero: +450 (bet $10 to win $55 total)
Bobby Witt Jr.: +500 (bet $10 to win $60 total)
Ben Rice: +1400 (bet $10 to win $150 total)
Nick Kurtz: +2000 (bet $10 to win $210 total)
Julio Rodriguez: +4500 (bet $10 to win $460 total)
Shea Langeliers: +5500 (bet $10 to win $560 total)

What to know: We’re going to have a new AL MVP. Two-time defending AL MVP Aaron Judge has not played since May due to injury. His three MVP awards are tied with a host of MLB legends for the third-most all-time, including Yankee icons Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio and Yogi Berra. However, he’ll have to wait to get his fourth, according to the current odds. The name atop the board is Houston’s Yordan Alvarez, who is leading the AL in home runs (31), hits (111), RBIs (70), on-base percentage (.426), slugging percentage (.633) and OPS (1.059). He is also second in the league in batting average (.318).

National League MVP

Shohei Ohtani: -1500 (bet $10 to win $10.67 total)
Pete Crow-Armstrong: +750 (bet $10 to win $85 total)
Kyle Schwarber: +3000 (bet $10 to win $310 total)
James Wood: +4000 (bet $10 to win $410 total)
Juan Soto: +4000 (bet $10 to win $410 total)
Corbin Carroll: +6500 (bet $10 to win $660 total)
Otto Lopez: +6500 (bet $10 to win $660 total)

What to know: It appears Ohtani is gonna do this thing again, mostly because of his combination of pitching and hitting. At the plate, he’s third in the NL in OBP (.403), third in OPS (.952), fifth in home runs (22) and fifth in slugging (.549). And on the mound, he’s 8-2 in 14 starts with a 1.79 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 95 strikeouts. Yeesh. Last season, Ohtani won back-to-back NL MVP awards for the first time since Albert Pujols did it in 2008 and 2009. He also won the AL MVP in 2023, making him the first player in MLB history to win MVP back-to-back in each league. This year, if Ohtani is to win NL MVP, he will make a dent in Barry Bonds’ record of four straight MVP wins (2001-2004). All four of Ohtani’s MVP wins have been unanimous, with him receiving all 30 first-place votes. He has the second-most MVPs in history, trailing only Bonds’ seven.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — If something happened once, it can happen again. That’s kind of what Yogi Berra was getting at when he said “it’s like deja vu all over again.”

Berra, the late Yankee catcher and once New Jersey’s unofficial poet laureate, spent most of his life within walking distance of East Rutherford, N.J., where history could repeat itself all over again in Sunday’s World Cup final between Spain and Argentina. And that makes his words newly relevant.

Argentina and Lionel Messi, the reigning champions, will be seeking to become the first to repeat in 64 years while Spain will be playing in the title game for just the second time ever. And the similarities to its first trip, in 2010, are uncanny.

Sixteen years ago Spain became just the second reigning European champion to win a World Cup. It will enter Sunday’s game as the reigning European champion.

In the run-up to the 2010 World Cup, Spain ran off a 35-game unbeaten streak, which matched the longest in history at the time. La Roja will enter Sunday’s game with a 37-game unbeaten streak, which matches the current longest streak in history.

And that 2010 team was known for an absence of ego and a depth of character, a blue-collar collection of quiet superstars built around a core of Andrés Iniesta, Xavi Hernández and Carles Puyol, players who emphasized humility, unity and selflessness.

This team? It’s the same.

“We’re one big family,” center back Pau Cubarsí said in Spanish.

A family that has already achieved its goal, according to coach Luis de la Fuente. So while Argentina may be feeling the pressure of chasing World Cup history, De la Fuente said his team is playing with house money

“I don’t believe in the idea that finals are there to be won. They’re there to be enjoyed,” he said. “What’s to come could be the icing on the cake.”

Of course a cake is nothing without the icing. But then Spain hasn’t had to separate joy from success in this World Cup, enjoying an unbeaten run to the final whose only blemish has been a tournament-opening draw with Cape Verde.

That was the first of six clean sheets for Spanish keeper Unai Simón, though it’s really been a group effort with Simón facing an average of just two shots on goal a game.

“This team never ceases to amaze me,” De la Fuente said. “The scope for improvement is endless. It was a labor of love, a process. It was about reaching the crucial moment in the best possible shape.”

De la Fuente, 65, whose only senior international appearance as a player came in the 1988 Olympics, coached Spain’s U-23 team to a silver medal in the Tokyo Games in 2021 then took over the national team a year later, after it crashed out of a second straight World Cup in the round of 16.

De la Fuente spent nearly two decades coaching at the youth level, including nine years with Spain’s U19 and U21 national teams. But seven months after taking over the senior team, he led later Spain to its first UEFA Nations League title and a year after that it won its first Champions League title in more than a decade. La Roja has lost just twice in 48 games under De la Fuente, who has the highest winning percentage of any man who has managed more than nine games for Spain.

Given his background, De la Fuente trusts young players — with an average age of 26.7, Spain has the sixth-youngest roster in the World Cup — and his starting lineup includes two teenagers in Cubarsí and forward Lamine Yamal. The core of the team — Simón, Mikel Merino, Dani Olmo, Rodri, Mikel Oyarzabal, Fabián Ruiz — are players he coached to European youth-level championships and ones he has known for half their lives.

That has given the team a level of familiarity and trust that goes both ways.

“This team never ceases to amaze me,” the coach said. “The scope for improvement is endless. It was a labor of love, a process. It was about reaching the crucial moment in the best possible shape.”

And they’ve gotten there, said right back Pedro Porro, another product of De la Fuente’s youth teams, by all pulling in the same direction.

“From the very first day we got here — not just me, but the whole team — we’ve been working toward a common goal,” Porro said. “That’s part of the process. There are no excuses.”

That, too, is something De la Fuente brought to the job, though it’s not an original concept for Spain. It’s more like deja vu all over again.

“We are ordinary, generous people,” the coach said. “We’ve recaptured the spirit of 2010.”