UCLA players headline Women's NCAA Tournament regional team
UCLA players headline Women's NCAA Tournament regional team
Marcus D. Smith, USA TODAYMon, March 30, 2026 at 1:02 AM UTC
0
SACRAMENTO, CA ― Two more games await to determine who will complete the NCAA Women's Tournament Final Four, after UCLA punched its ticket by defeating Duke, 70-58, on Sunday, March 29 at the Golden 1 Center.
The Sacramento Regional 2 All-Tournament team and Most Outstanding Player were announced following the contest, highlighted by Bruins and Blue Devils.
The awardees included MiLaysia Fulwiley (LSU), Duke teammates Toby Fournier and Taina Mair and UCLA teammates Angela Dugalic and Lauren Betts.
Betts was named the Regional 2 Most Outstanding Player after helping lead the Bruins to a second consecutive Final Four. During the weekend in Sacramento, which hosted the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight, Betts averaged 19.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, three assists and five blocks.
Betts, a 6-foot-7 senior, was efficient around the rim and not too shabby at the charity stripe. She shot 69% from the field and 77% on free throws.
Dugalic, her 6-foot-4 fellow senior teammate, averaged 14 points and 8 rebounds on 59% field goal shooting during the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight matchups against Minnesota and Duke, respectively.
1 / 0March Sadness hits hard in the Women's NCAA basketball tournament
Michigan State's Rashunda Jones (1) walks off the court following a second-round game in the NCAA women's basketball tournament between the Oklahoma Sooners and Michigan State Spartans at Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Okla., Sunday March 22, 2026.
UCLA head coach Cori Close told USA TODAY Sports after the game that she wasn't surprised by her players' recognition because she's seen their work ethic.
Advertisement
Atlanta Dream guard and former Bruin Jordin Canada was back in Los Angeles and worked out with the UCLA hoops bunch, Close said, and she, too, could see the determination players carried to be great.
"Before practice, and she said, you know, we were trying to build this kind of work ethic. We thought we made really big strides, but this is every single player, every single day, putting in this extra work. Before and after practice. It's not sometimes, it's not a few people, it is every single player," Close said.
That ethic showed in their Elite Eight game to advance to the Final Four. Betts tallied 23 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks. Dugalic seemed to get timely baskets when her number was called. She added 15 on 7-of-13 shooting.
"I just think there's a culture of work that we value. And so, you know, I'm not surprised," Close said. "It becomes your destiny when your commitments, not your feelings, lead to your destiny, and their commitments have led them to this place. No shortcuts, nothing else. Committed work."
Another pair of teammates honored were Mair and Fournier, despite being exiled from the tournament following their loss to UCLA. Mair had 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists in the loss. She had 22 in Duke's win against LSU.
Fournier had 10 versus UCLA, but scored 22 during the Sweet 16 against LSU. Fulwiley scored 28 points on 64% shooting, including 2-of-2 from deep for LSU in its Sweet 16 loss to Duke.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: UCLA players headline 2026 Women's NCAA Tournament regional team
Source: “AOL Sports”
