Washington Goes Cold in Fourth; Falls 86-69 to No. 13 UCLA

Friday, January 26

Seattle, WA

7:00 PM

University of Washington

7-13, 1-8Pac-12

UCLA

16-4, 7-2Pac-12

UCLA

Washington

Photo by: Red Box Pictures

Washington Goes Cold in Fourth; Falls 86-69 to No. 13 UCLA

January 26, 2018 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

SEATTLE – Washington battled with No. 13 UCLA through the first three quarters of Friday night's Pac-12 matchup, but the Bruins used a big fourth quarter to pull away for the 86-69 victory at Alaska Airlines Arena.

Washington falls to 7-13 on the season with the loss and drops to 1-8 in conference play while UCLA picks up its fifth-straight win to improve to 16-4 and 7-2 in the Pac-12.

Despite the final score, the game was incredibly close through three quarters, featuring 12 lead changes and 10 ties.

Amber Melgoza led a trio of Huskies in double-figures with 20 points, reaching 20 for the eighth time this season. Hannah Johnson recorded her third-straight double-double and fourth in her last five games, scoring a career-high 17 points and adding 14 rebounds. Senior Jenna Moser matched a career-high with four three-pointers en route to 16 points.

UCLA put five players in double-figures led by Jordin Canada, who scored 22 points and added five assists. Japreece Dean scored 17 points off the bench including hitting five three-pointers—three of which came in the fourth quarter.

After falling behind 4-1 early, the Huskies answered back with a three-pointer by Johnson followed by a great layup by Moser, who banked her shot high off the glass and in over Billings. The teams would go back and forth over the next few minutes as UCLA would get a bucket followed by a great shot by the Huskies. Washington took back the lead at 14-13 on a three-pointer by Moser at 5:12. However, the Bruins answered with a 5-0 run over the next three minutes to take an 18-14 lead.

Johnson ended the run with a layup which keyed a 7-1 UW run that she capped with an offensive rebound and putback to make it 21-20. But UCLA ended the half with a three-pointer and fastbreak bucket to take a 27-24 lead after 10 minutes.

Moser quickly tied the game back up at 27-27 with a three to open the second quarter. After the teams exchanged points, the Huskies went on a quick 5-0 run as Mackenzie Wieburg drained a deep three-pointer and after a defensive rebound by Rooks the Huskies pushed and got a layup by Melgoza to make it 35-30. UCLA scored the next bucket 50 seconds later but neither team could score again until Moser got a rebound under the basket and made a circus shot. The Bruins would end the quarter with a bucket but the Huskies took a 37-34 lead into the half.

Washington scored on three of its first four possessions in the third quarter capped by a three-point play by Melgoza which put the Huskies up 44-37 just under two minutes in. After UCLA closed the gap with a 5-1 run, Melgoza hit an off-balance, three as the shot clock expired to make it 48-42 with 5:38 left. But UCLA came storming back with a 12-2 run over the next three minutes to take a 54-50 lead at the 3:21 mark.

Johnson helped the Huskies tie the game up with a layup then a pair of free throws to make it 58-58. UCLA would answer with a four-point run of its own before Moser drained her sixth three-pointer of the game to make it a 62-61 UCLA at the end of the third.

But UCLA dominated the fourth quarter as the Huskies did not manage to get a field goal, going 0-13 from the field. Meanwhile, the Bruins used a 16-0 run over a 4:34 stretch to break the game open, hitting six of their first seven from the field. Washington used a 7-2 run after that to close to within 14 but could get no closer.

Up to the fourth quarter, the Huskies shot 47.7% from the field before going cold. UCLA held a dominate edge in the paint, outscoring Washington 46-18 inside with a 46-33 rebounding advantage.

The Huskies return to action on Sunday, hosting USC in a Pac-12 game at 2:00 p.m. at Alaska Airlines Arena.