"There was a buisnesslike approach": UCLA HC Cori Close reflects on Final Four loss to Paige Bueckers, Geno Auriemma's UConn
The UCLA Bruins had one of the best seasons in school history last season, reaching the school’s first Final Four and finishing second in the Big Ten. Although they were defeated by the eventual champion UConn Huskies 85-51, UCLA coach Cori Close learned plenty from the run.
On the “Good Follow” podcast on Saturday, Close credited the Huskies staff for preparing UConn’s players, as none of them had won a championship before.
"I had no time to fit a practice in on the second day," Close said (Timestamp: 24:40). "You know, and I just think about — OK, they went to a secondary site and practiced even in the midst of everything. They had the same media obligations, the same dinner they had to attend.
"There was just a business-like approach. They checked those boxes and said, “We know exactly what we’re doing, how we’re preparing and what it’s going to take to get there.’”
Cori Close feels the UCLA Bruins were 'inches' away from winning the Final Four clash
Cori Close feels that the UCLA Bruins were inches away from reaching the championship game. She felt UConn was better than them in key areas, which took the game away.
"Every coach will say it, every player will intellectually understand it, that the 'inches' at that level are very small. UConn grabbed their inches better than we did," Close said (Timestamp: 26:06).
"They made fewer errors than we did. Every time there was a one-on-one battle, they were trying not to get hit by the screen, and you were trying to run them through the screen. Bottom line is they won more of those one-on-one battles."
Close and the Bruins will be looking to build on their breakthrough season next year.