“What a great way to end it!” said UCLA senior guard Gabriela Jaquez after the Bruins’ 79-51 win over the University of South Carolina in the 2026 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship. Jaquez finished the championship game with 21 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists. She and fellow seniors — Kiki Rice, Charlisse Leger-Walker, Lauren Betts, and Gianna Kneepkens — all scored in double figures, with Betts also having a double-double and being named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. Jaquez, Betts, and Rice were named to the All Tournament Team along with South Carolina’s Tessa Johnson and Ta’niya Latson.
This is the first NCAA championship for UCLA. Before the NCAA Division I women’s tournament began in 1982, UCLA won the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) title in 1978. The AIAW was formed in 1972 and operated through 1982, with legendary pioneering teams such as three-time champions Immaculata (1972–1974) and Delta State (1975–1977) setting a foundation for today’s women’s game.
South Carolina has been one of the programs that has built on the AIAW. Under head coach Dawn Staley, who has led the Gamecocks since 2008, SC has won three national championships, made five final appearances, reached eight Final Fours, and captured nine SEC Tournament championships.
However, this season belonged to UCLA. Their head coach, Cori Close, is in her 15th season with the Bruins and has, at times, faced criticism for her holistic approach to coaching. In this era of the transfer portal, Rice and Jaquez have played at UCLA their entire college careers and Betts joined as a sophomore. “Super-satisfied with this result, and the journey was even better,” said Jaquez.
“It’s just so rare in life that you can start a journey with a group of people and really envision something and then [try] to reverse engineer a plan that will actually lead you to the point that we’re experiencing right now, and that it actually happens,” said Close. “It’s with great humility that I think we are just so fortunate to be experiencing that and they’ve earned every bit of it.”
UCLA did not seem particularly sharp in its 51-44 semifinal win against the University of Texas, but clearly they were saving the best for last. It appeared that the Gamecocks had depleted their energy and focus in their 62-48 semifinal win over the University of Connecticut.
Unfortunately, a confrontation, initiated by UConn head coach Geno Auriemma with Staley, became the talking point of the Final Four. It is still not known what he said to Staley in the game’s closing seconds before leaving the court alone while his players and coaching staff shook hands with the victors. Staley declined to comment on the situation, preferring to focus on the final game. Auriemma issued an apology that did not specifically address Staley, which many people have found unsatisfactory.
“This is UCLA’s day,” said Staley after the championship game. “Let’s keep it to UCLA … winning the National Championship. I will address all of that at another time, just not this weekend. We’re not going to damper UCLA’s day with it.”
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