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LOS ANGELES — Long Beach State women’s basketball is a little sister and UCLA is a big sister, according to Beach coach Amy Wright.
“It’s OK to be little sister as long as we’re still in the same family,” she said. “We’ve gotta take care of each other and I think that’s one thing that women’s basketball does. It takes care of each other.”
Long Beach State is entering Saturday’s 2 p.m. nonconference matchup against No. 1 UCLA as a sizable underdog, but there was a point in history when the roles were reversed. Long Beach State had a 13-game win streak against the Bruins from Feb. 18, 1981, to Dec. 3, 1987.
UCLA head coach Cori Close saw Long Beach State’s prime first-hand when she played against the Beach, who were then the 49ers, when Close was at UC Santa Barbara in the early 1990s.
“It wasn’t UCLA and USC leading national basketball at that time – it was Long Beach State,” Close told reporters Friday.
“They deserve their due because in a lot of ways, they raised the bar for women’s basketball that then brought other schools like UCLA along,” she continued. “And so they have a really important place in our history and growth. They have a lot to be proud of in their legacy that they walk in.”
UCLA (9-0, 1-0 Big Ten) has multiple California teams on its schedule this season in Pepperdine, Fresno State, Long Beach State, Cal Poly and, of course, USC. Long Beach State pushes to have at least two Power Five conference opponents on its nonconference schedule each season and last year hosted USC.
Saturday will mark the 35th meeting for Long Beach State (5-3 overall, 2-0 in Big West) and UCLA but the first of the 2020s. Wright said more than 3,000 tickets have been sold for the game at the Walter Pyramid, which seats roughly 4,000 people.
“It’s great to have them back,” Wright said. “It’s huge in terms of bringing women’s basketball back to the Pyramid. Bringing in a big name – UCLA – to the Pyramid.”
Bruins guard Kiki Rice went to the Pyramid to watch the UCLA men’s volleyball team’s national championship victory against the Beach in May, but it will be her first time playing there.
“It was a great atmosphere,” Rice said. “It was volleyball, so a different sport, but I remember being a very cool place to be in and the energy was like – it was really loud. It was rocking.”
Long Beach State has a group of loyal fans that even attends the away games. The loud, intimate atmosphere could work in the Beach’s favor as it will go for a gritty, hard-nosed approach against UCLA’s top-notch talent.
That’s an attitude the Bruins have been revisiting as well. The coaching staff has been pushing rebounding and Close had even told her players during Friday’s practice that mistakes related to rebounding could get them pulled from the game.
UCLA ranks fourth nationally in rebounding with 46.3 per game but was outworked by Washington on the boards in its Big Ten Conference debut. The Huskies pulled down 32 rebounds to the Bruins’ 30.
“We played against Washington like we wanted to be the pretty team instead of the gritty team and that is unacceptable,” Close said of the Bruins’ 73-62 victory Dec. 8.
“That’s playing to our talent and that is the floor. We have talent, everybody knows that. What is your character? How hard do you push? How much are you willing to grow? How gritty are you willing to be? That’s all I care about and I want it from every single person that puts a jersey on.”
Long Beach State is led by Big West Conference Player of the Week Savannah Tucker, who is averaging 15.5 points per game. The 5-foot-9 senior from Fresno is ready for a physical game with lots of bodies on Bruins 6-foot-7 center Lauren Betts.
While Long Beach State doesn’t have a player taller than 6-foot-3 on its roster, it has battled against a 6-foot-6 player on its all-male practice squad, which has helped the team prepare.
“Just staying down and being tough,” Tucker said. “At the end of the day, we all play the same basketball, so I think that’s continuing to have that competitiveness. You’ve gotta be rough with them. You’ve gotta meet them so they don’t bury us.”
Tucker added that many of the players on both teams have seen each other or played against each other while growing up. Individual connections will be brought together again as history continues to be written for both programs.
“It’s a great opportunity to get a lot of Southern California fans involved,” Tucker said. “At the end of the day, everyone is here to support women’s basketball.”
UCLA (9-0) at Long Beach State (5-3)
When: 2 p.m. Saturday
Where: Walter Pyramid
TV/radio: ESPN+/UCLA Digital Radio
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