Lauren Betts and the UCLA Bruins will play the Texas Longhorns in a Final Four matchup tomorrow at PHX Arena in Phoenix. Betts, who has been on a great run this season so far, will make her second consecutive Final Four appearance.
She is averaging 17.2 points, 8.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.1 steals, and 2 blocks per game. While her overall numbers have gone down compared to last year, shooting at nearly 58% from the field is still very impressive.
The upcoming matchup would be about more than just scoring. The rivalry between the two teams is heating up, and recently, the Longhorns center Kyla Oldacre sent a message to Betts before they lock horns tomorrow.
“We kinda had a conversation yesterday. I told her, don’t be crying to the refs and she told me don’t be pinching,” Oldacre said.
Despite the conversation between them, Oldacre said that if she sees Betts “doing something,” she will pinch her. Fans found it hilarious that Oldacre’s solution for Betts going to the refs is to pinch her.
“Pinching is diabolical like girl who are you a granny in church,” a fan wrote.
“I’m crying real tears fym pinch,” a fan wrote.
As unconventional and bizarre as it might be, if the pinching is giving Oldacre the results she’s looking for, she is going to do it in the Final Four matchup.
Both teams are coming off blowout wins in their respective Elite Eight matchups. The UCLA Bruins defeated the Duke Blue Devils 70-58 with Betts dropping a 23-point double-double.
The Longhorns won 77-41 over the Michigan Wolverines, and Oldacre came off the bench for 12 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocks.
Lauren Betts Watched the 2025 Final Four Loss
Lauren Betts’ UCLA Bruins suffered a 34-point blowout loss against the UConn Huskies in the 2025 Final Four matchup. The Huskies went on to win the NCAA title while Betts was left with the footage to motivate herself.
She has watched the UConn matchup several times, and she has learned everything she possibly could from the game.
“I knew I just wanted to get back here again. This is not the end goal. We want to keep playing two more games,” Betts said. “At the end of the day, our senior season is on the line. We want this so bad.”
The biggest lesson she learned from her previous year’s Final Four loss was to be aggressive from the jump. It’ll be interesting to see if she implements that against Texas.
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