A day after UCLA was anointed the best women’s college basketball team in the country in the season’s opening month, Cori Close showed up at the practice facility to see another early riser.
Her players.
Nine Bruins were already on the court when Close arrived at 6:40 a.m. Tuesday.
“That told me what I needed to know,” Close said Wednesday, “about where their vision really is and where their aspirations lie.”
Read more: UCLA women’s basketball ranked No. 1 in AP poll for first time after South Carolina win
As Close has repeatedly said, it’s not where you are in late November but where you are at the end of the season that counts.
That’s not to say that UCLA hasn’t enjoyed the perks of rising to No. 1 in the Associated Press rankings for the first time in school history following a 15-point victory over defending national champion South Carolina.
Close said she received an “amazing text” from Bruins legend Ann Meyers-Drysdale while also being congratulated by professors, chancellors and former coaches. Three television cameras showed up at practice Wednesday, exceeding recent media turnout for the football and men’s basketball teams.
“This is not something you do alone, it takes a village,” Close said, “and to share it with the village is really great.”
Read more: Hernández: UCLA women prove beyond a doubt they are No. 1 in basketball
There was also a larger trend to celebrate. UCLA is only the 26th team to hold the No. 1 ranking in the 40 years of the AP women’s poll.
“The parity of our game,” Close said, “is just getting better.”
Although UCLA dominated South Carolina in every facet, Close identified several areas that needed improvement, including defensive rebounding, transition defense, communication and off-ball rotations.
Maybe the fact that so much went wrong in a blowout victory was the most encouraging development for a team that wants to win it all.
“Gabriela Jaquez said, ‘It makes me so excited that we were able to play at such a high level and we have so much more we need to grow in,’ ” Close said, referencing the junior forward who has established herself as one of the top reserves in the country because of her toughness and playmaking.
Read more: No. 5 UCLA stuns No. 1 South Carolina to reaffirm its national title aims
Among the things that Close will be tracking closely when the Bruins (5-0) open play in the Rainbow Wahine Showdown on Friday in Honolulu against Tennessee-Martin (1-4) is rebounding. Although leading the country in offensive rebounding thanks in large part to the presence of center Lauren Betts, UCLA ranks in the 74th percentile in defensive rebounding.
“With our size and our depth, it should not be that way,” Close said. “So we’ve got a lot still to work on.”
Close is also monitoring turnovers. The Bruins committed 16 against the Gamecocks, exceeding the maximum of 11 their coach wants per game.
What might have made UCLA’s top ranking most meaningful, Close said, was that it reinforced the image the team already had of itself.
“I really felt no different,” Close said, “because we already saw ourselves as a No. 1 team and with championship habits and commitments and aspirations; it’s just other people got to see it, and I think that’s why we performed that way.”
One monumental victory down, three-plus months to their intended destination to go.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
