"Sometimes you’re a part of women’s basketball history, and it's not favourable to you”

South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley remarked following the team's rough loss to #1-ranked UCLA.

For the first time in program history, the UCLA Bruins became the NCAA Tournament National Champions. And what a way to make history—with this win being the 3rd largest blowout in a DI women’s championship final. Losing by 22 points, South Carolina continues a bitter trend following their 23-point loss to UConn in the 2025 final.

“This is not the ending we wanted,” Gamecock’s scoring leader Tessa Johnson said in the press conference following the game, “but we got here [when] no one thought we would”.

This game marks a new chapter for both teams, as many of their seniors and WNBA hopefuls look forward to their future careers.

Lauren Betts—the Big 10 Player and Defensive Player of the Year—specifically, was the star of not only this game—but also much of UCLA’s historic run overall. Being a part of the team that brought the school's first championship wasn’t the only thing she accomplished. She also brought home the Most Outstanding Player Award to complement her ascension to #1 all-time for blocked shots in UCLA program history.

In UCLA coach Cori Close’s tearful press conference opening statement, she reiterated the same message from the previous round’s post game.

“I wanted to find uncommon, courageous women that were willing to make uncommon choices, that maybe possibly yield an uncommon result,” said Close.