WBB: Final Four Games - Printable Version
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Mudhead - Mudhead - 04-05-2026
(04-04-2026, 06:52 PM)Griffins78 Wrote: Think the demise of the PAC-12 was led by USC and their President at the time but a lot of the blame should probably be on Larry Scott and his poorly executed PAC-12 Network strategy. UCLA was given a choice and they accepted, as would Stanford if given the choice.
Ah yes, Larry Scott . Hs is certainly at the top of the list of contributors to the demise of the pAC 12. Along with the College Presidents who backed him right into oblivion. UCLA was ready to kick the carcass as it fell however, in return for BIg 10 riches .
I wish
Stanford had been smart enough to jump on that train instead of waiting for it to run over us.
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - JohnR34231 - 04-05-2026
(04-04-2026, 12:52 PM)HalloHaleakala Wrote:(04-03-2026, 08:54 PM)martyup Wrote: SC is going to clean UCLA's clock Sunday.I'm not sure about that, and this is coming from a Dawn Staley stan. They've no one to counter Betts, and if the Bruins get going from the arc, USC'll hard put to keep up.
And, less analytically, it just feels like UCLA and Cori collectively are due to get off the schneid.
I expect a close game, and yeah, UCLA could win.
I have a hard time cheering for Betts since she ditched Stanford, but perhaps that was partially Stanford's fault.
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - jonnyss - 04-05-2026
my goodness, ucla looks a lot better than south carolina. sc has no offense - ucla has great defense, or both.
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - Jskass - 04-05-2026
Hate hate what Geno did. And am observing more tightly called game.
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - martyup - 04-05-2026
(04-03-2026, 08:54 PM)martyup Wrote: SC is going to clean UCLA's clock Sunday.
Boy was I wrong.
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - jonnyss - 04-05-2026
all-star team: jaquez, dugalic, leger-walker, kneepkens, rice. and then there's lauren betts.
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - martyup - 04-05-2026
Close clomps.
![[Image: ?u=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia1.tenor.com%2Fm%2F...8ac164d9bd]](https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia1.tenor.com%2Fm%2FGvdVZKiNSKMAAAAC%2Fwalk.gif&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=633717606e0846f47ddf303b5c2b3554a7019aa8b9dd65802c778c8ac164d9bd)
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - BostonCard - 04-05-2026
(04-05-2026, 01:57 PM)martyup Wrote:(04-03-2026, 08:54 PM)martyup Wrote: SC is going to clean UCLA's clock Sunday.
Boy was I wrong.
I thought UCLA could win; I didn’t expect them to be doing the clock cleaning.
BC
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - yvonne - 04-05-2026
(04-05-2026, 02:14 PM)BostonCard Wrote:(04-05-2026, 01:57 PM)martyup Wrote:(04-03-2026, 08:54 PM)martyup Wrote: SC is going to clean UCLA's clock Sunday.
Boy was I wrong.
I thought UCLA could win; I didn’t expect them to be doing the clock cleaning.
BC
I haven't been following UCLA basketball since they play in the midwest, but I am shocked by this result. I'm not really rooting for either team.. I like Dawn Staley, but it's nice to get new teams... but does it have to be UCLA?
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - MV72018 - 04-05-2026
(04-05-2026, 02:14 PM)BostonCard Wrote:(04-05-2026, 01:57 PM)martyup Wrote:(04-03-2026, 08:54 PM)martyup Wrote: SC is going to clean UCLA's clock Sunday.
Boy was I wrong.
I thought UCLA could win; I didn’t expect them to be doing the clock cleaning.
BC
What a beatdown! Cori Close figured out a winning strategy against South Carolina that few others have in recent years -- as well as having a loaded roster.
Although this is 'Monday morning quarterbacking,' coaching style, is there a consensus that TVD did everything she could to nurture Lauren Betts as a frosh, as a player and as a person, so that she didn't feel underappreciated and decide to depart for UCLA? Cori Close seems to have done what was needed. Is doing that kind of thing not one of Tara's strengths? I have no clue about the matter. But having the nation's #1 recruit depart seems like something a savvy head coach would have moved mountains -- and adapted -- to try to prevent.
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - BobK - 04-05-2026
There was a mental illness problem for Betts at Stanford then again at UCLA where Betts missed a couple of games
Seems all good now thankfully
RE: Mudhead - chrisk - 04-05-2026
(04-05-2026, 01:14 AM)Mudhead Wrote:Caltrain is the only train going through Palo Alto - to Santa Clara and SJSU.(04-04-2026, 06:52 PM)Griffins78 Wrote: Think the demise of the PAC-12 was led by USC and their President at the time but a lot of the blame should probably be on Larry Scott and his poorly executed PAC-12 Network strategy. UCLA was given a choice and they accepted, as would Stanford if given the choice.
Ah yes, Larry Scott . Hs is certainly at the top of the list of contributors to the demise of the pAC 12. Along with the College Presidents who backed him right into oblivion. UCLA was ready to kick the carcass as it fell however, in return for BIg 10 riches .
I wish
Stanford had been smart enough to jump on that train instead of waiting for it to run over us.
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - MV72018 - 04-05-2026
(04-05-2026, 03:14 PM)BobK Wrote: There was a mental illness problem for Betts at Stanford then again at UCLA where Betts missed a couple of games
Seems all good now thankfully
Indeed, thankfully. But I do seem to remember that Tara didn’t give LB much playing time at all as a freshman. Was that handled sensitively? I don’t know….Seems that effective coaches have to have some applied psychiatric skills these days. Cori seems adept in that regard as surrogate mother. Did TVP and does KP fill the bill in that regard? I do not know the answer to that question either.
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - stopandpop - 04-05-2026
(04-05-2026, 02:23 PM)MV72018 Wrote:(04-05-2026, 02:14 PM)BostonCard Wrote:(04-05-2026, 01:57 PM)martyup Wrote:(04-03-2026, 08:54 PM)martyup Wrote: SC is going to clean UCLA's clock Sunday.
Boy was I wrong.
I thought UCLA could win; I didn’t expect them to be doing the clock cleaning.
BC
What a beatdown! Cori Close figured out a winning strategy against South Carolina that few others have in recent years -- as well as having a loaded roster.
Although this is 'Monday morning quarterbacking,' coaching style, is there a consensus that TVD did everything she could to nurture Lauren Betts as a frosh, as a player and as a person, so that she didn't feel underappreciated and decide to depart for UCLA? Cori Close seems to have done what was needed. Is doing that kind of thing not one of Tara's strengths? I have no clue about the matter. But having the nation's #1 recruit depart seems like something a savvy head coach would have moved mountains -- and adapted -- to try to prevent.
The second half of your statement is spot-on. Cori welcomed Lauren with open arms and she and the entire team demonstrated (to Lauren) that she was loved and they had her back. I question the first part because Cori and staff spent a lot of time nurturing Lauren, giving her the confidence to play at a high level Div. 1 team, mistakes and all. From my perspective of Betts' freshman season was Tara had her on a short leash and did not let her learn on the court.
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - Leftcoast - 04-05-2026
In 2022 Stanford was a top ranked team with an embarrassment of front court riches and returning the entire front court that won the previous year’s championship. Betts was playing behind some serious WNBA level competition - I miss those days.
Seriously:
Cameron Brink - Jr
Kiki Iriafen - Soph
Ashten Prechtel - Sr
Fran Bellibi - Sr
Lauren Betts - Frosh
Could TVD have shown more patience and handed out more PT in blowouts and against lesser teams-sure, but there weren’t a lot of minutes to go around. Betts was a frosh big learning the game and learning how to play on the big stage of a championship contender for a meticulous coach. She did still get 10 minutes per game and would have made a big leap in 2023 with Cam skipping her Senior year to go pro.
How quickly it all disappeared, right?
pefloresjr - pefloresjr - 04-05-2026
(04-05-2026, 07:31 PM)Leftcoast Wrote: In 2022 Stanford was a top ranked team with an embarrassment of front court riches and returning champions. Betts was playing behind some serious WNBA level competition - I miss those days.
Seriously:
Cameron Brink - Jr
Kiki Iriafen - Soph
Ashten Prechtrl - Sr
Lauren Betts - Frosh
Could TVD have shown more patience and handed out more PT in blowouts and against lesser teams-sure, but there weren’t a lot of minutes to go around for a frosh big learning the game and how to play on an NC contender
How quickly it all disappeared, right?
Exactly. Also, Betts was dealing with real personal issues related to her mental health and UCLA had a person dedicated to her to help. Even with that, Betts wrote that her first year at UCLA was plagued by the same issues. It wasn’t until the last two years that she really found her way. Being close to home probably helped. I don’t think we can say that playing time had any real impact on her departure. Some of her family members didn’t like her playing time but, as noted, there was a lot of talent ahead of her.
Cheers,
Pete F.
RE: pefloresjr - jonnyss - 04-05-2026
(04-05-2026, 07:42 PM)pefloresjr Wrote:in the one brief conversation i had with tara about player health, she said she entrusted players to the experts in sports medicine and sports psychology. it seems cori close and the ucla teammates chose instead to help out directly with betts's depression in addition to using professionals. betts's time at stanford would seem not a great period for stanford sports psychology as katie meyer killed herself the previous march.(04-05-2026, 07:31 PM)Leftcoast Wrote: In 2022 Stanford was a top ranked team with an embarrassment of front court riches and returning champions. Betts was playing behind some serious WNBA level competition - I miss those days.
Seriously:
Cameron Brink - Jr
Kiki Iriafen - Soph
Ashten Prechtrl - Sr
Lauren Betts - Frosh
Could TVD have shown more patience and handed out more PT in blowouts and against lesser teams-sure, but there weren’t a lot of minutes to go around for a frosh big learning the game and how to play on an NC contender
How quickly it all disappeared, right?
Exactly. Also, Betts was dealing with real personal issues related to her mental health and UCLA had a person dedicated to her to help. Even with that, Betts wrote that her first year at UCLA was plagued by the same issues. It wasn’t until the last two years that she really found her way. Being close to home probably helped. I don’t think we can say that playing time had any real impact on her departure. Some of her family members didn’t like her playing time but, as noted, there was a lot of talent ahead of her.
Cheers,
Pete F.
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - JohnR34231 - 04-06-2026
What would you bet Cori Close got up early this morning to call Lara Somfai about transferring to UCLA?
RE: WBB: Final Four Games - crackpot - 04-06-2026
(04-06-2026, 05:08 AM)JohnR34231 Wrote: What would you bet Cori Close got up early this morning to call Lara Somfai about transferring to UCLA?
She's probably been calling her since last August.
76lsjumb - 76lsjumb - 04-06-2026
(04-06-2026, 08:25 AM)crackpot Wrote:(04-06-2026, 05:08 AM)JohnR34231 Wrote: What would you bet Cori Close got up early this morning to call Lara Somfai about transferring to UCLA?
She's probably been calling her since last August.
+1