*Easter Sunday belonged to the UCLA Bruins. On April 5 (2026), UCLA demolished South Carolina 79-51 to claim the program’s first-ever NCAA women’s basketball national championship. Not a typo. Twenty-eight points. In a title game. The Bruins didn’t just win. They humiliated.
Wire-to-Wire Domination
UCLA led 21-10 after the first quarter and never looked back. By the end of the third, the score was 61-32. The Gamecocks were lifeless. The Bruins were relentless.
Gabriela Jaquez dropped 21 points. Lauren Betts added 16. Kiki Rice and the seniors played like they’d been waiting their whole lives for this moment — because they had.
UCLA finished the season 37-1, avenging their only loss earlier in the year. And they did it on the biggest stage, against one of the most dominant programs of the last decade.
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Dawn Staley’s Blunt Admission
South Carolina coach Dawn Staley doesn’t make excuses. She makes championships. But not this time.
“We got smacked today,” she said postgame.
No spin. No “we didn’t execute.” Just the truth. The Gamecocks (36-4) had no answer for UCLA’s size, speed, or shooting. Their bid for a fourth national title in recent years ended not with a fight, but a whimper.
What This Win Means
This is UCLA’s first NCAA title in women’s basketball. (The program previously won an AIAW championship in 1978 — back when your parents were in bell-bottoms.)
The Bruins have officially arrived. And they didn’t just knock on the door. They kicked it off the hinges.
For South Carolina, the loss stings. But a semifinal win over UConn and a 36-4 season is nothing to cry about. Unless you’re a Gamecocks fan watching that 28-point margin. Then you can cry a little.
?️ Poll for @eurweb Readers:
UCLA’s 79-51 beatdown of South Carolina — impressive title win or shocking collapse by the Gamecocks?
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A) Pure dominance – UCLA was unstoppable. Best team won.
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B) South Carolina choked – That wasn’t a championship performance.
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C) Both – UCLA played great, but South Carolina forgot to show up.
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D) Who cares? Bring back the WNBA season already.
Drop your vote and share your thoughts below. And yes, Dawn Staley’s “we got smacked” is already an all-timer quote.
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MORE NEWS ON EURWEB.COM: Geno Auriemma Got in Dawn Staley’s Face, But She’s the One Playing for a Title Today vs. UCLA | WATCH
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