Before the USC and UCLA women's basketball teams met in their much-anticipated first matchup of the season on Feb. 13, Trojans coach Lindsay Gottlieb made a hopeful statement to Bruins counterpart Cori Close that came a bit closer to fruition Sunday.

Coach Cori Close challenged UCLA to arrive at the Big Ten Tournament as a tougher, more aggressive group than the one that lost to its dreaded rival, USC, last weekend.

Lauren Betts had 17 points, five rebounds, and four blocked shots as UCLA avenged two earlier losses to defeat USC 72-67 to win the Big Ten Conference women’s basketball