Duke WBB coach Kara Lawson reveals big UCLA change that led to Elite Eight collapse

Duke women’s basketball found itself in the Elite Eight on Sunday after a stunning upset of LSU in the Sweet 16, but Kara Lawson and company were clearly hungry for more. They proved that they were ready for the moment early on against top seed UCLA, jumping out to a double-digit lead in the first half.

Unfortunately for the Blue Devils, they were unable to sustain that pace for 40 minutes and pull off another big-time upset. UCLA stormed back in the second half to pull in front and eventually secure a 70-58 win and advance to the Final Four.

After the game, Lawson gave her take on what went wrong for the Blue Devils and what UCLA changed to turn the tide on Sunday in Sacramento, via Mirjam Swanson of the Los Angeles Times.

“Compliment [UCLA] for turning up their defensive intensity,” Lawson said. “That definitely impacted us.”

Duke isn’t the first to be impacted by UCLA’s elite defense, and it may not be the last either. Cori Close and the Bruins improved to 35-1 on the season with this victory after winning the Big Ten both in the regular season and in conference tournament play. UCLA’s one loss came all the way back in November against Texas, so this is a team that has been rolling for quite a while now.

Despite the loss, which will absolutely sting a little bit for Lawson and company, Duke can still look back at this season fondly. After a 3-5 November that included losses to West Virginia and South Florida, the Blue Devils came all the way back to win the ACC regular season with a 16-2 conference record before beating Louisville in an epic overtime comeback in the ACC Tournament Final.

In the NCAA Tournament, Duke rolled over Baylor in the second round to avenge one of those November losses before upsetting LSU on one of the best shots of the tournament, While they ultimately fell to UCLA, it’s clear the Blue Devils are set up for long-term success after a few years at the top under Lawson.

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