UCLA’s brand new roster, only three days into practicing together, just took a tough loss to the Canadian National team on Wednesday. Yeah, it was an exhibition, but it laid bare some serious cracks for a squad still months away from their official college season. This was a learning opportunity, sure, but also a stark reminder of how far this new-look team has to go.
Sienna Betts’ Brutal Honesty About Her New Role
Look, amidst the L, sophomore forward Sienna Betts was an absolute beast. She was the dominant offensive engine for the Bruins, owning the paint with her post moves, midrange game, and straight-up grabbing every board. After an All-Big Ten Freshman team season, Betts is firmly in a starting role, facing a major upgrade in minutes and responsibilities for the first time in her college career. And she crushed it, for sure. But even she knows the grind is real.
Betts straight up admitted it, saying, “Honestly, I think it’s just way more minutes than I’m used to. Got to get in better shape, but it’s only a couple weeks of practice. I think it’s just the mentality, fighting through.” She gets that when you don’t have those ‘gaps’ she had last year, you gotta find a different level of fight to be able to fight through. And she’s willing to attack that. That’s the kind of attitude you need.
Transfers Stepping Up and Coach’s Long View
It wasn’t just Betts, though. Other new faces definitely flashed some serious potential. Donovyn Hunter, the senior transfer from TCU, showed up as an offensive force in the backcourt. And sophomore transfer Bonnie Deas, snagged from Arkansas, made a huge impression with her offensive rebounding capabilities. Coach Cori Close was actually pretty pumped about Deas’ board-crashing skills from the jump. Close recalled when Sam Skinner, their general manager, brought Deas’ stats to her, she was initially skeptical. But after watching film, Close realized Deas consistently found ways to get rebounds in the SEC, calling it pure “want and effort.” That’s a good sign for the hustle.
Despite the standout individual performances, the game exposed the deficits of a team playing months before they should be. Conditioning is a real issue when you’re facing a national team, and it clearly showed as Canada pulled away. Coach Close wasn’t sugar-coating it, but she’s still looking ahead. “I am actually really excited about who this team is going to become,” she said. “I think we showed glimpses of what we’re going to become and then we showed a lot of things we really need to address… and get get cleaned up.” She sees this loss as a “floor,” not a ceiling. This game was just a raw look at what they *are* right now, not what they *will become*.
So, while one game in the middle of summer is just a tiny peek, this loss was a huge revelation for this new UCLA squad. It showed their immediate challenges, especially with conditioning and cohesion after just three days of practice, but also the raw talent they’ve got in players like Betts, Hunter, and Deas. The 2026-27 season is still a ways off, but you can bet Coach Close and her team have a massive to-do list after this Canada matchup. They know exactly what they need to clean up to be ready when the real games begin.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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