UCLA overtakes Duke in second half of Elite Eight matchup, ends Blue Devils’ season
Kara Lawson’s tenure at Duke has been defined by steady, year-over-year improvements. In her first full year, the Blue Devils missed the NCAA Tournament. A year later, their season ended in the second round. They added a Sweet 16 in 2024 and an Elite Eight a season ago.
Duke was minutes away from the Final Four last season, poised to upset No. 1 seed South Carolina, but fell four points short. Duke’s trip to the Sacramento 2 Regional this weekend felt like a rinse and repeat after falling to UCLA, 70-58, on Sunday afternoon.
The Blue Devils (27-9) did everything right in the first half and held an eight-point lead at the break. It was UCLA’s first halftime deficit since its 76-65 loss to Texas on Nov. 26. But the Bruins’ second-half adjustments — and Duke’s inability to readjust — led to a blown Blue Devils lead and a trip to the Final Four for UCLA.
“Credit to them. Great team,” Duke senior guard Ashlon Jackson said. “The way they responded to the challenge that we gave them in the first half was tremendous. Great coach. I really credit them a lot for competing and coming out blazing.”
Lawson said last year’s game didn’t cross her mind, even with the similarities, and believes the program is in the right spot.
Duke has to continue putting itself in position to advance. It’s done that two years in a row, and hopefully the program will finally get to the final weekend.
“I don’t think we have to wholesale change the type of player we recruit, or how we’re developing our players, or anything like that,” Lawson said. “We’ve had a really nice steady upward trend. I love our identity, and I think our identity does win. In March, we just got to continue to have these types of experiences, and at some point, you break through.”
UCLA (35-1) outscored Duke 39-19 in the second half, including 20-8 in the third. The Bruins also held the Blue Devils scoreless for more than six minutes in the third, while forcing seven second-half turnovers. They took their first lead since the opening possession with 2:40 left in the period. That quarter ultimately turned the tide.
Duke remained unable to dig out of the hole it created for itself, getting down by as many as 12 points with roughly 6 1/2 minutes remaining in the contest, despite a fourth-quarter scoring run.
Four Blue Devils reached double figures, led by senior Taina Mair. Mair was perfect from the midrange to open the game, hitting five buckets. She started 4 for 4 overall and did not miss a basket until a 3-point attempt at the end of the first quarter. The senior scored 12 first-half points, dismantling the UCLA defense. She did not miss a 2-point shot until the seven-minute mark in the third quarter and finished with 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
Riley Nelson also reached double figures, scoring 11 points in the first half, matching Mair with five field goals. The duo combined for 23 of Duke’s 39 first-half points. Nelson finished with 13 points.
In the first game of the season, Mair was held to four points and Nelson was scoreless.
Star sophomore Toby Fournier, however, was held to 10 points and four rebounds. She played only 27 minutes due to foul trouble.
All-American center Lauren Betts paced the Bruins with 23 points, 15 of which came in the second half, and 10 rebounds. It was Betts’ seventh game in double figures and her second time surpassing 20 points in the NCAA Tournament.
“Lauren’s terrific. Certainly one of the top players in the country,” Lawson said. “Her size and her skill make her difficult to defend one-on-one, and then the framework of their team with the shooting around her makes it really hard to bring an extra defender. … We toggled between bringing help and not bringing help, and it’s just really hard the whole game to defend.”
A better start on both ends
When Duke and UCLA met for the first time in November, the game was virtually decided after one quarter. The Bruins led 30-7 and held an 18-point advantage at halftime. That only grew as the game progressed, leading to a 30-point loss. It was the worst margin of defeat in Lawson’s time at Duke.
Things were much different on Sunday. The Blue Devils led by four at the end of one, scoring 21 points in the first, and used an 8-0 run in the second to go up 10. By comparison, Duke did not reach 20 points at any point in the first meeting.
The box score was somewhat misleading about Duke’s defensive performance. In the first half, Duke allowed UCLA to shoot 56% from the field, but they took seven fewer shots and turned the ball over 12 times. The Bruins entered the Regional Final averaging 12.4 turnovers per game, which ranked No. 15 in the nation, and lowered that to 9.7 turnovers during NCAA Tournament play.
The Blue Devils capitalized by scoring 16, or 41%, of their first-half points from the Bruins’ errors. Two turnovers were shot clock violations.
Duke also disrupted UCLA’s passing ability, holding the Bruins to seven assists on 14 made baskets.
It looked like the Blue Devils were on track to avenge another regular season loss, after beating Baylor and LSU in back-to-back revenge games. They lost to all three teams in the regular season.
The Bruins played with more urgency and discipline after the break, though. The Blue Devils shot 23% from the field in the second half and finished with a major disadvantage off the gloss. UCLA finished with 38 rebounds to Duke’s 26 after going minus-10 after the break. The Blue Devils have been outrebounded in all nine losses this season.
“Proud of our effort. I thought we started the game with the appropriate level of force, physicality, played really hard and competed really hard,” Lawson said. “In the second half, I thought they did a great job of battling back into the game and taking the lead. We couldn’t get our offense to be able to score in that second half and compliment them for turning up their defensive intensity. That definitely impacted us. The quality looks we did get, we didn’t hit; whether it was layups or open 3s.”
Duke also failed to capitalize on transition opportunities in the second half.
“Those are the differences in games like this,” Lawson said.
3s don’t fall
Duke’s defense also held UCLA without a 3-point basket in the first half. That was a major difference from their regular season matchup, when the Blue Devils gave up 13 3s at a 59% clip.
UCLA made its first 3-pointer 36 seconds into the second half. That didn’t start a barrage of baskets, but the Bruins’ first shot meant Duke’s defense had to defend the arc, opening things up in the middle.
It added just its second 3 with 2:37 left in the third, giving the Bruins their first lead since the opening possession. They finished with two triples on 14% shooting, but it didn’t matter. They came at clutch times.
Meanwhile, Duke started the game 0-10 from 3. Ashlon Jackson, who hit the game-winner against LSU, was scoreless after missing all eight shot attempts, including five from the perimeter.
Despite making a shot, Jackson contributed two rebounds, five assists and two steals.
Lawson is pleased with her seniors, notably Jackson and Mair. They not only helped create a successful season and turn the year around, but impacted the entire program.
“When it’s your seniors’ final game and you know that you’re not going to get a chance to coach them again, that’s where it’s emotional. That’s where it’s heavy,” Lawson said. “But, these two have changed our program. They’ve been the most influential class in our program since I’ve been here. They changed the tide of our program and turned us into champions.”
This story was originally published March 29, 2026 at 5:42 PM.
