UCLA Wins 2025 TIAA Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament Crown

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Second-seeded UCLA won its first-ever Big Ten Conference Tournament crown with a 72-67 triumph over top-seeded USC on Sunday evening inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. UCLA captured its first conference championship since 2006 (Pac-12) and eclipsed 30 wins in a season for the first time in program history (30-2).

With Sunday’s victory, the Bruins clinched the Big Ten’s automatic berth into the 2025 NCAA Tournament. The full 68-team field for this year’s tournament will be announced Sunday, March 16 at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Junior Lauren Betts dropped 17 points in UCLA’s second-ever conference championship win over USC while recording her 1,000th career point. She also had five rebounds, four steals, four blocks and two assists. Juniors Londynn Jones and Kiki Rice chipped in 13 points apiece.

The Trojans were paced by sophomore JuJu Watkins’ game-high 29 points, six rebounds and two assists. Graduate student Kiki Iriafen notched 10 points, five rebounds and two assists.

It was the first time since 2019 that the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds met in the championship game and the fourth-straight year the No. 2 seed has won the tournament title.

Betts was selected by the media as the tournament’s Jim and Kitty Delany Most Outstanding Player. Watkins, Iriafen and Betts were joined by Michigan’s Syla Swords and Iowa’s Lucy Olsen on the Big Ten’s All-Tournament Team.