No. 8 Duke Falls to No. 2 UCLA in Elite 8

Sunday, March 29

Sacramento, Calif.

3 p.m.

Duke University

27-9,16-2ACC

UCLA

35-1,18-0Big Ten

Duke

UCLA

Photo by: Duke Athletics

No. 8 Duke Falls to No. 2 UCLA in Elite 8

3/29/2026 5:44:00 PM | Women's Basketball

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Duke led No. 2 UCLA by eight at the half, but the Bruins outscored the eight-ranked Blue Devils 20-8 in the third quarter en route to a 70-58 victory in the NCAA Women's Basketball Elite Eight inside the Golden 1 Center Sunday afternoon.

Duke had four Blue Devils in double figures, led by Taina Mair's 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Riley Nelson (13), Delaney Thomas (12) and Toby Fournier (10) also assisted the offensive performance. Mair's six assists gave her 201 for the season, tying her with Chelsea Gray for the Duke single-season assists record.

The Bruins took over in the second half, outscoring Duke 26-8 in the paint after intermission and outrebounding the Blue Devils 25-15 while shooting 45 percent from the floor. UCLA took better care of the ball in the second half, committing just six turnovers after Duke forced the Bruins into 12 giveaways for 16 points for the Blue Devils in the opening 20 minutes.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Blue Devils got off to a strong start, making five of their first seven shots to take a 10-4 lead after the first four minutes. Mair had the hot early for Duke with six of the 10 points. A three-point play from Nelson extended Duke's lead to 15-7 halfway through the opening period. However, the Bruins stayed close by, chipping in four of their next five shots to cut the gap to 21-17 at the end of the first.
The teams traded baskets early in the second before the Blue Devils turned in an 8-0 run to extend their lead to double digits halfway through the second quarter. Duke continued to keep the Bruins off balance, finishing the half shooting 53 percent for a 39-31 lead at the break.
Gabriela Jacquez and Lauren Betts combined for the Bruins' first nine points out of the locker room to close in on the Blue Devils, 43-40.
UCLA turned four Blue Devil turnovers into points to take the lead, 49-45. A pair of free throws from Mair broke up a nearly six-minute scoring drought, but an offensive board and put-back from Angela Dugalic at the buzzer gave UCLA the 51-47 after three.
UCLA opened the final period with five quick points before Mair added Duke's first points from beyond the arc for a 56-50 Bruin lead.
The Bruins stepped on the gas in the final few minutes, adding 10 points inside the paint to put the game out of reach, 70-58.

UP NEXT

The Blue Devils end the season with a 27-9 overall record after advancing to the program's 13th Elite Eight.

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