Chambana Sun

The Illinois Fighting Illini women's basketball team faced a setback on Thursday night, losing to the UCLA Bruins with a final score of 70-55 at Pauley Pavilion. The defeat ended Illinois' program-record eight-game Big Ten winning streak.

Illinois showed resilience by outscoring UCLA 21-11 in the third quarter, narrowing the gap to just four points. However, this effort was insufficient to secure a victory against the Bruins on their home court.

Adalia McKenzie led Illinois with 18 points, including 12 from 3-for-6 shooting in the second half. McKenzie also contributed four rebounds and two steals while playing all 40 minutes for the third consecutive game.

Berry Wallace made her first career start, scoring 13 points and going 2-for-4 from beyond the arc. The freshman added six rebounds and matched her career-high with two steals.

Genesis Bryant scored all her 10 points in the second half, extending her streak of double-digit games to nine. She also provided eight assists and one rebound.

Kendall Bostic had a notable performance with eight points, 11 rebounds, two blocks, two steals, and an assist.

The Fighting Illini will conclude their Los Angeles road trip with another challenging matchup against No. 4 USC on Sunday at 3 p.m. CT on FS1.

"Illinois closed the third quarter on an 11-3 run across the final 3:33 of the frame," noted team sources. Despite forcing UCLA into committing 11 turnovers and scoring eight points off them, Illinois couldn't maintain their momentum in the fourth quarter where they were outscored by UCLA.

This loss leaves head coach Shauna Green's record at Illinois at "62-31", including "30-22 in Big Ten play." The Illini now hold a season record of "6-3 away from home" and are "9-1 in games played on Thursdays this season."

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