How Charlisse Leger-walker And Gianna Kneepkens Have Elevated Ucla Into Title Contenders

SACRAMENTO — While nan UCLA women’s hoops squad has a seasoned roster that was successful this nonstop position a play ago, nan Bruins person an wholly different vibe during their existent postseason run.

The No. 1-seed Bruins (34-1) will look No. 3-seed Duke (27-8) successful nan Elite Eight connected Sunday for nan chance to spell backmost to nan Final Four a twelvemonth aft UCLA hit Louisiana State to scope nan Final Four earlier instantly suffering a blowout nonaccomplishment to eventual nationalist champion UConn.

This year, they expect thing different, successful ample portion because of an upgraded starting lineup.

A tangible quality is nan summation of Charlisse Leger-Walker and Gianna Kneepkens. Each was nan apical scorer connected their erstwhile squads — Washington State and Utah, respectively — and person taken connected drastically different roles arsenic arguably nan 4th and 5th pieces of this Bruins team.

Charlisse Leger-Walker hits a reverse layup successful beforehand of Minnesota’s Grace Grocholski during nan tourney connected Friday successful Sacramento.

(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)

“It’s immense we person them,” said elder Gabriela Jaquez, who has spent her full NCAA profession pinch nan Bruins. “They’re cleanable fits here. Charlisse arsenic a constituent defender has been great, and past conscionable being a defender retired there, a fresh shooter, doing immoderate we need, and evidently them being capable to take sides is really awesome for our team.”

With nan Cougars, Leger-Walker averaged double-digit scoring and much than 10 shots per crippled successful each season. With nan Bruins, her accumulation has dropped to 8.7 points per crippled connected 7.1 shots.

Where she has improved, though, is simply a career-high 5.7 assists per contest.

“I look astatine nan talent we have, particularly connected nan violative end, location are a batch of times wherever I don’t person to sprout and unit immoderate of nan shots that I would person to backmost astatine Washington State,” she said. “I’ve ever been capable to facilitate and beryllium that connector, but this is nan domiciled I americium needed successful nan astir here.”

Kneepkens was nan Utes’ apical shooting action and Pac-12 freshman of nan year. There, she was relied connected arsenic nan team’s apical three-point shooter, and aft Alissa Pili left, their apical scorer overall.

During her postgraduate season, she has taken a important simplification successful shots per game, going from 12.3 section goals per crippled to 9.4.

“I deliberation it tells you what their ‘why’ is, what their intent is, why they came here,” UCLA coach Cori Close said. “It wasn’t to get their ain stats. It was to beryllium a portion of thing bigger than themselves.”

On a nighttime wherever neither of them did overmuch shooting against Minnesota, though, it was their protect magnitude that made a important quality against a beingness Golden Gophers team. It was nan benignant of defense they could not person played a twelvemonth agone pinch Londynn Jones, who transferred to USC, successful nan spot Leger-Walker now occupies and Angela Dugalic starting alternatively than providing invaluable extent coming disconnected nan bench.

UCLA defender Gianna Kneepkens dribbles nether unit from Oklahoma State guardant Achol Akot against nan Oklahoma State during an NCAA tourney crippled astatine Pauley Pavilion connected March 23.

(Ronaldo Bolanos/Los Angeles Times)

Offensively, Leger-Walker’s beingness has fixed nan Bruins much options to people from passim nan floor. Known arsenic a three-point threat astatine Washington State, she needs to beryllium guarded connected nan perimeter but besides not beryllium near to link to different unfastened players.

“But I deliberation Charlisse, specifically, is 1 of nan champion processing constituent guards I’ve ever been around,” Close said. “Her expertise to understand really rotations are happening successful nan 2nd line, what’s nan adjacent play and if she makes 1 mistake, boy, she’s not making it a 2nd time. ... Having Charlisse connected our squad has freed Kiki [Rice] up successful immoderate ways and vice versa. So that’s been really nosy to see.”

Rice has played much of a shooting defender domiciled this play pinch Leger-Walker taking complete astatine constituent guard, which has opened her up to sprout much and thrust to nan hoop without facilitating arsenic often.

That state has fixed Rice her champion discourtesy play yet.

“[Leger-Walker’s] hoops IQ is insane,” Rice said. “She gets buckets, she defends ace well, she does it each for us. She’s selfless, and she benignant of knows erstwhile to return over. I’m grateful we’ve had her this year.”

Close said that Kneepkens played 1 of her champion protect games successful nan triumph complete Minnesota, but that her magnitude playing arsenic a helping has opened up nan UCLA defense to defender nan perimeter each season.

“It’s conscionable learning to play pinch awesome players,” Kneepkens said. “If that’s uncovering them erstwhile they’re open, past I’ll do that. Or if I request to return my shot, I’ll do that too.”

UCLA’s biggest wins person featured ascendant performances from Lauren Betts and generally, its different bigs — Sienna Betts and Dugalic — playing astatine their best.

But nan existent extent of nan Bruins has travel from having agelong guards who tin take sides and alteration up what they request to do successful immoderate fixed matchup. They mightiness beryllium nan quality going into nan toughest parts of nan tournament.

“Coming to a programme besides wherever you are surrounded by elite players, and astatine nan extremity of nan time we want to triumph and beryllium a portion of a programme that tin do that,” Leger-Walker said. “Whatever that domiciled is that we person to set to passim nan season, I think, we really bought into that.”