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Camryn Brown

Getting to Candyland, Step by Step: Bruins v Sooners Round of 32

by Krystal Tome 04/13/2023

written by Krystal Tome

It’s a Monday night. The crowd is roaring.

This was an anticipated night for the UCLA Bruins, since it was the night that determined if they would make it to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time in four years.

Coach Cori Close emphasized a focus on the pacing of the game against the Oklahoma Sooners. “Oklahoma is one of the most fast-paced teams. A really good offensive team…so there’s a completely different gameplan.”

Camryn Brown (#35) came into the first quarter with a momentous steal, which led to the ball falling out of bounds and being awarded to the Bruins. The first quarter set a precedent for the audience and the team—there were going to be lots of fouls. Because of the Sooners’ offense, it can be presumed that Coach Close was looking for strong defense, which led to fouls by the referees. The Bruins accumulated 18 non-foul turnovers and 29 fouls (12 being in the fourth quarter), while the Sooners’ had 26 fouls (14 in the fourth quarter).

Brown later said that the team should “[slow] down, [have] more composure” for the next game against South Carolina. “We did a really good job of speeding [Oklahoma] up, and our defense was super aggressive,” she expressed, before admitting, “I think we got a little excited after certain stops happened, and our game just sped up.”

All the fouls provided many chances for free throws. Charisma Osborne (#20) made 100% of her free throws (17-17) and Kiki Rice (#1) made 7-8 of her free throws, making this a great night for Bruins at the line. After the game, Osborne shared an anecdote about her record for making (42) free throws in a row during a practice. “One time, I was at L.A. Fitness or something with my dad… and he was like ‘okay, if you make 30 free throws, you get ice cream’ or something like that. 30 in a row. And that was the first time I ever made 30 in a row, probably the first time I ever made 10 in a row. I don’t know what happened; I flipped the switch. Since then, I’ve been pretty good at free throws.”

With this defense, and spectacular offense by Osborne with 36 points that night, the Bruins advanced to the Sweet Sixteen. This win was contested, however, with a close score of 61-59 UCLA in the last five minutes of the game. The final score of 82-73 came with the mentality of “one stop at a time, one score at a time, not thinking too far ahead,” according to Lina Sontag (#21).

This rollercoaster of a game excited a Bruin-filled crowd for what’s to come during the rest of March Madness. Women’s Sports activist and TikTok Creator Audrey DeVaughn (@audreydevaughn) shared some thoughts on the game.

“This was my first UCLA women’s basketball game. It was also [the first game for] the people who I was with… it really showed them that the product of women’s basketball is really good and I’ve been saying that.” She then emphasizes the importance of showing up to women’s sports events. “Until you’re actually at a game it’s like, people don’t internalize it. Especially on my TikTok, a lot of people are like ‘the product’s not good’ and blah blah blah, but I’m like, have you been to a women’s basketball game? Like, no. Once you go, you can see how awesome it is.”

DeVaughn continues by name dropping the team members that she looked forward to watching most. Some of these names included “Kiki Rice, Charisma Osborne, and Gabriela Jaquez. Conti played really [well]. I felt like they worked really well together.”

“Basketball is one of the few sports that you can have different roles on the team, and still be as valuable, so I thought of that especially with Camryn Brown. I saw how, near the end, they were switching her out for offense, defense, offense, defense,” she stated. “So she was less of a scorer, but they needed her on the court for defense. Basketball is a game that can really elevate those types of players.”

“I was impressed by how much team chemistry they had, and I’m glad that I got the opportunity to see them at home, because it was really exciting.”

Although the Bruins ended their March Madness run in the Sweet Sixteen, women’s basketball will be back in Pauley Pavilion in November.

On April 5th, Charisma Osborne and Camryn Brown announced on instagram that they will be using their 5th year of eligibility to continue their journeys as UCLA Bruins.

04/13/2023 0 comments

Campus Sports

We Run LA: UCLA v USC (WBB)

by Krystal Tome 01/20/2023

written by Krystal Tome

By: Krystal Tome

On January 8th, 2023 the Bruins beat the Trojans for the second time this season during a women’s basketball game. With a really close score, (61-60) there were lots of twists and turns, especially during the last 4 minutes of the game.

Notably, at the end of the first quarter, freshman Londynn Jones (#3) acquired the ball and was fouled by the opposition during the last second, leading to three free throws. The new lead took back the game for the Bruins as the 16-17 score turned to 19-17 with 0.02 seconds on the clock.

During the last 5 minutes of the game, the energy in the crowd and on the court was intense.

Londynn Jones brought in points with 2 free throws and a layup. Lina Sontag (#21) brought the score up by two points with her free throws as well. There were many intense moments during these last few minutes with chances for three pointers and other field goals made by Gabriela Jaquez (#23), Kiki Rice (#1), and Charisma Osborne (#20).

During the press conference after the game, Coach Cori Close expressed that “when you have …a neutral team… they’re not getting up on the highs and lows, they’re saying ‘Hey, what’s my next right step.’ We call that neutral thinking, then we get ready for big moments when we need it.”

Before the game I asked Gina Conti (#10) and Camryn Brown (#35) about preparation for such an emotionally backed challenge, to which Brown responded saying that they prepare by “focusing on the details every day, not putting too much emotion into it, but also you have it in the back of your head that this is the big… rivalry game…the fun stuff.”

Coach Close then remarked, “Whether you’re too high or too low, there’s danger on both sides of those,” adding onto the importance of focusing on the mental part of the game as well as the physical.

Once again, the Bruins take the victory, declaring that we run LA.

01/20/2023 0 comments

Campus News Sports

Bridging the Gap: Disparities between Women’s and Men’s Basketball

by Krystal Tome 01/17/2023

written by Krystal Tome

By: Krystal Tome

Disparity between men’s and women’s sports teams has been pertinent within the sports news cycle, sponsorships and even audience attendance for decades. Unfortunately, we see that this pattern is also persistent on college campuses across the USA.

Even at UCLA, where an inclusive culture is celebrated and respected, the disparity between men’s and women’s sports is unfortunately still present. With UCLA having lines of people waiting for a wristband to get into men’s basketball games extending from Pauley Pavilion all the way to the Covel stairs, it is interesting to think about why students don’t exude the same energy for the women’s basketball team and what systems may be in place holding this disparity.

During an interview in October with Camryn Brown (#35) and Dominique Onu (#2 [at the time of the interview]), we discussed their experiences as student-athletes and women in sports generally and within the context of UCLA.

(L-R) Kiki Rice (#1), Camryn Brown (#35), Lina Sontag (#21), Charisma Osborne (#20), Gabriela Jaquez (#23)
Photo Credits for Entire Article: Nyla Buie for NOMMO Newsmagazine/UCLA Student Media

“One of the biggest [examples of disparity] we got to see was [during the 2020-2021 season] when we went to the NCAA tournament” Brown shares. “The amenities and the attention and availability for stuff that all the men’s teams got” were a lot more elaborate and plentiful. For example, in the women’s weight rooms, Camryn continues, “there were claims of ‘no space’ until Sedona Prince from the University of Oregon shared the situation on TikTok, which is when [the NCAA] shipped some more equipment in.” By utilizing media, such as TikTok in this case, evidence of the disparity and disregard of women’s sports was exposed to the world which pressured the NCAA to take action.

The lack of equal support by companies to men’s and women’s teams affects support by the public, although it seems the NCAA is improving now, step by step. 2022 was the first year where the women’s tournament will have the same March Madness branding that the men have had since 1939. This is exciting because it could potentially increase attention towards the women’s games during the tournament, which will bring more viewers and support to women in sports.

The November 7th games were part of a doubleheader; the women’s team played against Cal Poly at 5:30pm PST and the men’s team played against Sacramento State at 8:30pm PST. During the Postgame Media Availability after the UCLA v Cal Poly game on November 7th, Coach Cori Close spoke on the importance of media coverage of women’s sports, as it is part of the journey to lessening the apparent and pertinent disparity in attention, funding, and support of women’s basketball. Coach Close remarked during her opening statement “I am keenly aware for us to continue to grow our game… we need you to be here to cover our game and tell our stories… so thank you.”

(L-R) Camryn Brown (#35) and Londynn Jones (#3)

After her debut as a Bruin on the court, Gabriela Jaquez (#23) shared that the doubleheader meant a lot to her and her family, given that her brother (Jaime Jaquez Jr. [#24]) played in the 2nd half of the doubleheader. She also shared about the importance of the doubleheader in regard to the women’s game with, “to have a doubleheader [and] to bring more fans in to watch us is a really good opportunity for the women’s basketball team.” During the game, two of the debuting freshmen, Kiki Rice (#1) and Gabriela Jaquez (#23) really let their talent shine on the court. Gabriela Jaquez’s determination and focus by the net was very impressive to watch and Kiki Rice’s speed and agility around the opposing team led to many great plays. These skills helped bring the Bruins to their first win of the season, and will continue to in the games to come.

During our interview, Dominique Onu and Camryn Brown brought a call to action for students to attend more women’s basketball games in order to help in the movement to bridge the gap between the disparity. “You can literally come to a game for free. We even raffle off things like iPads as an incentive for students to come to our games, so it would be great to see more support” Onu said. Currently, the women’s basketball team is ranked as #9 in the country by the newest AP poll due to the fervent talent by our players. It is free for students to attend UCLA’s WBB games, so come out to support our Bruins!

The members of the UCLA men’s basketball team have been supportive of the women’s game; Onu and Brown remarked they are grateful for this support as it builds community and the Bruin bond.

(L-R) Gabriela Jaquez (#23) and Lina Sontag (#21)

I would like to give a special thanks to Dominique Onu and Camryn Brown for our wonderful interview as well as Kiki Rice, Gabriela Jaquez, and Coach Cori Close for their time during postgame media availability.

01/17/2023 0 comments