How To Watch, Game Preview and Game Thread: #2 UCLA Bruins vs. Rutgers Scarlet Knights
After crushing a good Iowa team on Sunday, the Bruins get what should be an easy game before their toughest road trip of the season.
After the UCLA men’s basketball team cruised past Rutgers last night, the UCLA women’s basketball team will have their chance to do the same thing tonight when they host the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Pauley Pavilion. Tip-off is set for 7 pm PT and the game will be streamed on B1G+.
The Scarlet Knights are coached by Coquese Washington, who’s in her fourth season with Rutgers and her 16th season overall. At Rutgers, Washington has a record of just 42-77. That’s a far cry from Vivian Stringer, who preceded her as the Scarlet Knights head coach. Unfortunately, former UCLA assistant Shannon LeBeauf and her husband Sean LeBeauf, who is also an assistant coach with Rutgers, have not been able to able Washington turn the program around yet.
Washington will start a lineup with two guards, two forwards and a guard/forward.
Rutgers Scarlet Knights’ Starting Lineup
The Scarlet Knights will be without their two best players tonight. Both guard Nene Ndiaye and forward Imani Lester are listed as being out for this evening’s game.
Sophomore guard Lauryn Swann will start in place of Ndiaye. Swann is averaging just 8.6 ppg. Considering that Ndiaye is averaging 14.2 ppg, that’s a considerable dropoff in production. In Lester’s place, I would expect to see Janae Walker or Faith Blackstone get the start. Blackstone would probably be the better choice, given that she is averaging 10.2 ppg to Walker’s 2.5 ppg. In fact, without Lester and Ndiaye in the lineup, Blackstone would be tied for the team lead in scoring with Zachara Perkins.
Speaking of Perkins, she will definitely start tonight. Of the available starters, Perkins is second in rebounds with an average of 4.7 rpg. Perkins’ 31.1% three-point percentage is the best among the likely starters tonight.
Guard Kaylah Ivey has started every game this season for the Scarlet Knights. She is averaging 8.5 ppg. She leads the team in assists with 81, which is more than the next two players combined.
The final starter will be forward Antonia Bates. The senior is averaging just 2.1 ppg, but her 5.3 rpg leads the team among available players. She is also tied with Perkins for the lead in blocks among available players with 14.
Analysis
It’s probably best for Rutgers that tonight’s game will only be available on the conference’s subscription service after the Scarlet Knights were blown out by Southern Cal, 71-39, on Sunday at the Galen Center.
Of course, this is one of those times when you wish the transitive property held true for basketball. If it did, the Bruins might actually be able to pitch a shutout tonight when you consider that they crushed the Trojans by 34 at home recently.
That said, a 50-point win and/or a 100-point game for the Bruins may not be out of the question. Either way, this will be a good opportunity for UCLA to work on their fundamentals and to uphold their standard, as Coach Close likes to say, in preparation for a tough road trip that starts this Sunday against #8/7 Michigan and concludes next Wednesday against #12/13 Michigan State.
Watch and Listen to the Game With TMB
Today’s game will be streamed on Big Ten Plus with Brian Fenley and Victoria Dennis on the call. Of course, you can opt to listen to Dave Marcus with the audio call which will be streamed on uclabruins.com. To watch or listen online, just right-click on the links so that you can open up another tab and have it going while you chat in the comments below.
This is your UCLA women’s basketball vs. the Rutgers Scarlet Knights game thread. Here’s how to watch, listen and stream today’s game:
#2 UCLA Women’s Basketball (21-1, 11-0)
Opponent: Rutgers Scarlet Knights (9-13, 1-10)
Series Record: UCLA leads, 4-3.
When: 7:00 pm PT, Tuesday, February 4, 2026
Where: Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles, CA
TV: None
Live Stream: BigTenPlus.com with Brian Fenley and Victoria Dennis
Radio/Audio
Satellite Radio: Sirius Ch, 106 and XM Ch. 195 (UCLA Call)
Online: uclabruins.com with Dave Marcus
Live Stats: UCLA StatBroadcast
Game Notes:
UCLA
Go Bruins!!!
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Cruised to a 40-pt win - good bench minutes, no injuries, I’ll take it
Now that’s how you dominate a quarter!