SPOKANE, WA - The LSU Tigers March Madness run comes to a close at the hands of the UCLA Bruin a team they eliminated last season in the Sweet 16.

UCLA rode the hot shooting of Timea Gardiner and Gabriela Jaquez from behind the arc to take LSU out in the second half of their Elite 8 match-up 72-65.

“Betts did not beat us,” Coach Kim Mulkey said. “We guarded her as tough as we could guard her. We did not take advantage of Betts being off the floor in the second quarter and we allowed perimeter threes and other people to step up. But I will say, as I said before, they're not all about Betts. Betts is just a safety valve down there. When they get in trouble, she can score it at will.”

LSU ends their season with a 31-6 record and at the same spot in the postseason as they did a year ago, unable to make it back to the Final Four two years after winning the programs first national title.

The Tigers struggled with the Bruins defense and their own ball control, turning the ball over 15 times that led to 16 Bruins points in the game.

Mikaylah Williams lead the team with five turnovers and she was joined by Flaujae Johnson and Aneesah Morrow each with four.

“Just a mindset of perseverance,” Johnson said. “I didn't have a good second quarter. I feel like I made the team go into a drought. So I just tried to come back in the second half, not forcing it, just play within the system and try to make some stuff happen.”

LSU trailed by as many as 14 points in the third quarter, battling to get it back within three points in the fourth quarter. Flau’Jae Johnson fueled the comeback attempt with 24 second half points, finishing with a game-high 28 points. Aneesah Morrow finished with 15 points and 7 rebounds while Mikaylah Williams had 10 points and 7 rebounds.

The Bruins were led by Lauren Betts, who finished with 17 points and 7 rebounds. LSU held Betts below her tournament averages this season, but the Bruins received help from Gabriela Jaquez with 18 points and Timea Gardiner with 15 points. Jaquez and Gardiner combined to sink 9 threes.

For the third year in a row, LSU eclipsed the 30-win mark. Coach Kim Mulkey became the second coach to lead a program to three Elite Eights in her first four seasons at a school.

Early in the game UCLA had eight points off LSU turnovers and the Bruins are knocking down perimeter shots while their outstanding center Lauren Betts has been sidelined with early foul trouble.

The Bruins are shooting 50% from the floor on 7 of 14 shooting from behind the arc.

Betts has played only six minutes in the first half, but LSU has not been able to take advantage of her absence as both teams currently are tied with ten paint points.

The Tigers are led at the half by Aneesah Morrow who has nine points on 4 of 9 shooting.

Flau'jae Johnson and Williams are struggling to get in rhythm and are a combined 3 of 13 from the floor.

LSU's offense struggled to score early in the first quarter but ultimately finished strong to take a 13-9 lead over the Bruins after the first frame.

LSU finished the quarter on a 7-0 run as UCLA went cold on their offensive end making just one of their last ten attempts.

The Tigers were able to get Bruin center Lauren Betts in early foul trouble and she's sat on the bench for nearly half of the first quarter.

LSU is looking to make it back to the Final Four for the second time in three years and their seventh Final Four appearance in school history.