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UCLA guard Gabriela Jaquez and her top-seeded teammates are eyeing a deep NCAA Tournament run. Noah K. Murray-NY Post
After the Gauchos knocked off the Bruins in that December 1991 game, Close remembers teammate Erika Kienast calling her father in celebration on the van ride home.
“We went into Coach Wooden’s house and we won, Dad, we won!” Kienast exclaimed, her words finally making Close understand what a big deal this retired coach was.
Two years later, as a UCLA women’s assistant, Close scored an invite among a group of coaches visiting the icon at his modest Encino condominium. She was the only female in the bunch.
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