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The Arizona womenโ€™s basketball team will open Pac-12 play against USC and UCLA before taking on Colorado and Utah later in December.

On a Zoom press conference Wednesday night, UCLA coach Cori Close shared that her Bruins will face the Wildcats in Tucson on Dec. 4. Arizona will play USC on Sunday, Dec. 6.

Close, who has only eight players on her squad at the moment โ€” two freshmen are still in Australia and two upperclassmen have opted out of the season โ€” said that she likes facing a team like Arizona โ€œright off the bat.โ€ The Wildcats are expected to pen the season ranked, and potentially in the top 10.

โ€œThey gave us the worst loss (last season). What a great opportunity to start off the year showing what we learned from that experience,โ€ Close said. โ€œI think itโ€™s going to be a great challenge, and Iโ€™m looking forward to seeing where it puts us.โ€

Close is referring to the Jan. 31 game, when Arizona knocked off No. 8 UCLA, 92-66. It was the most complete game the Wildcats played last season.

After facing UCLA and USC, Arizona takes on a nonconference foe before diving back into Pac-12 play. Arizona will face Colorado on Dec. 18 and Utah on Dec. 20. Arizona will play rival Arizona State later in December.

The UA has still not announced its nonconference slate, as contracts have not yet been signed. The Pac-12 is expected to announce its 2020-21 schedule, along with times and television pairings, soon.


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