When UCLA won its conference game against the Ohio State Buckeyes on Sunday (82-75), Coach Cori Close found herself surrounded by silence.

And the veteran coach did not hold back in the post-game interview.

“Honestly, if I’m being really blunt with you, the energy in the building was great, but having no media here at all from either team or either — no AP, no nothing, doesn’t say a lot,” Close told Orange County Register’s Benjamin Royer.

“We’re the only double-ranked game out today…the only one in the country, and we had no media day today. No media here. You’re the only one that’s asked to talk to me. And credit to you, but I don’t mind if you print that either.

The other games taking place on Sunday were Rutgers vs MSU, Illinois vs Purdue, and Penn State vs Iowa, out of which the Hawkeyes were the only ranked team.

AP Journalist Beth Harris immediately took notice and posted on X. "AP had a freelancer in person covering #ucla-#OhioState today. I can’t speak to the person’s whereabouts post game but I appreciate @CoachCoriClose noticing."

The lack of media attention could come from a few reasons. With the NFL regular season coming to a close very soon, all eyes are turned toward the sport. Moreover, with the game being broadcast on Big Ten Network, a channel that's not as popular, the game may have gone unnoticed.

Written by

Fatema Kapasi

Edited by

Siddharth Shirwadkar