Betts to share final college season with her sister

At first, landing Lauren Betts was not a plus whenit came to getting her little sister to follow her to UCLA.

- By Ben BoLcH

CENTER Lauren Betts (51) and Bruins coach Cori Close helped persuade Betts' younger sister, Sienna, to attend UCLA. USC COACH Lindsay Gottlieb will work with Londynn Jones, who transferred after helping the Bruins reach the Final Four.

(ROBERT GAUTHIER Los Angeles Times ALLEN J. SCHABEN Los Angeles Times)

When Bruins women’s basketball coach Cori Close called Sienna Betts about Lauren transferring from Stanford at her parents’ request, the younger sibling didn’t hide her displeasure.

“UCLA was my school,” Sienna told Close. “I don’t want to go where my sister’s going.”

It took some massaging of the situation to get Sienna back on board with becoming a Bruin. Big sister helped convince Sienna by delivering a PowerPoint presentation about why she should come to Westwood for Lauren's final college season.

“By the end, there were tears everywhere,” Close said Wednesday at Big Ten media day inside the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center. “It was very heartfelt, it was very genuine. It was just why she wanted to share this experience with her sister and why they needed to share it together.”

It could be a seasonlong joy ride for the sisters after Sienna agreed to join a team that’s been picked to win the Big Ten and contend for the national championship. Laurenand point guard Kiki Rice were selected to the preseason all-conference team and could be joined onthe postseason version by teammates Gianna Kneepkens and Charlisse Leger-Walker.

Sienna is an early candidate for Big Ten freshman ofthe year based on her dynamic skill set. The 6-foot-4 forward has been playing a lot alongside her 6-7 sister in practice, leading to some unusual exchanges.