UCLA and Texas get Final Four rematch of Longhorns' early-season win

PHOENIX (AP) — UCLA's bid to play for a first NCAA championship came to a harsh end with a blowout loss to eventual national champion UConn in the women's Final Four.

The Bruins are back, along with the rest of last year's Final Four teams, and hope to have better luck in the desert.

Standing in the way is Texas, the only team to be the beat them in what was otherwise a dominating season.

“For us, it's just coming out ready to go,” UCLA guard Gabriela Jaquez said on Thursday. “The main thing is being ready to play, coming out to get every loose ball, play as a team, just playing like we know how to play.”

The Bruins (35-1) spent most of the season pushing around opponents, winning by an average of 20.9 points per game — fifth nationally — on their way to a school record for wins.

The Longhorns (35-3) became the bully when the teams met Nov. 26 at the Players Era Championship in Las Vegas.

Texas' physical guards harried the Bruins into a string of turnovers to lead by 20 at halftime and staved off UCLA's late charge to win 76-65. UCLA also had a hard time getting the ball to All-American center Lauren Betts, who had a season-low eight points on just eight shots.

“Coming out with a certain level of aggression is important and I'm going to make sure I do that,” Betts said.

UCLA rebounded to beat Duke by 30 the next day, kicking off a school-record streak of 28 straight wins that included four double-digit wins in the NCAA Tournament.

The Longhorns kept rolling, opening the season with 18 straight wins before consecutive setbacks at No. 5 LSU and No 4 South Carolina. The losses frustrated Texas coach Vic Schaefer, but his irritation peaked a month later with a 16-point loss at Vanderbilt that had him saying his team was “soft” and “had no heart.”

The Longhorns responded by dominating every team they went against after that, winning 12 straight games by an average of 26.5 points per game. That included a 17-point win over South Carolina in the SEC tournament title game and four straight NCAA Tournament blowouts in which they allowed an average of 49.4 points per game.

Texas, in the Final Four for the fifth time, is seeking its first national championship since going undefeated in 1986.

“Right now, they're playing as good as any team I've ever had,” said Schaefer, in his fifth season as Texas' coach.

A huge key in Friday's second Final Four game will be whether UCLA can handle Texas' pressure.

The Longhorns hounded the Bruins into 20 turnovers, converting those into 18 points.

UCLA had similar problems taking care of the call against Duke in the Elite Eight, turning it over 12 times to trail at halftime for the second time this season. The Bruins rallied from the eight-point deficit to win 70-58, but finished with 18 turnovers.

The Longhorns have big, physical guards who put constant pressure on ballhandlers, a big reason they force 22 turnovers per game.

Another key will be the performance of the teams' two first-team AP All-Americans.

Betts had a dominating season, averaging 18.5 points and 7.6 rebounds while shooting 60.1% from the field to be named an All-American for the second straight season — a year after becoming the program's first women's All-American. She's the fourth player in NCAA history with at least 600 points, 300 rebounds, 100 assists and 70 blocks in a season.

Texas junior Madison Booker has the size of a forward at 6-foot-1, but the skills of a guard, making her a brutal matchup for any opposing team.

Booker averaged 19.3 points on 51.6% shooting, 6.1 rebounds, 3.8 assists and led the team with 83 steals. She's the only player in women's NCAA history with at least 1,500 points, 900 assists, 600 rebounds and 350 steals.

Schaefer is the only coach in women's Division I history to lead two programs to multiple Final Fours. He took Mississippi State to the national title game in 2017 and 2018. ... UCLA won an AIAW national championship in 1978, four years before the NCAA began running women's college basketball. ... Texas has held an opponent to single digits scoring in a quarter 28 times this season and has forced 30 5-second violations. ... The Longhorns had 16 wins against ranked opponents this season, UCLA 14. ... UCLA's starting five accounts for 79.2% of its scoring at 67.2 points per game.

AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

UCLA guard Gabriela Jaquez dribbles the ball during practice prior to the national semifinals Women's Final Four of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Thursday, April 2, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

South Carolina guard Raven Johnson goes up for a shot during practice prior to the national semifinals at the Women's Final Four of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Thursday, April 2, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Texas head coach Vic Schaefer celebrates after beating Michigan during the Elite Eight of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Monday, March 30, 2026, in Fort Worth, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

UConn head coach Geno Auriemma answers a question during a news conference prior to the national semifinals at the Women's Final Four of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Thursday, April 2, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

NEW YORK (AP) — Blake Lively’s sexual harassment claims against actor Justin Baldoni over their roles in the movie “It Ends With Us” were dismissed Thursday by a federal judge who left intact three claims, including retaliation, that will let a jury hear many of the allegations anyway.

The written ruling by Judge Lewis J. Liman in Manhattan came after Lively sued Baldoni in December 2024. A trial is scheduled for May 18.

Baldoni and production company Wayfarer Studios had countersued Lively and her husband, “Deadpool” actor Ryan Reynolds, accusing them of defamation and extortion. The judge dismissed Baldoni’s claims last June.

In his ruling, Liman determined that Lively was an independent contractor rather than an employee. On that basis, he said she was not entitled to bring sexual harassment claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. That law prohibits employment discrimination on various grounds, including gender.

As to retaliation, the judge said some evidence might enable a jury to conclude that Baldoni's production company planned not only to damage Lively's reputation but to destroy her career amid fear she'd file a discrimination claim. Lively alleges a smear campaign has been “devastating for her reputation and career,” the judge noted.

In an analysis of the sexual harassment claims, the judge said Lively's claims had to be viewed in the context of the movie they were working on.

“Lively claims that during filming, Baldoni leaned in and gestured as if he was intending to kiss her, and that he kissed her forehead, rubbed his face and mouth against her neck, put his thumb to her mouth and flicked her lower lip, caressed her, and leaned into her neck, saying ‘it smells good,’” the judge wrote.

He said there was no question that the conduct would support a hostile work environment claim if it happened on a factory floor or in an executive suite.

However, the judge noted, Baldoni was “acting in the scene” and his "conduct was not so far beyond what might reasonably be expected to take place between two characters during a slow dancing scene such that an inference of hostile treatment on the basis of sex would arise. At least in isolation, the conduct was directed to Lively’s character rather than to Lively herself.”

Liman added: “Creative artists, no less than comedy room writers, must have some amount of space to experiment within the bounds of an agreed script without fear of being held liable for sexual harassment.”

Despite those findings, the judge said some sexual harassment claims may be put to a jury to support two retaliation claims that survived the ruling, including one against It Ends With Us Movie LLC and Wayfarer Studios, and a third claim that was left intact alleging breach of a contract rider agreement against It Ends With Us Movie LLC.

The judge noted that Baldoni once said “pretty hot” after asking Lively to remove her jacket, exposing a lace bra underneath, and that when he was warned that it was inappropriate and distracting to make such comment, he allegedly rolled his eyes and responded: “Sorry, I missed the sexual harassment training.”

Liman also cited a scene in which Baldoni pushed for Lively to perform a birth scene naked and then the scene was filmed over several hours without the set being closed to nonessential personnel.

In a statement, Lively attorney Sigrid McCawley wrote that Lively “looks forward to testifying at trial and continuing to shine a light on this vicious form of online retaliation so that it become easier to detect and fight.”

She added: “This case has always been and will remain focused on the devasting retaliation and the extraordinary steps the defendants took to destroy Blake Lively’s reputation because she stood up for safety on the set and that is the case that is going to trial.”

A lawyer for Baldoni and his production company did not immediately comment.

“It Ends With Us,” an adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling 2016 novel that begins as a romance but takes a dark turn into domestic violence, was released in August 2024, exceeding box office expectations with a $50 million debut. But the movie’s release was shrouded by speculation over discord between Lively and Baldoni.

Lively appeared in the 2005 film “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants” and the TV series “Gossip Girl” from 2007 to 2012 before starring in films including “The Town” and “The Shallows.”

Baldoni starred in the TV comedy “Jane the Virgin,” directed the 2019 film “Five Feet Apart” and wrote “Man Enough,” a book challenging traditional notions of masculinity.

This combination of images shows Blake Lively at the London screening of the film "It 'Ends With Us" on Aug. 8, 2024, left, and Justin Baldoni at the world premiere of the film in New York on Aug. 6, 2024. (AP Photo)