ROSEMONT, Ill. -- UCLA will begin its national title defense with a term not usually attached to champions.
"We're a little bit overlooked," forward Timea Gardiner said.
"We definitely are overlooked," added forward Sienna Betts. "I understand the perspective that no one knows how we're going to play together."
The Bruins are a largely new team, returning zero starters and only five players from the group that cut down the nets on April 6 in Phoenix. They will be relying more on returnees like Gardiner, who missed the entire championship season with a knee injury, and Betts, who played in more of a reserve role, as well as an influx of transfers. The Bruins will be without one of their few returnees as Lena Bilić sustained a season-ending ACL tear in her knee.
UCLA won't enter the season with the anticipation of crosstown rival USC, which regains Wooden Award winner JuJu Watkins from injury, or other nationally elite programs.
Coach Cori Close and the players aren't concerned, however.
"Isn't that cool? That allows them to be a little bit better at shutting out outside noise because they're not living up to whoever's expectations," Close said at Big Ten media days. "I've told them, 'Look, there's a reason why we don't define ourselves by what how we're ranked or what other people are saying or what social media says.' We have to be committed to our values and our process because those things can really get you off track."
Close barely got to enjoy the national title during "the busiest seven months of my life," which began with the transfer portal opening right after the Final Four. She only watched one quarter of the national championship win against South Carolina, because it was on TV at Gabriela Jaquez's graduation party.
But the dynamics of the sport and her next UCLA team made it easy to turn the page.
"Every single point that was scored in the national championship game was scored by those six [departing] seniors," Close said. "But there's also a freedom in that. Like, let's go create something new. ... Let's just feel really good about the house that we build. We're going to live in that freedom."
Close and the players said the new-look team benefited from a summer trip to Victoria, British Columbia, to face the Canadian senior national team. At the end of the trip, Close asked Gardiner and guard Elina Aarnisalo to rate the team's off-court chemistry and they both gave it a 10 out of 10.
"We had like about 10 days together," Gardiner said. "That was a fun way to put everyone together in a small space and being able to bond and do activities outside of basketball that really will show on the court, and it has so far."