Unleashing Excellence: The UCLA Experience

Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Men’s Head Basketball Coach
opening statement
“Outstanding game for us considering what we’ve experienced with the current situation here at home. We required a capacity crowd tonight with our student fans, but they’re on break due to the worst calamity in the history of our city, which is understandable. I want to express my gratitude to our band that attended and everyone who made the effort to come out tonight. We truly needed your backing, and I am aware everyone has their concerns, but the support is incredibly valued. Our initial half, genuinely the first 30 minutes, was as excellent as we could have played. We reached a point where we led by 36. This team suffered a loss at the buzzer against Michigan. They received a tough foul call at that buzzer against Michigan, and they’ve triumphed over many formidable teams. Excellent victory for us, we demonstrated what we are capable of on defense. In the first half, we restricted the best shooting team in the nation to only 38% and three made threes. The players demonstrated great patience on offense tonight, and in terms of passing, we haven’t recorded 28 assists in ages.

on the team’s ball movement
“We spent considerable time analyzing Iowa and the scouting report. Understanding them assisted us. They drive to pass and compel you to defend. Our pressure disturbed them, and I believe we shook them early. However, if you observe them at their peak performance, we studied their footage and noted their patience. We’ve been too stagnant in offense over the past few weeks, and our shot selection has not been impressive. Our shot quality in the first half was phenomenal.”

on the performances of Dylan Andrews and William Kyle III
“Outstanding. He performed exceptionally. I mentioned we needed improved play from our point guards, and today he and Skyy combined for 25. I indicated that either Will Kyle or Aday needed to be impactful. I opted for Will tonight due to their spread offense and how intensely they attempt to operate up and down and spread out. Will is the superior defender; he can guard the rim, he can protect the three-point line, and he can run faster than Aday. Will was performing brilliantly. There’s a principle in basketball; you want minutes, how about earning them? Gregg Popovich had a fantastic saying, ‘Make me play you’. And Will warranted continued playtime, he compelled me to keep him in, and he played superbly. The Big Ten conference is a robust, competitive league, and we’ve found that challenging. That’s precisely why we brought him on board, and we urgently required him.”

on Eric Dailey’s performance
“Eric Dailey, by the way, was phenomenal. I advised him to alter his mask. We were on the road, and I inquired where his mask was; he said he left it at home. I asked, ‘Who would switch masks and still make every shot? Did Batman switch masks?’ He played like a superhero, and he changed his mask.”

on ending a four-game losing streak with the victory against Iowa
“We discussed it extensively. We must coach it more effectively. I adore my staff; I have an amazing staff, but I’m permitted to feel frustrated with them. And I’m also frustrated with myself, so anyone who believes I’m not accountable doesn’t really know me or is simply engaging in clickbait. Nobody evaluates themselves more harshly in coaching than I do. I can’t eat, I can’t sleep. I don’t comprehend how after NBA games they go out to dine. It’s inconceivable for me; I feel like jumping off a bridge blaming myself.”

on tonight’s rebounding performance
“We need to improve coaching rebounding on both ends. Tonight, we missed 22 shots and managed to recover half of them. We will never lose another game if we acquire 50 percent of our misses.”

on having a strong defensive mindset
“I emphasize mindset when discussing defense. You will not excel as a defender merely by pretending to care. The same applies to rebounding. Some of it is intelligence or having certain gifts; I think of Kevon Looney. The guy never attempts a jump shot, and he can’t be taller than 6-8, yet he has played center on numerous championship teams. That’s because his focus is on executing his role – rebound, defend. Sometimes it’s difficult, especially in this era of the portal. It took Jaime four years to defend rigorously without committing fouls. Now you have players who are in their first year with us, it’s a distinct era. However, you are not going to excel at anything unless you concentrate on it.”

on traveling from the West coast to the East coast
“Good luck traveling West to East. Ask me about UCLA’s record east of the Mississippi over the last 20 years. When I obtained the role, I researched it for scheduling reasons, and it’s below .500. We have to return four times. The other teams come to Los Angeles just once in an entire year, and they don’t even need to switch hotels. Meanwhile, we have seen the Statue of Liberty twice in three weeks while landing. And we still need to return, and then we must go back [to Indiana] for the Big Ten Tournament.”

UCLA forward William Kyle III
on his performance and energy tonight
“I would credit it to our training. We’ve all been pushing each other on a daily basis since our losing streak. We understand that’s not the standard at UCLA. I’ve been advocating intensity in practice, and I feel like it reflected in my performance in today’s game. We played selflessly, and that was a significant factor today.”

on the team’s play in the high post
“In the high post, we were merely searching for the open spot. If they approached me, I would look to find the next open man, and if they didn’t pass to me, I would try to make a play near the basket. I know there were instances when someone caught it in an out of bounds situation, and we had to readjust our setup because everyone focused on the shooter. We were observing how they guarded us and simply making the correct play.”

UCLA guard Skyy Clark
on the team’s impressive shooting performance in the first half
“The team was exceptionally eager. We’ve had many players in the gym over the last few days as they returned from our trip. We had a day off, but when I entered the gym to get some shots, I noticed Eric, Will, and Kobe in there, Baz was in the gym, even the players who do not typically play – the walk-ons and redshirts were in attendance. It’s a different mentality, and it’s something we need to maintain moving forward.”

on the team returning to winning
“It was incredibly enjoyable. You want to be on the victorious side every time, even though most of the time that’s not feasible. We’re aiming to be a ray of hope. We’ve got the fires affecting our city, and it’s impacted the entire community. Individuals have lost their homes. It’s reassuring to know that we can provide a little brightness for those watching.”

on Dylan Andrews’ performance
“We’ve been instilling as much confidence into Dylan as we can. I’ve played against Dylan since I was in fifth grade, throughout middle and high school. We always discussed teaming up together. I’m fully aware of his capabilities, and he excelled in practice this week. He’s been putting in the work, and it’s evident. We’re all incredibly proud of him for maintaining this momentum. He averaged about 13 points last year. He can score, he can assist, he can defend, he can accomplish many things. We nearly scored 100 points tonight, and he was a significant contributor.”contributor to that. It demonstrates what he is capable of.” 
 
UCLA forward Eric Dailey Jr.
regarding his position as a leader within the team
“I believe our mindset has transformed. I know we faced a setback as a team in the final four games. I was motivating the guys to have faith in themselves, and it appeared to be effective, so I’ll continue doing that.” 
 
on reverting to the transparent mask
“The black one was difficult to see through. It looked great for the photos, but other than that. I can’t wait to remove the mask – it’s going to be intense.” 
 
concerning the minor aspects of his game that aid in winning
“I believe it comes down to effort. I strive to play hard, I aim to be everywhere on the court. I communicate with my teammates, and they position me correctly. I think being engaged is essential. That’s part of resilience, being active, vocal, and gritty. That’s what I offer to this team.” 
 
Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery
on UCLA’s shooting effectiveness
“They got off to a strong start. They shot well from beyond the arc. Our defensive ball movement improved as the game progressed. It wasn’t good initially. I believe our shot selection and offensive execution, particularly on the road, wasn’t what it needs to be when they were scoring.” 
 
on UCLA making their initial nine field goals
“They were incredibly assertive. They shot effectively, not just inside, but also from the outside. I thought we put in a lot of effort during practice over the last couple of days, so I expected us to perform better. We have to acknowledge UCLA for that. We improved as the game advanced, but we need to be stronger at the beginning.” 
 
on how the lengthy flight home will aid the team
“I believe we have an excellent group, individuals with integrity and experienced players. We will attempt to move on from what has not been a successful trip and learn from some of the errors we’ve made. We’ll stay positive, and I want them to keep a positive attitude towards one another. We’ll begin preparing for our next rival and recognize the aspects that occurred tonight that are not permissible moving ahead, particularly nine consecutive baskets to start the game [by UCLA]. As I mentioned earlier, being minus 10 on the boards and having atypical turnovers, we had nine turnovers from our point guard position. Those players are usually very reliable with the ball. We’ve got to improve in that area.”