WATCH: Everything Eric Dailey Jr. Said After UCLA's Win Over No. 9 Michigan State

UCLA's Eric Dailey Jr. broke down his game-winning shot and the Bruins' 63-61 win over No. 9 Michigan State.
Madeleine Considine, UCLA Bruins On SI

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LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- In a down-to-the-wire matchup against No. 9 Michigan State, sophomore guard Eric Dailey Jr. stepped up when it mattered most, lifting UCLA to a 63-61 win at Pauley Pavilion.

The Bruins held the lead for much of the game, but the Spartans refused to go away, keeping the score tight down the stretch. With just 7 seconds remaining and the game tied at 61, Dailey attacked the rim and finished through contact to put UCLA ahead for good.

The sophomore contributed 9 points and five rebounds, making crucial plays on both ends of the floor. The Bruins took advantage of Michigan State’s mistakes, scoring 19 points off turnovers.

Now 17-6 overall and 8-4 in Big Ten play, UCLA continues to build momentum in conference action. 

Dailey discussed his clutch moment and more while addressing the media after the game. 

You can watch below:

Below is a partial transcript from Coach Mick Cronin’s opening statement of his postgame press conference:

Cronin: “I knew we were gonna get to have them coming off their first Big Ten loss. They came out ready, I knew Coach [Tom] Izzo would have them ready. But the story of the game is one stat: points off turnovers. We only have three turnovers. I told the guys, we get to the NCAA Tournament, we play every game with three turnovers, we'll cut the nets down.It's hard to do, playing Michigan State. Coach [Bob] Huggins taught me a long time ago, when I had a full head of hair, my suits were cheap, and I was working for him, that real programs win when you don’t make shots. We missed layups, we missed free throws, we couldn’t make a shot in the second half to save our life, but we won anyway.So, that’s what I try to build into these guys, and I try to build it as a character thing for when their life doesn’t go the way they want it to go, that they’re still going to be successful, they’ll still make it through the tough times. When shots go in, your life’s easy, it’s all great. When things are tough is when you find out. Michigan State made it tough on us.[Aday] Mara missed some chippies, [Lazar] Stefanovic stepped up, hit a few big ones for us, and I decided at the time to go to Eric [Dailey Jr.] on the last play. I thought he hadn’t had his best night, but I got a lot of confidence in him.”

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