UCLA Basketball: Mick Cronin Impressed By This Element Of Bruins' 15-Point Rally Vs ASU
The UCLA Bruins men's basketball team stormed back against Arizona State to get a massive victory. The final score came in at 68-66, but the Bruins outscored ASU by 15 points in the game’s second half to claim the win.
It was a needed vicory for this team, and they've now won two straight after a trying couple of games. The Bruins are a very young team, and they've shown their inexperience at different times this season.
But head coach Mick Cronin was impressed with the way that the team made adjustments as the game went on. It was the difference between them dropping this game, and it showed some growth from this squad.
"A lot of things. We’re still not perfect, but they’re really hard to play against. They got great length and athleticism and quickness. Their team speed and the way they attack the ball, it’s hard to get the ball inside against them. We were able to do it. [Adem Bona] had some turnovers early, but his passing got better. We were able to get a lot of open threes. We were able to make some adjustments that the guys did a pretty good job of as the game went on, defending their quickness. I have been here a long time. There’s no ‘give up.’ I’m not allowing that. There’s never going to be ‘give up.’ But you got to get the ball in the basket to get the juices flowing. You start getting the ball in the basket, you get some juices flowing."
Anytime a team can get a conference win, it's a great motivator. The Bruins are battling through conference play right now, and they need to stack their resumes for the potential NCAA Tournament down the line.
"I’ve been working with these guys on having fortitude and bounce in their step and not worrying about missed shots. And not worrying about the result. Like, I’m happy with the result. My job is to help all these guys get better and they’re super young. So, they’re going to get better. I’ve accomplished enough. I know some people don’t think I have. I have. I’ve been the coach of the year in many conferences, been to the Final Four. I’m a kid from the west side of Cincinnati whose dad was the high school coach. It’s about them [the players]. I’ve got to help them keep getting better, and if you do the right things, you have a chance to win.”
Games like this will help, and it showed poise from this bunch. The Bruins fought until the very end, and the hope is that they can build off this win going forward.
