WATCH: Jaime Jaquez Jr. On UCLA-USC Rivalry, Practicing Defense
UCLA men's basketball guard/forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. spoke to reporters ahead of Wednesday morning's practice at the Mo Ostin Center. Jaquez talked about limiting turnovers, Tyger Campbell's importance to the Bruins' offense, what makes the USC rivalry special, the impact of UCLA not being in class this week and how his team has grown on defense.
What's gone into the way you guys take care of the ball and are so efficient on offense?
Uh, well we understand to have a good defense, you have to have a good offense, and part of that is taking care of the ball and getting great shots. So on offense, what we try to do is move the ball and try to get the best shot possible, and once that happens, it gives us time to set back our defense. And I think that's a recipe for success.
How much does Tyger go into the success you guys have had offensively, being so efficient?
I mean, being a point guard, that's what he does. He takes care of the ball, gets guys open shots and we trust him with that. We trusted him for four years now, we're gonna continue to do that and he proved to be tremendous for us. So nothing but the best for him.
Does winning the last couple games in the rivalry lower the temperature or do you want to win this just as much as you always have?
Oh, no, we still want to win this game just as much. I don't think, I forget – we won the last two, but I still don't forget what happened before then, how we had a bunch of losses to them previously. So yeah, it's still in the back of my mind and we want to get this win as bad as ever.
What does USC gameday mean to you?
I mean, it means everything. Growing up in SoCal, that's the big rivalry here on the West Coast, so I wanted to be on the UCLA side of that rivalry, that's why I chose to come here. But yeah, like coach said, it's a basketball rivalry. I don't think any of us have any hard feelings towards any of the players, I knew a lot of the guys last year, like Isaiah and guys like that. So we've always had great relationships with them, and like coach said, it's just really a basketball rivalry at this point.
Watch the football game against them?
I did watch the football game against them, that was a crazy game. I remember watching it, we were in Vegas. Yeah, yeah, it was a crazy game.
Are you aware of what's going on on campus, in terms of people paying attention to this game? Do students talk to you about it at all?
Uh, well there's no one on campus right now, so I wish I could talk to everybody and see how excited they were. But for the guys that are on campus, please come out to the game, show your support, we always love to have you guys there, we really appreciate it.
Are you bummed that this game is scheduled during break?
Of course, of course. You want to have campus rolling and have everyone here to enjoy. This is something people come to college for, this is part of the experience and it's a bummer that not everyone's here on campus. But for those who are, it's gonna be a great game.
Will Gabriela be there?
Yeah, she'll be there for sure. She doesn't want to miss it at all.
What can you say about how the defense has been developing? What can you say about the team coming together?
They're coming together really well. I mean, as the season goes on, we hope to trend in the right direction. That means get better every single game and I think that's what we've been doing. It's a lot of focus, a lot of hard work we put into each and every game, and we just try to keep that focus through the whole 40 minutes every single time.
A lot has been said about the defense taking strides during this winning streak – what else has improved week-to-week?
Um, I think it's just our constant working it. Everyday in practice, we're doing shell drills, constantly getting guys, making sure they understand the rotations, just constantly refreshing their minds of where to be on defense. And I think that's very helpful, especially since we've got a lot of young guys as well. And even for an older guy like me, it's always good to just get out there and do a shell drill. I think that's pretty much the basics of defense, and it's really helpful in the long run.
What happens in a shell drill?
You just swing the ball around. You go run to help side, run to get your man, get into deny spots and yeah, it's pretty just basica defensive principles.
Will the Jaquez crew have custom UCLA/USC rivalry shirts?
I don't know, I don't know, we'll have to see. We'll have to see, we'll have to wait, wait and find out.
Follow Connon on Twitter at @SamConnon
Follow All Bruins on Twitter at @FN_AllBruins
Like All Bruins on Facebook at @FN.AllBruins
Subscribe to All Bruins on YouTube
Read more UCLA stories: UCLA Bruins on Sports Illustrated
Read more UCLA men's basketball stories: UCLA Men's Basketball on Sports Illustrated
