WATCH: UCLA Players Preview Sweet 16 Game Against Rival Gonzaga

UCLA men's basketball guard/forward Jaime Jaquez Jr., point guard Tyger Campbell and guard Amari Bailey spoke with reporters ahead of an open practice at T-Mobile Arena on Wednesday. The trio talked about the Bruins' upcoming rematch with No. 3 seed Gonzaga in the Sweet 16, their collective experiences in March Madness, Jaquez's relationship with Drew Timme, Bailey's first taste of the NCAA tournament and more.

Q. Jaime, have you watched the tape from the last time you played Gonzaga here?

JAIME JAQUEZ: I've seen it.

Q. And?

JAIME JAQUEZ: And we're ecstatic that we're here in the Sweet 16 and we're able to play against a great team.

Q. Referring to that question on that game, but not about the wins and losses, just what do you remember that game being like? What were the feelings like as you were playing and looking back on it, aside from win or lose?

JAIME JAQUEZ: I think it's a new team. We want to compare last year -- I think it was maybe the third game of the year, and talk about almost two years, maybe a year and a half, something later. We've got a lot of new guys. It's a completely new team. So I think that game has little effect on what we're doing here in this game coming up.

TYGER CAMPBELL: Jaime hit it on the head. It's hard to compare a game from a year ago or even when we played them before that because we have a whole new team. They have a whole new team. Obviously there's still some guys that were there, just like we have, but we're going into this game not worried about the past ones and just trying to get a win on Thursday.

Q. Tyger, Coach Cronin is always talking about how hard it is to play defense with freshmen. You have one guy sitting next to you right now. But how has this team been able to do it with Amari and Adem and Dylan and Will contributing so much? And what kind of role do veterans have in helping bring those guys along?

TYGER CAMPBELL: Well, it's good having freshmen that are here and that are willing to listen and that are willing to take on the task in front of them. If you would have -- Amari being a great defender, for example, last game, he played a point guard that made Second-Team All-Big Ten and made it difficult for him all game, and to even go back to the game before.

When you have guys that are just ready and they're going against veterans every day in practice, it makes it a little easier when they get out there. But all that has to do with effort and them locking into the scouting report also. Because with young guards it's hard -- they'll get backdoored, they'll get beat. There will be a lot of things you don't expect.

But the guys we have, they've taken on this defensive job very seriously because they know that's the only way we're going to win is by defense. And they recognize that.

Q. Jaime, you've been in so many of these tournaments now. Tyger, yourself; but, Jaime, for you specifically, do you ever have to pinch yourself a little bit? You've played in so many March Madness games, doing media all the time. Talk about that a little bit.

JAIME JAQUEZ: It becomes surreal for me. And I know, I think Tyger and Amari can speak to that as well. I think it's hard. Me and Tyger talk a lot after games about just trying to understand and realize the bigger picture and take ourselves out of our shoes and look at what we've really done as a group together.

And we look back. And we're proud of what we've accomplished so far. Obviously, we're still here. We're still playing. And we've got a lot more to do.

But when we look back, we're very proud of the effort and hard work that we put in to building this program to what it is today.

Q. Amari, along those same lines, this being your first exposure to March Madness, what are your impressions right now? What's going through your head with not only what's going on on the floor, but all the media stuff and all the other stuff that goes with it?

AMARI BAILEY: Really just staying in the moment, staying present with my guys. That's all I really can do, just like you said, this is my first experience with all of this. And I'm really just taking it one step at a time with the media, with game play, practice play.

Q. Jaime, your sister will be playing in her Sweet 16 this weekend. What parts of her game do you appreciate the most and the kind of player she's grown in so far at UCLA?

JAIME JAQUEZ: She's tough. I think we play a very similar style of game. I was very happy I got to watch her in the second round. I was able to go. I know all the guys were there supporting the women's team as well.

I'm just very proud of the work she's put in. It's difficult as a freshman. But she's taken her time there and she's making the most of it. I'm just very happy and proud of her.

Q. Jaime, Drew talked about you being roommates at a camp in high school. Seeing how far he's come; he's now the all-time scoring leader at Gonzaga. You've probably had battles with him over the years. Just how tough is he offensively, footwork-wise and everything? And seeing him grow from high school, what's that been like from afar?

JAIME JAQUEZ: Like you said, we met each other -- we were roommates at, I think, Ballislife Camp in So. Cal. It was great to get to know him and see how he was at the time. I don't think either of us knew how far our careers would go at that time. We were just kids enjoying basketball and having fun.

And it's great to see him and all the success he's had there. And I credit that to all the hard work that he's put in. And it was very cool to have full-circle moments like that in life. I think 360 is a magic number. I think a lot of things come cycle and this is another one of those instances.

Q. Tyger, can you talk about Dylan Andrews. I think naturally his minutes have gone up, his points. He's made some key plays with free throws and the 3-pointer, Northwestern. Just your comments on Dylan Andrews and him being able to step up on such a big stage?

TYGER CAMPBELL: It might sound crazy, but I expect that from -- not just me but the team expects that from him. Ever since he's got here he's been a dog and he's been willing to learn. And he's asked me all types of questions. And he's trying to figure it out one game at a time.

And I think that he just shows that he's ready when he comes in. Like to your point, those big free throws that he hit, we don't win unless he hits those. So he's just a guy that stays ready and when his time comes, it's going to be crazy. He'll show everybody.

Q. Jaime and Tyger, what this year, only this year, stands out about Gonzaga on film, to you guys?

JAIME JAQUEZ: I think more the offense obviously has been a big focal point of their team. And I think that's just constant throughout the three years that I've been here, being able to play them.

They're always tough to guard in transition, the pick and roll as well. We're going to try to trust in our game plan, trust in the coaches and we're going to try to execute the best we can.

Q. How would you describe Las Vegas as a basketball town since you guys come here every year for the tournament? And also you guys play some special one-off games too in the fall.

AMARI BAILEY: I feel like we just want to come here and win, obviously. But we've joked around about it a little, but just break the curse that we have here in Vegas and come out on top.

JAIME JAQUEZ: To add on that, too, me and Amari obviously played high school, but everyone here I think has gone to Vegas at one point in their life for basketball. It is really an underrated mecca when it comes to youth basketball and just basketball as a whole. It's a very underrated city.

Q. Tyger, you've been asked about a couple of the younger guys. Will in particular, he's a Vegas kid, coming back home. What has his journey -- how has it been perceived by you guys and what have you seen in his development?

TYGER CAMPBELL: We know Will is a great player. And he's coming off a pretty serious injury. So me personally going through something like that, I try to talk to him and help him try to get more comfortable with his body and just tell him how much we need him and how there's no rush. But we need him to play if we want to win.

He's a gamer. So he stays ready. We're just trying to keep up his confidence because we see him do great things every day in practice, defensively and offensively. So we're just trying to get him more comfortable in his body and just ready to come in these games and help us win because we know we're going to need it.

Q. Jaime, I talked to you before the season, you talked about coming back and how being on campus at the same time as your sister was pretty special. Getting to see her go to the Sweet 16, you were mentioning that. What's been the best part of being a big brother with your little sister on campus and kind of going through the journey together?

JAIME JAQUEZ: I think just being able to see firsthand her growth as a player but also as a woman as well. This is just a big transition in everyone's life when they go to college. I think she's handling it great. Obviously they're in the Sweet 16. But I think more than that she's learning how to live by herself, on her own, and kind of finding her own way in life. I think that's really cool as an older brother just to see my little sister grow up in front of my eyes.

Q. Jaime, along that line, are your parents going to be flying back and forth this weekend between here and Greenville, or what's the deal there?

JAIME JAQUEZ: I don't have their flight itinerary, but I know they're crazy. And they're going to try to make both as best they can. My parents are very supportive. They've been that way since I was a kid. And I just really appreciate all the hard work that they've put in trying to make it and support all three of their kids in all their sports and all their games.

Q. Amari, coming in as a freshman, your last five games, averaging 17 points per game, obviously not fazed at all by the bright lights of March and the Pac-12 Tournament and everything, what about this time of year is bringing out the best in you right now especially heading into a matchup with a team as prolific offensively as Gonzaga?

AMARI BAILEY: Just trying to stay sane and trust in my work, trust in what we've built together collectively as a group. Not really getting beside myself, knowing that we're going to have to come in and compete for 40 minutes. Really just letting everything play out and whatever happens happens. And just staying present in the moment, really.

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