What Mick Cronin Said After UCLA's Big Win Over West Georgia

The No. 15 UCLA Bruins (3-0, 0-0 Big Ten) desperately needed a win like the one it got against West Georgia on Monday before facing some real competition this week.

Star point guard Donovan Dent was out in the Bruins' 83-62 win over the Wolves, and his absence was felt in the first half. UCLA struggled to get anything going offensively and took just a 37-32 lead into halftime, mixed with UWG cashing in from three.

In Dent's absence, veteran forward Tyler Bilodeau starred, finishing with 21 points and four rebounds on 7-of-12 from the field. Many wondered who would step up as UCLA's facilitator, but sophomore guard Trent Perry perfectly filled the role, posting 17 points, five rebounds and nine assists while only committing two turnovers.

ucl — Nov 10, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Trent Perry (0) drives past West Georgia Wolves guard Brady Hardewig (1) during the second half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Eric Dailey Jr. rounded out the starters with 14 points of his own. Graduate forward Jamar Brown came off the bench and sank two 3-pointers en route to 10 points and five rebounds off the bench.

The Bruins desperately needed a game like this after turning in two unconvincing wins against Eastern Washington and Pepperdine to start the season. Dent is likely to return as the Bruins match up against No. 5 Arizona on Friday in the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California.

Below is a transcript of Mick Cronin's full postgame press conference.

Mick Cronin Postgame vs. West Georgia

Opening statement

“I’m happy for their [West Georgia’s] kids. It was a great trip for them. I’m really happy for Dave [Moore]. They came out and made every shot. I know you guys think I’m nuts, but it’s great for us. The worst thing that can happen is when a team just lays down and lets you win. Because it’s already hard enough to get your guys to live in a realistic state. It’s the hardest thing there is in today’s world of coaching. I’m the bad guy when I tell them the truth. So I was really happy for their guys.”

ucl — Nov 10, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins forward Tyler Bilodeau (34) heads down court after a three point basket during the first half against the against the West Georgia Wolves at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

On Trent Perry's offensive game

“I’m concerned with his defense and taking care of the ball. As he gets minutes, he’ll shoot it better. Young players shoot at a lower percentage, older players shoot a higher percentage. It doesn’t matter if it’s high school, college, or the NBA. He took care of the ball with nine assists to two turnovers. He’s worked hard, he’s got stronger, he’s done a great job.”

On West Georgia's shooting in the first half

“They hit some hard ones and we had some break downs. Obviously, they hit some hard ones that they haven’t shot all year. They didn’t shoot them last year.”

On UCLA's second-half perimeter defense

“Yeah, it was better. They probably got worn down a little bit. Our second half defense was definitely better. They shot 69 percent in the first half and 33 percent in the second. We got 34 deflections. It was interesting at the timeouts, whenever they were making shots we had no deflections for four minutes. We pulled away early, 20-9, we had six deflections.

ucl — Nov 10, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; West Georgia Wolves forward Shelton Williams-Dryden (4) keeps the ball from UCLA Bruins forward Eric Dailey Jr. (3) during the second half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

"It’s a direct correlation of your effort. A comfortable team will shoot 90 percent. It was great that they made us compete tonight. We do not need a false sense of security. Pepperdine, Eastern Washington – they all made us compete. The worst thing you can have is a team that just lays down.”

On Perry playing point guard

“He plays point at practice versus Donovan every day, so it’s an adjustment for him when he plays with Donovan out there. What you saw is what he practices every day. He doesn’t play the two in practice. That’s why I’m saying he looked like he’d been practicing because that’s how he plays every day. It’s more of an adjustment when I’ve got to run when he’s with Donovan because in practice, he’s playing the point guard on the other team. Because of his size, when he’s with Donovan, he did offense last week.”

On what UCLA must do to beat Arizona

“They need to be able to do hard things and play at a high level. That was my message to them. If you want to be successful in life, you’ve got to be ready to do hard things. That’s one. Two, you want to play more, you've got to play better than Johnny. In Little League, everyone gets to play. This is pay for play. You want to play, you want to get a promotion, you’ve got to be better than [LA Times Writer] Ben [Bolch], which I have no chance of, since I am not a writer.

ucl — Nov 7, 2025; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats forward Tobe Awaka (30) reacts after a foul was called on him during the second half of the game against the Utah Tech Trailblazers at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

"You’ve just got to be better than somebody. It’s a new thing. For kids who were just born and went to a high school where they’re just better than everybody, they get to this level, and it’s a little harder to be better than everybody. You’ve got to be better than a guy if you want to play over him. If Johnny’s better, he’s probably going to get to play, so you want to beat Arizona, you better be better than them. That’s number one. Number two, you'd better be able to do some hard things because they bring the fight. That’s why it’s great to play them. They always bring the fight.”

On Skyy Clark

“I love Skyy dearly. He took the first half off. I have great belief in his talent, but I thought he took the first half off tonight. He had none at the half. He and I had a lot in common at halftime, and it wasn’t our hairdo.”

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