Mick Cronin questions players’ aptitude after UCLA struggles during loss to Stanford
Another home loss filled with a broken offense and dumbfounding turnovers wasn’t the low point for UCLA.
No, bottom came about 15 minutes later when Mick Cronin suggested he wasn’t coaching a smart basketball team and wasn’t sure things would get better anytime soon for the struggling freshmen.
“The most important thing for a teacher is for his students to have aptitude or they can’t learn, they can’t apply, so your rate of progress and development is way too slow,” Cronin said Wednesday night after his team made only six shots and scored 23 points during the second half of a 59-53 loss to Stanford at Pauley Pavilion. “So if a team makes adjustments, we struggle to adjust to instruction on the fly.”
There are no easy answers given UCLA’s offensive ineptitude that goes beyond a lack of shooters, steady passers or anyone who can reliably get baskets. Cronin said his players’ understanding of the game was also lacking.
The lessons Jaime Jaquez Jr. learned during four seasons at UCLA have helped him make a smooth transition to the NBA, playing a big role for the Heat.
As evidence of his players’ poor decisions, Cronin pointed to sixth-year senior Kenneth Nwuba committing two fouls and a turnover in less than a minute in the first half and freshman forward Berke Buyuktuncel giving up two straight layups and throwing a cross-court pass for a turnover, defying instructions.
“I told him real simply, ‘If you don’t get double-teamed, just score. I don’t even care if you miss it, just score,’ ” Cronin said of Buyuktuncel. “I’m trying to develop somebody who can score the ball ... but he decides to throw a cross-court pass, so our turnovers, we invent new ways to turn it over.”
Cronin had acknowledged the obvious earlier this week.
Given UCLA’s severe offensive limitations, the Bruins would have to win with defense and toughness.
But even that formula wasn’t enough against Stanford after holding the Cardinal to 36% shooting given the lows to which the Bruins’ offense sunk. After scoring the game’s first 10 points, the Bruins fell into an epic funk in which they set a season low for scoring while dropping a third consecutive home game.
“Let’s be honest,” Cronin said. “You can’t score, you can’t win.”
Airballs abounded as UCLA made only one of 13 shots during one stretch of a second half in which it shot 21.4%. The Bruins (6-8 overall, 1-2 Pac-12) shot just 32.8% overall on the way to their sixth loss in seven games.
Once again stout inside, with post players Buyuktuncel (13 points) and Adem Bona (12) combining to make eight of 13 shots, UCLA made just three of 13 three-point attempts, including two with the outcome decided. The Bruins compounded their shooting woes by committing 10 of their 16 turnovers in the second half, a total that Cronin called “ridiculous” given the defense his team faced.
“There is no press, there is no trap,” Cronin said. “So why are you turning the ball over? What would the reason be?”
After losing out on a host of domestic high school prospects including Stanford’s Andrej Stojakovic, who scored nine points for the Cardinal (7-6, 2-1), Cronin imported four Europeans as part of a seven-player freshman class.
But only Buyuktuncel has become a mainstay of the rotation, with Jan Vide rounding into form from injury, Aday Mara struggling with the physical nature of the college game and Ilane Fibleuil repeatedly getting yanked immediately after mistakes.
In his latest cameo appearance, Fibleuil lasted just 21 seconds Wednesday, up from the 17 seconds he played against Oregon last weekend. Fiblueil’s crime that led to such a short stay? He lost the ball on a drive to the basket for a turnover.
“That’s on him, not me,” Cronin said of Fibleuil’s quick exit. “Like I tell guys at this level, you know, I tell ‘em all it’s hard. So you can quit and go home, make an excuse and transfer like 1,900 guys, or you get better. Look in the mirror. But you gotta look in the mirror first.
“You’ve been told to get in there and make open shots and go rebound, play defense. First time you touch the ball you try to be Michael Jordan and look what happens. Great kid, but we got a lot of guys really, to be honest with you, who are struggling on the aptitude right now.”
Those searching for salvation could point to the parallels between these Bruins and Cronin’s first UCLA team. After a loss to Stanford at Pauley Pavilion in January 2020, those Bruins also had a losing record after dropping six of their last seven games. They would go on to win 11 of their next 13 to put themselves in position to make the NCAA tournament before COVID-19 ended the season.
UCLA proves it’s one of the nation’s top teams in a game that emphasizes the rise in popularity of women’s basketball in Southern California.
But Cronin intimated that those expecting his young team to naturally improve might have unrealistic expectations.
“The fallacy is that freshmen get better as the year goes on,” Cronin said. “It’s a fallacy because forget the one percentile. For the rest of ‘em, it’s harder as the year goes on, ‘cause it gets harder to win, ‘cause there’s scouting reports. The games mean more and it’s more physical. The coaches have figured out who they should play and who should sit. So it’s harder on them as the year goes on.”
Where does that leave the Bruins? Maybe their best hope is to toughen up and produce, whatever it takes.
“You can’t call your mommy; she can’t help you,” Cronin said. “You’ve got an opportunity of a lifetime and it may not last forever depending on your performance.”
Go beyond the scoreboard
Get the latest on L.A.'s teams in the daily Sports Report newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
