If there’s a big takeaway from the final UCLA/Arizona Pac-12 matchup at McHale, it’s that it made sure to play all the hits.
UCLA showed off its improved play throughout the game against the Wildcats, including hitting outside shots at a much higher clip than normal. By all rights, they outplayed Arizona throughout the game. But if there’s anything the rest of the conference has learned, it’s that it’s hard to beat Arizona at McHale Center, as the Wildcats enjoyed a ridiculous 26-13 foul disparity and shot 15 more free throws than the Bruins, and that proved to be the difference as Arizona was able to erase a 19-point deficit to beat the Bruins 77-71.
The free throw and foul disparity is going to be the biggest talking point after this game, and rightfully so. I’m not one to blame fouls for why a game went the way it did, but a clear view of this game shows the officials clearly had their thumb on the game in favor of the Wildcats. The second-half disparity is some unreal stuff: Arizona shot 23 free throws in the half, which allowed the Wildcats to post a 13-point disparity at the line itself. That’s the game right there, especially as an environment was created where Arizona would get a foul call just by looking at the basket while UCLA was forced to juggle a ridiculous amount of foul trouble. Adem Bona and Berke Buyuktuncel both fouled out, while Lazar Stefanovic had four fouls and would have fouled out himself had the refs not gone to the monitor and determined that he was nowhere near the play when called for a fifth foul. Three other Bruins were called for three fouls. As a comparison, Oumar Ballo was the only Wildcat in any sort of foul trouble, and he did not pick up his fourth foul until the 2:18 mark of the second half (also, a 44% FT shooter going 7-8 from the line is certainly something).
The tragedy here is that it’s going to distract from the fact that UCLA did so many good things in this game. The most obvious was that they were hitting their outside shots with more consistency; their 9-26 shooting from distance is impacted only by a late flurry of contested attempts to try and get back into the game. What really helped here was Adem Bona, who played exceptionally throughout the game. Every time Bona got the ball in the low post early, Arizona would send a second defender, and Bona would immediately kick the ball out to an open shooter who simply had to set their feet and shoot. Lazar Stefanovic in particular was a huge beneficiary of Bona’s play, and his game has really simplified in the last week, where he is not being asked to create nearly as much and instead is being asked to simply be a shooter. Stefanovic finished with 17 points on 5-11 shooting with three made three-pointers. And when Bona was not doubled, he was allowed to go to work and attacked Ballo on defense. Bona finished with 10 points on 4-6 shooting but was, again, taken out of the game with some suspect officiating.
In the second half when Arizona was allowed to be more physical, the offense turned towards Sebastian Mack to create and he responded in kind. Mack scored 16 of his team-high 21 points in the second half, continually driving and hitting tough shots despite a host of contact that was getting called for fouls on the other end of the court. Jan Vide also scored six points, but the Bruins really struggled to get anything going in the second half, which again feels unsurprising considering the circumstances.
One last thing: UCLA needs to get Aday Mara up to speed because they cannot afford to keep playing Kenny Nwuba for significant minutes. Nwuba is a good culture player but he makes way too many mistakes to be allowed on the court for any real amount of time. One of the biggest turning points in this game came late when Nwuba found himself alone at the rim with the ball. Nwuba somehow managed to bin what should have been an easy dunk and the ball careened downcourt to a streaking Caleb Love, who drew a foul on a layup attempt for an and-one and a five-point swing. At some point, Mick Cronin is going to need to figure out if Mara can be a contributor going forward, because Bona and Nwuba will likely be gone next year.
Go Bruins.
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Anyone else would be pissed too. Coach Cronin shouldn't let the SPTRs be used as the primary excuse for his team's loss, though. The young Bruins still need to learn how to close out games and overcome bad refereeing as well. Unfortunately, the Mildcats took advantage and clawed their way back for the win.
Cronin probably vented on behalf of his players. He stood up for them. The good thing is for two games in a row, these young bruins do show positive signs of maturing as a team. All these recent losses do register on them. In my view, losing a close game to Arizona at Mckale Center means zilch, not a sh** to me knowing how those obnoxious fans, riding on the coattails of some equally stupid refs, do take pride in unnerving, rattling young visiting teams. I will be at Pauley w
.I will be at Pauley when Arizona comes. Not that we will return favor, stooping low to their fans' level but chanting encouragement, praises to our players at courtside like we did in the past. As January is ending, February is a short month and I am hoping we will be peaking at the right time to redeem our bruised and battered image. Next season should be a barn burner.
Great that you'll be attending the next game against the Mildcats in person--put in an extra cheer for me too! Yep, the terrible fan behavior at McKale should stay at McKale. You can see Coach Cronin's irritation at the stupid questions regarding the fans and playing at McKale from one of the local reporters during the postgame interview:
Cronin may seem harsh, blunt, rather cut and dry but he calls a spade a spade. In all likelihood, this will be a down year however much our team will improve between now and March. An advantage season ticket holders have is our proximity to the players and the coaching staff. The scathing LA Times articles and its gloom and doom surmise of our team must have impacted our team. These are young college players, not even G league developmental players. One ugly loss does not seal their fate. If anything, it would strengthen their resolve to " you guys just wait, let us show you " kind of mentality. We will cheer and praise everyone of them. Last season, a lady behind us joked with Jaime as he dashed headlong to save a deflected pass. She stood up and said to everyone's roaring laughter - " That is another tequila for you, kiddo " A nearby ref lowered his head, faking disbelief and laughed. I think this is what our players need. My voice is not that loud. But I will see which one of us would do the trick. As they struggle to learn and develop, I think this is what is needed from us. Some losses do not a season make.
Thank you for the great write-up Dmitri - and I agree 💯 - fortunate enough to be at the game, we wanted to see the last Bruin game at McKale before zona joins their cultural matches Texas Tech and West Virginia in the Big12... Randomly got tickets next to Frisbee Davis and were exchanging 'holy crap' looks throughout... But knew the McKale calls would start to stack up and hoped we'd overcome it... I guess I'll take a 6-point loss today for a 6-point win in Vegas in early March!
Also, for what it's worth, after being heckled by a drunk behind me much ud the 2nd half, got some satisfaction asking him where u of a keeps their Rose Bowl trophies :-) only after the zoo started the "f the bruins" chant - I hope we make them feel equally as welcome at Pauley!
Both coaches have indicated a strong desire to continue scheduling games between the two teams in the future (after 2026). But the fan behavior at McKale is the worst. Hope the Bruins can deliver payback on March 7 at Pauley. Go Bruins!
Dmitri, I would love to see more Mara. However, I think Ballo would have turned him into a speed bump. With these refs, Ballo could bowl him over and they’d call a flop on Mara. He needs a lot of strength work.
The only hope at this point is that ucla picks up a transfer next year? Bona will be gone, but ucla going to need a 5 that can play minutes… otherwise I’m not sure what ucla does next year
They get better. And we don’t know how many slots will be available. The only sure departure is Nwuba. If Mara and Devin Williams stay, they need to get stronger in the weight room. Mick and Savino developed a number of bigs at Cincinnati, but not overnight. Patience is required to let players mature and improve.
Agreed… do you think bona will stay another year? If he leaves, and Mara becomes the starter, he has a lot of improvement to make besides weight. His lack of speed makes him a massive liability on a defense first team don’t you think?
My question was what is he good at? He always gets 1 stupid illegal screen called on him. He also misses WTF shots. The truth is, the Bruins don't have a legit back up center. But I don't think that Mara misses that dunk.
He’s a solid post defender. He actually had more rebounds than Bona. As far as picks, he’s decent. Bona also gets calls for moving picks. There’s also his physical size and strength when facing a guy like Ballo. In that scenario, he’s our only backup. He was needed only because the refs screwed Bona.
Who claimed a moral victory? Do you feel the same about this loss as you did about the loss against Utah? Hopefully one can comment on the positives and the improvement in the team’s play without the “moral victory” cliche in response.
My brevity is not always clear (although nor are my explications).
I mean, as DD has said in such cases, don't be satisfied that things are going all well when coming close. Learn and move forward. Prepare for Saturday's game against SC.
Zona focused on doubling down on Bona early in the game. The open players dropped there shots lights out. Bona got his dumb fouls away from the hoop, got in foul trouble and sat for much of the second where we couldn't but a basket like that blown dunk by Nwuba. That's what I saw. Az's plan was to stop Bona cuz we can't shoot from outside. They adapted.
This is potentially awesome news! I would be happy to give my full and enthusiastic endorsement of Chipster Alfraud for any NFL team as he would immediately make his mark as an Offensive Genius. He belongs in the Pros and any team would be fortunate to have such a stellar coach running the offense. I think all UCLA football fans should get behind Chipster and help him land somewhere, anywhere...
I fully endorse any NFL team giving the Chipster's (OG) movement back to the NFL where he obviously belongs. But even if The Chipster (OG) takes off back to the NFL, this means we get Jarmond selecting the next coach and as we have all now seen, this guy is almost as bad as the Chipster (OG). So not all is good in Westwood. As for the basketball team, there will be ups and downs as Cronin tries to figure out this rebuild year. Still not looking at this team as a tournament team (any tournament). They need a lot of work and will probably lose their 2-3 best players for next season given how short term these players are. I watched the Arizona game twice! and still cannot believe the officiating. Arizona may still have won, but thanks to that officiating, UCLA had no chance. Anyway, again, it's a rebuild, so I don't see why people overly criticize this team. Give them a year and they will be back where UCLA basketball belongs, NIL or not.
Pipe dream. Let's check the boxes for Chip. Currently making over $6 million a year. Check. Administration allows him to be a lazy/lousy recruiter. Check. Administration allows him to be unaccountable for anything including win/loss results. Check. Play calling and time management during games is ALWAYS questionable. Check. Why would Chip leave??
what a disaster this would be. would sentence the program to another 3-4 years of mediocrity when we hire some no name coordinator who flames out. Wait 12 months until we have the cash to get someone good.
I am usually the first to complain about the refs, and usually do so in these threads… but for the first time in a long time, the disparity didn’t bother me as much. I agree that this team has played better basketball the last two games. The first half ucla were shooting over 50% and had made 7/11 3’s if I’m not mistaken? Zona was also missing everything.
In the second half, the 3’s weren’t falling, the only person driving to the hoop was Mack (as usual), and zona started to play the offense that they are known for. They have several capable veterans on their team including their UNC transfer. As much as I despise Larsson, he is a great player and could make his way to the nba at some point for his shooting alone. This makes them hard to defend, and they aren’t a small team and started pounding the paint and getting the ball inside where the refs were blowing their whistle.
The free throw disparity is the biggest stat in this game and does account for the difference. The next stat notable to me is the rebounding. Im curious if anyone else watches the bruins positioning on rebounding and wonder what they are being coached to do? Most teams that I watch in college get in a position inside their man when trying to get the defensive rebound. For whatever reason, ucla players don’t seem to look at their cover and try to establish the inside position. Instead they just stand where they are and look for the ball. Most of the time bona in particular is standing outside like he’s going for an offensive rebound? You all know I have minimal knowledge on these basketball topics, so maybe someone can explain why ucla defensive rebounding doesn’t look like any other defensive teams in the ncaa? Meaning, they don’t look for their guy first and box him out and then look for the rebound. This should be common sense at this point right?
Officiating seems to be a problem with all sports. Particularly for the Home teams where they receive favorable calls. I still don’t understand why referees cannot be criticized for their terrible officiating. I think it’s a real problem. As we all learned, if judges are biased, what makes us think that the referees aren’t?
My non expert observation is that some college conferences have worse officials, either due to lack of training, lack of experience, being intimidated by fans or bias. If the officials are just plain poor but make bad calls on both teams, that tends to even out but not when they are intimidated or biased.
Cronin went off on the refs in the postgame and is probably angling to get fined
Rename that town Screwcson.
Anyone else would be pissed too. Coach Cronin shouldn't let the SPTRs be used as the primary excuse for his team's loss, though. The young Bruins still need to learn how to close out games and overcome bad refereeing as well. Unfortunately, the Mildcats took advantage and clawed their way back for the win.
Cronin probably vented on behalf of his players. He stood up for them. The good thing is for two games in a row, these young bruins do show positive signs of maturing as a team. All these recent losses do register on them. In my view, losing a close game to Arizona at Mckale Center means zilch, not a sh** to me knowing how those obnoxious fans, riding on the coattails of some equally stupid refs, do take pride in unnerving, rattling young visiting teams. I will be at Pauley w
.I will be at Pauley when Arizona comes. Not that we will return favor, stooping low to their fans' level but chanting encouragement, praises to our players at courtside like we did in the past. As January is ending, February is a short month and I am hoping we will be peaking at the right time to redeem our bruised and battered image. Next season should be a barn burner.
Great that you'll be attending the next game against the Mildcats in person--put in an extra cheer for me too! Yep, the terrible fan behavior at McKale should stay at McKale. You can see Coach Cronin's irritation at the stupid questions regarding the fans and playing at McKale from one of the local reporters during the postgame interview:
https://tucson.com/sports/college/basketball/wildcats/men/video-ucla-head-coach-mick-cronin-blames-refs-for-loss-to-arizona/video_05008533-83fb-55ee-9a7f-14dcd1ce12a3.html
Cronin may seem harsh, blunt, rather cut and dry but he calls a spade a spade. In all likelihood, this will be a down year however much our team will improve between now and March. An advantage season ticket holders have is our proximity to the players and the coaching staff. The scathing LA Times articles and its gloom and doom surmise of our team must have impacted our team. These are young college players, not even G league developmental players. One ugly loss does not seal their fate. If anything, it would strengthen their resolve to " you guys just wait, let us show you " kind of mentality. We will cheer and praise everyone of them. Last season, a lady behind us joked with Jaime as he dashed headlong to save a deflected pass. She stood up and said to everyone's roaring laughter - " That is another tequila for you, kiddo " A nearby ref lowered his head, faking disbelief and laughed. I think this is what our players need. My voice is not that loud. But I will see which one of us would do the trick. As they struggle to learn and develop, I think this is what is needed from us. Some losses do not a season make.
Oh, I would never want us to stoop to their level - but I certainly hope it's a loud, enthusiastic Pauley for Round 2
you're comment got me excited, so I ran to watch it on youtube. But I thought he showed remarkable restraint.
Thank you for the great write-up Dmitri - and I agree 💯 - fortunate enough to be at the game, we wanted to see the last Bruin game at McKale before zona joins their cultural matches Texas Tech and West Virginia in the Big12... Randomly got tickets next to Frisbee Davis and were exchanging 'holy crap' looks throughout... But knew the McKale calls would start to stack up and hoped we'd overcome it... I guess I'll take a 6-point loss today for a 6-point win in Vegas in early March!
Also, for what it's worth, after being heckled by a drunk behind me much ud the 2nd half, got some satisfaction asking him where u of a keeps their Rose Bowl trophies :-) only after the zoo started the "f the bruins" chant - I hope we make them feel equally as welcome at Pauley!
Both coaches have indicated a strong desire to continue scheduling games between the two teams in the future (after 2026). But the fan behavior at McKale is the worst. Hope the Bruins can deliver payback on March 7 at Pauley. Go Bruins!
it's been so long since we've won one, I gotta ask.....where do we keep ours?
Dmitri, I would love to see more Mara. However, I think Ballo would have turned him into a speed bump. With these refs, Ballo could bowl him over and they’d call a flop on Mara. He needs a lot of strength work.
Blowing a 17 point lead is not solely on the SPTRs.
Never is, but they impacted the game heavily. Helped put key players on the bench in addition to the DT disparity.
Free throw disparity.
"It became a grab fest and we couldn't run our offense."
Gib! It’s you, I missed you, and I agree with you for a change :)
LOL.
What is Nwuba good at? He has an illegal screen called on him every game and he always takes a Shaqtin a fool shot.
Nwuba had to play 18 minutes because of some interesting calls against Bona. Who else would you have played to guard Vallo?
He's a 5 minute a game player.
Who else would you have guard Ballo? Mara?
The only hope at this point is that ucla picks up a transfer next year? Bona will be gone, but ucla going to need a 5 that can play minutes… otherwise I’m not sure what ucla does next year
They get better. And we don’t know how many slots will be available. The only sure departure is Nwuba. If Mara and Devin Williams stay, they need to get stronger in the weight room. Mick and Savino developed a number of bigs at Cincinnati, but not overnight. Patience is required to let players mature and improve.
Agreed… do you think bona will stay another year? If he leaves, and Mara becomes the starter, he has a lot of improvement to make besides weight. His lack of speed makes him a massive liability on a defense first team don’t you think?
My question was what is he good at? He always gets 1 stupid illegal screen called on him. He also misses WTF shots. The truth is, the Bruins don't have a legit back up center. But I don't think that Mara misses that dunk.
He’s a solid post defender. He actually had more rebounds than Bona. As far as picks, he’s decent. Bona also gets calls for moving picks. There’s also his physical size and strength when facing a guy like Ballo. In that scenario, he’s our only backup. He was needed only because the refs screwed Bona.
Mara wouldn't have been in position to get that rebound.
Is it "clank" or "clang?" Asking for a friend.
No satisfaction in moral victories. They breed complacency.
Who claimed a moral victory? Do you feel the same about this loss as you did about the loss against Utah? Hopefully one can comment on the positives and the improvement in the team’s play without the “moral victory” cliche in response.
My brevity is not always clear (although nor are my explications).
I mean, as DD has said in such cases, don't be satisfied that things are going all well when coming close. Learn and move forward. Prepare for Saturday's game against SC.
Yep. Can’t do anything about the past. The team is moving forward.
Beat SC.
Zona focused on doubling down on Bona early in the game. The open players dropped there shots lights out. Bona got his dumb fouls away from the hoop, got in foul trouble and sat for much of the second where we couldn't but a basket like that blown dunk by Nwuba. That's what I saw. Az's plan was to stop Bona cuz we can't shoot from outside. They adapted.
OT: CBS Sports reporting that several NFL teams looking at the Chipster for offensive coordinator. Would be nice!
This is potentially awesome news! I would be happy to give my full and enthusiastic endorsement of Chipster Alfraud for any NFL team as he would immediately make his mark as an Offensive Genius. He belongs in the Pros and any team would be fortunate to have such a stellar coach running the offense. I think all UCLA football fans should get behind Chipster and help him land somewhere, anywhere...
I fully endorse any NFL team giving the Chipster's (OG) movement back to the NFL where he obviously belongs. But even if The Chipster (OG) takes off back to the NFL, this means we get Jarmond selecting the next coach and as we have all now seen, this guy is almost as bad as the Chipster (OG). So not all is good in Westwood. As for the basketball team, there will be ups and downs as Cronin tries to figure out this rebuild year. Still not looking at this team as a tournament team (any tournament). They need a lot of work and will probably lose their 2-3 best players for next season given how short term these players are. I watched the Arizona game twice! and still cannot believe the officiating. Arizona may still have won, but thanks to that officiating, UCLA had no chance. Anyway, again, it's a rebuild, so I don't see why people overly criticize this team. Give them a year and they will be back where UCLA basketball belongs, NIL or not.
BB, thanks my friend for the stark reminder of Donut 2.0 making any potential hire... smdh 😞
On a brighter note, the SPTRs will finish out their abyssmal record this year and I do look forward to the BIG crew coming up...
Pipe dream. Let's check the boxes for Chip. Currently making over $6 million a year. Check. Administration allows him to be a lazy/lousy recruiter. Check. Administration allows him to be unaccountable for anything including win/loss results. Check. Play calling and time management during games is ALWAYS questionable. Check. Why would Chip leave??
Let's all pray.
what a disaster this would be. would sentence the program to another 3-4 years of mediocrity when we hire some no name coordinator who flames out. Wait 12 months until we have the cash to get someone good.
I am usually the first to complain about the refs, and usually do so in these threads… but for the first time in a long time, the disparity didn’t bother me as much. I agree that this team has played better basketball the last two games. The first half ucla were shooting over 50% and had made 7/11 3’s if I’m not mistaken? Zona was also missing everything.
In the second half, the 3’s weren’t falling, the only person driving to the hoop was Mack (as usual), and zona started to play the offense that they are known for. They have several capable veterans on their team including their UNC transfer. As much as I despise Larsson, he is a great player and could make his way to the nba at some point for his shooting alone. This makes them hard to defend, and they aren’t a small team and started pounding the paint and getting the ball inside where the refs were blowing their whistle.
The free throw disparity is the biggest stat in this game and does account for the difference. The next stat notable to me is the rebounding. Im curious if anyone else watches the bruins positioning on rebounding and wonder what they are being coached to do? Most teams that I watch in college get in a position inside their man when trying to get the defensive rebound. For whatever reason, ucla players don’t seem to look at their cover and try to establish the inside position. Instead they just stand where they are and look for the ball. Most of the time bona in particular is standing outside like he’s going for an offensive rebound? You all know I have minimal knowledge on these basketball topics, so maybe someone can explain why ucla defensive rebounding doesn’t look like any other defensive teams in the ncaa? Meaning, they don’t look for their guy first and box him out and then look for the rebound. This should be common sense at this point right?
Officiating seems to be a problem with all sports. Particularly for the Home teams where they receive favorable calls. I still don’t understand why referees cannot be criticized for their terrible officiating. I think it’s a real problem. As we all learned, if judges are biased, what makes us think that the referees aren’t?
My non expert observation is that some college conferences have worse officials, either due to lack of training, lack of experience, being intimidated by fans or bias. If the officials are just plain poor but make bad calls on both teams, that tends to even out but not when they are intimidated or biased.