Postgame Talk: UCLA Fades Late Against Gonzaga, Lose 82-72
The Bruins had a classic roster construction loss in this one.
I’m not going to spend a lot of time on this game, because it’s late at night, and there really is not much to break down. Here are the two competing thoughts in my head following UCLA’s 82-72 loss to Gonzaga:
First, UCLA lost this game because of roster construction. Specifically, the Bruins did not have an answer on the interior for Graham Ike, and try as the Bruins might, that fact was always going to be the death of them in this game. Now, to be fair, UCLA did force Ike to hit several circus shots, and because he is a Gonzaga player and UCLA is forever cursed to watch Gonzaga players hit circus shots against them as karmic punishment for the 2006 comeback, but they ended up giving up a ton of offensive rebounds thanks to that excessive focus. Gonzaga grabbed 12 offensive rebounds, compared to 23 defensive rebounds by the Bruins, and put up 34 points in the paint.
UCLA’s roster at this point is a major problem, specifically at the five spot. UCLA has one center who is solid offensively but a negative on defense, and another center who is solid defensively but a negative on offense. Stephen Jamerson essentially took himself out of the game in the first half, picking up three fouls in five minutes (while also putting up a better rebounding per minute number than anyone else on the team). Xavier Booker, meanwhile, had a decent offensive day but was completely out of his depth on defense; nothing illustrated this more than a late sequence in the second half, where Booker fell following a simple stutter-step move on the outside, opening up the interior of the UCLA defense for some easy points. Mick Cronin also tried some Tyler Bilodeau at the five, and he was surprisingly the best option, but the extra physical toll seemed to take Bilodeau out of his game.
It’s this roster issue that ultimately leads to my first takeaway following this game, which is that the interior defense is going to limit what this team can do in conference play. The Big Ten is full of teams that have solid interior players, and at this moment, it is hard to state that the Bruins have an answer there. The answer may involve playing Bilodeau more at the five, but that is an imperfect answer.
The other takeaway I have from this game is that UCLA does have enough talent to win some games here, and if they can figure out the defensive issues, they can still do some damage. To be fair, that is not a simple task, but I also think it is wild to have watched this game and think UCLA is in danger of missing the tournament or something like that. Gonzaga is a really good team, and in a quasi-road game, UCLA found itself within a basket at the under-eight mark. Gonzaga eventually pulled away (thanks in part to a ridiculous foul disparity in the second half), but it does speak to the fact that UCLA does still have some talent, and if they can all get on the same page, then there is something here.
And if you’re a UCLA fan, you should be rooting for that turnaround to happen sooner rather than later, especially since Mick Cronin signed an extension this summer, which means he’ll be here for a few more years at the very least. Merry Christmas, everyone.
Go Bruins.
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Remember, defense wins games, right!? True, but only if you have good offense. I honestly can’t figure out what offensive sets UCLA is running - unless of course it’s called a jazz band improvisation scheme. It’s a joke. As for the Roster construction, Cronin owns this top to bottom. The fact that Mara got away is exactly the issue with UCLA. Anyway, I wish UCLA all the greatest success. That said, I see a 7 - 8 loss season ahead, and the future of mediocrity to continue. So, I’ll enjoy the game but not be emotionally invested until we see a coaching change. And while I have you, why is it that the other schools seem to reset and reload and always hire the right coaches (Arizona anyone) and UCLA fails. Remember, Cronin wasn’t even on the radar. He begged for the job, and when the AD failed in a proper search, Cronin was hired. Ugh. The admin needs to remember kids go to schools who they believe can win championships or can be competitive at the highest levels - not sitting outside the top 25 and maybe making the dance.
The ongoing battle between the folks with anti-Cronin fever and those having Cronin's disease is a lot more entertaining than another Bruins loss to the Zags... :-)
The UCLA defense under HC Cronin is usually what keeps them in games, but it's unfortunate that he botched the opportunity to develop and retain Aday Mara and then failed to recruit talented bigs to help out in the paint this season. There are definite issues with the current roster, as the Bruins aren't matching up well against teams with talented big men. And because the Bruins have a particularly weak non-conference schedule with zero signature wins, they'll have to prove themselves during conference play in order to earn a spot in the NCAA tournament. But regardless of how the Bruins perform this season, HC Cronin has already secured a nice win for himself. However, HC Izzo did better in getting a $1M annual raise (now the highest paid HC in the Big-10 at $7.2M/year).
Go Bruins.