I thought UCLA had that game. I think they were the better team and outplayed NC except for the lack of rebounding. I don’t understand why Jaquez was the one taking all those shots late in the game. I’m a huge Jaquez fan but he just didn’t have his shot tonight.
I may be wrong, but I don’t think UCLA will win a title with Tyger as their PG. He’s a very good college PG and I enjoy watching him but I don’t think he’s a championship-caliber PG.
If I’m Jaylen Clark, I transfer. I hate to say it. I’m a huge Jaylen Clark fan but the ‘defensive-minded’ Cronin didn’t give him the minutes he deserved.
Still waiting for the Bruins to hoist their next championship banner at Pauley... So disappointing--it would have been interesting to see this year's (hot) tournament Cinderella go up against last year's Cinderella. Give credit to the Tar Heels for pulling off the win, but UCLA (kind of like Akron) seemed to be in control for most of the game, yet they couldn't close out the final two minutes. The key was that guy Love (not Kevin) going totally insane in the 2nd half, and the Bruins were caught off guard and seemed helpless in trying to shut him down. I had expected Jaquez to be somewhat ineffective because of his injury, but it's unfortunate that Juzang's shooting disappeared once again. Anyway, despite the COVID interruptions and injuries, the Bruins did very well this season and started a new winning streak against $C (still need to figure out Oregon, though). Yet I still feel they underachieved in this tournament because it's basically the same team as last year with their much improved defense and grity style of play. They also had more depth, but Cronin didn't use it enough to his advantage. They missed a great opportunity for a Final Four repeat and possibly advance further, especially since their nemesis Gonzaga (and Pac12 rival Arizona) had already been upset. Hope for much better luck next season. Go Bruins!
Tough way to lose to NC. You don’t rebound you lose, too many second chances for UNC. And why does Bernard start off great and barely get any shots up in 2H?? Cronin’s offense puzzles me, Jaquez isn’t a good shooter and he wasn’t making his shots late, Juzang with his typical hero ball. Singleton is their best 3 shooter and doesn’t play again. And Love was looking for Riley on switches to burn him and he keeps him on the floor instead of Clark who hit a big 3 and is a much better defender. This article is spot on, I was yelling at the TV all season to use our depth more, Clark and Watson to guard players like Love. Even with that we had a few rim out that would’ve greatly improved our chances.
I think Cronin has proven himself to be the right coach for UCLA, though I agree with other posters here. Jaylen Clark especially deserved more playing time. But we probably won't have this issue next year. The backcourt seems more settled. I see a starting lineup of Tyger, Amari Bailey, Clark, Watson, and I think Myles Johnson sticks around for a last cup of grad school basketball tea.
On the bench: Dylan Andrews, Will McClendon, David Singleton (if he gets into UCLA grad program), Adem Bona, and Mac Etienne.
Should be an excellent defensive squad, especially at the 4/5 spot with Watson, Johnson, and Bona rotating in and out. I think Watson ends up in a role like Jacquez had this year - 3 on offense, 4 on defense.
It certainly was a disappointing last two minutes of the game. But I really like the overall of the program and direction. For Mick to create a juggernaut (which is going to be increasingly difficult with the transfer portal), he's going to have to look at recruiting some offensive firepower.
I'm also going to look at the very bright side of this season - we started with a number next to our name. We ended with a number next to our name. We went to the sweet 16. We fell to some March magic. From the complete flaming pile of fritos that was the team under Alford - no soul, no direction, no coaching, to a complete (but imperfect) team that I can be proud of -- the transformation is redemption. The thing I want MOST from a college sports team is competiveness, honesty, and integrity. The Bruins competed last night, they just didn't win. It happens.
Now to build a program. We won't know if Mick will really have a program until we see how things really transpire over the next few years. But given what he did at Cincinatti and how the Bruins did in this and last year's tourney, I am highly confident that UCLA is well on its way back to being an elite program. I'm also thankful that I can once again cheer for the Bruins (I refused to even watch the team when Alford was coaching).
Hard loss to take as I feel like the Bruins would have been able to beat everyone left in the tourney. UNC might have the best 5, although maybe not the best team. When I was watching live and we were up by three, to my eyes the missed shot hit the line and was out, so I let out a cheer before realising UNC was going to retrieve the ball before it went out. Like others, I feel like Cronin could have used the bench more. I would have liked to have gone at UNC a bit more to make it more physical. I think that even if we picked up some fouls, getting the refs to start blowing the whistle would have been good for us. Maybe not the prettiest basketball, but trying to get some of their players into foul trouble would have been good.
Having said that, I’m really pleased with the direction of the program and the buzz around UCLA. It feels like we’re building and developing an identity. I’m feeling like we’ll push on next year even with some of the faces of this year’s team leaving. The Freshmen look great. I really expect Adem Bona to be challenging for the starting position almost from the start. Transfer portal is hard to call until we know who’s coming back, but I feel like we need a go-to shooter. Can’t see Jaquez or Juzang coming back (or Bernard), so need to figure out where the offense will come from. If Tyler keeps developing his 3 and pull up jumper, he’ll be a threat, but otherwise I’m not sure. Maybe Singleton or Kyman, but don’t know if they have a high enough ceiling. Maybe we’ll get some production inside with the big men, but I don’t think that’s the answer either.
We’ll see what happens, but would be awesome to see Johnson and Clark take the D to the next level.
I thought UCLA had that game. I think they were the better team and outplayed NC except for the lack of rebounding. I don’t understand why Jaquez was the one taking all those shots late in the game. I’m a huge Jaquez fan but he just didn’t have his shot tonight.
I may be wrong, but I don’t think UCLA will win a title with Tyger as their PG. He’s a very good college PG and I enjoy watching him but I don’t think he’s a championship-caliber PG.
If I’m Jaylen Clark, I transfer. I hate to say it. I’m a huge Jaylen Clark fan but the ‘defensive-minded’ Cronin didn’t give him the minutes he deserved.
Still waiting for the Bruins to hoist their next championship banner at Pauley... So disappointing--it would have been interesting to see this year's (hot) tournament Cinderella go up against last year's Cinderella. Give credit to the Tar Heels for pulling off the win, but UCLA (kind of like Akron) seemed to be in control for most of the game, yet they couldn't close out the final two minutes. The key was that guy Love (not Kevin) going totally insane in the 2nd half, and the Bruins were caught off guard and seemed helpless in trying to shut him down. I had expected Jaquez to be somewhat ineffective because of his injury, but it's unfortunate that Juzang's shooting disappeared once again. Anyway, despite the COVID interruptions and injuries, the Bruins did very well this season and started a new winning streak against $C (still need to figure out Oregon, though). Yet I still feel they underachieved in this tournament because it's basically the same team as last year with their much improved defense and grity style of play. They also had more depth, but Cronin didn't use it enough to his advantage. They missed a great opportunity for a Final Four repeat and possibly advance further, especially since their nemesis Gonzaga (and Pac12 rival Arizona) had already been upset. Hope for much better luck next season. Go Bruins!
Tough way to lose to NC. You don’t rebound you lose, too many second chances for UNC. And why does Bernard start off great and barely get any shots up in 2H?? Cronin’s offense puzzles me, Jaquez isn’t a good shooter and he wasn’t making his shots late, Juzang with his typical hero ball. Singleton is their best 3 shooter and doesn’t play again. And Love was looking for Riley on switches to burn him and he keeps him on the floor instead of Clark who hit a big 3 and is a much better defender. This article is spot on, I was yelling at the TV all season to use our depth more, Clark and Watson to guard players like Love. Even with that we had a few rim out that would’ve greatly improved our chances.
I think Cronin has proven himself to be the right coach for UCLA, though I agree with other posters here. Jaylen Clark especially deserved more playing time. But we probably won't have this issue next year. The backcourt seems more settled. I see a starting lineup of Tyger, Amari Bailey, Clark, Watson, and I think Myles Johnson sticks around for a last cup of grad school basketball tea.
On the bench: Dylan Andrews, Will McClendon, David Singleton (if he gets into UCLA grad program), Adem Bona, and Mac Etienne.
Should be an excellent defensive squad, especially at the 4/5 spot with Watson, Johnson, and Bona rotating in and out. I think Watson ends up in a role like Jacquez had this year - 3 on offense, 4 on defense.
It certainly was a disappointing last two minutes of the game. But I really like the overall of the program and direction. For Mick to create a juggernaut (which is going to be increasingly difficult with the transfer portal), he's going to have to look at recruiting some offensive firepower.
I'm also going to look at the very bright side of this season - we started with a number next to our name. We ended with a number next to our name. We went to the sweet 16. We fell to some March magic. From the complete flaming pile of fritos that was the team under Alford - no soul, no direction, no coaching, to a complete (but imperfect) team that I can be proud of -- the transformation is redemption. The thing I want MOST from a college sports team is competiveness, honesty, and integrity. The Bruins competed last night, they just didn't win. It happens.
Now to build a program. We won't know if Mick will really have a program until we see how things really transpire over the next few years. But given what he did at Cincinatti and how the Bruins did in this and last year's tourney, I am highly confident that UCLA is well on its way back to being an elite program. I'm also thankful that I can once again cheer for the Bruins (I refused to even watch the team when Alford was coaching).
Go Bruins!
Hard loss to take as I feel like the Bruins would have been able to beat everyone left in the tourney. UNC might have the best 5, although maybe not the best team. When I was watching live and we were up by three, to my eyes the missed shot hit the line and was out, so I let out a cheer before realising UNC was going to retrieve the ball before it went out. Like others, I feel like Cronin could have used the bench more. I would have liked to have gone at UNC a bit more to make it more physical. I think that even if we picked up some fouls, getting the refs to start blowing the whistle would have been good for us. Maybe not the prettiest basketball, but trying to get some of their players into foul trouble would have been good.
Having said that, I’m really pleased with the direction of the program and the buzz around UCLA. It feels like we’re building and developing an identity. I’m feeling like we’ll push on next year even with some of the faces of this year’s team leaving. The Freshmen look great. I really expect Adem Bona to be challenging for the starting position almost from the start. Transfer portal is hard to call until we know who’s coming back, but I feel like we need a go-to shooter. Can’t see Jaquez or Juzang coming back (or Bernard), so need to figure out where the offense will come from. If Tyler keeps developing his 3 and pull up jumper, he’ll be a threat, but otherwise I’m not sure. Maybe Singleton or Kyman, but don’t know if they have a high enough ceiling. Maybe we’ll get some production inside with the big men, but I don’t think that’s the answer either.
We’ll see what happens, but would be awesome to see Johnson and Clark take the D to the next level.
We got the west and east womens McDonald’s all American mvp’s. The womens team will be exciting next year.
Jake kyman entering the transfer portal. He never really had a role the last 2 years.
https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/33634490/jake-kyman-leave-ucla-bruins-enter-men-basketball-transfer-portal-three-seasons
Looks like Duke couldn't keep Bacot off the boards or Caleb Love from going off in the 2nd half either... probably coaching, right?