POSTGAME QUOTES
UCLA 79, Sacramento State 48
Los Angeles, Calif. (Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial)
November 18, 2025
Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Men’s Head Basketball Coach
opening statement
“Good win. I hate to see a player get hurt.I hope the best. Jeremiah Cherry went down holding his knee. That was me one time back in 1989,so I hate to see that. Here’s the story of the game – first half 33 deflections, second half, nine. The guys that started the game set the tone, that’s what they did in practice yesterday when they won by 20. They set the tone today. I gave the other guys a chance because they need to practice coming out of the locker room with more energy, and they didn’t get the job done. Our defensive rebounding continues to be a problem.We forced 41 misses, they [Sacramento State] got 14 of the 41. It seemed really bad to me. We’re not going anywhere if we don’t get better on the defensive backboard. Eric Dailey Jr. took it to heart. I think Steve jamerson II was having a great game, but then he twisted his ankle. We’ll see tomorrow how he feels.”
on the effort given toward loose ball plays
“What I tell the team is, like we got beat the other night, that I have no problem losing on the scoreboard.I have a problem when I don’t think we played hard enough, or smart at the end of games.That I have a problem with. So, as Danny Glover said in Lethal Weapon, ‘We’re gonna die, we’re gonna die my way’. I just can’t stomach playing any other way. I never had to ask Jaime Jaquez to dive on the floor. He struggles shooting, Adem [Bona] can’t shoot, and Jaylen Clark’s not a shooter, and they’re all in the NBA. And Tyger Campbell was the toughest dude of all time at 5’10”. That team was going to win a title. Not because of Mick Cronin, because those four guys, with Amari and Dave on my staff, those guys had unbelievable hardened toughness. Unbelievable. We played Colorado here one time – we were supposed to lose, and they had a good team. And they just started stealing every ball, it was unreal. It was unbelievable to watch. Now I’ll never forget that. Like we were supposed to lose that night.So, I mean do you want me to give out brownie buttons for guys diving on the floor? I don’t know.”
on Eric Dailey Jr.’s response after his injury to start the season
“Practice. He’s great in practice, he got 10 rebounds. Four assists, one turnover. The biggest problem in coaching, Mike [Bibby]’s got it now, as he’ll never coach a player as good as him. it’s an interesting conundrum as a coach. But they all think they’re going to be him, which is comical. It’s really, really hard, really, really hard, to get guys to realize, Eric Dailey’s rebounding as a college player will directly correlate to his chances of being a pro, I would say 20 times more than his scoring percentage. His rebound percentage. Because nobody is ever gonna run a play for him if he makes the NBA. Ever. But, you know, Eric’s a tough dude.”
on the likelihood of sticking with tonight’s starting lineup
“We’ll see how guys practice. Right now, we’re in a mode of trying to learn how to play hard enough to earn the jersey that they wear. I have great respect fo
UCLA Bounces Back with Focus on Defense and Rebounding After Arizona Loss
Following a recent loss to Arizona, the UCLA Bruins emphasized a return to fundamentals – defense and rebounding – in their subsequent game. Players and coaches highlighted the importance of consistent effort irrespective of starting status, and the value of challenging themselves against strong competition.
Focus on Fundamentals
UCLA junior forward Xavier booker stressed the team’s renewed focus on defensive principles. “Just defending, staying in front of guys, and just rebounding. That’s the main thing,” Booker said. He specifically noted coaching emphasis on boxing out and securing rebounds, stating, “Coach gets on me about rebounding and just hitting the guy and blocking them out. I felt like just standing solid on defense, helping your teammate out whenever he gets beat. The main thing was just defense and rebounding.”
Intensity and team Effort
sophomore guard Trent Perry echoed this sentiment, acknowledging a need for increased aggression and defensive contribution after the Arizona game. “Just go out there and give it my all and be confident. I felt like I kind of let my team in our last game against Arizona because I wasn’t too aggressive. I could have done better defensively getting more rebounds and things like that. I wanted to pick myself up and the team to just come out there with a lot of intensity on defense.” Perry also emphasized the competitive spirit within the team, regardless of who is starting or coming off the bench. “We were just battling it out and we looked up at the scoreboard and there it was. ultimately it doesn’t matter if we’re all playing very hard in practice regardless. Whatever the teams may be one day, we are always going to play hard and we’re always competing no matter what.”
Value of Challenging Schedules
Sacramento State head coach Mike Bibby, whose team faced UCLA in a challenging matchup, spoke to the benefits of playing against high-caliber opponents. Bibby noted the physicality of the UCLA team, stating, “We learned how big, strong, and lengthy these guys are.” Despite a tough shooting night for Sacramento State (13-of-54 from the field), Bibby was pleased with his team’s resilience. “I like how the guys came back and kept fighting in the second half. We lost the second half by six points. That’s why I wanted to play these big teams, to get ready for our conference, and see how basketball is played.”
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