POSTGAME QUOTES
UCLA 106, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 37
Los Angeles, Calif. (Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial)
November 11, 2026

Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Men’s Head Basketball Coach 
opening statement
“Obviously wasn't concerned with our opponent. They're getting three games out here. We don't pay max, and it's hard to get games at the date you want them. So, respect to those guys for trying. Obviously, talent level was a good gap. But I wasn't concerned with that at all, tonight. We're concerned with getting better in certain areas. I thought our help defense was much better tonight than it was in the North Florida game. They couldn't get to the rim in the first half. That threw them off and shook them. We are still trying to understand our defensive schemes as far as terms that we use, to make sure the help guys are always there, and then our communication. Those are the two things we were really trying to focus on tonight. I thought the guys bought in. Then you've got a great, great, great group of guys with a great team attitude. They’re doing a voluntary lift right now. So, they asked me to go lift with them, but one, I don't want to embarrass Brandon Williams. See, if I take my shirt off and make him, it's not going to look good for him, so I don't want to embarrass him – plus I’ve got to get something to eat, right?”

on the team’s defensive effort
“We wanted to work on our press tonight – we haven't shown that. And we also got to see two secret weapons on the end of the bench who haven’t played. We’ve got two really good big guys – Book’s [Xavier Booker] played 12 minutes, Filip [Jović] has played none. So, I continue to fail at getting my team healthy. But I would rather fail now than March. We are being cautious with those guys. I told you, I haven't had a bad day coaching these guys. Nobody's perfect, but they want to do the right thing. So when one of our guys makes a mistake, they're not conscientious objectors. Like, nobody's defiant. They want to rotate. They want to do everything the right way. They want to execute. They're totally bought in. Doesn't mean we're going to win, but it makes it fun. You know, guys make mistakes, especially when they're young. They're not trained well enough. I don't have to fight them to believe in extra passes, execution, the art of real basketball versus the art of dribbling 50 times and doing nothing. It makes it as fun as it comes.”

on Trent Perry’s 11-assist night (11 points, 11 assists) 
“Trent's a great player. I don't know who they pay, but somebody said that they had the preseason top point guard list, and he wasn't in, they had the 40 top point guards in college basketball. He wasn't on it. I mean, how can you be that inept at your job? The guy was a McDonald's All-American. Did you not watch him play last year? It's amazing. He's a great player and he is unbelievably smart. So, I have a huge advantage with this team. When they are on the floor, Trent is telling guys where to go, and he understands what we're trying to accomplish with a play, with a defense, with whatever we're doing. It's like having Tyger [Campbell] back, except he's much taller, he's a better shooter. Now, I love Trent. I love you, but Tyger is a tough dude now – really smart, too. There are so many things that, as a coach, you know, when you don't have it versus when you have a guy with a ball that knows when we need to run a play. It’s the Arizona game. He knew what they were doing defensively, and he got Book [Xavier Booker] a wide open three. He made it look easy. But other guys just put their head down. And then people say, ‘Oh, the coach doesn’t know how to run offense.’ No, you’ve got to have the right players. It's all it is, about the right players. I’ve had both. It is tough when guys can't be an extension of you and see things you're teaching them.”

on the team’s effort with the full court press
“It was more affected tonight than it's going to be. What we're trying to do with that is disrupt the other team's flow. Uou play a team that's a high execution, pass cut team that's going to drive you nuts. That way, they can't bring it up and pass and cut you to death. You know, you get into, there's an R zone press that we showed tonight, and they have to worry about breaking it. Then they have to worry about getting organized. By then, they only got time for a few passing cuts. Because players don't want to guard all that stuff, there's some teams that are really good at that stuff. It's a weapon, you're trying to throw off the other team's offensive rhythm. Really, it's not to steal the ball like we did tonight. It's more of a nuisance press. I've always wanted to do that press. You’ve got to have a three that jumps and is long. Joe [Philon] and Niko [Kusturica] at the front of that, it's hard for teams to reverse the ball, which makes that press effective.”

UCLA guard Trent Perry
on the team’s defensive effort
“I would just say, shoutout to my team for buying into what we're trying to do at UCLA. I feel like since day one, we've always gelled together. Cronin's been implementing just defensive intensity, and the team bought in. I mean, especially today, Cronin said, ‘Let's worry about ourselves, let's get a lot of steals, let’s be in the passing lanes.’ Things like that, and, you know, we are respecting the game.”

on his career-high 11-assist night 
“I actually had a talk with my dad before the game, and he kind of just asked me, when's the last time I played free? From there, I was like, you know, I'm going to just go in and just let the game come to me. I feel like there are times when I try to score a little bit more, I try to pass a little bit more. And today, I just took what the defense gave me. At the end of the day, I couldn't have done it without my teammates making shots. The ball has to go on the hoop for me to get an assist.”

on holding Arkansas-Pine Bluff to just nine first-half points 
“I mean, we were just worried about ourselves, worrying about practicing good habits. I always tell my team, let's create good habits – no matter what. Whoever's in front of us, whether it's Arizona or Arkansas-Pine Bluff. At the end of the day, we're going to be who we are at the end of the day.”

on setting the program record largest win margin in UCLA history
“Speechless? I mean, that wasn't something that we were aiming for, but you know, we'll take it.”

on becoming an upperclassman in the program
“I mean, it doesn't really feel different. I'm a winner at the end of the day. So even last year, we had a bunch of upperclassmen that were giving our voice, and you would also see me at the end of the day, just trying to give my bits and pieces of what I see in the game. But, again, being an upperclassman just means a lot, because I've been here for three years. I've been under Coach Cronin, I know what he wants and expects from us, and just to be able to be the coach on the floor, just to get the team organized and things like that, it just means a lot. And we also have a bunch of other guys, like Eric Dailey, Jr., of course, who's also been here, Brandon Williams. So, it's not just me. It's a collection of a bunch of us that are leading the team.”

on the voluntary postgame team lift
“Oh yeah, 100 percent. The rest of the team is already there, and we’ve got to catch up. This is the first time, we’re just trying to maintain strength and keep our bodies healthy, because being in the weight room is as important as being on the court.”

on Coach Cronin’s comparison between him and Tyger Campbell
“It definitely means a lot. At the end of the day, I'm just trying to be the best version of myself. I'm not trying to be the Lonzo [Ball], the Tyger, things like that. Of course, try to get bits and pieces and be the leader, how he was, of course, but I think I'm a little tough, too.”

UCLA guard/forward Nikola Kusturica
on the team’s defensive effort
“Yeah, I think they had an active pass game. We wrapped up passes. So, I think we had active hands throughout the game.”

on how he has gotten comfortable with his shot
“I mean, I didn't struggle early, I just think the ball didn’t go in. After the U-17 World Cup, I went straight to the gym and I picked my shot. And I think that helped me a lot. I just fixed some things that were a problem, and now I'm feeling better.”