Postgame Quotes - UCLA at Oregon
POSTGAME QUOTES
Oregon 96, UCLA 75
Eugene, Ore. (Matthew Knight Arena)
January 26, 2020
Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Men’s Head Basketball Coach
opening statement
“When you go on the road at the No. 12 team in the country and you turn it over 23 times, you have no chance. The interesting thing is when you look at our offensive numbers, we shoot 50 percent, 41 from three and 81 from the free throw line. By far, the best we have had with those three [stats] in a game, maybe all year. It’s a great lesson for our team – you don’t defend, you don’t take care of the ball, you’ve got no chance. I thought the turnovers completely changed the game. It got them feeling good. It’s a lot easier to make shots when things are rolling. I also was concerned [that] they hadn’t shot the ball well since Pac-12 [games] started. If you look at their numbers in Pac-12, coming into today, they were shooting 33 percent as a team and had some guys struggling immensely. They started hitting guarded ones. That’s when it snowballed on us.”
on handling Oregon’s press
“We let it affect us. We played sideways. When you play sideways and telegraph your passes, they don’t have to protect the rim so they just come harder and harder. We really dedicated most of our practice to it, which is the most disappointing thing. It’s a little different, practice and then put people in the stands. We looked like a really young and inexperienced team out there, which is disappointing. I know we are, but I was hoping we were past all that.”
on the Bruins’ defensive effort
“Thirty-four points off turnovers. All we talked about was controlling the tempo of the game with our offense by taking care of the ball. We really thought we could get any shot we wanted against them in the half court, and we did really.”
on if he had any prior interactions during his career with Kobe Bryant
“I knew him when he was younger. I was the coach in Sonny’s game [Sonny Vacarro]. I’m sure that Sonny is devastated. I was the coach in Magic Johnson’s Roundball Classic in Palace Hills, and I coached him in that event. His last high school game and mine.”
on if the team discussed Kobe Bryant’s death
“Not really. No excuse for us. Sure, we said, ‘Hey guys, we’re lucky to be doing what we’re doing, man.’ Every day is not promised. Tomorrow is not promised. I think the whole basketball world is shook up right now and doesn’t know what to say, including them [Oregon]. For the L.A. basketball community, especially, it’s just mind-boggling. I have a 13-year old daughter too, and it’s just unbelievable.”
UCLA sophomore forward Jalen Hill
on the inability to handle Oregon’s press
“The press really hurt us because we just didn’t play smart today. You have 20-plus turnovers on the road, you’re not going to win. You turn it over that much and it kills the team’s morale. It just sucks. You can’t score on a turnover. At least if you take bad shots, you have a chance for the ball to go in or for someone to get the rebound. Turnovers just hurt the team. You can’t set up the defense, it’s basically free points.”
on what the life of Kobe Bryant means to him
“That’s why I wear 24, because of him. Not because of him as a player, but because of his mentality. I try to carry that into my game a lot. It’s crazy, you could see on the bus ride here. People outside the stadium with their heads down, you could tell it was a different aura, a different vibe around the whole Oregon stadium. That’s monumental. Kobe Bryant had that effect. Everyone looked up to him. It’s disbelief really, it’s really sad.”
on the team’s reaction to Kobe’s passing
“Grief affects everyone differently. I just wanted to go out and play as hard as I could. A lot of people looked up to him. It’s sad and the basketball world is going to be feeling that for a long time.”
UCLA freshman guard Jake Kyman
on how the Bruins struggled to handle Oregon’s press
“It was pretty overwhelming. But it wasn’t really what they were doing, it’s on us. We were getting sped up, a little nervous, I think, at the beginning. So that’s on us. We need to stay more calm, stop being jittery, make the right pass or the right play, and just calm down.”
on the team’s turnovers
“We definitely had a lot of turnovers. Those led to many points, so if we cut those down, we’re in the game. That was our problem in the first half and mostly the whole game. We have to limit the turnovers, play better defense down the stretch, just know the assignments and try to figure that out more.”
on the team’s morale after Sunday’s loss at Oregon
“I wouldn’t say it’s a huge setback. It’s probably a minor setback. We’ve got to stay focused and know what we can do. We’ve proved it the last two games before. We just gotta keep doing what we’ve done. We can’t take this and hang our heads. We have to keep pushing forward and have a different mindset and play harder in the next game.”
on his level of confidence as he continues to get more minutes
“I definitely feel like I’m getting more confident. Getting into the flow of the game better, getting a rhythm, feeling the ball more, finding guys who are open. Just having that rhythm is key.”
on what the life of Kobe Bryant meant to him
“He was my favorite player since I was a little kid. I always watched him and tried to model my game after him with mid-range and shooting and everything. It really took a hard toll with me because he’s been my favorite player. I think he’s the GOAT. It was a struggle. But I’ve gotta get my mind in the right headspace for the game.”
Oregon 96, UCLA 75
Eugene, Ore. (Matthew Knight Arena)
January 26, 2020
Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Men’s Head Basketball Coach
opening statement
“When you go on the road at the No. 12 team in the country and you turn it over 23 times, you have no chance. The interesting thing is when you look at our offensive numbers, we shoot 50 percent, 41 from three and 81 from the free throw line. By far, the best we have had with those three [stats] in a game, maybe all year. It’s a great lesson for our team – you don’t defend, you don’t take care of the ball, you’ve got no chance. I thought the turnovers completely changed the game. It got them feeling good. It’s a lot easier to make shots when things are rolling. I also was concerned [that] they hadn’t shot the ball well since Pac-12 [games] started. If you look at their numbers in Pac-12, coming into today, they were shooting 33 percent as a team and had some guys struggling immensely. They started hitting guarded ones. That’s when it snowballed on us.”
on handling Oregon’s press
“We let it affect us. We played sideways. When you play sideways and telegraph your passes, they don’t have to protect the rim so they just come harder and harder. We really dedicated most of our practice to it, which is the most disappointing thing. It’s a little different, practice and then put people in the stands. We looked like a really young and inexperienced team out there, which is disappointing. I know we are, but I was hoping we were past all that.”
on the Bruins’ defensive effort
“Thirty-four points off turnovers. All we talked about was controlling the tempo of the game with our offense by taking care of the ball. We really thought we could get any shot we wanted against them in the half court, and we did really.”
on if he had any prior interactions during his career with Kobe Bryant
“I knew him when he was younger. I was the coach in Sonny’s game [Sonny Vacarro]. I’m sure that Sonny is devastated. I was the coach in Magic Johnson’s Roundball Classic in Palace Hills, and I coached him in that event. His last high school game and mine.”
on if the team discussed Kobe Bryant’s death
“Not really. No excuse for us. Sure, we said, ‘Hey guys, we’re lucky to be doing what we’re doing, man.’ Every day is not promised. Tomorrow is not promised. I think the whole basketball world is shook up right now and doesn’t know what to say, including them [Oregon]. For the L.A. basketball community, especially, it’s just mind-boggling. I have a 13-year old daughter too, and it’s just unbelievable.”
UCLA sophomore forward Jalen Hill
on the inability to handle Oregon’s press
“The press really hurt us because we just didn’t play smart today. You have 20-plus turnovers on the road, you’re not going to win. You turn it over that much and it kills the team’s morale. It just sucks. You can’t score on a turnover. At least if you take bad shots, you have a chance for the ball to go in or for someone to get the rebound. Turnovers just hurt the team. You can’t set up the defense, it’s basically free points.”
on what the life of Kobe Bryant means to him
“That’s why I wear 24, because of him. Not because of him as a player, but because of his mentality. I try to carry that into my game a lot. It’s crazy, you could see on the bus ride here. People outside the stadium with their heads down, you could tell it was a different aura, a different vibe around the whole Oregon stadium. That’s monumental. Kobe Bryant had that effect. Everyone looked up to him. It’s disbelief really, it’s really sad.”
on the team’s reaction to Kobe’s passing
“Grief affects everyone differently. I just wanted to go out and play as hard as I could. A lot of people looked up to him. It’s sad and the basketball world is going to be feeling that for a long time.”
UCLA freshman guard Jake Kyman
on how the Bruins struggled to handle Oregon’s press
“It was pretty overwhelming. But it wasn’t really what they were doing, it’s on us. We were getting sped up, a little nervous, I think, at the beginning. So that’s on us. We need to stay more calm, stop being jittery, make the right pass or the right play, and just calm down.”
on the team’s turnovers
“We definitely had a lot of turnovers. Those led to many points, so if we cut those down, we’re in the game. That was our problem in the first half and mostly the whole game. We have to limit the turnovers, play better defense down the stretch, just know the assignments and try to figure that out more.”
on the team’s morale after Sunday’s loss at Oregon
“I wouldn’t say it’s a huge setback. It’s probably a minor setback. We’ve got to stay focused and know what we can do. We’ve proved it the last two games before. We just gotta keep doing what we’ve done. We can’t take this and hang our heads. We have to keep pushing forward and have a different mindset and play harder in the next game.”
on his level of confidence as he continues to get more minutes
“I definitely feel like I’m getting more confident. Getting into the flow of the game better, getting a rhythm, feeling the ball more, finding guys who are open. Just having that rhythm is key.”
on what the life of Kobe Bryant meant to him
“He was my favorite player since I was a little kid. I always watched him and tried to model my game after him with mid-range and shooting and everything. It really took a hard toll with me because he’s been my favorite player. I think he’s the GOAT. It was a struggle. But I’ve gotta get my mind in the right headspace for the game.”