University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Postgame Quotes - UCLA at Arizona State
Arizona State 84, UCLA 66
February 6, 2020
Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Menโs Head Basketball Coach
on Arizona Stateโs performance
โThey played great. They played great. Oregon played great against us, this team played great against us. A team shoots the ball like that, they only way we wouldโve had a chance is to shoot it right back at them. We hit a lot of shots and we had a lot of good looks. Weโre seven for 25 [from 3-point range]. We had a lot of good looks from three and that was the only way we were going to be able to keep pace with them tonight.โ
on ASUโs 3-point shots
โSome of them were really hard. Some of them, they break us down off the dribble. The way Remy Martin dribbles the ball, itโs hard to guard him.โ
on how disappointing this loss is
โEvery loss is disappointing, but look, just because we won two in a row didnโt change the status weโre in. I know people get their hopes up. We canโt give up 83 and win, or whatever we gave up. We give up 80, weโre not winning a game. We donโt have enough firepower to do it. Itโs just the way it is.โ
on Jalen Hillโs prognosis
โI think heโs day-to-day.โ
on if Hill can play at Arizona
โWeโll see tomorrow.โ
on Cody Rileyโs performance
โHe did the best he could. Again, with him, I thought โ this is a hard game for him because running is not his strong suit, so he gets tired trying to get back on defense. Thereโs a few times he hurt us getting back on defense. But when he takes his time on offense and he passes it out of the post, it really helps our offense. Heโs got to lose the 17-footer when heโs supposed to be handing it off and running a two-man game. Those didnโt help us.โ
on if giving up so many 3-pointers damaged morale
โWell, I think with the mark of a young team, is that we donโt handle adversity quite the way we need to. I thought when they hit some tough shots, we let it bother us too much. We let it bother us. Weโre on defense, feeling sorry for ourselves a little bit because Kimani Lawrence is six-for-38 on the year from three and he opens up the first half and goes three for three. No. 20 [Khalid Thomas] comes in, he bangs โ heโs two for two. But yeah, weโve got to get over that. Thatโs whatโฆ is all about. We canโt, when a teamโs doing that, youโve got to keep your mind on the gameplan and the scouting report. I thought we lost the game โ we come out and got a stop, right away, and we had a couple quick turnovers that they ran down and got layups. They had 27 points on the break. I donโt know if you saw that. Got no chance. You go on the road and give a team 27 fastbreak points, youโve got no chance. You could be No. 1 in the country, youโre losing. Weโre not.โ
on Tyger Campbell
โHeโs trying hard. Heโs talking, heโs starting to play like an older player, heโs doing everything he can do. I can tell the guys are out there โ heโs trying hard.โ
on playing against Sean Miller and Arizona
โWe talked about that this summer. I think people donโt realize how long weโve known each other. Long time. Way before we coached against each other. Thatโs all over with.โ
on if coaching against Miller adds extra layer
โI think what you guys donโt realize is, I know Bobby [Hurley] extremely well. Darren Savino drove to school every day with him since kindergarten. Bobby and his brother, Danny, are good friends of ours. Youโd be surprised how many guys I know in our league that we coach against. I know Seanโs got a hell of a team and heโs a great coach.โ
UCLA redshirt freshman guard Tyger Campbell
on what he attributes Arizona Stateโs offensive performance to
โObviously, they shot the ball very well, but a lot of it was our transition defense. We didnโt get back. They had 27 fastbreak points and thatโs a big thing for us. We were trying to build a wall all week and work on it, but we didnโt execute in the game. It was really justโthey did hit some big shotsโbut I think it was really just us not getting back and the fastbreak points.โ
on how absence of Jalen Hill affected team
โOf course we missed him. It would be good for him to be in the game, but heโs just working, getting healthy and hopefully weโll have him on Saturday.โ
on Cody Rileyโs good moments
โFor sure. I feel like he played good. I donโt really know his exact stats, but he was finishing, running the floor. He played like a good big man tonight. He played very well.โ
on if he felt like he had to take over at times
โI wouldnโt say take over, but I was just trying to win. I was trying to make any plays I can, get in the lane, kick out, try to finish. It wasnโt really take over, just try to win, help my team, do whatever I need to do.โ
on if felt team was getting good shots that were not falling
โYeah, I felt like we got a lot of good looks. They just werenโt falling. Dave (Singleton) had some good looks in the first half. I had some good looks in the second half that didnโt fall. Just try to get back in the gym and keep working and hopefully theyโll fall next game.โ
on if he is looking forward to playing at Arizona
โYeah, Iโm looking forward to every game we play this season, but it would be nice to go out to Arizona and give them a shot. Weโre ready.โ
on what contributed to ASUโs first-half run
โThey were playing really good offense, they were getting back in transition. So, I credit Arizona State. They played a great game, hit a lot of shots. Weโve just got to bounce back and get better.โ
UCLA redshirt sophomore forward Cody Riley
on how he approached stepping into starting lineup
โI was ready. I know J [Jalen Hill] went down in practice and I was going to be starting, but that didnโt change my mentality or how I approached the game. I just came out and know I was going to give my all and give my best effort.โ
on what he did in second half
โChris [Smith]ย hit me on the fastbreak in transition. My teammates just got me the ball in the right positions and I was able to put the ball in the hole.โ
on what team did not do on defense
โThey shot really well behind the line. This is their home court, so I guess they just had that kind of night. Other than that, the 27 points in transition really hurt us and that was something we were aware about, but we just werenโt able to stop tonight.โ
on if he felt like he had to take over in the second half
โI just came out the second half, tried to be more aggressive. I had some shots in the paint that I know I had to finish and take my time on and I didnโt have to rush. Just came out and tried to be more aggressive.โ
on if he felt comfortable in different role
โOh, yeah, for sure. I was really comfortable. I was just trying to fight back and get the lead.โ
on playing at Arizona on Saturday
โIโm expecting a hostile environment. Iโve seen it on TV, Iโve heard about it. Guys that played there in the past have told me their experiences there. Iโm prepared for it all, but at the end of the day, you donโt really focus on the crowd that much. You just focus on the five thatโs playing against you on the court. Iโm looking forward to it.โ
on what he heard about playing at Arizona
โItโs a hostile environment. Itโs really rowdy. Itโs the home-court advantage and they have it at the fullest.โ
on not losing morale while trailing by so much
โThe way I was brought up, the way I played the game [my] whole life is to never quit. Iโve been down by a lot of points, a lot of points in the second half in limited amount of time and were able to fight back, so, at the end of the day, my mindset is just to never quit and thatโs what our teamโs was. Hope for the best outcome.โ