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Postgame Quotes – UCLA at Marquette
POSTGAME QUOTES
UCLA 67, Marquette 56
December 11, 2021
Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Men’s Head Basketball Coach
on the gritty win after flight issues on the way to Milwaukee
“Yeah, you know, just so we got here. Marquette was awesome. Can’t say enough about Shaka (Smart) and their administration. They basically said whenever you guys want to play. But we had been off so long, you knnow, I just figured we might as well – let’s just get here and get a day room and play.”
on if he was concerned about the amount of rest since last game
“Not too bad. We’re a veteran team. I tend to think some of that stuff is overrated. I’m a believer in execution. Whether you got one day or 10 days, I was just hoping our guys could get their minds on the game instead of emergency landings.”
on how scary the emergency landing was
“Scary. I’ll just say that it was real. We had to land as fast as possible. We were able to do that so we’re all fortunate. … I’m going to get home and talk to university officials about some things and how much they want me to say about it.”
on the team’s defensive rebounding performance
“We held them to 18 points in the paint. If you don’t give up layups, you’ve got a chance to hold teams down. We forced them into 33 threes. It’s our opinion they’re a better team when they’re attacking the basket. They’re fast, they’re athletic, they spread you to drive (on) you. Greg Elliott is the reason he made the game close. He was good last year. I saw him finding his rhythm at Kansas State and I was worried about him tonight and he proved me right. Somebody’s going to jump up and make some shots for them at some point. We only had two second-half turnovers knowing that they were going to come with the pressure. Jaime had one ill-advised one that he and I are going to have conversations about because we had three timeouts. He should have just called a timeout, but he’s one of the best players in the country so if weren’t for him we wouldn’t be where we’re at.”
on the team’s ability to withstand Marquette’s run in the second half
“We got answers. Johnny can shoot it in. Tyger has become one of the best point guards in America. Jaime – obviously you can give it to Jaime. Jules didn’t have a lot of opportunity offensively tonight, but we just got a lot of guys that can hurt you at different times. We don’t really have one scorer. We can go bang-bang for six points real quick.”
on Jaime’s return
“Yeah, he looked fine. We held him out and tried to do the right thing. I’ve got a new thing. Basically, I just say, ‘What would I do if I was an NBA coach?” But they have 82 (games), we got 31. But still, you’re coaching at UCLA, your eyes are on March. But also, it’s real simple. You try to always err on the side of what’s best for the kid and safety. Jaime was back to normal on Wednesday.”
junior guard/forward Jaime Jaquez Jr.
on how gratifying the win was after the troubles of getting to the game
“It feels good just knowing we went through a lot of adversity with the flight and staying in Colorado and coming out here in the morning. It just felt really good that we just did all of that and get the win and go back home. It just feels amazing.”
on the team’s performance in the second half
“Yeah, I think that’s something we’ve been preparing for with not playing against Washington. We had a lot of time to prepare and brush up on our defense and get more in tuned and get on the same page on what we were doing. I think that showed in today’s game. Marquette, they came back. They didn’t want to go down without a fight and we knew that going into the game. We knew that we just had to get in here and get the W anyway we could.”
on how concerned he was on how the team would perform after travel difficulties
“Myself, I love playing in games like this just going through adversity. I know, going back to March and playing in the first game against Michigan State. I had a big issue with my back and then going out and having a game like that. And then coming here, playing just off a flight and then getting out here. I think that’s showing what our team knows well. Just the toughness and … persevering through adversity and getting out and getting W’s.”
on what the flight was like
“It was a pretty smooth flight going out. We hit some turbulence. All of sudden, [they] get on the PA. They're like, ‘Everybody get your seat belt on.’ Like, what the heck is going on? Then we have to make an emergency landing. And we’re like, ‘Oh my God, what happened?’ We didn’t know what happened on the flight. We got off and they told us that the windshield cracked. And we’re like, ‘Oh my God.’ We didn’t realize the severity until after and how bad it really was. Thankfully, by the grace of God, we got home safe. We were able to spend the night in Denver and come out the next day and play the game.”
junior guard Johnny Juzang
on his experience during the emergency landing
“Yeah, I was just wondering what was going on. It’s not really in our control so I wasn’t really worried or stressed. We didn’t know what was happening. It was fine. Luckily, everything was alright.”
on how fearful he was
“Everybody handles it differently. Again, it’s not in your control. I was just kind of at peace with the situation. Whatever happens, happens. We’re all together. All I thought about was maybe there was a way to get some messages out. It’s just kind of crazy to think about. … Really blessed.”
on the resiliency of the team’s performance after travel difficulties
“Last night was definitely crazy. We were on a flight this morning. Once we rested up and once we started getting close to the game – time to prep – we knew what time it was. Everybody was prepared and locked in which was good.”
UCLA 67, Marquette 56
December 11, 2021
Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Men’s Head Basketball Coach
on the gritty win after flight issues on the way to Milwaukee
“Yeah, you know, just so we got here. Marquette was awesome. Can’t say enough about Shaka (Smart) and their administration. They basically said whenever you guys want to play. But we had been off so long, you knnow, I just figured we might as well – let’s just get here and get a day room and play.”
on if he was concerned about the amount of rest since last game
“Not too bad. We’re a veteran team. I tend to think some of that stuff is overrated. I’m a believer in execution. Whether you got one day or 10 days, I was just hoping our guys could get their minds on the game instead of emergency landings.”
on how scary the emergency landing was
“Scary. I’ll just say that it was real. We had to land as fast as possible. We were able to do that so we’re all fortunate. … I’m going to get home and talk to university officials about some things and how much they want me to say about it.”
on the team’s defensive rebounding performance
“We held them to 18 points in the paint. If you don’t give up layups, you’ve got a chance to hold teams down. We forced them into 33 threes. It’s our opinion they’re a better team when they’re attacking the basket. They’re fast, they’re athletic, they spread you to drive (on) you. Greg Elliott is the reason he made the game close. He was good last year. I saw him finding his rhythm at Kansas State and I was worried about him tonight and he proved me right. Somebody’s going to jump up and make some shots for them at some point. We only had two second-half turnovers knowing that they were going to come with the pressure. Jaime had one ill-advised one that he and I are going to have conversations about because we had three timeouts. He should have just called a timeout, but he’s one of the best players in the country so if weren’t for him we wouldn’t be where we’re at.”
on the team’s ability to withstand Marquette’s run in the second half
“We got answers. Johnny can shoot it in. Tyger has become one of the best point guards in America. Jaime – obviously you can give it to Jaime. Jules didn’t have a lot of opportunity offensively tonight, but we just got a lot of guys that can hurt you at different times. We don’t really have one scorer. We can go bang-bang for six points real quick.”
on Jaime’s return
“Yeah, he looked fine. We held him out and tried to do the right thing. I’ve got a new thing. Basically, I just say, ‘What would I do if I was an NBA coach?” But they have 82 (games), we got 31. But still, you’re coaching at UCLA, your eyes are on March. But also, it’s real simple. You try to always err on the side of what’s best for the kid and safety. Jaime was back to normal on Wednesday.”
junior guard/forward Jaime Jaquez Jr.
on how gratifying the win was after the troubles of getting to the game
“It feels good just knowing we went through a lot of adversity with the flight and staying in Colorado and coming out here in the morning. It just felt really good that we just did all of that and get the win and go back home. It just feels amazing.”
on the team’s performance in the second half
“Yeah, I think that’s something we’ve been preparing for with not playing against Washington. We had a lot of time to prepare and brush up on our defense and get more in tuned and get on the same page on what we were doing. I think that showed in today’s game. Marquette, they came back. They didn’t want to go down without a fight and we knew that going into the game. We knew that we just had to get in here and get the W anyway we could.”
on how concerned he was on how the team would perform after travel difficulties
“Myself, I love playing in games like this just going through adversity. I know, going back to March and playing in the first game against Michigan State. I had a big issue with my back and then going out and having a game like that. And then coming here, playing just off a flight and then getting out here. I think that’s showing what our team knows well. Just the toughness and … persevering through adversity and getting out and getting W’s.”
on what the flight was like
“It was a pretty smooth flight going out. We hit some turbulence. All of sudden, [they] get on the PA. They're like, ‘Everybody get your seat belt on.’ Like, what the heck is going on? Then we have to make an emergency landing. And we’re like, ‘Oh my God, what happened?’ We didn’t know what happened on the flight. We got off and they told us that the windshield cracked. And we’re like, ‘Oh my God.’ We didn’t realize the severity until after and how bad it really was. Thankfully, by the grace of God, we got home safe. We were able to spend the night in Denver and come out the next day and play the game.”
junior guard Johnny Juzang
on his experience during the emergency landing
“Yeah, I was just wondering what was going on. It’s not really in our control so I wasn’t really worried or stressed. We didn’t know what was happening. It was fine. Luckily, everything was alright.”
on how fearful he was
“Everybody handles it differently. Again, it’s not in your control. I was just kind of at peace with the situation. Whatever happens, happens. We’re all together. All I thought about was maybe there was a way to get some messages out. It’s just kind of crazy to think about. … Really blessed.”
on the resiliency of the team’s performance after travel difficulties
“Last night was definitely crazy. We were on a flight this morning. Once we rested up and once we started getting close to the game – time to prep – we knew what time it was. Everybody was prepared and locked in which was good.”