LOS ANGELES — For two games, there were glimpses that the UCLA men’s basketball team could contend with the intensity Mick Cronin demands. But then the Bruins reverted to the product they’ve displayed all season.
After a loss at Ohio State Saturday, Cronin didn’t entirely crash out, despite seeing his team struggle in the exact facets of basketball that he prides himself on coaching — defense and toughness.
Before he can fault any of the players, he knows he has to look in the mirror. He played a significant hand in orchestrating this disappointment, in selecting players who “want someone else to do the dirty work.”
“I offer no excuses,” Cronin said after UCLA (12-6, 4-3 Big Ten) lost at Ohio State (12-5, 4-3) on Saturday, missing an opportunity that could have helped UCLA’s tournament standing. “Blame me. I recruited (the players). I signed them as free agents. We’re not going to win meaningful games if we can’t stop the other team.”
There’s still time to save the season. The Bruins have a Quad 1 matchup against No. 4 Purdue (17-1, 7-0) on Tuesday in Pauley Pavilion, and a slew of other résumé-building games remaining in Big Ten play. But they haven’t shown any indications that they can capitalize on those opportunities.
In ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi’s latest release, UCLA sits in the First Four Out. To avoid fulfilling that prediction, and missing the NCAA Tournament for the second time in three seasons, it would take heart, resilience and quality the Bruins have yet to deliver this season.
That falls directly on Cronin, who constructed a team that hasn’t matched West Coast powerhouses Arizona and Gonzaga or top teams in the Big Ten.
Cronin thought he had compiled enough skill to challenge the likes of Purdue. He referred to Donovan Dent and Skyy Clark as “maybe the best backcourt in the nation” after UCLA’s preseason scrimmage against San Diego State. He said the Bruins would have the firepower to withstand a cold night from Tyler Bilodeau or another one of their headliners. He’s mentioned that NBA scouts have called him inquiring about Jamar Brown, and yet he deploys the transfer guard only about 20 minutes per game.
Few of his evaluations have come to fruition and it’s clear the Bruins don’t resemble the top teams featuring grizzled veterans, international professionals and impact freshmen.
Tuesday’s opponent Purdue, is a case in point. Purdue is led by point guard Braden Smith, a first-team All-American who continues to increase his all-time Big Ten assists record, which he set on Jan. 3. The Boilermakers pair Smith with Trey Kaufmann-Renn for one of the most efficient pick-and-roll duos in college basketball. They surround those two stars with complementary talent, such as senior Fletcher Loyer and senior Oscar Cluff, a hard-nosed Australian big man who has played at three Division I schools. They bring Omer Mayer, an Israeli freshman who was seen as a potential first-round pick in the 2025 NBA Draft class, off the bench.
That’s the level of straight-up talent UCLA must match to accomplish its goals in the Big Tean and the NCAA tournament.
Even when there’s a disparity in talent, Cronin has a history of inspiring grit, or strategically mucking up games to mask that deficiency. He did it at Cincinnati, leading the mid-major Bearcats to nine consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. He has yet to bring that kind of toughness out of the Bruins this season.
On Saturday, they allowed Buckeyes guards Bruce Thornton and John Mobley Jr. to combine for 49 points. The two players at the top of UCLA’s defensive scout were ceded any shot they desired.
“Two really tough guards,” Bilodeau said. “We knew that coming into the game. We just got to be more ready to play, and step up to the fight.”
In each of UCLA’s road losses, the opponent has thrown the first series of jabs. Once they take that hit, the Bruins have shown signs of punching back. Rarely have they set the tone.
That can be a sign of poor preparation and a disconnect between coaches and players. Making a team uncomfortable takes a discipline that Cronin hasn’t brought out in this group.
“We gotta just buy in,” sophomore Trent Perry said. “Even if the ball doesn’t go in on offense. On defense, we got to grind.”
In his second year in the system, Perry has developed into a dependable two-way player, averaging 11.2 points per game, shooting 41% from 3-point range. He’s been one of the few silver linings. But 18 games into a season, at a program like UCLA, the conversation shouldn’t be about silver linings. It should be about the possibility of banners and round gold jewelry.
There was talk of that before the season — spewed from the mouths of players because of the confidence carried by the coaching staff. A belief tied to little substance other than Cronin’s vision for the roster and his ideas of how to maximize it.
The Bruins coach tends to quote UCLA legend John Wooden’s saying that “the guy with the best players wins.” He referenced that proverb at Big Ten Media Day, thinking he had ceiling-raising talent at his disposal.
“Wait till you see our execution this year with Donovan Dent at the point. I mean, my intelligence level, it’s amazing. I got so much smarter over the summer,” Cronin said in jest.
The joke might now be on the coach.