Bruins' Cronin needs more after first conference win

The UCLA Bruins (7-1) earned their first Big Ten victory in their new conference with a 69-58 win over the Washington Huskies (6-2). It was a tape-to-tape win for the Bruins as they shot the ball well from distance and received effective offense from several key players.

The Bruins were led by sophomore guard Sebastian Mack, who tied for the team’s highest points total with junior forward Tyler Bilodeau. Mack had five rebounds and three assists to reach double figures in his fifth game of the season. Cronin has been impressed with his play all season.

Bruins coach Mick Cronin spoke to the media after the game and praised the Huskies for their toughness and how they were able to cause problems for the Bruins. Even with 11 missed free throws and 10 offensive rebounds allowed, the Bruins still won by double digits.

“He (Mack) has been great all year, he’s really done it all year,” Cronin said. “He was the only consistent offensive threat for us in the outfield, he was great. He still needs to improve defensively, but of course it’s nice to have someone like him who can help you on offense when you’re having problems.”

The Bruins allowed just 58 points to a strong Huskies team that averaged just 70.9 points per game, which was the second-lowest total in the conference. They were able to force 12 turnovers, which meant 19 extra points.

Cronin acknowledged his team’s defensive play but expects more from them. He felt the final week of rest caused his group to become rusty and failed to put pressure on the Huskies’ offense, particularly their entire press.

“Our constant is our defense, we gave up 58 points tonight, but I just don’t think we’re as quick and athletic tonight,” Cronin said. “I thought our pressure didn’t bother them at all tonight, I just thought we weren’t as committed as we needed to be, especially in our home games. We tried to get behind them a little bit, I tried. “I didn’t force the guys to get up anymore and I didn’t see it. I tried to force them a few times, but our press will have to be more of a factor for us, especially at home.”

The Bruins did a lot of good in the game as they only turned the ball over eight times, which was one of their lowest totals of the year. Cronin mentioned that despite a few mistakes due to a lack of turnovers, they were still able to win by finding 16 assists on 25 shots made and shooting 8 of 12 from 3 shots.

Cronin and his group are preparing for Sunday afternoon when they take on the No. 12 Oregon Ducks in Eugene. It will be the first road game for the Bruins since their neutral-site loss to New Mexico on November 8th. It’s going to be quite the showdown as the Bruins look to get back into the top 25.

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