Bruins' Cronin Believed Road Environment Has Nothing to do With Loss

The UCLA Bruins dropped their first Big Ten contest of the season on the road on Saturday. Despite playing in front of a ruckus crowd of more than 15,000 people, Coach Mick Cronin believed that the environment had nothing to do with his team's upset road loss.

Dec 8, 2024; Eugene, Oregon, USA; UCLA Bruins head coach Mick Cronin during the second half against the Oregon Ducks at Matthew Knight Arena. Mandatory Credit: Craig Strobeck-Imagn Images / Craig Strobeck-Imagn Images

The No. 15 UCLA Bruins (11-3) received their first conference loss of the season on Saturday, falling to the Nebraska Cornhuskers (12-2) on the road by a score of 66-58. In one of the more hostile environments in the country, head coach Mick Cronin felt that had nothing to do with the loss.

The Bruins started the week as favorites but quickly became underdogs leading up to game time. A big for that was the fact that the Cornhuskers had not lost at their home gym of Pinnacle Bank Arena in 19-straight contests. They would make it 20-straight, handing UCLA the upset loss.

Cronin spoke postgame regarding the atmosphere and how that can impact the game on multiple levels. He was quick to the point, making it known that a that ruckus crowd environment does not give the home team anymore of an advantage. It was the Nebraska defense that won the game.

"I don't really believe in that stuff," Cronin said. "I believe in coaching and execution and players. I just don't believe in that stuff, so their players did a great job on the defensive end, they were the better defensive team today, that's what they won. I don't think environment has anything to do with anything, I just don't."

A very different answer from what Cornhuskers coach Fred Hoiberg had to say following their first ranked win of the season.

"Well, it's a great home-court environment, it's one of the best," Hoiberg said. "When we get guys in the league that we're fortunate to have on our roster now, they talk about PBA [Pinnacle Bank Arena] as being one of the best environments in the league. It certainly rang true today and it's been like that all year."

The Cornhuskers simply do not lose at home, and it was a true statement this past weekend, but Cronin does not believe it had anything to do with his team's loss. Cronin is more of an old-school coach that does not believe that outside factors can influence his team's chances.

It is somewhat of a positive for Cronin to neglect the fact that a road atmosphere as he will prepare his team the same as he would for a home game. Although, there is concern to it as well as Cronin does not seem to be factoring in a strong home court advantage into his gameplan.

The Bruins will be back home on Tuesday to battle the Michigan Wolverines (11-3) before heading back on the road for two straight conference games away from Pauley Pavilion. Whether Cronin believes in it or not, his team has to be ready to weather the storm of an elite crowd environment.

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