What Went Wrong for UCLA, From Its Perspective

UCLA's season hit a sudden end on Saturday when it was conquered by 2-seeded Tennessee.

Mar 22, 2025; Lexington, KY, USA; UCLA Bruins head coach Mick Cronin reacts during the first half against the Tennessee Volunteers in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Rupp Arena. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images / Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

UCLA men's basketball had shown signs of an upset in its second-round meeting with No. 2-seeded Tennessee on Saturday, but in the end, the Volunteers proved to be too much for the 7-seeded Bruins.

UCLA had been up by a point with less than 3-and-a-half minutes to go in the first half before Tennessee went on an 8-0 run to close the half.

It never looked back, and the Bruins would ultimately fall, 67-58.

Whether it was UCLA's poor shooting, Tennessee's shooting from range, fouls or the Volunteers' rebounding, a number of factors impacted the outcome.

Afterward, the Bruins, themselves explained what they felt went wrong.

"I think it was the press that got it started," said junior guard Skyy Clark when asked about the run at the end of the first half. I
think that killed us. With some turnovers and just some
fouls, gave them easy points at the free-throw line,
especially fouling the wrong person. I think that's what got
it started."

UCLA coach Mick Cronin also addressed the foul trouble the Bruins had found themselves in before halftime.

"Look, they're [Tennessee] a hell of a team," Cronin said. "There was
a time they were number 1 in the country, I think. They're
a hell of a team.

"[Igor] Milicic's a fourth or fifth-year guy, Lanier
is a fourth or fifth-year guy, Zakai [Zeigler] is a four-year starter,
[Jahmai] Mashack is a senior, [Jordan] Gainey is a senior, [Darlinstone] Dubar is a senior. [Felix] Okpara is a hell of a junior

"They've got a hell of a team.
Guys, they only scored 67. It's not like we gave up 97,
they scored 67. Not going to win many games, guys, you
get 58.
Skyy not being able to play and Eric [Dailey Jr.] threw us off, it messed
the game up. We had a chance to -- if that wouldn't have
happened, we might have had a lead at half, it could have
been a whole different game.

"I agree with Ben, the end of
the first half -- I used my timeout for an offense/defense
substitution and we had a couple of really, really sloppy
turnovers, soft plays that, you know -- it is what it is. But, again, they got a hell of a team. You're not going to
win [when] you score 58 points."

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