UCLA Basketball: Bruins Improved Defense Heavily Impressed Mick Cronin

Mick Cronin details the huge defensive performance from the Bruins in their win against Oregon.

One of the biggest aspects of play that the UCLA Bruins missed in the four-game losing skid was playing well on defense. In fact, Coach Mick Cronin chastised the team for giving up the ball too much. 

That was not the case for last night's game, as the Bruins turned the tables and delivered their own impressive defensive performance. The team secured 14 takeaways, which led to crucial points and their 69-62 victory. 

Coach Cronin was heavily impressed by the performance, which he spoke about after the game ended. 

“So, our defense was improved in a lot of ways. We forced 14 turnovers. When you can make the home team turn it over 14 times, you’re doing something [right]."

via 

UCLA Communications

As the old sports saying goes, "defense wins championships." That was certainly the case last night, as the Bruins looked like a team determined to get their hands on the ball no matter what. 

Adem Bona secured 3 steals and 3 blocks, which was capped off by his dominating performance of 13 points. 

Coach Cronin has stated for weeks that the Bruins have needed to get tougher and find their confidence again. Last night's victory was a testament to that. The hope now is the team can continue to believe in themselves during Pac-12 play. 

Though the team is 6-6, they can still grind their way to an NCAA Championship appearance. That will certainly look easy if they continue to dominate on the defensive side of the ball.