UCLA Basketball: Mick Cronin Rips Bruins Despite Win Streak

Mick Cronin still believes his young roster has a long way to go

UCLA basketball secured a huge 68-66 comeback win over Arizona State Wednesday night, erasing a fifteen point deficit to notch their second straight win. After losing four straight games before their win against Washington Sunday, the Bruins showed fight these past two games, especially versus the Sun Devils where they had to rally and then stay composed the entire second half to earn a narrow win. 

Even with the impressive comeback, Bruins head coach Mike Cronin was realistic that this team is still far from the caliber of play they had over the past three seasons -- which Cronin believes could have won the national championship had it not been for some bad injury luck.

“I don’t believe in ‘one game turns it around.’ I told you we’re still grossly inexperienced," Cronin said after the game. "Saturday is going to be another brutal test and we just got to continue – I’m trying to make it about the guys on the team. Not about me. I love our fans, but we went to the Final Four, [if] Jaime [Jaquez Jr.] don’t blow his ankle, we could have won the national championship. I think we would have. It was against Saint Mary’s when he blew his ankle, late in the game." 

"Then last year, I thought we was clearly the best team in the country and we had two guys out for the season," Cronin added. "So, we’ve been on a charmed ride. Tough run this year. It is what it is. Great kids on the team. I’m going to coach them hard and try to get them better. They have to improve. So, for me, it’s about them. We’ll address the roster at the end of the season. But right now, it’s about them and we try to help them get better. They’re all great kids. They’re just young and inexperienced.”

The majority of the roster is certainly still inexperienced, but they're getting a lot more exposure already this season. They now will face another large test as they take on No. 12 Arizona on Saturday to complete their Arizona road trip. If they keep up with the Wildcats or even steal a win, then maybe this young team will have proven they're turning the tide.