Tag: Mick Cronin

Andy Enfield moves to 6-3 vs Mick Cronin in 9 games against UCLA

In 2020 (the Jonah Mathews game) and now 2023 (the Boogie Ellis game), Enfield has beaten Cronin and UCLA in must-win situations. He keeps coming through.

When Mick Cronin came to UCLA before the 2019-2020 college basketball season, he hadn’t reached a Final Four, but he had made Cincinnati a nationally relevant program. The Bearcats had been a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. They had reached the Sweet 16. Cronin had established himself as a quality coach over several years.

Andy Enfield showed signs of becoming a quality coach. Yet, let’s be honest: When Pat Haden hired him to USC, it was on the basis of that one amazing season at Florida Gulf Coast, the 2013 campaign in which Enfield reached the Sweet 16 as a No. 15 seed with his FGCU “Dunk City” Eagles, the team which shocked No. 2 seed Georgetown and then beat No. 7 San Diego State to become the first 15 seed in NCAA Tournament history to reach the regional semifinals.

Cronin had a much fuller — and longer — body of work when UCLA hired him. Enfield was hired based on potential, not longevity, by Haden and USC.

If you had been told four years ago — when Cronin was hired in Westwood — that Enfield would win six of nine games against Cronin, you probably would have been laughed out of the building.

Yet, that’s the record for Enfield after his 77-64 win against UCLA on Thursday. Enfield had lost three straight to Cronin — twice last March, then on January 5 of this year — but he took back the upper hand when he absolutely had to.

Establishing superiority against Cronin is important because it enables recruits to legitimately consider the idea that USC, not UCLA, is the program of the future in Los Angeles. Enfield has won some high-profile recruiting battles. Each win over UCLA increases the odds he can continue to succeed on the trail and raise USC’s ceiling. Meanwhile, these wins over UCLA carry enormous significance for each Trojan team.

The 2020 Enfield win over Cronin — the Jonah Mathews game — got USC into the 2020 NCAA Tournament before the event was wiped out by the pandemic. This win in 2023 could make the difference between making the NCAAs and going to the NIT. If USC does make the 2023 NCAA Tournament, that will be three straight tournaments on an official level, four straight if we include 2020. Only once before has USC made the NCAA Tournament in three consecutive years: 2007-2009 under Tim Floyd.

USC has not historically been a place where the NCAA Tournament is an annual, regular expectation. That has clearly changed under Andy Enfield, who continues to prove that he can stand up to UCLA and Mick Cronin.

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Oregon MBB recap: Bruins come alive to defeat Ducks

UCLA came to play in the second half and overwhelmed the Ducks 65-56 to hand Oregon its first conference loss.

The Oregon men’s basketball team played one good half.

Unfortunately against a team like UCLA, that’s not nearly enough. The Bruins outscored the Ducks 44-29 in the second half to defeat Oregon 65-56 inside Pauley Pavilion.

With the loss, Oregon falls to 4-5 overall and 1-1 in Pac-12 action. UCLA improved to 7-2 and 2-0 in conference play.

It was definitely a tale of two halves. The Ducks played great defense in the first half, but after the break, Oregon played virtually no defense. It was also crushed on the boards, especially on the offensive end. The Bruins managed to pull down 16 offensive rebounds and scored 13 second-chance points.

Oregon shot 24-of-49 from the field, but just 4-of-17 from long range and they could never get to the free-throw line on a regular basis. The Ducks were just 4-of-7 from the charity stripe.

Forward Quincy Guerrier was off to a good start, but he hurt his ankle late in the first half and although he came back to play, his effectiveness never quite came back.

Tom Izzo comments on UCLA NCAA Tournament run

Tom Izzo gave his comments on the UCLA NCAA Tournament run after his Spartans fell just short of defeating the Bruins in the first four.

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Michigan State had a 5-point lead with just over one minute left in their first four game against UCLA, a bad final minute leading into overtime and the Bruins got past the Spartans.

Almost two weeks removed from that game, UCLA is still playing and will be heading to the final four.

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After witnessing the Bruins historic run, Spartan fans can’t help to think “what if”. Michigan State coach Tom Izzo is no exception to that rule, the head man in East Lansing took to radio to share his mindset.

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UCLA coach Mick Cronin and his superfan father are the best story of the men’s Final Four

This is the best.

Of course Gonzaga’s possible run to a national title in the men’s NCAA tournament is one of the best March Madness stories, as is Baylor and Houston eyeing their first.

But let’s take a moment to appreciate UCLA head coach Mick Cronin and his father Hep, who has become the Bruins superfan cameras pan to during the team’s surprise run to the Final Four.

He’s been seen fist pumping and celebrating, and Mick has expressed how amazing it is to have his dad there cheering him on, including on Tuesday night as the Bruins upset No. 1 seed Michigan. Mick hadn’t seen him in a year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Here are some highlights, including Mick Cronin talking about him in a post-game interview on Tuesday:

Love it. Love all of it. Can’t wait to see them both in the Final Four.

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What UCLA head coach Mick Cronin said about Michigan State basketball after NCAA Tournament win

Mick Cronin was highly complimentary of Michigan State following his team’s win over the Spartans.

Michigan State basketball dropped a frustrating, disappointing game to UCLA last night in a game that, in all honesty, both teams probably shouldn’t have had to play. The Spartans lost by 6 to the Bruins in overtime of a First Four play-in game that seemed to only exist as a ratings draw for the opening slate.

Nevertheless, UCLA came out victorious, but Bruins head coach Mick Cronin was highly complimentary of Tom Izzo and MSU in his post game remarks.

You can watch his full press conference here:

You can see the most interesting quotes from Mick Cronin about Michigan State below:

Michigan State Basketball vs. UCLA: Where to Watch, Odds, Game Preview & Prediction

Check out the game details, keys to the match-up, and my game prediction in this Michigan State-UCLA preview.

It’s time to dance.

Michigan State will help tip off the 2021 NCAA Tournament on Thursday night in a First Four match-up against UCLA. The winner will move on to face No. 6 seed BYU in the first round on Saturday.

Michigan State enters this match-up with wins in five of their last eight games, while UCLA has lost four straight to backdoor their way into the big dance. Which of these blue blood programs will move on to the next round and which will head home?

Let’s take a look at this match-up, with game details, things to watch, and last but not least my prediction for this game.

San Jose State at UCLA: Game Preview, TV, Radio, Live Stream, Odds, More

San Jose State at UCLA: Game Preview, TV, Radio, Live Stream, Odds, More Spartans looking to regain form against formidable foes Contact/Follow @andrewdieckhoff & @MWCwire Prioleau has tinkered with his lineups, but can he find the right formula? …

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San Jose State at UCLA: Game Preview, TV, Radio, Live Stream, Odds, More

Spartans looking to regain form against formidable foes

Contact/Follow @andrewdieckhoff & @MWCwire

Prioleau has tinkered with his lineups, but can he find the right formula?

WHO: San Jose State (3-4, 0-0 MWC) at ULCA (5-3, 0-0 Pac-12)

WHEN: Sunday, December 1 — 5:00 P.M. PT / 6:00 P.M. MT

WHERE: Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles, CA

WATCH: Pac-12 Network (cable subscription required); Get a free one-week trial of FuboTV.

LISTEN: TuneIn

ALL-TIME RECORD: UCLA leads the series, 8-1

ODDS: UCLA -17, per KenPom

PREVIEW: San Jose State will be looking for an upset victory on Sunday night as they travel down to Pauley Pavilion to do battle with UCLA.

The Spartans come into the game on the heels of two disappointing losses to Portland State and Oregon State. Things were looking up for Jean Prioleau’s team after beating Hofstra in the opener and snagging another early win over a Grambling State squad that could win the SWAC.

But the other shoe dropped hard, with SJSU losing their last two games by a combined 50 points.

This drop in production comes at an unideal time for a team that plays its next four games against UCLA, Utah State, San Diego State, and Stanford. In fact, the Bruins might be the easiest opponent of the Spartans’ upcoming slate.

The Bruins also find themselves in the midst of a slide. After starting the year at 4-0, UCLA has lost three of its last four. They picked up a cheap win over Chaminade, the host of the Maui Invitational, but otherwise dropped games against Hofstra, BYU, and Michigan State.

Mick Cronin’s side saw early success going inside to big man Jalen Hill, but the redshirt sophomore has gone quiet in the past two games. Hill scored in single digits against both the Cougars and the Spartans after a 24-point explosion against Hofstra.

Nobody else on the Bruins has consistently stepped up when Hill has struggled.

Prince Ali, Tyger Campbell, and Cody Riley are all capable options, but none of them appear to playing at a level to truly take over a game as the primary scorer. UCLA was able to skate through their first four games, but their lack of scoring punch outside of hill has exposed a weakness that other teams can and should exploit.

That means that the San Jose State frontcourt will have their work cut out for them on Sunday evening.

Prioleau ran out a new starting lineup for the first time against the Beavers on Wednesday, starting former Wake Forest big man Samuel Japhet-Mathias. The transfer center responded by scoring a team-leading 10 points. Omari Moore also started in place Seneca Knight but had little impact in just 15 minutes on the floor.

Knight and fellow double-digit scorer Richard Washington Jr. combined to shoot just 2-for-15 off the bench. They have been the Spartans’ leading scorers over the first handful of games, but were nowhere to be found in Las Vegas on Wednesday.

Shooting woes also followed Christian Anigwe, who shot 1-for-8 against Oregon State. The sophomore forward did secure 14 rebounds and block three shots, though.

But those issues are just about the shots they actually get off. Nearly a quarter of the Spartans’ possessions never make it that far, instead ending in a turnover. To put that in context, San Jose State ranks 308th in turnover rate, per KenPom.

There’s a lot that Jean Prioleau needs to get cleaned up if SJSU stands a chance at UCLA. But on the bright side for the Spartans, they’re catching the Bruins on a cold streak.

Prediction: UCLA 81, San Jose State 63

Andrew is a current USBWA member, covering college basketball for multiple outlets, including Mountain West Wire of the USA TODAY Sports Media Group and Busting Brackets of the FanSided Network. He also runs the Dieckhoff Power Index, a college basketball analytics system, and provides bracketology predictions throughout the season.

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UNLV at UCLA: Game Preview, TV & Radio Schedule, Live Streaming, Odds, More

UNLV at UCLA: Game Preview, TV & Radio Schedule, Live Streaming, Odds, More Runnin’ Rebels looking for first-ever win against UCLA Contact/Follow @andrewdieckhoff & @MWCwire UNLV is coming off two straight OT losses WHO: UNLV (1-2, 0-0 MWC) at UCLA …

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UNLV at UCLA: Game Preview, TV & Radio Schedule, Live Streaming, Odds, More

Runnin’ Rebels looking for first-ever win against UCLA

Contact/Follow @andrewdieckhoff & @MWCwire

UNLV is coming off two straight OT losses

WHO: UNLV (1-2, 0-0 MWC) at UCLA (2-0, 0-0 Pac-12)

WHEN: Friday, November 15th — 9:00 P.M. MT / 8:00 P.M. PT

WHERE: Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles, CA

TV: Pac-12 Network

STREAM: Pac-12 Network (cable subscription required); Get a free one-week trial of FuboTV.

RADIO: TuneIn

SERIES RECORD: UCLA leads, 5-0

ODDS: UCLA -7, per KenPom

PREVIEW: TJ Otzelberger’s first three games have been a pretty mixed bag, as UNLV sits at 1-2 after Tuesday night’s overtime loss to California. It was the second time in as many games that the Rebels fell in extra time.

But though the results are the same, there were far more positives for UNLV in the Cal game than there were against Kansas State.

For starters, Amauri Hardy didn’t have to do all the scoring. He still ended up with 15 points, but Donnie Tillman and Eli Mitrou-Long both topped him, scoring 17 and 16, respectively.

Tillman’s big game was exactly what UNLV needed. The transfer had a nice debut, but his 16 points against Purdue-Fort Wayne were propped up by a lot of trips to the line. Against the Golden Bears, Tillman was able to score from the field, hitting 5-of-10 from inside the arc and burying his first three-pointer in a Rebels uniform.

Also encouraging is that Tillman played 41 minutes against Cal, compared to a combined 42 minutes against Purdue-Fort Wayne and Kansas State. If UNLV is going to rise above their station, Tillman needs to build off of Tuesday’s performance.

But the Rebels face a difficult task in heading to one of college basketball’s most hallowed halls, Pauley Pavilion.

In their third consecutive game against a Power 5 opponent, UNLV heads to Westwood to take on UCLA and their new head coach, Mick Cronin. The Rebels have never beaten the Bruins in five tries. Their last meeting, a 77-75 thriller, took place in 2015.

This year’s UCLA team comes in with a 2-0 record, but they aren’t without their question marks, either. Their opener was a struggle against Long Beach State. The Bruins eked out a four-point victory over the Beach, but didn’t shoot particularly well.

Sunday’s tilt with UCSB started out looking like it would be another long game for the Bruins, but UCLA took over in the second half. Sophomores Jalen Hill and Jules Bernard both hit the 20-point mark. Hill was dominant inside, finishing with 22 points, ten rebounds, and three blocks.

Prince Ali and Chris Smith both scored in double figures, but shot a combined 4-for-18 from the floor. Freshman Tyger Campbell was held to just two points after scoring 15 against Long Beach State. Campbell did add six assists, proving his worth as a distributor in Mick Cronin’s offense.

UCLA could find themselves in the hunt for a top-half finish and a potential trip to the NCAA Tournament this March, but they will need to start playing the full 40 minutes if they are going to reach their potential.

UNLV needs to contain Hill inside and make the Bruins prove that they can hit the long ball effectively. But if UCLA is making their shots, it’s going to be difficult for the Rebels to hang.

They would also probably prefer to avoid another overtime.

Andrew is a current USBWA member, covering college basketball for multiple outlets, including Mountain West Wire of the USA TODAY Sports Media Group and Busting Brackets of the FanSided Network. He also runs the Dieckhoff Power Index, a college basketball analytics system, and provides bracketology predictions throughout the season.

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