University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Postgame Quotes - UCLA vs. Marquette
POSTGAME QUOTES
UCLA 69, Marquette 60
December 11, 2020
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Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Menโs Head Basketball Coach
on the teamโs efforts down the stretch
โAt the under-8 (minutes) timeout, from that point on we never put them back on the foul line. We were keeping them in the game on the foul line in the second half; they had more made free throws than they had field goals. That was a big key. Our defensive execution, we played a lot smarter the last eight minutes defensively. We also played smart on the offensive end, we got to the foul line, we got a few key offensive rebounds that were really big for us. Chris Smith didnโt have his best offensive game, but he gets three big offensive rebounds. Jules Bernard, obviously the MVP, I thought, of tonightโs game. His defense on their best players, his toughness, his rebounding, his efficiency on offense โ 15 points on only seven shots, no turnovers. Heโs becoming a very, very good player in front of our eyes.โ
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on Chris Smith
โWe were struggling shooting the ball. Our ball movement was really good at times, we got some unbelievably good looks. It just wasnโt our night. So thatโs when we tried to get to the foul line. Itโs late game, shots arenโt going in for us, so try and do some things to get Chris in the post. He missed two free throws tonight, but heโs one of the top free throw shooters in the Pac-12 this year. Trying to dive him down there and get him close.โ
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on the teamโs ball control
โI think weโre gonna have big nights when we pass the ball. With our spacing and our ball movement the way it was tonight, weโre gonna have some big nights shooting the basketball, and be really tough to beat. Iโm really proud of tonightโs win because, Chris and Johnny go a combined 3-20, thatโs not gonna happen. I learned this a long, long time ago and I tell the team so itโs a great reinforcement win about my beliefs tonight with our team, when you donโt shoot the ball well, and you still find a way to win with Jules, Jaime, Chris, seven offensive rebounds between them. Our defense got really smart late in the game. We did a great job and played intelligent defense in the last seven and a half minutes.โ
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on the impact of the win
โI think every win is our best win of the season. Because what Iโve realized, in my business nobody cares about your last win.โ
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Marquette head coach Steve Wojciechowski
opening comments
โIt was a difficult game. Credit to UCLA. They have an outstanding team, very versatile, old, talented. For us, I thought our guys competed. Again, obviously the thing that jumps off the page is our turnovers. You canโt spot a really good team on the road 12 points based on just really kind of careless turnovers. Obviously, within a game of basketball there are going to be mistakes, but weโre having way too many, and it puts an incredible amount of pressure on our defense. To beat really good teams you have to play hard and efficiently on both ends.โ
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on injuries and foul trouble
โI thought we were ready to play. I thought we were really ready to play and we were in horrendous foul trouble in the first half. We had lineups out there, one because of Symirโs injury and two because of foul trouble, that we have not had a lot of time to practice with, and I thought that did disrupt our rhythm. Obviously injuries, theyโre out of your control. The foul trouble was very difficult for us to manage and keep a rhythm and flow to the game.โ
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on if there is a timetable on Symir Torrenceโs return
โNo. He injured himself yesterday in practice. As we were going through practice and preparation yesterday, he hurt his toe. We thought maybe there was a chance he could play, but when he woke up this morning, that would not have been a smart decision for him. In addition to Symir, Theo [John] has not been able to practice. Heโs got a nagging knee injury over the last week thatโs really limited his practice time and I think limited mobility. Obviously for us, we need everybody. We need to try to find some sort of health between here and Omaha.โ
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on Marquette guard D.J. Cartonโs performance
โWith Symir out, that put a lot of pressure on D.J. and I thought he delivered for the most part. I think with each game heโs getting more comfortable and showing improvement. Obviously, thereโs things that he can continue to improve upon, but I think weโre seeing him kind of round into the player that we believe he can be.โ
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UCLA 69, Marquette 60
December 11, 2020
ย
Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Menโs Head Basketball Coach
on the teamโs efforts down the stretch
โAt the under-8 (minutes) timeout, from that point on we never put them back on the foul line. We were keeping them in the game on the foul line in the second half; they had more made free throws than they had field goals. That was a big key. Our defensive execution, we played a lot smarter the last eight minutes defensively. We also played smart on the offensive end, we got to the foul line, we got a few key offensive rebounds that were really big for us. Chris Smith didnโt have his best offensive game, but he gets three big offensive rebounds. Jules Bernard, obviously the MVP, I thought, of tonightโs game. His defense on their best players, his toughness, his rebounding, his efficiency on offense โ 15 points on only seven shots, no turnovers. Heโs becoming a very, very good player in front of our eyes.โ
ย
on Chris Smith
โWe were struggling shooting the ball. Our ball movement was really good at times, we got some unbelievably good looks. It just wasnโt our night. So thatโs when we tried to get to the foul line. Itโs late game, shots arenโt going in for us, so try and do some things to get Chris in the post. He missed two free throws tonight, but heโs one of the top free throw shooters in the Pac-12 this year. Trying to dive him down there and get him close.โ
ย
on the teamโs ball control
โI think weโre gonna have big nights when we pass the ball. With our spacing and our ball movement the way it was tonight, weโre gonna have some big nights shooting the basketball, and be really tough to beat. Iโm really proud of tonightโs win because, Chris and Johnny go a combined 3-20, thatโs not gonna happen. I learned this a long, long time ago and I tell the team so itโs a great reinforcement win about my beliefs tonight with our team, when you donโt shoot the ball well, and you still find a way to win with Jules, Jaime, Chris, seven offensive rebounds between them. Our defense got really smart late in the game. We did a great job and played intelligent defense in the last seven and a half minutes.โ
ย
on the impact of the win
โI think every win is our best win of the season. Because what Iโve realized, in my business nobody cares about your last win.โ
ย
Marquette head coach Steve Wojciechowski
opening comments
โIt was a difficult game. Credit to UCLA. They have an outstanding team, very versatile, old, talented. For us, I thought our guys competed. Again, obviously the thing that jumps off the page is our turnovers. You canโt spot a really good team on the road 12 points based on just really kind of careless turnovers. Obviously, within a game of basketball there are going to be mistakes, but weโre having way too many, and it puts an incredible amount of pressure on our defense. To beat really good teams you have to play hard and efficiently on both ends.โ
ย
on injuries and foul trouble
โI thought we were ready to play. I thought we were really ready to play and we were in horrendous foul trouble in the first half. We had lineups out there, one because of Symirโs injury and two because of foul trouble, that we have not had a lot of time to practice with, and I thought that did disrupt our rhythm. Obviously injuries, theyโre out of your control. The foul trouble was very difficult for us to manage and keep a rhythm and flow to the game.โ
ย
on if there is a timetable on Symir Torrenceโs return
โNo. He injured himself yesterday in practice. As we were going through practice and preparation yesterday, he hurt his toe. We thought maybe there was a chance he could play, but when he woke up this morning, that would not have been a smart decision for him. In addition to Symir, Theo [John] has not been able to practice. Heโs got a nagging knee injury over the last week thatโs really limited his practice time and I think limited mobility. Obviously for us, we need everybody. We need to try to find some sort of health between here and Omaha.โ
ย
on Marquette guard D.J. Cartonโs performance
โWith Symir out, that put a lot of pressure on D.J. and I thought he delivered for the most part. I think with each game heโs getting more comfortable and showing improvement. Obviously, thereโs things that he can continue to improve upon, but I think weโre seeing him kind of round into the player that we believe he can be.โ
ย