University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Postgame Quotes - UCLA 86, Presbyterian 46
POSTGAMEย QUOTES
UCLA 86, Presbyterian 46
Los Angeles, Calif. (Pauley Pavilion presented byย Wescomย Financial)
November 21, 2025
ย
Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Menโs Head Basketball Coachย
opening statement
โWe had 42 deflections tonight, and I thought the last couple games our team attitude has been something I could be proud of. Itโs amazing how guys play better when they have the right attitude and the right approach to the game. Obviously, the game wasnโt in doubt. I think they had the cow on the ropes and I think they were tired. They had a long West Coast trip and this was their third game. Our defensive rebounding was the best it had been all year. They didnโt shoot it well, but they got some guys who can rebound. We really did our best defensive job on the backboard. We played the first 13 minutes of the second half with no turnovers.โ
ย
on sophomore Brandon Williamsโ performance
โI think it was his best game of his career and especially as a Bruin. He had six deflections and seven rebounds. He knocks some shots in that we needed with Tyler [Bilodeau] down with injury.โ
ย
on the teamโs scoring in the paint against Presbyterian
โWhen you score a lot of points, you get 50 in the paint. Itโs hard to miss those. They were pressuring, so we were able to set some pressure release screens back on the ball near half-court which worked out for us. A couple handoffs that worked for us versus their pressure as well. I thought we passed it better to guys that were open in the interior, so itโs hard to miss those layupsโ
ย
on getting players to buy into the system
โThat goes week to week. You know itโs not easy to stay engaged. You have to recruit good guys โ make sure they have good people around them that are going to be smart enough to tell them that I know more than their agent and their workout basketball trainer. Thatโs the number one thing. Number two is that it is a weekly thing. Even with great kids, because they start reading their press clippings and when the hungry dog gets the bone, they get complacent. We try talking about having the proper focus, attitude, and humility all the time. Kobe Bryant once said โDonโt ever listen to what people tell you how good you are until you retire.โ โ
on creating a positive attitude for this game
โAgain, it comes down to picking the right guys. Then try to get them to understand the truth and that if they were that good then they wouldnโt be in school still. Jaylen Clark came in and told the team โNo disrespect to any of you guys, but if you get into the NBA nobodyโs going to run a play for any one of you. So, you better be good at the things heโs telling you.โ โ
UCLA senior guard Skyy Clarkย
on how the team responded to theย messageย from Coach Cronin
โI thought we responded the correct way. I thought we had twoย really goodย practices, not justย as a starting five, but as a team. I feel like that carried over into how we started the game today for sure.โ
ย
on what allowed for hisย strong performanceย this gameย
โMy teammatesย trustingย me, andย justย takingย what the defense was giving me.ย Thereย wasย a lot of open lanes. Coach said thatย theyโreย a โdenyโ team, soย they leave a lot of gaps for drives. I just saw it and made the layup.โ
ย
onย the teamโs improved mindsetย
โThose are the things thatย weโllย haveย doย to get to the national championship.ย Weโveย got a lot of talent, butย itโsย really aboutย whoโsย going to play the hardest โ who isย going to box out andย dive on the floor for loose balls. I thinkย thatโsย what is going to get us there.โ
ย
on what sparkedย his aggressiveness on offense:ย
โAgain, my teammatesย justย trusting me with the ball, and there were a lot of lanes that were open.ย Thatโsย really itย honestly.โ
ย
on how this UCLA team continues to come together
โWe all have one common goal, like Coach Cronin says all the time. All these dudes, they have a great attitude. Thereโsย not one guy Iย wouldnโtย trustย watching my dog, or anything like that. I really think thatย itโsย a mindset thing, and the wholeย teamโsย got it. We want to get to the national championship and bring home that 12th ring.โ
ย
on how Coach Croninโs coaching styleย and desire to excelย motivates the team
โI mean, how can it not motivate you?ย We know he believes in us, not just as a team but as individuals. Like you said,ย heโsย a straight shooter.ย You want someone like that in your life.ย For most of us, this is our last stop. After this,ย weโreย not going to have someoneย whoโsย going to beย on us like this.ย Very gratefulย to have someone like that for sure.โ
ย
UCLA redshirt sophomore guard/forward Brandon Williams
onย what kind of work and preparation went into tonightย being one of his best games
โI think just throughoutย my redshirtย sophomore year and then comingย to now, just stayingย down and putting in the work. I know my teammates trust me and theyย want me to be better.ย Thatโsย really the mindset โ just keeping my confidence and keeping my head down and working.โ
ย
on whether the mindset for tonightโs game was better than the past few games
โI would say,ย yeah, I think that we know what we need to do.ย Weโreย an older team. We all want to win. We all want to be successful, soย weโreย just coming together and doing what weย have toย do to win.โ
ย
on how Croninโs coaching style and desire to put the team in the best position to winย
โI would say I agree.ย Thatโs why everyone is here is here. Nobody wants a coachย thatโsย going to sugarcoat it for them and not tell them what they need to get better at when they make mistakes.ย We need that.โย
ย
UCLA fifth-year guard Jamar Brown
on howย heโsย feeling the season is going for himself and the team so far
โFor myself, I would sayย Iโmย just getting betterย in practiceย every day. Just listening to what the coachesย want, andย practicing against these guys every day and getting better.ย Learning a lot from them and learning a lot from the coaches โ just getting better every day and progressing until we get to March Madness.โ
ย
on how he views his role on this team
โYeah, just doingย whateverย the coaches want from me, whether that be defense, rebounding, shooting.ย Iโmย here to do whatever it takes to help this team win, whether that be the defensiveย little thingsย or rebounding.ย Iโmย going to continueย to doย that kind of stuff. Ifย thatโsย what he wantsย meย toย do, thenย Iโmย going to do it, and ifย thatโsย whatโsย going to continue to help us win,ย Iโmย going to keep doing it.โย
ย
Presbyterian head coach Quinton Ferrell
opening remarks
โItโs a top-25 team in the country on their home court. I thought we had some jitters and nerves. It took us a while to settle in. I thought they were really good defensively. They were playing really hard, they were playing really aggressive. It took us out of the stuff we were trying to do, we needed to slow down and execute a little bit better. Credit to their defense in the first half. We got off to a slow start. We actually made a run and did some good stuff in the middle, but we just couldnโt sustain it.โ
ย
on what the team can take from tonightโs game
โI think now, for us, when we put the schedule together, weโve had a marathon in the first couple weeks of the season. We played eight games โ itโs got to be the most in the country. Weโve had a really great start to the season. Weโve had a few buy games in there against Power-4 opponents. I think for us now, we get a slight break before we play again on Wednesday. We gotta get back, we gotta practice. We lost our starting point guard in the first game of this trip so that was really hard for our group just from an organization and running a team standpoint. I was pleased with what I saw from our point guard in the two games since the Sacramento State game. I do think that we have a chance to take off. Iโm excited about the group and what Iโve seen tonight. I just challenged the guys, just to make sure that no matter if weโre up 10 or down 10, up 20 or down 20, that our competitive spirit, our attitude, and our fight is not condition-based. As long as we continue to learn that, I think weโll be pretty good this season.โ
ย
UCLA 86, Presbyterian 46
Los Angeles, Calif. (Pauley Pavilion presented byย Wescomย Financial)
November 21, 2025
ย
Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Menโs Head Basketball Coachย
opening statement
โWe had 42 deflections tonight, and I thought the last couple games our team attitude has been something I could be proud of. Itโs amazing how guys play better when they have the right attitude and the right approach to the game. Obviously, the game wasnโt in doubt. I think they had the cow on the ropes and I think they were tired. They had a long West Coast trip and this was their third game. Our defensive rebounding was the best it had been all year. They didnโt shoot it well, but they got some guys who can rebound. We really did our best defensive job on the backboard. We played the first 13 minutes of the second half with no turnovers.โ
ย
on sophomore Brandon Williamsโ performance
โI think it was his best game of his career and especially as a Bruin. He had six deflections and seven rebounds. He knocks some shots in that we needed with Tyler [Bilodeau] down with injury.โ
ย
on the teamโs scoring in the paint against Presbyterian
โWhen you score a lot of points, you get 50 in the paint. Itโs hard to miss those. They were pressuring, so we were able to set some pressure release screens back on the ball near half-court which worked out for us. A couple handoffs that worked for us versus their pressure as well. I thought we passed it better to guys that were open in the interior, so itโs hard to miss those layupsโ
ย
on getting players to buy into the system
โThat goes week to week. You know itโs not easy to stay engaged. You have to recruit good guys โ make sure they have good people around them that are going to be smart enough to tell them that I know more than their agent and their workout basketball trainer. Thatโs the number one thing. Number two is that it is a weekly thing. Even with great kids, because they start reading their press clippings and when the hungry dog gets the bone, they get complacent. We try talking about having the proper focus, attitude, and humility all the time. Kobe Bryant once said โDonโt ever listen to what people tell you how good you are until you retire.โ โ
on creating a positive attitude for this game
โAgain, it comes down to picking the right guys. Then try to get them to understand the truth and that if they were that good then they wouldnโt be in school still. Jaylen Clark came in and told the team โNo disrespect to any of you guys, but if you get into the NBA nobodyโs going to run a play for any one of you. So, you better be good at the things heโs telling you.โ โ
UCLA senior guard Skyy Clarkย
on how the team responded to theย messageย from Coach Cronin
โI thought we responded the correct way. I thought we had twoย really goodย practices, not justย as a starting five, but as a team. I feel like that carried over into how we started the game today for sure.โ
ย
on what allowed for hisย strong performanceย this gameย
โMy teammatesย trustingย me, andย justย takingย what the defense was giving me.ย Thereย wasย a lot of open lanes. Coach said thatย theyโreย a โdenyโ team, soย they leave a lot of gaps for drives. I just saw it and made the layup.โ
ย
onย the teamโs improved mindsetย
โThose are the things thatย weโllย haveย doย to get to the national championship.ย Weโveย got a lot of talent, butย itโsย really aboutย whoโsย going to play the hardest โ who isย going to box out andย dive on the floor for loose balls. I thinkย thatโsย what is going to get us there.โ
ย
on what sparkedย his aggressiveness on offense:ย
โAgain, my teammatesย justย trusting me with the ball, and there were a lot of lanes that were open.ย Thatโsย really itย honestly.โ
ย
on how this UCLA team continues to come together
โWe all have one common goal, like Coach Cronin says all the time. All these dudes, they have a great attitude. Thereโsย not one guy Iย wouldnโtย trustย watching my dog, or anything like that. I really think thatย itโsย a mindset thing, and the wholeย teamโsย got it. We want to get to the national championship and bring home that 12th ring.โ
ย
on how Coach Croninโs coaching styleย and desire to excelย motivates the team
โI mean, how can it not motivate you?ย We know he believes in us, not just as a team but as individuals. Like you said,ย heโsย a straight shooter.ย You want someone like that in your life.ย For most of us, this is our last stop. After this,ย weโreย not going to have someoneย whoโsย going to beย on us like this.ย Very gratefulย to have someone like that for sure.โ
ย
UCLA redshirt sophomore guard/forward Brandon Williams
onย what kind of work and preparation went into tonightย being one of his best games
โI think just throughoutย my redshirtย sophomore year and then comingย to now, just stayingย down and putting in the work. I know my teammates trust me and theyย want me to be better.ย Thatโsย really the mindset โ just keeping my confidence and keeping my head down and working.โ
ย
on whether the mindset for tonightโs game was better than the past few games
โI would say,ย yeah, I think that we know what we need to do.ย Weโreย an older team. We all want to win. We all want to be successful, soย weโreย just coming together and doing what weย have toย do to win.โ
ย
on how Croninโs coaching style and desire to put the team in the best position to winย
โI would say I agree.ย Thatโs why everyone is here is here. Nobody wants a coachย thatโsย going to sugarcoat it for them and not tell them what they need to get better at when they make mistakes.ย We need that.โย
ย
UCLA fifth-year guard Jamar Brown
on howย heโsย feeling the season is going for himself and the team so far
โFor myself, I would sayย Iโmย just getting betterย in practiceย every day. Just listening to what the coachesย want, andย practicing against these guys every day and getting better.ย Learning a lot from them and learning a lot from the coaches โ just getting better every day and progressing until we get to March Madness.โ
ย
on how he views his role on this team
โYeah, just doingย whateverย the coaches want from me, whether that be defense, rebounding, shooting.ย Iโmย here to do whatever it takes to help this team win, whether that be the defensiveย little thingsย or rebounding.ย Iโmย going to continueย to doย that kind of stuff. Ifย thatโsย what he wantsย meย toย do, thenย Iโmย going to do it, and ifย thatโsย whatโsย going to continue to help us win,ย Iโmย going to keep doing it.โย
ย
Presbyterian head coach Quinton Ferrell
opening remarks
โItโs a top-25 team in the country on their home court. I thought we had some jitters and nerves. It took us a while to settle in. I thought they were really good defensively. They were playing really hard, they were playing really aggressive. It took us out of the stuff we were trying to do, we needed to slow down and execute a little bit better. Credit to their defense in the first half. We got off to a slow start. We actually made a run and did some good stuff in the middle, but we just couldnโt sustain it.โ
ย
on what the team can take from tonightโs game
โI think now, for us, when we put the schedule together, weโve had a marathon in the first couple weeks of the season. We played eight games โ itโs got to be the most in the country. Weโve had a really great start to the season. Weโve had a few buy games in there against Power-4 opponents. I think for us now, we get a slight break before we play again on Wednesday. We gotta get back, we gotta practice. We lost our starting point guard in the first game of this trip so that was really hard for our group just from an organization and running a team standpoint. I was pleased with what I saw from our point guard in the two games since the Sacramento State game. I do think that we have a chance to take off. Iโm excited about the group and what Iโve seen tonight. I just challenged the guys, just to make sure that no matter if weโre up 10 or down 10, up 20 or down 20, that our competitive spirit, our attitude, and our fight is not condition-based. As long as we continue to learn that, I think weโll be pretty good this season.โ
ย