2021 NCAA Tournament

[Jon Rycek]

Bro every player on their roster top 100. Might not have boba fide lottery picks but they loaded with talent more than any other team in final four

They do not have more talent than Gonzaga, or probably Baylor. Come on now

 

[justinhub2003]

They have 8 4 stars on their current roster. I know you want to push this narrative that they aren’t talented but that’s like having 8 jarrons on their team.

I give mick credit. He won. I’m happy for him. He left this program in a better spot and he went to where he could get a roster that includes 8 4 stars. That wasn’t happening here.

I said his roster was good.
But the reality is their 5 star commit went pro , their best player tore his acl and Jalen hill stepped away from the team

On top of that, this is the most untalented UCLA team by UCLA standards.

They have zero seniors on the team.


And mick said anyone who shows up to workouts on that first day is “his guy”.. he didn’t try to push players out. He knew some of these kids dreamed of going to UCLA and he wasn’t going to do what brannen did.

And hearing Juzhang talk about his team and coaches let’s you know that being a tough coach and being a complete Ashoka are two different things.


John Brannen ruined cincinnati and mick has UCLA on top of the world. He plowed through two up & coming coaches too.

Uc has peaked at Mick Cronin. We aren’t landing 2 guys like Huggins and Cronin back to back. We got Bohn’ed

 

[justinhub2003]

They likely can’t hang within 15 points of the zags but if by some miracle they win and we get the Cronin vs Sampson championship game we all deserve, I’ll poop my pants

 

[cincyguy13]

I said his roster was good.
But the reality is their 5 star commit went pro , their best player tore his acl and Jalen hill stepped away from the team

On top of that, this is the most untalented UCLA team by UCLA standards.

They have zero seniors on the team.


And mick said anyone who shows up to workouts on that first day is “his guy”.. he didn’t try to push players out. He knew some of these kids dreamed of going to UCLA and he wasn’t going to do what brannen did.

And hearing Juzhang talk about his team and coaches let’s you know that being a tough coach and being a complete Ashoka are two different things.


John Brannen ruined cincinnati and mick has UCLA on top of the world. He plowed through two up & coming coaches too.

Uc has peaked at Mick Cronin. We aren’t landing 2 guys like Huggins and Cronin back to back. We got Bohn’ed

Can you relax? Everything that happens is either the best thing invented or the worst thing that’s ever happened to the program. There is no in between with you. 1 sweet 16 in 12 years, wasn’t peak Cincinnati. Cronin had some good and bad moments here. He moved on, it not the end of civilization as we know it. Brannen didn’t work. It happens to all programs. Not just us. Name a program that has never hired a guy that didn’t work out.

 

[waterhead]

I said his roster was good.
But the reality is their 5 star commit went pro , their best player tore his acl and Jalen hill stepped away from the team

On top of that, this is the most untalented UCLA team by UCLA standards.

They have zero seniors on the team.


And mick said anyone who shows up to workouts on that first day is “his guy”.. he didn’t try to push players out. He knew some of these kids dreamed of going to UCLA and he wasn’t going to do what brannen did.

And hearing Juzhang talk about his team and coaches let’s you know that being a tough coach and being a complete Ashoka are two different things.


John Brannen ruined cincinnati and mick has UCLA on top of the world. He plowed through two up & coming coaches too.

Uc has peaked at Mick Cronin. We aren’t landing 2 guys like Huggins and Cronin back to back. We got Bohn’ed

I just wish Cronin would have pushed the envelope at UC. He convinced himself he was capped and his recruiting showed that he was convinced he was capped. He basically gave up on thinking big. We had exactly one team in 12-13 years that was seeded to expect to make a S16.

Having next to zero hope to make a F4 push is almost the same as not getting in the dance. Almost! I am the optimistic type so I would prefer to be in the dance with a chip and a chair...but I wasn't kidding myself expecting we would. We didn't have the players in any year but one to have that kind of real hope.

 

[cincyguy13]

I just wish Cronin would have pushed the envelope at UC. He convinced himself he was capped and his recruiting showed that he was convinced he was capped. He basically gave up on thinking big. We had exactly one team in 12-13 years that was seeded to expect to make a S16.

Having next to zero hope to make a F4 push is almost the same as not getting in the dance. Almost! I am the optimistic type so I would prefer to be in the dance with a chip and a chair...but I wasn't kidding myself expecting we would. We didn't have the players in any year but one to have that kind of real hope.

This is how I feel. I don’t understand the people that are just happy to get in the tournament. I never have. It’s like the reds or bengals making the playoffs and losing immediately. Great you made it, let’s throw a party. Of course it’s better than completely sucking but it’s not some kind of program defining accomplishment either.

Like you said we didn’t have the players for whatever reason. You need a whole team of jarrons or jacobs, not one or two. I was ready to try something different. It didn’t work, let’s try something else.

 

[waterhead]

They likely can’t hang within 15 points of the zags but if by some miracle they win and we get the Cronin vs Sampson championship game we all deserve, I’ll poop my pants

Watching the Zags is a thing of beauty. Our next coach (or existing) should be watching the system of Mark Few and replicating it. The passing and the cutting...wow. Every player knows what the F they are doing out there and when to do it and why. It does help that they all have skill but the system works on it's own when the players know the system.

I think CJB has a nice system that can work with players like Mason as long as they work the system and know what they are doing. I swear 3-4 years in the system when players have it down pat would end up in some good tourney runs...if we were to keep the coach. He obviously has other issues to work through but that would be my first option at this point. Get John into some kind of sensitivity training and keep him on board.

 

[skyblade]

Mick tried for plenty of top recruits, but they rarely ended up here. And yes, that is probably because of Cincinnati (or more specifically, the American conference). Look at Brannen's recruiting of high-rated players, to get them he had to take risks on guys who have off-court issues and that hasn't gone over well either.

As I said when Mick left, we need to get over dreaming of getting a coach who is going to bring in five stars or even high-four stars. We need a guy who can get three stars and an occasional four star who fit the system and can develop them into a complete team.

As for CJB, you all know my stance. He may be a great X's and O's coach, but that doesn't matter. Relationships matter more and he failed. You can't develop players if you can't retain them. At this point, keeping him is a death sentence because he won't be able to recruit with everything hanging over his head (regardless of who you think is at fault).

 

[cincyguy13]

Mick tried for plenty of top recruits, but they rarely ended up here. And yes, that is probably because of Cincinnati (or more specifically, the American conference). Look at Brannen's recruiting of high-rated players, to get them he had to take risks on guys who have off-court issues and that hasn't gone over well either.

As I said when Mick left, we need to get over dreaming of getting a coach who is going to bring in five stars or even high-four stars. We need a guy who can get three stars and an occasional four star who fit the system and can develop them into a complete team.

As for CJB, you all know my stance. He may be a great X's and O's coach, but that doesn't matter. Relationships matter more and he failed. You can't develop players if you can't retain them. At this point, keeping him is a death sentence because he won't be able to recruit with everything hanging over his head (regardless of who you think is at fault).

Gonzaga never got those 5 star guys either. Until they did. Gonzaga is a great example of programs being built over time, and it can happen anywhere, if you get the right coach and a school that believes in what he’s doing. 20 years ago they were nothing in a small conference. You don’t start with getting 4-5 star guys. You build it and eventually they pick you. Like Huggins did over time. Like few did. It takes years.

Mick got frustrated he couldn’t get top guys. There is an article recently that said he quit trying. This was evident with the 6-7 guys that were still here transferring to mid majors. I don’t blame him but you can’t expect to win at the highest level like that either.

 

[skyblade]

UCLA had next to zero hope of a final four push this year. They are a team that people thought maybe next year. They have no seniors who play. Most people picked them to lose to MSU. They have four stars, but they aren't clearly better than most of the teams he took to the tournament with UC. UCLA fans are saying this is probably their least talented final four team ever.

UCLA has one great scorer (Juzang) and a bunch of role players. We've seen plenty of UC teams with a very similar makeup.

Look at this NCAA tournament. There are two clearly dominant teams (Gonzaga, Baylor) and a whole bunch of other teams that could have made it. What did Houston/UCLA do better than the rest? I'd argue for the most part they just got luckier.

The low possession, tough it out style contributes to keeping games close. You need a game to be close if you are going to get lucky and win (or unlucky and lose). Mick had 3 games that could easily have been losses (including a first four game). He won three coin flips. If he lost the coin flip to MSU, fans would be saying he can't win in March. If he lost it to Bama or Michigan, he had a good run but nothing that special.

He's a great coach, but it seems like all the bad luck he had at UC was just waiting for him to leave so good luck could come back in a wave and even things out.

 

[cincyguy13]

UCLA had next to zero hope of a final four push this year. They are a team that people thought maybe next year. They have no seniors who play. Most people picked them to lose to MSU. They have four stars, but they aren't clearly better than most of the teams he took to the tournament with UC. UCLA fans are saying this is probably their least talented final four team ever.

UCLA has one great scorer (Juzang) and a bunch of role players. We've seen plenty of UC teams with a very similar makeup.

Look at this NCAA tournament. There are two clearly dominant teams (Gonzaga, Baylor) and a whole bunch of other teams that could have made it. What did Houston/UCLA do better than the rest? I'd argue for the most part the just got luckier.

The low possession, tough it out style contributes to keeping games close. You need a game to be close if you are going to get lucky and win (or unlucky and lose). Mick had 3 games that could easily have been losses (including a first four game). He won three coin flips. If he lost the coin flip to MSU, fans would be saying he can't win in March. If he lost it to Bama or Michigan, he had a good run but nothing that special.

He's a great coach, but it seems like all the bad luck he had at UC was just waiting for him to leave so good luck could come back in a wave and even things out.

This years UCLA has more talent than any team mick had at uc. They just aren’t playing Tulane and ecu 16 times a year.

 

[skyblade]

Gonzaga never got those 5 star guys either. Until they did. Gonzaga is a great example of programs being built over time, and it can happen anywhere, if you get the right coach and a school that believes in what he’s doing. 20 years ago they were nothing in a small conference. You don’t start with getting 4-5 star guys. You build it and eventually they pick you. Like Huggins did over time. Like few did. It takes years.

Mick got frustrated he couldn’t get top guys. There is an article recently that said he quit trying. This was evident with the 6-7 guys that were still here transferring to mid majors. I don’t blame him but you can’t expect to win at the highest level like that either.

That's why I wanted to keep Mick around. Get one lucky FF4 run here and with his record of going to every NCAA tournament, higher rated recruits are going to start come.

Now we've started over. We either need a coach to come in and pull a miracle run in the NCAA tournament in the next few years. Or we will be waiting 5-10 years for a coach to gradually rebuild us and get us back to the point we were at when Cronin left.

Either way, we need a coach who is willing to stay. All the small schools that have built themselves up have done it because their coach doesn't leave.

 

[sedziobs]

It is kind of frustrating that Mick goes to UCLA and has his first team in years that is better on offense than defense, but then all of a sudden the defense shows up in the tournament in a way that never happened here. We were always great on the defensive end in the regular season, but it all fell apart in March.

 

[cincyguy13]

That's why I wanted to keep Mick around. Get one lucky FF4 run here and with his record of going to every NCAA tournament, higher rated recruits are going to start come.

Now we've started over. We either need a coach to come in and pull a miracle run in the NCAA tournament in the next few years. Or we will be waiting 5-10 years for a coach to gradually rebuild us and get us back to the point we were at when Cronin left.

Either way, we need a coach who is willing to stay. All the small schools that have built themselves up have done it because their coach doesn't leave.

I was fine with keeping him, just didn’t cry when he left. It got a little stale for everyone, including him. He knew he could go there and immediately get a team that’s more talented than anything he’s every had. He didn’t have to worry about Ellie, Shaq Thomas, Type players that are hard to win with. And he got to live in LA while getting paid more. He moved on. We had to also

 

[cincyguy13]

That's why I wanted to keep Mick around. Get one lucky FF4 run here and with his record of going to every NCAA tournament, higher rated recruits are going to start come.

Now we've started over. We either need a coach to come in and pull a miracle run in the NCAA tournament in the next few years. Or we will be waiting 5-10 years for a coach to gradually rebuild us and get us back to the point we were at when Cronin left.

Either way, we need a coach who is willing to stay. All the small schools that have built themselves up have done it because their coach doesn't leave.

Agree, if he had a run, things could have changed for the better. That’s how important these runs are. That’s why fans get frustrated when you make 1 sweet 16 in 20 years. That’s what the whole sport depends on. Is it right, no, but that’s the sport of college basketball. You have to win in the tournament

 

[waterhead]

Mick tried for plenty of top recruits, but they rarely ended up here. And yes, that is probably because of Cincinnati (or more specifically, the American conference). Look at Brannen's recruiting of high-rated players, to get them he had to take risks on guys who have off-court issues and that hasn't gone over well either.

As I said when Mick left, we need to get over dreaming of getting a coach who is going to bring in five stars or even high-four stars. We need a guy who can get three stars and an occasional four star who fit the system and can develop them into a complete team.

As for CJB, you all know my stance. He may be a great X's and O's coach, but that doesn't matter. Relationships matter more and he failed. You can't develop players if you can't retain them. At this point, keeping him is a death sentence because he won't be able to recruit with everything hanging over his head (regardless of who you think is at fault).

And we need those kids to have some SKILLZ rather than pure athleticism. We ALL knew that. If Cronin recruited more skill (at UC) he probably would have done much better with the 3-4 star guys. In the end much of the time he ended up with juniors or seniors who could play D and who were starting to approach average on offense.

In terms of keeping a family of players together...that's wonderful...as long as there is the hope that will parlay into a deep tourney run or two. if you keep the family together but they can't advance who cares?

 

[cincyguy13]

And we need those kids to have some SKILLZ rather than pure athleticism. We ALL knew that. If Cronin recruited more skill (at UC) he probably would have done much better with the 3-4 star guys. In the end much of the time he ended up with juniors or seniors who could play D and who were starting to approach average on offense.

In terms of keeping a family of players together...that's wonderful...as long as there is the hope that will parlay into a deep tourney run or two. if you keep the family together but they can't advance who cares?

Gonzaga never had a team of athletes that tried to muck the game up even when they weren’t getting 5 star guys. Loyola doesn’t have a team full of athletes. Our fans need realize there are other ways to win

 

[Jon Rycek]

It is kind of frustrating that Mick goes to UCLA and has his first team in years that is better on offense than defense, but then all of a sudden the defense shows up in the tournament in a way that never happened here. We were always great on the defensive end in the regular season, but it all fell apart in March.

Yeah they completely won with defense the last 3 games. Michigan had a ton of chances late in that game and they held it down and made everything difficult.

 

[Jon Rycek]

Micks recruiting is about to go off the charts, he’s already getting some great players, now his first year in the tourney at UCLA and he takes them 5 games into the final four as an 11 seed. Proving to a lot of recruits what a lot of us already knew, he can coach, and he knows how to win. I don’t see then getting past the buzz saw that is Gonzaga this year, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see Mick make and win a NC game in the next 3-4 years.

 

[Loser Mentality]

Congrats to Mick and his guys. In 2 years he's turned UCLA into a better UC that we were used to seeing.

The best part of it all, is it looks like the kids are totally bought in.

The 2 years before Mick, UCLA was a softer version of itself.

They played GREAT DEFENSE on the Bigs of Michigan.