The road struggles continued on Saturday for the UCLA Bruins. After two good showings at home against Illinois and USC, the Bruins faltered on the road against Minnesota. The loss returns UCLA to a familiar spot, on the bubble for the NCAA Tournament.
UCLA was flat once again on the road
Mick Cronin and the Bruins have yet to figure out road games in the Big Ten, especially when they’re traveling to a different time zone. Saturday’s game against Minnesota was an early start time but this late into the season, you’d expect the Bruins to be ready to play.
3-11 in Big Ten games for non-Pacific Time Zone games
Ben Stevens pointed out on Twitter just how much the Bruins have struggled on the road the past two seasons. Since UCLA joined the Big Ten ahead of last season, the Bruins are 21-3 in the Pacific Time Zone, 1-5 in the Central Time Zone and 2-6 in the Eastern Time Zone.
UCLA needs complete performances but hasn’t gotten them
That’s going to get in the way of UCLA competing for a Big Ten title and earning a high seed for the NCAA tournament. On Saturday, only a handful of Bruins looked ready to play. Tyler Bilodeau was terrific, even if he forced some shots late in the second half. Skyy Clark provided offense and floor spacing and Eric Dailey Jr. had an efficient 18 points. UCLA got very little from the rest of their roster.
This UCLA team has lacked defensive consistency for months
“If you’re +10 on the glass, shoot 51% and make 10 threes you should win,” Cronin said postgame. “But not with this team. We’ve struggled defensively all year, my friend. It’s just been a grind. Something I haven’t experienced in really 30 years in college, 23 as a head coach.”
The Bruins are running out of time
Cronin doesn’t know what to make of this year’s UCLA team and neither does the rest of us. The Bruins are clearly talented but haven’t shown the intensity to win with any semblance of consistency.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: Mick Cronin doesn’t know what to make of his UCLA team
Reporting by Dylan McNeill, UCLA Wire / UCLA Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
