Donovan Dent began this year’s Big Ten Conference tournament with a historic performance. Not only was his triple-double the first in the history of the Big Ten tournament, it was just the fifth triple-double in UCLA Bruins recorded history.
It’s good company for Dent, with Kyle Anderson, Toby Bailey, Jelani McCoy and Bill Walton being the other four Bruins to accomplish the feat. UCLA needed the performance from Dent, as Rutgers held tough against the Bruins in the 72-59 win for UCLA.
The triple-double has also unlocked a new strategy for Bruins head coach Mick Cronin, after Cronin heard that Dent’s teammates told him he needed just one more rebound for the triple-double.
“So now I’m going to lie to him. So he’ll keep rebounding,” Cronin said. “I’m going to tell him ‘You need two for a triple-double,’ so he’ll keep rebounding. Now I know.”
For the season, Dent has averaged only 2.9 rebounds per game but Thursday’s game showed that he has an ability to crash the boards at a high level for a guard. The rebounding would be a plus, but UCLA will be happy if Dent can keep dishing out assists without turning the ball over like he has done in recent games.
It hasn’t always been peachy for Dent with UCLA. Cronin saw Dent’s immense talent while he was at New Mexico but it took some time to adjust to life in the Big Ten. Dent has been peaking at the right time, becoming the point guard Cronin had envisioned.
“I’ve tried to hold him to a higher standard, which is what I do with all my guys,” Cronin said of Dent. “Oscar Robertson said this years ago. You’re not different on-and-off the floor. He was too careless with the ball at New Mexico. Super talented, obviously. Nobody with his talent should turn the ball over, period. If he can be a more responsible person, he’ll be a more responsible player, he’ll be way more successful.”
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: Mick Cronin quotes Oscar Robertson after Donovan Dent’s triple-double
Reporting by Dylan McNeill, UCLA Wire / UCLA Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
