If the basketball thing doesn't work out for him, UCLA coach Mick Cronin could always start a wildlife sanctuary in Africa somewhere, because he had the zebras eating from his hand last night.
One little glare at the striped jackasses and they knew instinctively to turn against the menacing Wildcats.
Here's the breakdown...
Ty Berry led the Wildcats with a fine game on Senior Night. 7 of 13 from the field, 4 of 9 from outside the arc, 4 of 4 from the free throw line, 7 defensive boards, 3 steals, 2 assists, 2 turnovers.
Nick Martinelli provided capable support. He played 39 minutes in a physical game. The one time he was off the court, for 1:13 in the first half, UCLA outscored NU 5-0.
Collins subbed in Angelo Ciaravino for Martinelli, with Nicholson, Mullins, Berry and Windham also on the floor. Thats the right approach, in my opinion, but it didn't work.
We just don't have a traditional 4 to replace Martinelli (unless Luke Hunger is that guy, but Collins didn't play him last night).
Ciaravino didn't play after that.
The only thing I can say is that I think the team would play better with Ciaravino subbing in for Mullins at times, but he didn't have that opportunity last night.
Mullins and Ciaravino each collected 0 rebounds yesterday. Berry and Clayton each got 7. Thats not how you expect or want things to go.
Justin Mullins played 34.5 minutes, but recorded no rebounds, blocks or steals. He had 5 points on 4 shots, but also turned it over twice against 2 assists.
For that lack of production, he ends up at the bottom of the player ratings for the 2nd game in a row, despite the team outscoring UCLA 62-61 when he was on the court.
Keenan Fitzmorris provided the energy and scored 6 points, but we got outscored 19-13 when he was playing (mostly against the 7'3" guy).
Jordan Clayton played alright and is clearly improved defensively compared to where he started the post-Leach stretch.
The concerns people have expressed with his ability to create scoring opportunities for himself (and convert) are lingering.
The coach sat Clayton from 5:53 to 0:56 in the 2nd half, then started subbing him in defensively for Nicholson, in order to pressure the ball in the backcourt.
I adjusted Nicholson and Clayton's +/- numbers to reflect that. (hence the asterisk)
Collins played Windham and Clayton together in the backcourt for 9:30 yesterday - and NU outscored UCLA 14-10.
When Nicholson/Martinelli/Mullins/Berry/Windham were on the floor together, NU outscored UCLA 34-26 in 17 minutes, though that includes a +4 in the final minute.
The Wildcats need more from Angelo Ciaravino as they head into the Maryland game and hopefully a couple games in the Big Ten tournament.
One little glare at the striped jackasses and they knew instinctively to turn against the menacing Wildcats.
Here's the breakdown...
| Player | Minutes | NU Pts | UCLA Pts | Raw +/- | Player +/- | Net +/- | Box Pts |
| Berry | 34.5 | 59 | 69 | -10 | +7.22 | +5.22 | 13.60 |
| Martinelli | 39 | 69 | 68 | +1 | +1.97 | +2.17 | 8.60 |
| Fitzmorris | 8 | 13 | 19 | -6 | +1.10 | -0.10 | 2.30 |
| Windham | 28 | 50 | 46 | +4 | -1.89 | -1.09 | 3.65 |
| Nicholson | 31.5 | 52* | 52 | +0 | -1.03 | -1.03 | 4.40 |
| Clayton | 20.5 | 35* | 37 | -2 | -0.7 | -1.10 | 3.80 |
| Ciaravino | 4 | 5 | 13 | -8 | -0.34 | -1.94 | 0.00 |
| Mullins | 34.5 | 62 | 61 | +1 | -6.33 | -6.13 | 0.60 |
Ty Berry led the Wildcats with a fine game on Senior Night. 7 of 13 from the field, 4 of 9 from outside the arc, 4 of 4 from the free throw line, 7 defensive boards, 3 steals, 2 assists, 2 turnovers.
Nick Martinelli provided capable support. He played 39 minutes in a physical game. The one time he was off the court, for 1:13 in the first half, UCLA outscored NU 5-0.
Collins subbed in Angelo Ciaravino for Martinelli, with Nicholson, Mullins, Berry and Windham also on the floor. Thats the right approach, in my opinion, but it didn't work.
We just don't have a traditional 4 to replace Martinelli (unless Luke Hunger is that guy, but Collins didn't play him last night).
Ciaravino didn't play after that.
The only thing I can say is that I think the team would play better with Ciaravino subbing in for Mullins at times, but he didn't have that opportunity last night.
Mullins and Ciaravino each collected 0 rebounds yesterday. Berry and Clayton each got 7. Thats not how you expect or want things to go.
Justin Mullins played 34.5 minutes, but recorded no rebounds, blocks or steals. He had 5 points on 4 shots, but also turned it over twice against 2 assists.
For that lack of production, he ends up at the bottom of the player ratings for the 2nd game in a row, despite the team outscoring UCLA 62-61 when he was on the court.
Keenan Fitzmorris provided the energy and scored 6 points, but we got outscored 19-13 when he was playing (mostly against the 7'3" guy).
Jordan Clayton played alright and is clearly improved defensively compared to where he started the post-Leach stretch.
The concerns people have expressed with his ability to create scoring opportunities for himself (and convert) are lingering.
The coach sat Clayton from 5:53 to 0:56 in the 2nd half, then started subbing him in defensively for Nicholson, in order to pressure the ball in the backcourt.
I adjusted Nicholson and Clayton's +/- numbers to reflect that. (hence the asterisk)
Collins played Windham and Clayton together in the backcourt for 9:30 yesterday - and NU outscored UCLA 14-10.
When Nicholson/Martinelli/Mullins/Berry/Windham were on the floor together, NU outscored UCLA 34-26 in 17 minutes, though that includes a +4 in the final minute.
The Wildcats need more from Angelo Ciaravino as they head into the Maryland game and hopefully a couple games in the Big Ten tournament.
