Mick Cronin believes calls against Tyler Bilodeau 'changed the game' vs. North Carolina

Mick Cronin didn’t hold back about what he thought the difference was in UCLA’s loss to North Carolina.

The No. 18 ranked Bruins lost 76-74 to the Tar Heels on the road but were without forward Tyler Bilodeau due to foul trouble. Cronin had to yank his star for nearly seven minutes and UNC stormed back after trailing by 16.

What could’ve been a block or a charge, Bilodeau received his fourth foul and Cronin had to sit, arguably, his best player. He made sure to reference that when talking about differences in the game.

“Tyler played great. I’m not going to comment on officiating – him going out changed the game,” Cronin said. “If they hadn’t given him the charge, we would be having a different press conference. We kept him out until under five, especially with the way the game was being called.” 

Bilodeau finished with 26 points, three rebounds and one assist in 24 minutes. He actually led everyone on the court in points despite not playing a full game like expected.

Cronin’s team led 40-32 at the halftime break before being outscored by 10 in the final 20 minutes. But there was a clear reason, according to the head coach.

“The only adjustment that mattered in the second half was Tyler Bilodeau’s fourth foul,” Cronin said. “Their lineup was not tough. The problem was that Tyler Bilodeau wasn’t in. We played four guards for the whole second half. They’ve got seven McDonald’s All Americans and a great coach.”

Bilodeau was honest about his performance, referring to his foul trouble. While he and Cronin didn’t criticize the officials, him being out there would’ve been a big difference.

“It’s always frustrating because I want to be in the game and help my teammates out,” Bilodeau said. “There’s a lot of factors that go into it, missed free throws especially, and that’s on me. I can’t miss four free throws down the stretch there. Turnovers too. We’ve got to be better at taking care of the ball.” 

Cronin didn’t want to take too many positives from a loss either.

“No. Zero. There are no silver linings in losses,” Cronin said. “You’ve got to make free throws. Your point guard has to take care of the ball at the end of the game. That’s what real teams do. You’ve got veteran guys out there. You have to make free throws and you have to take care of the ball. Also, on the last play, you’ve got a trap going on with Dylan and those same two guys against RJ and they foul him. 

“What are we doing fouling the guy? Skyy fouls out. You don’t foul with the game on the line. My teams don’t do stuff like that. I’m still fighting to get this group to where we were a couple years ago. It’s hard to find guys as smart as Tyger Campbell.”