Mick Cronin downplays absence of Eric Dailey Jr. on Nebraska loss: 'I don't like that stuff'

The absence of Eric Dailey Jr. wasn’t an excuse for Mick Cronin as to why UCLA had their first conference loss on Saturday.

Cronin was quickly asked postgame about Dailey Jr. being unavailable for the 66-58 upset loss for the Bruins at Nebraska on Saturday. He then dismissed that thought just as fast, especially considering who they still had to play with yesterday in Lincoln.

“Yeah but, we still – I don’t like that stuff,” Cronin said. “It’s five-on-five. It’s not like (hockey). It’s not the power play. You don’t got to play a man down. We’re missing two guys but it’s still not the power play. We got guys on scholarship that are good enough players.”

If anything, he says the three-point shooting was more to blame for why they took their third loss.

“You can’t go 4-28 and have any chance to win against a team that stands people in the paint and dares you to shoot,” Cronin pointed out. “It is what it is. Really, I mean – look, that’s pretty much the game in a nutshell.”

Dailey Jr., the Bruins’ second-leading scorer, was a game-time decision after dealing with a facial injury the past two weeks. He did not miss their game after against Gonzaga, a game in which he took another big hit, but was unavailable yesterday against Nebraska.

Dailey Jr., a sophomore transfer, has averaged 11.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.4 steals as a full-time starter for UCLA. That also has him third on the team in rebounding and steals. He has been efficient in his minutes as well with percentages of 54.5% from the field and 48.4% from three.

Several things could have led to the third loss overall and second in the past three games for the Bruins. However, Dailey Jr.’s absence wasn’t one of them according to Cronin.

“We didn’t play well enough to win against a good team on the road. That’s really all I have to say about that,” Cronin said. “It was pretty obvious.”