LOS ANGELES – The Friday night matchup between UCLA (9-3, 2-0) and Cal Poly (5-8, 1-1) didn’t start out the way anyone could have expected, even if the end result turned out in the Bruins’ favor with a 108-87 victory.
The Mustangs came out strong in the first half and ended up going into the break with a two point advantage over the Bruins. It was clear that the Mustangs had game-planned for a heavy reliance on three point shooting to combat the size mismatches they would have against the Bruins in the paint, and they executed that plan to the letter. Nearly every offensive push by the Mustangs involved kicking-out to a shooter lurking in the corner, and with a 9-17 showing from beyond the arc in the first half, their strategy was paying off.
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“Our guys weren’t ready for it.I don’t think they understood to the extent of Cal Poly’s commitment to that style,” Cronin said. “Obviously, we had a scouting report, we watched film, we talked about it. And I told them [that] they were going to shoot more three tonight than they usually shoot because they know that’s their chance to win.”
Despite the awareness that Cronin and his team had, UCLA’s defense had no answer early on to stifle the long distance threats Cal Poly had.
Upset as he was at this, Cronin directed the blame toward a lack of preparation on his and his staff’s part, rather than the players.
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“Our preparation wasn’t what it needed to be. I don’t believe in ‘We told them.’ That’s how you get fired. You got to the radio show, the press conference and go ‘We told them. We told them they could shoot,” Cronin said. “Your job is to make sure your team does what you tell them to do, by any means necessary, and we failed the team. So, I’m not happy with myself or my staff for the way we came out defensively.”
Skyy Clark #55 of the UCLA Bruins drives towards the basket during an NCAA basketball game against the Cal Poly Mustangs, Friday December 19, 2025 in Los Angeles, Calif.
Jordan Teller – The Sporting Tribune
Skyy Clark #55 of the UCLA Bruins drives towards the basket during an NCAA basketball game against the Cal Poly Mustangs, Friday December 19, 2025 in Los Angeles, Calif.
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Despite their first half woes, UCLA responded with a much stronger effort in the second half. After allowing the aforementioned three pointers and an overall 58.3% field goal percentage in the first half, the Bruins limited the Mustangs to just 44.4% from the field in the second and just five triples.
“We stepped it up in my opinion in the second half. We can’t come out flat like we did in the first half,” senior guard Donovan Dent said.
The defense was the biggest difference between the two halves, but the offensive explosion UCLA experienced in the second half was what made the difference when it came to the final box score.
Senior guard Skyy Clark, as per usual, led the way for the Bruins offense. Clark scored 30 points and shot both 6-12 from three and a perfect 4-4 in free throws.
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Clark’s scoring performance was split into an even 15 points per half and his consistency meant that when his teammates came alive, the whole team came together as an elite scoring unit, one so successful that the 65 points the Bruins scored in the second half was the was the most the program had scored in a second half since scoring points in the second half in a game against George Mason Dec. 22, 1994.
