How UCLA Keeps Winning Without Skyy Clark

"The fact that we can win games without Skyy in this conference is [impressive]," Cronin said after Saturday's 71-64 win over Northwestern. "I don't care what Northwestern's record was. They're like 46th in KenPom. ... We can win without Skyy, and we'll keep winning until we can get him back."

When Will Skyy Clark Return?

Those hoping for a quick return seem out of luck. Clark has now missed six games, and his future sounds murkier by the day. The last significant update the Bruins offered was ahead of the Ohio State game, when Cronin revealed he was participating in a weekly shootaround but was doubtful for the game. A week later, the story has hardly changed.

"He's trying," Cronin said. "The hamstring's a tough injury. It's just a tough injury. Nobody wants to be back more than him. This kid's been through enough with his dad's strokes, wife's in college, and his passing away this summer. He's doing everything he can, and we're just trying to hold down the fort until we can get him back."

The Recipe for Success

So how has UCLA been able to win games without one of its most lethal scorers? It all starts with defense. What was once a major Achilles' heel for the Bruins has developed into a serviceable component of the basketball team. Only two opponents have scored more than 65 points against UCLA over this recent stretch, both occurring in losses.

Cronin says that's because they've simplified things and played to their personnel, focusing on limiting high percentage shots like dunks and layups.

"If you don't give up layups and dunks, you've got a chance to stop people, however you accomplish that," Cronin explained. "Everybody's got different personnel. We've been trying to adjust, defensively, how we do things -- stuff that to a layperson you might not see -- into our team defense to not give up layups and dunks. We have some weaknesses that we're trying to hide, but everybody has them."

Whatever those changes have been seem to be working when the Bruins can execute. While Northwestern's leading scorer, Nick Martinelli, still scored 20 points on Saturday, he still missed 11 shots, and UCLA shut him out from three-point range. Similarly, the Bruins held most of No. 4 Purdue's key players under their season scoring averages.

It's an impressive run, and the growth UCLA is establishing can only help the program down the line, whether it's with Skyy Clark l or not.

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