Watch: Myles Johnson, Jules Bernard on UCLA Riding Wild Season into Pac-12 Tournament

MYLES JOHNSON

Craziest moment of season for you?

For me personally, I think mostly the world events going on is the craziest part. Because I would never expect none of that to happen, everything going on in Ukraine and everything. For me, that was really crazy, a very unexpected moment. Like, basketball, injuries do happen, and it's been COVID for a minute, so those are kind of things that we've been dealing with, but kind of the whole world events thing I think is the most crazy event going on right now.

How has Cronin shepherded you through these events?

Coach Cronin definitely kind of on course. He tells us that things happen, you've got to play through it. Always be ready, next person has to step up. And basically, when one of your brothers goes down, you always fight a little bit harder for him. Throughout all these games, it feel like we've either had someone out or something like that, and you've got to push for that one player and get the outcome of the game. After that you go and tell them that we won and that they're happy, and you come to practice the next day and they do their best to get back for the next game. So it's just kind of like a 'Keep going forward' mentality.

Backloaded schedule prepare you for postseason?

Definitely. They were kind of like rapid fire games, it's what it's gonna be coming up with both the Pac-12 Tournament and March Madness. So in a sense i guess it does help us prepare that you're gonna have not a lot of prep time, you're gonna have to play a game the next day. You're gonna have to get quick recovery, get your body right in a short window and stuff like that. So I think that does prep us enough for the upcoming events, but it was a lot. Definitely was a lot to have all those games in a short span, but we got through it, so now going forward we just have to prepare for these upcoming tournaments.

How important to have five days off before USC and five days off before Pac-12 tournament?

That's definitely big, in a mental standpoint and physical standpoint. I took a lot of that time to do a lot of rehab and recovery – pretty much just getting your body right for the upcoming games. Just using that time wisely is always really smart. Catch up with school, catch up with anything you really need to because there is not a lot of free time throughout the season, so whenever you get it you got to treat it like really preciously.

Impact of coach Savino on your development?

Coach Savino has been huge for me. Definitely helping me out with all my low-post stuff and moving around the ball. He helped me a lot with my rebounding. I remember I was struggling early in the season, and he helped me with film, showing me sometimes my feet are in the arc and it's kind of hard to rebound when you are that close to the basket. So he helped me wedge and get in better position for offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds, stuff like that. So he's been a big help for sure.

JULES BERNARD

Biggest disruption during "wacky" season?

Just a natural thing like injuries, or maybe not injuries, but the general aches and pains and bruises of going through a full season, that's about it. Obviously we've had some bumps in the road, where people have been out for longer than expected or longer than we want. But our team is next guy up comes and performs, so we've done a good job of that and sort of sustaining and maintaining our energy throughout the season as people have been banged up. I feel like we've done a good job and thankfully we're all ready for the Pac-12 tournament.

What about Mick allows you guys to peak in March?

Well he's a coach that has a complete passion for the game and fire for the game. You know he wants to win, and when you have a coach that has that type of fire and drive, it rubs off on his team, for sure. I feel like a lot of people have seen come to fruition throughout the year, so I think it's just a testament to how much he cares and the passion he has for not only winning but for his team.

Personal state of mind with one postseason to go?

I'm good. I've had senior nights before obviously in high school, but I'm really just excited for the postseason to be honest. I feel like there's a lot of opportunity, and we want to do great things. If we want to do what we set out to do from the beginning of the season and sort of keep playing in the postseason, then I know there's going to be a lot of basketball to play, so I'm just definitely excited and ready to get started.