UCLA Coach Cronin Stunned! Ejects His OWN Player After Brutal Foul!

EAST LANSING, MI – You know things are rough when a coach starts policing his own team harder than the referees. That's exactly what happened Tuesday night as Mick Cronin, visibly at the end of his rope, ejected his own player, Steven Jamerson II, during UCLA's absolute clobbering at the hands of Michigan State. The final score? A brutal 82-59. It was a game UCLA fans will want to forget, and Cronin's drastic measure only amplified the already dire situation.

UCLA Coach Cronin Stunned! Ejects His OWN Player A...

The incident occurred with just under five minutes left on the clock, and the Bruins already down by a whopping 27 points. Jamerson committed a hard foul on Michigan State's Carson Cooper, a foul that sparked a brief exchange of words and required teammates to step in and separate the two. Before the refs could even fully review the play, Cronin had seen enough. He grabbed Jamerson by the jersey, pointed him towards the bench, and made it abundantly clear his night was over. It didn’t seem like Jamerson wanted to leave the game, but Cronin was insistent. He even had trainer Dave Andrews escort the senior center to the locker room. Talk about a statement.

Making matters even worse for Jamerson, a former Michigan State student, he was met with jeers from the Breslin Center crowd as he exited the court. Ouch. A rough homecoming to say the least. And frankly, a humiliating moment for a UCLA program that's supposed to be a national powerhouse. I mean, I've seen some angry coaching decisions, but this was something else entirely. It felt like Cronin was trying to light a fire under his team, even if it meant sacrificing one of his players in the process.

This loss is just the latest in a string of disappointments for the Bruins. Just three days prior, they suffered an equally embarrassing 86-56 defeat against No. 1-ranked Michigan. Back-to-back blowouts? Not a good look for a team that was riding high just a short time ago. Suddenly that promising stretch of five wins in six games feels like a distant memory. UCLA is now 17-9 overall and 9-6 in conference play, and they are undeniably trending in the wrong direction. Can they turn it around? Only time will tell. But right now, things look bleak. I even overheard some people starting to question Cronin. The pressure is definitely on.

Meanwhile, Michigan State (21-5, 11-4 Big Ten) looked fantastic, fueled by Jeremy Fears Jr.'s impressive 16 points and 10 assists. They shot lights out, hitting a season-high 14 three-pointers. Simply put, they dominated from start to finish. UCLA, on the other hand, struggled to find any consistency. Tyler Bilodeau led the Bruins with 22 points, but he received little help from his teammates. Even Xavier Booker, the Michigan State transfer, had a rough night, contributing just two points and two rebounds in 25 minutes. All in all, a game UCLA would rather forget, and a clear sign that they have a lot of work to do if they want to salvage their season.