UCLA took a couple of big swings this coaching cycle but came up horribly short in a very public manner. Go Bruins!

The first candidate atop UCLA’s dream list was Kentucky’s John Calipari. That interest quickly resulted in Cal landing a “lifetime” contract and raise in Lexington. The Wildcat coach may want to send a thank you card to Westwood next Christmas following that exchange.

The Bruins coaching search has taken many twists and turns since that point, including reportedly failing to reach an agreement with TCU in regards to hiring Jamie Dixon. Well, apparently, UCLA didn’t learn its lesson the next time around because after pursuing Tennessee’s Rick Barnes, his $5 million buyout was reportedly a hold up in that deal, too. Tennessee then stepped up to the plate and offered Barnes a big raise to stay on Rocky Top.

Following news of Barnes’ decision to stay at Tennessee, which came Monday evening, UCLA officially announced some guy named Mick Cronin as the new coach of the program.

Previously the head coach at Cincinnati, Cronin has reached one Sweet 16 in 16 years of coaching at Murray State and Cincinnati.