NEWNow you can listen to Pak Gazette articles!
Typically, when a player is ejected in a college basketball game, it comes from the referees, not the head coach.
UCLA center Steven Jamerson II was ejected by his head coach, Mick Cronin, after committing a hard foul with the Bruins down 27 with 4:26 left in the second half of their 82-59 loss Tuesday at the Breslin Center.
Michigan State’s Carson Cooper appeared to have an easy breakaway layup, but Jamerson hit him from behind and Cooper went down. Cooper stood up and immediately confronted Jamerson before the two separated.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON PakGazette.Com
UCLA Bruins head coach Mick Cronin admonishes forward Steven Jamerson (24) after committing a flagrant foul during a college basketball game between the Michigan State Spartans and UCLA Bruins at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan. February 17, 2026. (Adam Ruff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
When the two players were separated, Cronin became enraged and waved at Jamerson from the UCLA bench. The 54-year-old head coach led Jamerson, even pulling the center by his jersey, to the bench and directed him to the locker room.
Jamerson, accompanied by UCLA coach Dave Andrews, finally ran to the locker room. The redshirt senior initially enrolled at Michigan State as a freshman before transferring to the University of San Diego.
MIKAELA SHIFFRIN CAPTURES GOLD MEDAL WITH INCREDIBLE SLALOM PERFORMANCE AT WINTER GAMES
UCLA forward Steven Jamerson leaves the arena after a flagrant foul on Michigan State center Carson Cooper during the second half at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan, on February 17, 2026. (Nick King/Lansing State Journal/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
Michigan State fans waved goodbye to Jamerson as he walked off the court. Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo said he had never seen a coach eject his own player before.
“I guess (Cronin) upped that to two flagrants,” Spartans head coach Tom Izzo joked, according to FOX Sports. “It’s the first time I’ve seen a trainer do it. But it sounds like Mick, so he’ll clear it up.”
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE Pak Gazette APP
UCLA coach Mick Cronin directs his team during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in East Lansing, Michigan, on Feb. 17, 2026. (Al Goldis/AP Photo)
Before UCLA’s 23-point loss against Michigan State, the Bruins lost to top-ranked Michigan by 30. They have lost two straight games after winning five of the previous six.
For the Spartans, the victory was necessary, as they had lost three of their last four games.
