Beijing time, July 8: After being killed by Sagas of Gonzaga University," Johnny Juzang pulled his teammates tightly and put his arms around each other's shoulders, and no one wanted to move. There were no tears, only words of appreciation from midfield for this UCLA team, and their incredible achievements, from the initial semi-final four to the final four.
Johnny Juzang
Over the next three months, some Brown Bear fans feared it could be The last of Juzan's college days.
The sophomore point guard became a hit with a crazy scoring performance in the NCAA Tournament, predicting the outlook for the first round in some NBA simulation drafts. However, there was another tempting opportunity that had been lingering in his mind, an opportunity to get more college honors.
Zhuzan announced today that he will return to UCLA in the 2021-22 season, a decision that makes UCLA a recognized top-five team in the United States and the first time since 1995 that it is a favorite team to win an NCAA championship.
The move wasn't entirely unexpected, as Zhuzan's poor performance in several NBA trial games partially offset his crazy performance on the biggest stage in college basketball. 6-6 (1.98 meters), Zhuzan averaged 22.8 points in six NCAA tournaments while shooting 50.9 percent from the field.
Juzan's 137 points in a single NCAA Tournament is second in UCLA history, trailing only 140 points in four games by Gail Goodrich, a Hall of Famer in the 1965 tournament, and now Juzan will have a chance to overtake it in the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
In addition to Zhuzan's return, UCLA center Cody Riley also announced that he would stay in college for his fifth season, with only senior forward Chris Smith choosing to start his basketball career.