LEXINGTON, Ky. – Mick Cronin is at UCLA because Rick Barnes turned the school down in 2019, in the process becoming one of the highest-paid coaches in the sport.

Shortly after that decision, Barnes told reporters in Knoxville that he likely would have taken the job had UCLA agreed to pay his $5 million buyout. Now it’s Barnes vs. Cronin, No. 2 seed Tennessee vs. No. 7 seed UCLA, for a spot in the Midwest Regional semifinals tonight at Rupp Arena. Which means it’s another opportunity for Barnes to be asked about that decision.

“I remember a lot of prayer,” Barnes, who ranks seventh in the sport at $5.8 million a year per a recent USA Today study, said yesterday. “Because I felt really blessed to have had the opportunity to come to Tennessee, and I will forever be thankful to (UT President) Randy Boyd and when we were in that part of the negotiation, the commitment that he made.

“At the time — again, I look at it now and I thank God that he gave me the guidance to be where I am. And certainly UCLA hired a great, great basketball coach in Mick Cronin, and it’s worked out well for him.”

Cronin said his respect for Barnes is “off the charts.”

“Because he does it the right way,” Cronin said. “He cares about kids. He’s not a phony. He is who he is. And Tennessee got really lucky when (Texas) let him go. It’s been great for Tennessee basketball, obviously. They’ve been in a golden era of being at the top or near the top of the SEC.”