Feb. 27, 2003

Box Score

Cal Head Coach Ben Braun Postgame Quotes:

"It was a tough game. I give Arizona all kinds of credit. They played well tonight. They answered every run that we had."

"Luke Walton and Salim Stoudamire played almost flawless basketball tonight. Salim bailed them out time and time again by hitting the big shots. He's a pressure player, he's very confident and he shows you what he's all about."

"Those guys (Walton and Gardner) are veterans and they've been in every situation. Jason Gardner quietly played his game and he was solid as a rock. "

"We've got to take it for what it is - we gave a good effort, but they're a great team. They're definitely the best team we've seen ... top to bottom, start to finish. Everyone who's played them has to agree with me."

"Joe Shipp was sick tonight. He willed himself to play and I admire his effort. He played through fatigue and sickness - it's not an excuse, its just one of those things. It's not why we lost, I give Arizona a lot of credit."

"Arizona did a good job on Amit Tamir, block to block and double teamed every time he touched the ball. Tamir hit some big shots, had five assists and didn't turn it over. Amit was just as fatigued as anybody ... not an excuse, but a fact."

"Our freshmen will be great for us. They'll play in the future, but they got some good experience tonight. David Paris, Richard Midgley and Erik Bond played with poise, but they're still learning."

Arizona Head Coach Lute Olson Postgame Quotes:

"The leadership of seniors is so vital. They make big plays down the stretch... we've played four consecutive games in which we played our best."

"We've been a team, all year, of runs. We're a momentum team. When Cal made a good run, we did a good job to stop them...when they got close, we hit key free throws."

"This [Haas Pavillon] different place to play. Everyone knows that. They're [Cal] a very good team."

On Salim Stoudamire: "Salim is a tough defender. Salim has done a good job against a lot of tough players."