Jan. 2, 2004

Recap| Final Stats

California Head Coach Ben Braun

General comments:
"It was huge for us to step up tonight to start the conference season with a win. We had some penetration against the zone and hit some shots. We took much better care of the ball in the second half. If we can continue that it'll help us a lot."

On Braun's reaction after Washington tied the game:
"I didn't untie my tie, but I was hoping we'd make some plays. I thought our team was able to draw upon some of the experiences we've had earlier this season (being in close games). Give our team credit. We didn't go away. We didn't hang our heads when they tied it. We just battled that much harder."

On the play of Leon Powe (15 rebounds):
"I was proud of Leon's effort tonight. He really went out there and got some tough rebounds tonight. It's been awhile since we had a guy get 15 boards."