California Head Coach Cuonzo Martin
On the last minute of the game:
“We had one timeout, and I told the guys, if he makes the free throw, we have a timeout. We would run one of our special situations. If he misses it, and we could get a good outlet, we have to go. I was ready to call a timeout, but Tyrone got a great outlet, he was up the floor. Jordan and Jabari were running, so we had to identify those guys, and Tyrone made the shot.”
On two consecutive games with last minute 3-pointers to win:
“I think the guys are growing up. I said to them a thousand times, those losses were painful, but you have to learn something from them. I think in the last three games, regardless of the outcome, I think the guys had the mental approach that they could always still win the game. It was not a case of oh no, here we go again, but it was just, let's execute what we're trying to do to win the ballgame, and I think they showed that.”
On winning three in a row:
“You are always feeling good when you're winning, but the thing I tell our guys even after an exhibition game is that you have to enjoy the wins because you never know when the next one is coming. It's always tough to play. Injuries and key guys go down and stuff happens, so appreciate the wins, learn from them, enjoy them and don't let them cripple you. I think our guys understand the importance of winning games, appreciating the wins and moving forward. The only way we can be successful is if we play as a team.”
On the Cal turnovers:
“I think in the first half we did a great job of moving the ball and executing. I think it started in the first half. We were up 13 or 14 and then we had a couple possessions where we were stagnant and settling for shots, and then they all of the sudden got their heads up. We felt like we could have taken the lead to 15 or 17 to have an important lead at the half. They had some momentum in the second half, they made plays. I felt like we were just playing catch-up in the second half. We didn't really have a good flow to our offense. I thought when Dwight made the three in the beginning of the second half, it went in and then we started shooting quick. They didn't get the ball from one side of the floor to the other, and that was working in the first half, but it didn't work in the second half.”
Junior Guard Tyrone Wallace
On how the last play developed:
“We were initially going for a play where Jordan or Jabari would get a shot if USC made both free throws. USC missed, so we just had to get out. David made a great outlet, and I was there going up the floor. There was only four seconds left. I thought about going up to the basket, but probably wouldn't have gotten a shot, so I stopped, got the pump fake, got the guy in the air and had enough space to get the shot off.”
On his game-winning shot:
“The shot felt really good. I felt it off my hands and I thought it was going in. I followed it all the way through, it went in and everybody rushed the floor.”
On if the team was still confident about getting the win down the stretch:
"As long as there's time on the clock, I was confident we could still win the game. I was really happy that I made the shot to help the team win.”
Senior Forward David Kravish
On the game
“Most of the times on free throws Tyrone is right there with me, so I got the rebound and looked up the floor to see what we had. He was standing pretty open by the top of their coaches' box. By instinct, I threw it to him as fast as I could, looked up and saw three seconds left, and it went in.”
On winning the last three in a row:
“It's huge to get this win coming off the tough stretch we had. We're starting to see shots going down for us, obviously we shouldn't have been in that position. We had a 14-point lead in the first half. There's definitely still work to be done, but seeing things start to go our way is huge. Guys are starting to hit shots. Sam hit that game winner, came back out and hit another three today. It's really good. It gets our confidence going.”
On USC:
“USC is a really great team, despite what their record says. They have a lot of talent and lot of really good players, so you have to give them credit. We came out, defended really well at the beginning of the game and made some adjustments heading into the second half. There were just some things we needed to work on. They have good players that can make big plays, so we just have to pick up our defense and pay attention to details.”
