California Head Coach Cuonzo Martin

Opening Statement…
"I thought our guys did a really good job of defending and on offense. You got a team over there that is shooting 54 percent from the field, and we did a really good job of limiting them and the easy catches, making guys make individual plays. They are a team that goes inside and outside and they have guys that can shoot and dribble from the perimeter. Then you have Kyle Kuzma, who just creates problems and is able to drive and make plays on the perimeter."
 
On Utah's defense on Ivan Rabb…
"With their zone -- kind of a triangle-two kind of matchup -- one thing about it is that even if Ivan [Rabb] is covered, guys are making their shots. He had a one-on-one baseline drive in overtime and that was probably the first time he had a one-on-one the entire game. I would've done the same thing: make his looks tough, make Kam [Rooks] or Kingsley [Okoroh] beat me."
 
On getting outrebounded…
"We can sweep this one under the rug. I think this is only the second time where we've been outrebounded all season. We might've given up four or five offensive rebounds in the zone and I thought our guards -- just watching from the bench -- did a poor job of giving up their bodies."
 
On Jabari Bird's confidence…
"He's a good basketball player. We know that. He's had to go through injuries and his numbers could've been different and better throughout his career and he might not have even been a four-year college basketball player. We expect him to play at this level and make big shots. I don't know too many guys who could block his jump shot. He attacked the rim as aggressively as he could and was looking for a call from the officials. We've just got to be aggressive.  We need Ivan Rabb and Jabari to score the basketball. If not, it will be a close game."
 

Senior Forward Jabari Bird

 
On the last play of the game from what he saw …
"The middle of the lane opened up and I saw Charlie threw it, so once I saw the lane open up and guys wanted to commit to the backdoor cut, he made a great play and found me."
 
On his 10 points scored in the second OT…
"I was just staying aggressive. My teammates did a good job of finding me, and then I was just coming off the ball screens looking to get into the seams and make plays."
 
On if he knew the ball was coming to him on an alley-oop…
"At first I thought he shot a floater, so I was trying to see how it was coming off. Once I saw it was a lob, I just tried to make a play for it and put it in."
 
On the Utah zone and why it's so had to play against…
"They try to disguise it. Sometimes it looks like a man and it can be a zone. But the thing for us is that the middle is always open so for the most part we're just looking to come off ball screens. I think at first we weren't looking to turn the corner and I think that once we got comfortable we settled down in the second half. I think me, Grant, Charlie and the rest of our wings did a great job of getting to the middle of the paint and making plays."
 

Freshman Guard Charlie Moore

 
On describing the last play of the game…                                                                            
"I saw the shot clock was going down and Coach told me and Ivan to get in the screen and roll. I got through the middle of the lane and I saw (Jabari) Bird do a hard cut. I know how athletic he is and I knew he was going to go up there and get it, and give us the win."
 
On his recent comfort level with the bigs…
"Like Coach said, we've just been working on getting me and the bigs more acquainted. I'm just building more chemistry with the team. If I penetrate the big's either open or I've got knock-down shooters on the wing, so it's me getting in there and making the right decision is key."
 
On if he thought the game would have been easier given hot start by Cal…
"Absolutely not. We know Utah is a great team. Since we're both tied we knew they were going to play us a tough game we just wanted to keep them playing our game."
 

Utah Head Coach Larry Krystkowiak

 
On team's performance throughout the game…
"It wasn't about us finishing either way. We hit some big shots to put us into the next overtime, so there was some finishing involved. The guys really responded with an unbelievable effort. It was a great college game and that's why we were all kind of getting into it and everybody got their money's worth. I think things got a little tough towards the end of regulation. We had a chance to make some plays but we turned it over and shot ourselves in the foot. But I thought our defense was stellar. That's what makes it so great to be a part of.  I told my team that when you're a part of a game like that there is a feeling of being on the end of the spectrum of exuberance and excitement, but it's a really tough when you're on the wrong side of that. We've got to regroup and focus on preparing for Stanford."
 
On fighting back from the first half…
"They made two deep threes and a running layup and that turned into and eight zero lead. Big time plays on their part and I was just hopeful that we could not lose our composure. The first half was really problematic with a 10-turnover half and they took us out of what we were trying to do. They were more physical and more in it and we were mistake-prone. Our approach in the second half was to be more efficient but I'm real proud of our guys for sticking around and coming back from being down 12 or 14 points."
 
 
On defending Jabari Bird…
"We definitely were able to defend him, getting a hand in his face and it was great defense and it was a really good player stepping up and hitting his shots. On the last play it was penetration and it was a terrific play with two seconds left and he just made a great play."