"Overall, it was a really good start for us. I thought that the guys played well together as a team, and they played unselfishly. They all passed the ball to the open man, and we had a lot of good passes. We did a great job of executing, and I was pleased with how we played defensively. I am very happy with the team's effort, and it's good to see that everyone's on the same page."

"We played solid defense for most of the game. I thought we rotated well defensively. We had a lot of traps, and they did not have a lot of places to throw the ball. They have been a good three-point shooting team, but we were able to take their three-point game away, and they were only 6-of-26."

"We did not do a good job on the boards, and our wings had zero rebounds at the half. Richard (Jefferson) did a much better job of pursuing the ball in the second half."

"We definitely fouled too much. The players have to understand that they have to move their feet better. I think it will take a while to adjust to the new rule changes, but they will just have to get better each game."

University of Arizona player quotes
Post-EA Sports/California All-Stars

Eugene Edgerson -

"I was playing very aggressively out there, and I think that is why I got some of the fouls I did. Some of the fouls could've been avoided, but that is something that I'll have to work on. It is fun to play aggressively, and some of the fouls take away from the level of aggressiveness that I can play.

"This was an older team, and they were pretty experienced. It was good to play against someone else, rather than just go up against the same people we do in practice. We played a good defensive game and got in their faces on a lot of the shots. I'm having fun out there. This is my senior year, and I am going to play as much as I can to help the team."

Michael Wright -

"I have a lot of confidence in the guys we bring off the bench. Luke Walton played real well off the bench, and basically everyone from Loren (Woods) to Michael Schwertley had a good game. I was happy with the way that we played. We have enough tools and weapons that we can play with a lot of intensity and risk getting the fouls.

"I don't care about the rotation. I don't care if I play two or 38 minutes, as long as we win. We played well on defense today. They did some things we needed to work on like setting screens up high and making us get around them."

Jason Gardner -

"We have a lot more guys to rely on that we did not last year. There are a lot of people who are going to get some playing time, and they are all very capable of playing well for us.

"Last week, (at the Red-Blue Scrimmage) we made a lot of mistakes and had a lot of turnovers. Coach Olson was mad about that, and we heard a lot about it in practice. We didn't do as many of those things in this game, and we cut down on the turnovers some."

Justin Wessel -

"It was great to have a change of scenery, playing against another team instead of just seeing the same people in practice everyday. I thought that things went well with the rotation of guys that we had going in there. We have a lot of players very capable of playing minutes and contributing.

"I think that as a second group of players (off the bench), we are much more accustomed to looking for the extra pass. The first group plays a little more one-on-one, but we are going to look to pass the ball a little more and get the open shot that way."

Arizona Basketball
EA Sports/California All-Stars @ Arizona
November 5, 2000

Head Coach Frank Arnold

General evaluation of the game:
"Arizona is a great team, this is our sixth game in six nights and I think that it would have been a lot closer if we had more preparation. Fatigue was definitely a factor for us in the outcome of the game."

"By the time we learned what adjustments we needed to make we were too tired. Take nothing away from Arizona though, they are a great team and certainly had us outmatched and oversized."

On Arizona:
"I'm sure coach Olson wasn't particularly pleased with his kids performance tonight. They are going to be an outstanding team and certainly will be contender for the national title."