Jan. 18, 2003

Recap?|? Box Score

South Carolina Head Coach Dave Odom: “I don’t know if I’ve been in a game where both teams played that hard and that well and only committed seven turnovers between them. We played good defense but we didn’t knock away enough loose balls. With the game on the line, they looked to Matt Bonner, the senior, to win the game for them. It’s a good example of the kind of leadership you need to win at this level. Matt Bonner is a special player and Coach Donovan uses him just right, resting him at the right times. I thought a key for us was our commitment and execution inside. Tony (Kitchings) and Ro (Howell) stood tall against some of the better big men in our league. It’s almost unfair what Florida makes you do, and that’s take a 6-9 guy and make him guard someone his size out on the perimeter, 25 feet away. We need to grow from this game. We must play better. The competition will get better and we must get better. To beat Florida you have to drive them into the ground and finish them off.”

Florida Head Coach Billy Donovan: “I really thought this was going to be a tough battle for our team. I was very concerned with (Kerbrell) Brown, (Michael) Boynton and Carlos (Powell) shooting from beyond the arc. South Carolina played a very good basketball game. They dominated us on their offensive end. They took it to us and I felt that the game could go either way. (Tony) Kitchings, his aggressiveness was better then our guys. I knew we were going to get South Carolina’s best today. Boynton played well, Kitchings was a monster, Rolando Howell was very good. I think both teams prepared well against each team’s defense.”