EXHIBIT 23 - CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT AUDITORS The Board of Directors First Financial Bancorp: We consent to incorporation by reference in the registration statements (Nos. 33-40954 and 333-29201) on Form S-8 of First Financial Bancorp of our report dated, relating to the consolidated balance sheets of First Financial Bancorp and subsidiaries as of December 31, 2002 and 2001, and the related consolidated statements of income, stockholders' equity and comprehensive income and cash flows for each of the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 2002, which report appears in the December 31, 2002 annual report on Form 10-K of First Financial Bancorp. /s/ KPMG LLP Sacramento, California March 24, 2003