Louisville basketball picked up a much needed victory , 70-63, Thursday night over the No. 21 Cal Golden Bears in KFC Yum! Center.
Cardinals were up as much as 16 in the fourth quarter, before they had disastrous closing minutes of the game. Cardinals gave up a 17-6 run to end the game, and six turnovers in final six minutes, but were able to hold on to the lead.
Louisville women's head basketball coach, Jeff Walz, spoke after their victory. Here are five quotes from Jeff Walz's press conference following the Cardinals upset win.
Louisville basketball picks up much "needed" season-saving win
Louisville basketball defeated the No. 21 ranked Cal Golden Bears, 70-63 Feb. 7 in KFC Yum! Center. Cardinals were led by Olivia Cochran, as she scored 18 points on 8-14 from the field. UofL improves to 16-7 in their regular season and 9-3 in conference play.
"I do believe we have a chance to be really good. This is a really good Cal team. A team that beat a NC State, really controlled the game against Florida State, so I am thrilled with this win and we needed it."
Cardinals are coming off a 18 point loss to No. 3 ranked Notre Dame, 89-71, and have a tough road ahead as they face Stanford, at No. 22 Florida State, at No. 10 Duke, and back home against No. 13 North Carolina. They then face Clemson at home and play at No. 3 ranked Notre Dame to end the season.
Cochran hits milestone of 1,500 career points
Olivia Cochran led the way for Louisville with her 18 points, and she surpassed a career milestone of 1,500 points. Walz continues to be a great mentor though, as he wants Cochran to learn when the play is drawn up for her, the attention is all on her, so look to pass to the open teammate.
"I thought she played well, especially after they got out to such a good start," Walz stated on his star forward. "I went to her back-to-back plays when 0 was out. She had the advantage and she scored, and we went at her again."
Walz emphasized that his team needs to move without the ball, and to find open space.
Cardinals upset is "most complete game of season" so far
Louisville basketball has had its ups and downs all season long. Walz emphasized after the game that the team goes on spurts of where he is impressed with how good this team is, but then moments later they are making ill-advised plays and turning ball over, or taking rushed shots. Tonight he was overall impressed with the teams performance, but has some cleaning up to do.
"This is probably the most complete game we've played lengthwise, so I'm hoping we'll continue to grow,"
Imari Berry breakout game
Imari Berry was one of the game-changing players for Walz and his Cardinals, as she ended with 14 points on 4-5 from the field and 2-3 from beyond the arc in just nine minutes. Walz said she still has some defensive flaws, but her production of offense was "great".
"She was great. I was really happy for her." Walz stated on Imari Berry. "It's what she does. She can score the basketball." Walz stated. "We were plus-11 with her in the game."
Jeff Walz not pleased with closeout performance
Cardinals were up 62-46 with about six minutes remaining but almost had a terrible collapse. Cardinals turned the ball over eight times in the fourth quarter, and six of them came in the final six minutes of the game.
"Overall I think we had eight turnovers in the fourth, it was terrible." Walz stated. "We did everything you could possibly do to lose this game." Walz said after Cardinals had five turnovers in final six minutes. "We were up 16 with six to go. I never thought we were going to lose, but we made it interesting."