LOUISVILLE, Ky. — On Thursday night, Olivia Cochran delivered a standout performance, scoring 18 points and securing nine rebounds, which fueled Louisville’s victory over No. 21 California with a final score of 70-63.
Imari Berry contributed 14 points for the Cardinals, while Ja’Leah added 11 points. For the Golden Bears, who now stand at 19-5 and 7-4 in conference play, Ugonne Onyiah was the leading scorer with 15 points alongside 11 rebounds. Additional support came from Ioanna Krimili with 12 points, while both Marta Suarez and LuLu Twidale scored 11 points, and Kayla Williams added 10. Unfortunately, the bench produced only four points during the match.
This victory marked Louisville’s second win over a ranked opponent in eight contests, with three additional challenging matchups on the horizon as the season wraps up. Cochran also achieved a career milestone by surpassing 1,500 total points during this game.
Jayda Curry seemed to have clinched the game for Louisville when she converted a steal into a three-point play against her prior team, extending the lead to 62-46 midway through the fourth quarter. Although Louisville held a 15-point advantage with under three minutes remaining, the Golden Bears fought back and scored seven unanswered points. As the Cardinals struggled at the free-throw line, California managed to close the gap to 69-63 with just 31 seconds left when Williams executed a three-point play. However, that rally proved insufficient for the Golden Bears.
Louisville started strong, leading by three points after the first quarter and widening the margin to 37-22 by capitalizing on California’s struggles; the Golden Bears missed their last four shots in the opening quarter and then failed to convert their first eight attempts in the second.
Before a jumper by Suarez broke the slump, California converted only 4 out of 9 free-throw attempts. Another three-pointer from Krimili brought the score to 37-27 at halftime.
Next up for the Golden Bears is a match against No. 3 Notre Dame on Sunday, while Stanford will face off against Louisville.
