Everything Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey said after the Irish's 16th consecutive win

Notre Dame (21-2, 12-0 ACC) won a 16th consecutive game Sunday in a 91-52 blowout of Cal. Here is everything Fighting Irish head coach Niele Ivey said after the victory.

Opening statement

“Really happy for this win. I love starting off thanking the crowd. This is a special game, always, pink zone game, wanting to honor the breast cancer survivors and just be a part of something bigger than basketball for us is always really special for us. And our team loves this game. We have so much love for the breast cancer survivors and this type of moment and this type of opportunity, to represent.

“Really great win for this group. Cal is a tough team, really physical. I think they’re having an incredible season, so it was really nice to have a back-to-back great defensive performance. We forced 21 turnovers. Thought the defense was fantastic. Held them below their average. And then offensively, I think we’re growing. Getting better spacing. Forty-six points in the paint. We had 20 assists. I just thought we were super solid.

“[Sonia Citron and Kate Koval], I thought, were super amazing. Kate came in, we had some foul trouble with our posts, and I thought she had one of her best games. Really physical. Did a great job down low. Great blocks. Did a great job finding position offensively and set great screens. She’s somebody that’s going to continue to get better and better and I’m really proud of her because she puts in so much work.

“Soni, so solid. Our Elmer’s Glue, the person that comes in and does everything for us. I thought she made some huge plays defensively, offensively, just being solid for us. Great in transition. Her speed, her pace. She’s just fantastic.

“Just collectively, it was a great team effort. Liatu [King] had 13 rebounds. [Olivia Miles] played well. Hannah [Hidalgo] did a great job of scoring. Pretty much everybody clicking on all cylinders and just really grateful for this win.”

On what she’s learned about the Irish during Notre Dame’s 16-game winning streak

“Well, we learned a lot from those losses. I think I learned the resilience of this group. We had to re-center everything we were focusing on, defensively, our mindset, our preparation, we start games a lot better. Everything shifted for us. I think it was a mentality, a mindset that shifted for this team. We knew our goals coming in.

“And for me as a coach, I know things they need to hear. I know things I need to do, in-game scenario adjustments and also just preparing them for games. We are prepared. This group, they want to win. They have a winning mindset. They’re very unselfish. I think we learned a lot about each other and we’re still growing and learning each other.”

On Notre Dame’s success at home

“The community has always come out to support women’s basketball here. They’re loud. We feel their energy. I feel like it’s been an increase of new faces. They’re younger. Different generations are coming out. Younger generations are coming out. We obviously honor those who have been supporting us for decades. But you just feel it. The electricity of the arena is different.

“We felt it last year, the last couple games of the NCAA Tournament. It has increased and elevated. It means a lot to us. It really gives us life. This group feeds off the energy of the crowd, especially when we know every seat is filled. It means a lot. It means a lot to see the support of women’s basketball here in South Bend. We’re bringing in people from all around the country to watch us, young women perform, do what they love, and do what they do best.

“I always just love seeing the young girls line up in the tunnel. There are more. Every game I feel like there are more young girls that are looking, high schools, grade schools, just wanting to be a part of this and are inspired by our team and that means a lot to me.”