Cavalier Corner is the publication just for UVa sports fans!
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18 CAVALIER CORNER After its sixth consecutive ACC loss, which was at home against eventual ACC cham- pion Notre Dame, Agugua-Hamilton said in the postgame press conference, "I know once we get that first win in conference, it'll continue to trickle down." She was right. On Jan. 21 in Tallahassee, Virginia snapped its six-game skid, and the Cava- liers went on to win seven of their last 12 remaining regular-season games. The turn- around was fueled by Johnson, who was un- doubtedly a much more refined — but also aggressive — version of herself than that at the beginning of the season. In the Cavaliers' 91-87 win at No. 15 Florida State, Johnson exploded for 35 points on 14-of-20 shooting in addition to pulling down 7 rebounds and dishing out 6 assists. The win marked UVA's first over an ACC foe on the road in four years. Johnson's 35 points tied for sixth all time in program history, and she became one of just two first-years in school history to achieve that milestone; the other being Staley, who posted 37 in 1989. Johnson made a pair of late free throws to effectively seal the Cavaliers' first win over a ranked opponent since 2011. In a phone interview with the Daily Prog- ress' Greg Madia, Johnson described the moment as "surreal." "I haven't really been in a moment like that yet, especially at this level," she told Madia. "And it was crazy to actually be in the situation when it's a tight game, the game is on the line, and we need those free throws. There were definitely a little nerves, but with my teammates' confidence in me, that's all I needed." For her performance, Johnson collected her first of two ACC Rookie of the Week awards and was named the U.S. Basketball Writers Association Tamika Catchings Fresh- man of the Week. She was also one of just six first-years nationally to tally at least 35 points in a game this season. But the cherry on top came from Staley, who still holds UVA's single-game scoring re- cord for a first-year. Staley, now head coach In UVA's 91-87 win at No. 15 Florida State Jan. 21, Johnson exploded for 35 points on 14-of-20 shooting in addition to pulling down 7 rebounds and dishing out 6 assists. (Photo courtesy UVA) " Coming here, I wanted to put this place back on the map. I wanted to do everything I could to help promote women's basketball. I think being home, being a hometown kid, I drew in a lot of fans. And credit to [our] team because we've come a long way." JOHNSON