Postgame Press Conference Link (Both Butler and Cal): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUMqHT0wDzU
 
It took 50 minutes, but Butler was able to pull out a 97-90 win over California in double overtime Saturday afternoon at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
 
With the win, Butler improves to 8-2, while the Golden Bears fall to 3-6.
 
Posh Alexander led the Bulldogs with 21 points and six assists.

COACH THAD MATTA: "That's the best 3-5 team in college basketball right there (referring to Cal) now that they are getting healthy. We took a heck of a punch from them, getting down (16-4) early, but we never wavered. Posh, Jahmyl and Pierre, their faces were stoic. We knew what had to be done and these guys executed really well throughout overtime."
 
HOW IT TRANSPIRED:

• Cal jumped out to an 16-4 lead thanks in large part to hitting their first four three-point attempts.
• Butler scored the first five points of the second half to take their first lead of the game at 39-37 with 18:28 remaining in regulation.
• Butler's largest lead of the game came at 66-55 with 6:54 to go in the second half. A 9-0 run had given the Bulldogs a 60-51 advantage during that stretch.
• Butler led, 73-68, with 1:51 remaining in regulation following a DJ Davis three-pointer before Cal knotted things up on a Jalen Cone trey with three seconds remaining.
• In the first overtime session, Butler led 81-77 before back-to-back three-pointers by Cone gave Cal a two-point advantage. Jahmyl Telfort sent the game to a second extra session with a runner in the lane with 11 seconds remaining.
• After Cal scored the first two points of the second overtime, the next nine went to Butler for a 92-85 advantage they would not relinquish.

 
OF NOTE:

• Butler shot 52 percent from the field Saturday; the Bulldogs have shot 50 percent or better in six of the team's 10 games this season.
• Jahmyl Telfort, after going 1-for-7 from the field for only two points in the first half, finished with 20 points on 8-for-18 shooting. Thirteen (13) of his 20 points came in the two overtime sessions.
• Pierre Brooks II added 18 points and a team-high seven rebounds.
• DJ Davis scored 13 points, including 11 in the second half, while Andre Screen added nine points. Freshman Finley Bizjack scored a career-high eight points, all in the first half.
• Cal had three players reach 20 points in Fardaws Aimaq (24), Jalen Cone (23) and Keonte Kennedy (20). However, it took Aimaq 22 attempts and Cone 20 shots to get there.
• The Bulldogs defeated Cal a season ago in the only other meeting between the two programs. That 82-58 win in Berkeley, Calif., came Dec. 10, 2022. Only Cal's Grant Newell played in today's game as well as the contest 364 days ago.
• Butler has scored at least 80 points in seven of its 10 games to start the season; the Bulldogs only hit the 80-point mark six times total a season ago.
• Butler last played a double-overtime game Feb. 28, 2018 at St. John's, losing 75-68. The Bulldogs defeated Texas Tech, 103-95, in a single overtime game Nov. 30.
• Butler is 76-2 over its last 78 non-conference home games; Butler has won 14 straight non-conference home games.

 
UP NEXT: Butler continues its homestand at Hinkle Fieldhouse Friday, hosting Saginaw Valley State in the Bulldogs' final non-conference tip of the season. Tickets are still available for the 7 p.m. game, which will also air on FS1. The Bulldogs will be at home through the team's BIG EAST opener vs. Georgetown Dec. 19.