Connecticut Women Trounce Central Florida, 84-48

Sophomore forward Napheesa Collier puts in an uncontested
basket against Central Florida. Collier led all scorers with
22 points in the Huskies’ 84-48 victory.

By Bob Phillips with staff reports

 

ORLANDO- Napheesa Collier led all scorers with 22 points, while Katie Lou Samuelson added 17 points and seven rebounds to lead the No. 1 University of Connecticut women’s basketball team to a resounding 84-48 victory over the University of Central Florida Knights before 4,539 fans at CFE Arena in Orlando, Fla. on Sunday. It was the Huskies’ 88th straight victory, tying them with Bill Walton’s 1971-74 UCLA Bruins for the second-longest winning streak in college basketball history.

Gabby Williams (16 points—15 in the first half) also had a strong game for the Huskies, who are now just two games away from their own NCAA record of 90 straight wins established from 2009 until 2011. Williams also had six rebounds, three steals and three blocked shots. UCF was led by Aliyah Gregory's (18 points) and Zykira Lewis (15).

As is often the case, the Huskies put the game away early. After Kia Nurse knocked down a trey with 5:27 remaining in the first quarter, Connecticut led by10. The Huskies led 24-6 at the end of the first period, and their advantage grew to as many as 32 in the second stanza.

Dominant performance, you say? Try this one on for size: The Huskies shot 73 percent from the field in the first half, including an amazing 56 percent performance from beyond the arc.  And the Husky defense was hardly chopped liver, holding the Knights to just 30 percent shooting in the first two periods. By the end of the first period

A swarming Connecticut defense held UCF to just three field goals to stake the Huskies to a 24-6 lead after the first quarter. At halftime, the UConn lead had grown to 45-16, and the game was over for all practical purposes. The hardest thing this team will have to cope with is not to let down against lesser competition as the conference schedule kicks in.

“Good players don’t do that regardless of what the score is,” said Husky head coach Geno Auriemma. “Those are the things that I keep harping on with them… every timeout… every chance we get.”

“Coach really emphasizes not to play to the score, but to play our game,” added Collier, who also had five rebounds and five assists in addition to her game-leading point total. Then, reflecting her coach’s propensity for never being content with the Huskies’ performance, regardless of how dominating it may be, she added, “For stretches we did well. We just need to be more consistent.”

With the win, the Huskies improved to 13-0, 1-0 in American Athletic Conference play. The Knights fell to 10-4, 0-1. The victory in Orlando also represented Connecticut’s NCAA record 31st straight road victory.

The Huskies are now off until Wed., Jan. 11, when they will host the 9-5 (0-1) East Carolina Pirates at the XL Center. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m., and the game will be televised regionally on SNY, and nationally on ESPN2.

THE SKINNY