Huskies Trounce Tulane

Megan Walker (3) poured in a career-high 34 points to lead the Huskies
to a 75-33 victory over Tulane. (Photo courtesy of Stephen Slade)

NEW ORLEANS—Behind a career-high 34-point performance by Megan Walker, the University of Connecticut Huskies ran roughshod over the Tulane Green Wave, 75-33, before 2,055 fans at Fogelman Arena in Devlin Fieldhouse on Wednesday night.

“I think since we got back from Christmas, Megan has had a different approach to the game,” UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. “Her effort is different. Her intensity level is different. Just her whole mannerisms are different. It’s obviously showed up in the way she’s played in games. These are the kind of games where you just need one person to step up because everyone else is struggling to make any kind of shot. Today, it was her.”

The No. 2 Huskies, who won each period, opened a double-digit lead, 18-4, at the first turn and headed into the locker room at intermission with a 24-point advantage, 38-14. Game, set, match. Goodnight, Irene. Indeed, the Husky D was so imposing, the Green Wave simply had no answer. UConn held Tulane to 15 percent shooting from the floor in the first half, resulting in a season-low four-points for the Green Wave. The second half was much the same with the Huskies holding the Greenies to six points in the third quarter.

“It was good tonight,” Walker said of her team’s defensive effort. “Coach keyed in on that at shoot-around and pre-game. I feel like we did our job tonight on the defensive end.”

Auriemma concurred.

“I thought we played great defensively for the entire 40 minutes,” he said. “Sometimes the defensive effort wanes as the game goes on, but I thought this was a really, really good defensive effort, coming off the last game [a 63-46 win over USF], when our players were a little disappointed with the way we came out.”

Katie Lou Samuelson added 17 points for the Huskies, while Napheesa Collier chipped in with 14. No Tulane player hit the double-digit bar. Kaila Anderson led the Green Wave with seven points.

How dominant were the Huskies? Let the stat line tell the story:

• UConn held Tulane to 15 percent shooting from the floor (2-for-13) in the first quarter.
• Indeed, Tulane’s overall shooting performance was just awful, hitting just 17 percent of its shots from the field in the first half (5-for-29) and 6-for-31 (19 percent) in the second half.
• As bad as the Green Wave was from the field, its performance from beyond the three-poing arc was horrific: 1-for-14 in the first half (7 percent) and 1-for-8 in the second half (13 percent).
• UConn wasn’t much better from the perimeter, hitting just7-for-24 from beyond the arc,

“We were lousy, and they were lousier,” Auriemma said, never short for a turn of phrase. “We rushed them in the beginning, so the shots they normally get… They didn't get too many of those today.”

“It certainly was a tough day for us," said Tulane coach Lisa Stockton, whose team was held to a season low 33 points. Their previous low came in a 56-48 non-conference loss to Old Dominion. “We couldn't shoot the ball very well, but most of all I was disappointed in our defensive effort. Twenty-two points in the paint in the first half [for the Huskies] was way too easy.”

With the win, UConn improved to 15-1 overall, 4-0 American Athletic Conference play. Tulane fell to 13-4, 3-1.

The Huskies now head for The City of Brotherly Love—Auriemma’s hometown—where they will challenge the Temple Owls on Saturday afternoon. The game was originally scheduled for Sunday, but has been moved up because of the impending snow/ice storm. Tip-off is slated for noon, and the game will be televised on SNY, streamed on ESPN3, and broadcast on the UConn Radio Network.

—Staff Reports