University of Connecticut Athletics
Women's Hoopsters Bomb Virginia Tech, 90-38
2/7/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) - Welcome to the Big East, Virginia Tech.
Sue Bird hit five of No. 3 Connecticut's 14 3-pointers Wednesday night and the Huskies ended Virginia Tech's five-game conference winning streak in devastating fashion, 90-38.
The Huskies (19-2, 9-1 Big East), playing their second game without scoring leader Svetlana Abrosimova, never seemed to miss the two-time All-American as they blitzed to a 41-15 halftime lead and never let up.
Virginia Tech (15-6, 6-4), in its first year in the Big East, never adjusted to the Huskies' superior defensive quickness and made only six field goals in the first half, shooting just 20.7 percent.
Connecticut finished 14-for-28 from 3-point range, breaking the school record of 13 long-range baskets set against Holy Cross on Nov. 30, 1999. Maria Conlon broke the record when she hit with 2:01 remaining.
Coach Geno Auriemma emptied his bench in the second half, but the results continued as the Huskies kept padding their advantage.
When it was over, the Huskies had made 32 of 58 shots, or 55.2 percent, and the Hokies were at 13 of 55, a season-low 23.6 percent.
Bird led the Huskies with 17 points. Shea Ralph and freshman Diana Taurasi, who replaced Abrosimova in the starting lineup, had 13 each. Taurasi also had six assists. Asjha Jones added 12 points.
The Hokies were led by Tere Williams with 14 points, but had no other player with more than five.
The game was only the fourth meeting between the teams, and the first since the 1994-95 NCAA tournament, when the Huskies won 91-45 in the second round on their way to a 35-0 record and the national title.
