University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
UCLA
No. 2 UConn Women Dominate UCLA 86-50
12/21/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
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UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) - With the first part of their season finished, Geno Auriemma knows his UConn Huskies aren't as good yet as the teams that won the last two national championships. But they are getting better.
Breanna Stewart scored 22 points to lead a balanced offense and No. 2 UConn beat UCLA 86-50 on Sunday in the Naismith Hall of Fame women's holiday showcase at the Mohegan Sun Arena.
"When we're good, we're really good," Auriemma said. "We have flashes where we're good. We're not as talented as we were last year. We're not as experienced as we were last year. Last year we made things look real easy just about all the time. It's not going to be like that."
This was the latest double-digit win for the Huskies since losing to Stanford in early November. UConn has won its seven games since by an average of 37 points.
"We've gotten better in the last month since November," Auriemma said. "We've gotten a lot better. I think we found out today that we need to get a lot better. We gave up 19 offensive rebounds, that's a lot."
UConn (8-1) got off to a slow start and only led 24-18 with 7 minutes left in the first half before going on a 16-2 run over the next 6:30 to take a 20-point lead. Five Huskies scored during the burst that was capped by Stewart's layup with 33 seconds left.
UCLA (4-6) scored the final five points of the half to close to 40-25 at the break.
Jordin Canada tried to keep the Bruins in the game, scoring seven straight points during one stretch. Her layup made it 50-37, but it wasn't enough. UConn scored 13 of the next 15, including an acrobatic putback by Gabby Williams, to put the game away.
TIP-INS:
UConn: The Huskies continued their tour of the state with a second straight game outside of their home arena in Storrs. UConn beat DePaul on Friday in Bridgeport and now played its first regular season game at the Mohegan Sun. UConn's last game on campus was Nov. 23 and don't play there again until Jan. 14 against Temple. The Huskies have three games in Hartford at the XL Center before then. ... UConn will be back at Mohegan Sun for the American Athletic Conference tournament in March.
"We got a great fan base in Connecticut everyone knows that," Auriemma said. "We got loyal and passionate fans. Going to Bridgeport the other night proved it. Coming here today proved it."
CONVERTING MISCUES:
UConn scored 32 points off UCLA's 21 turnovers. The Bruins had just four points on the Huskies' 11 mistakes.
UP NEXT:
UConn: hosts SMU to open up American Athletic Conference play on Saturday.
