No.3 UConn routs Cincinnati 67-31

The No. 3 UConn women’s basketball team allowed only nine points in the first half en route to a 67-31 win over the Cincinnati Bearcats Saturday in one of the Huskies most dominant victories of the season.

Senior Stefanie Dolson led the Huskies in total points with 15 in 25 minutes. She shot 7-10 from the field and grabbed five rebounds in UConn’s dominant performance. Dolson scored 11 of her points in a stellar first half for the Huskies. Cincinnati only managed to shoot 12.5 percent from the field in the first half and the Bearcats were 0-7 from behind the arc. Cincinnati’s nine points were the least points allowed by UConn in a first half this season.

In the second half, Cincinnati guard Alyesha Lovett scored nine points but it was not enough as the UConn’s defense continued to shut down the Bearcat offense. Cincinnati shot 26.7 percent from the field and made four of the 14 three pointers they attempted. At the final horn not a single Bearcat had reached double digits in points scored.

 After such a quick start in the first half head coach Geno Auriemma decided to rest his starters for the majority of the second. The Huskies were able to score 31 points off the bench which led to UConn’s largest lead of the afternoon, 45 points at the 12:24 mark of the second half.

Freshman Breanna Stewart played well for UConn off the bench; she scored 10 points on the evening and grabbed seven boards. As a team, the Huskies controlled the boards securing 49 rebounds compared to Cincinnati’s 29. Sophmore forward Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis quietly had a good game, scoring eight points, which included two three pointers. Senior Kelly Faris and freshman Morgan Tuck each scored seven points in UConn’s 18th victory of the season.

Even though UConn won in a convincing fashion, turnovers still plagued the Huskies. They gave the ball away 15 times against the Bearcats. The Huskies also turned the ball over 15 times in their previous game against Duke, which ended in a 79-49 UConn victory. The Huskies still hold an advantage over their opponents in turnovers as UConn has turned the ball over 272 times compared to their opponents’ 404 giveaways.

UConn is currently on a six game winning streak after falling to Notre Dame on Jan. 5. The Huskies will get the chance to extend their win streak to seven when they face Villanova on Tuesday at the XL Center. That game is scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m. and it will be televised on SNY.