Tulane Green Wave at UConn Huskies

No. 2 UConn trounces Tulane in first meeting between programs

But that's not how the Geno Auriemma's squad is wired.

Moriah Jefferson scored 16 points to lead six UConn players in double figures as the second-ranked Huskies routed a 19-win Tulane team 87-39 on Saturday.

Morgan Tuck added 14 points and eight rebounds for the Huskies (24-1, 13-0 American Athletic Conference) who are poised to take over the No. 1 ranking when the new poll comes out Monday.

"You come off a big game and you don't want to go back, you want to keep moving forward," Jefferson said. "We came out and we played really well. I thought we did a good job of building."

Danielle Blagg had 10 points to lead Tulane (19-6, 10-4), which had won three straight and were 8-1 on the road.

It was the first ever meeting between the two programs, and UConn lead from start to finish.

"I think in the first half we were nervous and in the second half we came out more aggressive," said Tulane coach Lisa Stockton. "They have so many weapons. I think that's the one thing for us, to keep our focus and keep our intensity. That's a lesson we can learn from this."

Kia Nurse scored seven straight points to highlight a 15-0 UConn run that made it 25-4 less than 9 minutes into the game. Some fans began leaving before halftime to beat a snowstorm that was moving into the area.

Nurse had a dozen points, Breanna Stewart chipped in with 11, and Soniya Chong had 10 as UConn shot 48.6 percent from the floor.

The Huskies, who beat the Gamecocks by 25 points on Monday, have been No. 2 for the last 12 weeks since suffering their only loss of the season at Stanford.

They have been beating their conference opponents by just under 50-points a game, have won their last 71 games against unranked teams and their last 31 home games.

The Huskies had 25 assists on 36 baskets.

"Everybody is doing what they are good at," said UConn coach Geno Auriemma. "We're playing well as a team."

Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis had two 3-pointers during a 10-0 run that opened the game. That gave her 350 for her career. She's just the 15th Division I player to reach that plateau. She was 3 of 7 from behind the arc and finished with nine points.

A 3-pointer by Jefferson gave UConn its first 30-point lead, 42-12 at halftime and the Huskies extended that in the second half.

A jumper by Stewart with more than 14 minutes remaining gave the Huskies a 60-20 lead. A fast-break layup by Chong pushed the lead to 50 at 70-30.

Stewart's 11 points moved her into a tie for 15th place on the school's all-time scoring list with assistant coach Shea Ralph. The sophomore has 1,678 points in just 101 games.

UConn outscored Tulane 48-18 in the paint and outrebounded the Green Wave 45-30.

"Our next goal is to win a conference championship," said Tuck. "I think it's good to have these conference games. "We don't have that many left, so we have to treat them as they're really important."

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TIP-INS:

Tulane: The Green Wave came into the game ranked 19th in the country in scoring defense, giving up just 55.3 points per game, and had not given up more than 69 points in any game this season. They were facing a Husky team that leads the nation in scoring, and came in averaging 89.4 points.

UConn: The Huskies honored their 1995 national championship team at halftime, bringing out nine members of the team that went 35-0 to win the first of nine national championships.

LACK OF FOULS:

It was a relatively clean game with only 11 combined fouls called. Tulane didn't attempt a free throw. UConn only averages committing about 12 fouls a game.

UP NEXT

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Tulane: The Green Wave complete their two-game East Coast road trip with a visit to Philadelphia on Tuesday night to take on Temple.

UConn: The Huskies head to their other home arena, the XL Center in Hartford, on Tuesday night to take on the Houston.

How can I watch Green Wave vs. Huskies?

• TV Channel: Green Wave vs Huskies 2021 College Basketball, week 14, is broadcasted on CBSSN.
• Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.

Location: Storrs, CT
Attendance: 9,347 | Capacity: