UConn wins 90th straight

Huskies blow out South Florida for 90th straight win, tying own record

HARTFORD >> Just like so many of the games during the NCAA Division I record 90-game winning streak, the UConn women’s basketball team’s showdown with nationally-ranked South Florida was over before many of the fans got comfortable in their seats.

All five starters scored in double figures led by Saniya Chong’s career high tying 20 points as the top-ranked Huskies rolled to a 102-37 win over No. 20 South Florida at the XL Center on Tuesday night to match the record for consecutive wins set by the Huskies during Maya Moore’s time as UConn’s resident superstar.

Chong also tied a career high with eight assists. Gabby Williams flirted with a triple-double as she finished 11 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists, three steals and four blocked shots despite not playing in the fourth quarter. Katie Lou Samuelson had 19 points, including four 3-pointers while Napheesa Collier had 19 points, six rebounds and six steals. Kia Nurse, the only player to appear in all 90 games during the current streak, contributed 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists. Natalie Butler added 10 points off the bench for UConn (15-0, 3-0 in

the American Athletic Conference).

UConn actually missed three of its first five shots before making 10 of its next field goal attempts to turn the matchup between the top two teams in the American Athletic Conference standings into a blowout.

USF only made shots on consecutive possessions twice in the first half. The Bulls, who started off missing 18 of their first 21 shots, compounded matters by not hustling back on defense, allowing the Huskies to score at will.

The tone was set with a 9-0 lead and UConn ended the first quarter with 13 consecutive points.

This was the 27th team ranked in the Associated Press poll that the Huskies have faced during the streak. During the previous 90-game streak, UConn faced 29 ranked teams. UConn also led from start to finish for the 49th time in the streak which began on Nov. 23, 2014 with a 9660 win over Creighton.

UConn improved its regular-season record in the AAC to 57-0, matching the program’s longest streak. The Huskies won 57 straight Big East games from 200812. The Huskies have a long way to go to get to No. 1 in that streak as Texas won 124 straight Southwest Conference regular-season games from 1981-90.

Also, sophomores Samuelson and Collier combined for 37 points, making them the second-highest scoring tandem in UConn history through the first 15 games of the season. Maya Moore and Tiffany Hayes combined for 593 points in the first 15 games of the 201011 season while Samuelson and Collier now have 590. Samuelson is also the first UConn player in the last 20 seasons to have 50 3-pointers in the first 15 games of the season.

Kitija Laksa came into the game leading the AAC in scoring averaging 21.6 points per game but she finished with seven points on 3 of 15 shooting. Maria Jespersen led the Bulls (132, 2-1).

JESSICA HILL — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS UConn’s Katie Lou Samuelson, center, celebrates with teammates Napheesa Collier, left, and Saniya Chong, right, in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against South Florida Tuesday in Hartford. UConn beta South Florida 102-37 for its 90th...

UConn’s Gabby Williams blocks a shot attempt by South Florida’s Laia Flores, center, as UConn’s Crystal Dangerfield left, defends, in the first half of the Huskies’ 90th consecutive victory.