The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Huskies rout Syracuse, advance to Sweet 16
Junior guard hits nine 3-pointers as UConn marches into Sweet 16
STORRS » Much of the talk leading into Monday night’s NCAA second-round tournament game was about the high-scoring Syracuse backcourt.
Well, UConn’s Kia Nurse quieted that talk with a blistering first-half shooting performance.
Nurse broke the program record for 3-pointers in an NCAA tournament game by halftime as she drained eight treys to lead the Huskies to an emphatic 94-64 win over eighth seeded Syracuse on Monday night at Gampel Pavilion.
Nurse would tie the NCAA Division I tournament record of nine 3-pointers in a game get by Courtney Moses of Purdue in 2012 when she banked in one early in the third quarter. Nurse finished with 29 points as UConn advanced to the regionals for the 24th straight year, which is three shy of the tournament record set by Tennessee from 1982-2008.
Nurse, who was 9 of 12 from 3-point range and had six assists, got plenty of help. Gabby Williams had 23 points, six rebounds, five assists, two steals and two blocked shots. Katie Lou Samuelson added 23 points, five rebounds and four assists for UConn (34-0), winners of an NCAA record 109 games in a row. Napheesa Collier contributed 17 points, seven rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocked shots.
The Huskies finished with 30 assists on 33 baskets. The Huskies set a program record for assists in consecutive games which was set earlier this season with 63 in games against Tulsa and Cincinnati. Senior Saniya Chong had seven assists as she was part of the fourth class in UConn history to go four seasons without losing a game at Gampel Pavilion.
UConn gave Syracuse senior point guard Alexis Peterson a variety of different looks with four of the five starters getting the call to guard her at different times in the opening minutes. Peterson did get it going with 10 quick points in the second quarter, but by that time the Huskies were already up 42-15.
Peterson finished with 25 points for Syracuse (22-11), Brittney Sykes had 15 points and Briana Day added 13 points and six rebounds.
This is the eighth time UConn will enter the regionals undefeated. It has been accomplished once each by Texas in 1986, Louisiana Tech in 1990, Tennessee in 1998, Baylor in 2012 and Notre Dame in 2014.
It was the 26th straight NCAA tournament win for Auriemma. As a point of reference, only seven coaches who lead their teams into the second round in this year’s tournament have at least 26 total NCAA tournament victories.
It was the 26th straight NCAA tournament win for Auriemma.