Collier leads rout for No. 4 UConn
TOP 25/SEC WOMEN
NO. 4 CONNECTICUT 97, NO. 11 SOUTH CAROLINA 79
HARTFORD, Conn. — Napheesa Collier and UConn used a strong second half to turn their final nonconference game into a rout.
Collier had 31 points, 16 rebounds and 6 assists, and the fourth-ranked Huskies beat 11th-ranked South Carolina 97-79 on Monday night.
Katie Lou Samuelson added 29 points for the Huskies (22-2), who blew open a close game with a huge third quarter in which they outscored the Gamecocks 29-12. Samuelson scored 14 points in the game-changing period. Collier added eight as the two seniors continued to carry UConn.
“We’ve had quarters where we played really, really well. Shot the ball well or played well in general,” UConn Coach Geno Auriemma said. “Given the quality of the team we’re playing against, that was pretty good. We did a lot of really great things in that quarter on both ends. … That pretty much ended the game right there.”
Collier has now scored 20 or more points in eight consecutive games and has three double-doubles in her past four contests. She left the game with just over a minute left and got a big hug from Auriemma.
“I said this the other night, that every coach talks about their players as if they’re the best players ever,” Auriemma said. “I don’t get caught up in that stuff. [But] there can’t be anywhere a player that’s playing better or does more for their team than Napheesa Collier does. That’s not possible. I haven’t seen every game, every week in every conference. There’s something about her that’s rare — you just don’t see it. You don’t see it at all.”
Samuelson has broken out of a three-game shooting slump at the end of January. She’s made 25 of 39 shots from the field the in past three games.
The victory was the 89th in a row at home for the Huskies. That’s the second-longest winning streak in NCAA history, trailing only UConn’s school-record 99-game run. The Huskies’ last loss at the XL Center, where the game was played Monday night, was on Feb. 18, 2013, against No. 1 Baylor.
Bianca Cuevas-Moore scored 25 points and Te’a Cooper had 20 to lead South Carolina (17-6), which had won 13 of its past 14 games.
Christyn Williams (Central Arkansas Christian) scored 19 points for UConn. WIlliams was 7 of 8 from the field, including 2 of 2 on three-pointers, and made all 3 of her free-throw attempts.
South Carolina got off to a hot start, hitting 10 of its first 12 shots to build a 22-12 lead. UConn closed within 27-23 at the end of the quarter. The 27 points equaled the most points the Huskies had given up in a period this year, matching the total DePaul had in the third quarter of a 36-point loss by the Blue Demons.
UConn continued its 16-5 burst to start the second quarter and took its first lead of the game on Crystal Dangerfield’s 3-pointer. The teams traded the lead for the rest of the half with the Huskies ahead 44-43 at the break. Collier had 15 points and eight rebounds at the half.
NO. 17 KENTUCKY 68, ALABAMA 53
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Rhyne Howard scored 23 points with four three-pointers, Maci Morris added 17 points and Kentucky beat Alabama.
Howard, averaging 16.5 points and 6.8 rebounds, scored 20-plus for the eighth time this season while becoming just the fourth UK player to reach 400 points in her freshman season.
The Wildcats (20-5, 7-4 SEC) have won seven consecutive games against the Crimson Tide, including five in a row in Tuscaloosa.
Megan Abrams scored 16 points and Jasmine Walker had 12 points and 15 rebounds for Alabama (11-13, 3-8).
NO. 23 MICHIGAN STATE 77, INDIANA 61
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Shay Colley scored a career-high 32 points on 12of-18 shooting to help Michigan State avenge a loss to the Hoosiers earlier this season.
Taryn McCutcheon finished with 12 points and Nia Clouden scored 11 for Michigan State (17-5, 7-5 Big Ten).
Jaelynn Penn scored 19 points for Indiana (17-8, 6-7 Big Ten), which beat the Spartans 68-64 at home on Jan. 6.