Huskies Roll In 93-60 Win Over Villanova

(boxscore)

VILLANOVA, PA (January 19) - The No. 1 University of Connecticut women's basketball team improved to 20-0 for the first time since the 1996-97 season -- and the third time in team history -- with a 93-60 win over Villanova Saturday afternoon at The Pavilion.

Senior Asjha Jones (Piscataway, NJ) led six Huskies in double figures, four of whom reached the mark before the half.  Jones finished with 19 points and grabbed a team-best nine rebounds in the victory.

After trailing 9-6 in the opening minutes, the Huskies reeled off a 16-0 run to take a 22-9 lead with 12:26 to play in the first half.  UConn maintained a 10-point cushion for most of the stanza before racing out to a 53-34 lead at the break.

The win was UConn's 16th straight over Villanvoa and marked the most points an opponent had scored against the Wildcats since 1992-93.  Villanova dropped to 10-6 overall on the season and 4-2 in the BIG EAST.

Senior Swin Cash (McKeesport, PA) registered her 19th double-figure scoring game of the season with 17 points and added eight rebounds.  Sophomore Diana Taurasi (Chino, CA) and freshman Ashley Battle (Pittsburgh, PA) each finished with 15 points, a career high for the latter.

Senior Tamika Williams (Dayton, OH) finished with 11 points while classmate Sue Bird (Syosset, NY) netted nine points and dished out eight assists.

Connecticut shot 61 percent for the game while holding Villanova to 35 percent.  The Huskies also won the battle on the boards with a 43-19 edge and outscored the Wildcats 44-12 in the paint.  

Villanova's Trish Juhline finished with a team-high 21 points on a perfect 7-of-7 shooting from the field.  She also buried four of the Wildcats' 13 three-pointers in the game, an effort that tied the team mark for most treys in a game against UConn.

Connecticut will host Notre Dame in a BIG EAST battle on Monday, January 21 in its final game this season at the Hartford Civic Center.  Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.