Huskies Rout Rutgers at the RAC

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PISCATAWAY, NJ (February 19, 2005) – Charlie Villanueva (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and Josh Boone (Mt. Airy, Md.) each scored 21 points as all five Husky starters scored in double figures as 18th-ranked Connecticut easily outscored Rutgers, 85-63, Saturday afternoon before a sellout crowd of 8,011 at the Louis A. Brown Center.

The win improves the Huskies’ record to 17-6, 9-3 in the BIG EAST Conference. UConn now has moved into second place in the loop. The Scarlet Knights drop to 8-15, 2-11 in the league.

Boone and Villanueva had plenty of company in the scoring column as Denham Brown (Toronto, Ont.) added 18 points on seven-of -12 shooting, including four-of-seven from beyond the three-point arc. Sophomore point guard Marcus Williams (Los Angeles, Calif.) added 11 and freshman Rudy Gay chipped in with 10 points. The game marked the second consecutive game that all five Husky starters scored in double figures. The game marked the third straight that the Huskies have played without leading scorer Rashad Anderson (Lakeland, Fla.), sidelined with skin abscess.

The Huskies made 53% of their field goal attempts, converting 32-of-61, including eight-of-19 from three-point range. They accumulated 23 assists on 32 made field goals, paced by Williams (the league’s leading assist man), who had a game-high nine, and Gay, who had a career-high six. UConn led by as many as 32 points in the second half.

The Huskies dominated the contest in the lane, scoring 44 points in the paint as Boone and Villanueva combined to make 16 of 22 shots from the field. UConn also enjoyed a solid 42-29 advantage on the boards, paced by Villanueva, who snared a game-best 11. It gave him his 10th double-double of the season, and his third in the past four outings.

UConn broke the game open early with a devastating 26-5 run over a 10-minute span in the first half, to take a 37-13 lead with 3:49 to play before intermission. Boone, Brown and Gay each scored six points in the key spurt. Rutgers followed with their only sustained solid play of the game, scoring the next 12 points, most off of UConn turnovers, but the Huskies closed the half out by scoring the final seven points to lead 44-25 at the half. Boone and Villanueva each had 12 points in the first half for the Huskies.

Marquis Webb led Rutgers with 15 points, while Manny Quezada added 12.

The Huskies will have a short turnaround before their next contest as they will play host to Notre Dame on Monday, February 21 at the Hartford Civic Center. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. and the game will be televised by ESPN.