TicketsJan. 29, 2011
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CINCINNATI (AP) - Geno Auriemma didn't feel good about UConn's latest rout.
His Huskies beat undermanned Cincinnati 80-46 on Saturday. The Bearcats were led by Jamelle Elliott who spent years playing for and coaching with Auriemma at UConn.
"It wasn't easy," Auriemma said. "Obviously you would love for them to be at full strength. The injuries and young players have made it difficult. I hope the tables are turned at some point ... where they play us with the expectation of winning."
Maya Moore scored 23 points on Saturday in leading the Huskies to their 59th consecutive win against Big East Conference opponents. Moore finished 11-for-14 shooting with six assists.
Tiffany Hayes added 16 points for UConn (20-1, 9-0 Big East) which won for the eighth straight time since having its 90-game win streak snapped in a loss to Stanford on Dec. 30.
Cincinnati (8-12, 1-7 Big East) has just seven available players due to injury. The Bearcats were led by Kayla Cook's 13 points. Shareese Ulis added 12.
Elliott spent 12 years as an assistant coach under Auriemma at UConn. She ranks second on the Huskies' all-time rebounding list and 11th in scoring. Elliott won a combined six national championships as a player and coach at UConn.
Elliott and Auriemma embraced at midcourt prior to Saturday's game. They met for dinner on Friday night at Montgomery Inn in Cincinnati.
"It's odd when you spend time off the court with people you care about and then have to compete against them the next day," Elliott said. "It's hard. But when the game starts we're both competitors."
The Huskies began Saturday's game with an 8-0 run and never looked back. Cincinnati was held scoreless for the first 7:49 of the second half going 1-for-15 in one stretch.
"We were just settling for 3's," said Cook. "We were trying to get something going inside but they're bigger than us. It's kind of hard to comeback when you're not hitting shots."
With Monday's showdown with 3rd-ranked Duke upcoming, Auriemma substituted freely throughout Saturday's game with seldom-used freshman forwards Michala Johnson and Lauren Engeln entering the game before halftime.
"I wanted to be in a position to rest some guys," Auriemma said. "I wanted to give them a breather and we were able to do that."
Moore's acrobatic layup put the Huskies ahead 8-0. The Bearcats did not score until Bjonee Reaves hit a 3-pointer four minutes into the first half.
Cook kept the Bearcats relatively close in the first half with 10 points including 2-of-4 from 3-point range.
Moore scored 19 first-half points on 9-of-11 shooting to put UConn ahead 40-24 at halftime.
Consecutive baskets by Moore made the score 59-28 with 10:32 remaining.
"I think coaching against me (Auriemma) backed off today sooner than he would've against another team," Elliott said. "I've never been a part of losing and now I'm dealing with it. Being a part of the Connecticut program is like a fairy tale."