UConn Women’s Basketball Slugs Out Win Over UCF, 55-37

It wasn’t pretty, but the UConn Huskies managed to come away with a 55-37 win over the UCF Knights.

The first quarter resembled a typical conference matchup for the Huskies as they jumped out to a 9-0 lead to start the game. UCF struggled to keep up and after 10 minutes, UConn led 21-4. Even in the second quarter, the Huskies held control by locking down the Knights’ offense, holding them to just 12 points in the first half.

However, the tone changed coming out of the break. UCF upped their game and played more physical with the Huskies, who struggled to adjust. It also began to get contentious as both UCF and Gabby Williams picked up technical fouls.

Things really fell apart for UConn in the final quarter, as the Huskies scored as many points (7) as they had turnovers. At one point, the Knights broke off an 11-0 run, but it was too little too late to affect the outcome of the game.

In the end, the Huskies came away with their most bizarre victory of the season. The Huskies’ 55-point performance was by far the lowest mark of the season, besting the previous low of 75 against Texas.

Katie Lou Samuelson led all scorers with 19 points while playing 38 minutes. She also chipped in six rebounds and five assists. Williams contributed in ways beyond scoring, dishing out eight assists while snatching five rebounds.

Napheesa Collier held things together down low, notching a double-double with 11 points and 12 boards, while also contributing five assists to the cause. Crystal Dangerfield missed her second straight game with shin splints and was replaced in the starting lineup by Azura Stevens, who finished with 12 points and three rebounds.

Next, UConn will look to sort things out in their first conference matchup with Wichita State. Tipoff is set for Saturday at 1 pm at the XL Center with the game being broadcast on SNY.