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Behind a dominant first quarter, No. 3 UConn women’s basketball destroyed the Xavier Musketeers, 106-59. The Huskies improve to 4-0 on the year and 3-0 in the Big East.
One game after Geno Auriemma called his team “the worst shooting in America”, UConn hit 10-18 threes (56 percent) on the day. Christyn Williams led the charge, making 4-5 from beyond the arc en route to a season-high 24 points.
Six other Huskies finished in double-figures. Paige Bueckers dished out six assists in the first quarter — a career high — and finished with nine total in addition to 19 points.
What a look from Paige Bueckers to Christyn Williams pic.twitter.com/Un7T0MFIeo
— UConn Videos (@SNYUConn) December 19, 2020
Olivia Nelson-Ododa extended her streak of consecutive made baskets (which dated back to the Seton Hall game) to 20 before a miss in the second quarter. She notched her second double-double of the season with 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Evina Westbrook recorded double-figures for the first time in a UConn uniform with 15 points and also chipped in four rebounds, four assists and four steals. Aubrey Griffin set a season-high with 13 points and freshman Aaliyah Edwards contributed 11 points as well.
UConn jumped on Xavier from the start, pulling out to a 12-0 start which forced the Musketeers to take a timeout. That didn’t stop the Huskies though, who piled on and pushed the lead up to 19 before Xavier scored its first point.
The Musketeers had no answers for UConn’s trap defense and turned the ball over 14 times while taking just 12 shots (and making just two) in the first quarter. After 10 minutes, the Huskies were already up 38-7.
In the second quarter, Xavier found the basket easier after UConn pulled back its trap. The Huskies barely outscored the visitors 22-20 in the period, though they still went into the locker room with a 33-point lead.
The second half didn’t feature much drama as Xavier never threatened a comeback. UConn continued to build its lead and surpassed the 100-point mark for the first time this season.
Next up, the Huskies will head to Philadelphia to face Villanova for their final game before Christmas on Tuesday, Dec. 22. SNY will carry the game and tip off is at 7 p.m.