UConn women’s basketball annihilates Houston, 92-40

In its final American Athletic Conference road game ever, UConn women’s basketball dominated the Houston Cougars, 92-42. The Huskies improve to 25-3 on the season and 135-0 in AAC play.

UConn puts its foot on the Cougars throat early and never let up. After trading baskets on the first two possessions of the game, the Huskies went off a 24-0 run that essentially buried Houston in the first quarter.

The Huskies’ defense sparked things early, forcing 11 turnovers — 10 of which came on steals — which led to 19 points down the other end. Houston failed to score for 6:50 and only managed three baskets in the entire opening period.

However, the Huskies’ offense held up its end of the bargain as well. At times, UConn scored at will and seemed to see the Cougars’ defense as more of a nuisance than anything, making eight of nine shots during one stretch.

Megan Walker single-handedly stuck with Houston through the first 10 minutes, out-scoring the hosts 12-7 and matching them on the boards with five rebounds apiece. She finished as UConn’s leading scorer with 21 points — the third time she’s reached the 20-point mark in the last four games and the 15th time she’s done so this season.

The Huskies closed the first quarter leading by 27 points, a gap that only grew as the game went on.

Geno Auriemma went to his bench to start the second quarter, inserting Kyla Irwin and Aubrey Griffin. Both players contributed well with Irwin scoring seven points and assisting four baskets while Griffin recorded six points and six rebounds.

With such a hefty lead, UConn’s reserves saw plenty of action. Everyone but Batouly Camara and Griffin played at least 10 minutes while everyone but the redshirt senior scored a bucket on the day. All five starters reached double-figures and the Huskies shot 56 percent from the floor as a team.

Anna Makurat finished with 16 points thanks to four three-pointers while Olivia Nelson-Ododa made 6-7 from the floor en route to 14 points along with nine rebounds. Crystal Dangerfield had a good day as well with a 10-point, seven-assist performance. She also passed Sue Bird for fifth on UConn’s all-time assist list with her 586th in the third quarter.

Next up, the Huskies close the regular season on Monday against USF at the XL Center. ESPN2 will broadcast the game with tip-off scheduled for 7 p.m.