Unanimous No. 1, But So What?
The Story: The UConn men's basketball team finally got some respect as it was the unanimous No. 1 for the first time in its sixth week atop the Associated Press poll. That means nothing however, if the Huskies can't beat No. 15 Creighton in Omaha tonight (8:30 p.m., FS1).
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: UConn (24-2, 14-1 Big East) received all 65 first-place votes after annihilating Marquette on Saturday, perhaps the most impressive performance of any team this season.
• UConn's streak atop the AP poll is its second longest in school history, as it was No. 1 for 10 weeks during the 1998-99 season. As we've seen in the last three months, however, heading on the road is a difficult task, and Creighton's CHI Health Center Arena has been a house of horrors for the Huskies.
• UConn, for all its dominance, has not beaten a ranked foe in its home arena in a decade. Yes, it's a technicality considering UConn beat Gonzaga in Seattle, but why would we let semantics get in the way of a good story?
• The fact the Huskies are playing Creighton is also a reason to feel uneasy tonight. UConn is 2-6 all-time against the Bluejays and are 0-3 in Omaha. UConn is -3 tonight in the betting markets, but the Bluejays are clearly looking for a big win to vault them back into the top 10 after a rough start of the season.
• UConn is 50-9 all-time as the No. 1 ranked team in the country.
WHAT DID DAN HURLEY SAY? "We do have a chance to do something special, especially going into this game coming up, that programs have not been able to do. The consistency, in as hard a place as you can go play, the landscape of what other teams have not been able to do on the road, in particular … it's an opportunity to show something special about us."
ABOUT CREIGHTON: Creighton (19-7, 10-5 Big East) is a three-headed monster led by center Ryan Kalkbrenner, who is averaging 17.2 points per game and is the anchor of the defense.
• Baylor Scheierman is the Bluejays' leading scorer at 18.7 points per game while Trey Alexander checks in at 17.1 points per game. The Bluejays managed only 48 points in an early-season loss to the Huskies.
— John Silver
No Holiday for the Huskies
The Story: Paige Bueckers scored 24 points and Aaliyah Edwards added 20 as the No. 15 UConn women broke through in the third quarter and beat No. 21 Creighton 73-53 yesterday afternoon at the XL Center.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: UConn (23-5, 15-0 Big East) wrapped up the top seed in the upcoming Big East tournament and clinched at least a share of the conference title for the 11th consecutive season with their matinee win over the Bluejays (21-4, 12-3 Big East).
• The score was tied at 31 at halftime, and Creighton scored the first five points of the third quarter. But UConn outscored Creighton 27-5 over the next eight minutes behind nine points from Edwards and seven each from Bueckers and Ashlynn Shade.
• UConn won 94-50 at Creighton in early January, and the Bluejays, riding an 11-game winning streak, were determined to prove they had improved. Their response was to buckle down on Edwards inside and be physical — a strategy that led to Geno Auriemma being called for a technical late in the second quarter.
ANOTHER MILESTONE: Geno picked up win No. 1,203, moving him past former Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski and into second in wins behind Stanford’s Tara VanDerveer, who has 1,209.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE: UConn shot 40.9 percent, including 8-for-21 (38.1 percent) from beyond the 3-point line, while Creighton was held to 30.6% and just 6-for-30 (20 percent) from beyond the arc.
• Shade, who finished with 15 points and a season-high nine rebounds, played all 40 minutes for the second time this season and was valuable in helping the Huskies shut down Creighton's vaunted perimeter shooting.
• UConn had the 47-38 edge in rebounding and 30-10 advantage in points in the paint. It had 18 assists on 27 baskets and finished with just 10 turnovers.
• Creighton was led in scoring by senior guard Lauren Jensen, who had 18 points. Oddly enough, both teams finished with just one point from a bench player, with Ice Brady making a third-quarter free throw.
WHAT DID GENO SAY? "I thought today was one of our more gratifying wins. … I felt like after yesterday's practice, I could tell that we looked a little bit drained. We looked tired. We looked mentally and physically tired. And, you know, this is what happens at this time of the year."
UP NEXT: The Huskies will get a bit of a break before a road game at DePaul on Sunday night.
— Zac Boyer
Morning Reads
• Congratulations to Kevin Ollie, who finally gets his shot to lead an NBA team after he was named the Nets' interim coach yesterday. Ollie, who joined Jacque Vaughn's staff as an assistant this season, will replace Vaughn for the final 28 games.
• We missed this when it was announced nearly two weeks ago, but Devontae Houston has found a home. The former UConn running back, who played in the Huskies' first four games before leaving the team to preserve a redshirt season, is transferring to East Tennessee State. At least it's closer to home?
Top photo: Alex Karaban shoots over Providence’s Devin Carter. (Ian Bethune for The UConn Daily)
