UConn women remain undefeated

HARTFORD, Conn. -- As Coach Geno Auriemma said last week, winning a 15th Big East tournament would be more affirmation than coronation, the bow on a package the No. 1 UConn women wrapped by winning the regular season title.

Still, that doesn't mean this team and this coach, with their own set of ambitions and dreams, didn't feel this wasn't an important step.

Winning anything and everything, with a degree of assertiveness, is the priority.

"Generally, in the years we've had great teams, our players play unafraid," Auriemma said. "They're unafraid of anything, except me in practice."

For the last two seasons, Louisville, with its All-American talent, Angel McCoughtry, and its ambitious young coach, Jeff Walz, has poked UConn's cage in hopes of making a name for themselves.

It didn't happen last year and it certainly didn't happen this year.

The Huskies (33-0) unleashed a furious first half on the fifth-ranked Cardinals on Tuesday night at the XL Center and won going away, 75-36, for their second consecutive tournament title.

"Earlier in the year, we may have been caught by surprise by something like this," Kalana Greene said. "We knew what we were capable of, but as the year went on, we began to realize we were playing with consistency and getting contributions from everyone."

Sophomore Maya Moore, the Big East player of the year, scored 28 points to lead UConn. Moore (6-for-9 on three-pointers) was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player as the Huskies won their fourth tournament title in the past five years.

"I just want to play to my potential every night," Moore said. "I just want to make sure I leave the court every night knowing that I did for my team what I say I'm going to do, what I know I'm going to do." Junior Tina Charles, named to the all-tournament team, added 21 points and 15 rebounds.

Louisville (29-4) was led by McCoughtry, the Big East's leading scorer (24.0). Still, she scored just nine points on 3-for-16 shooting.

"We knew if we didn't give McCoughtry what she wanted, it would be hard for everyone else to score," Greene said.

The Cardinals, averaging 73.7 points, shot just 12-for-57 from the field.

The Huskies will take a few days off before preparing for the NCAA Tournament, which will begin with a first-round game at Gampel Pavilion on the Connecticut campus March 22. They'll be seeking their sixth national title, likely as the No. 1 seed in the Trenton (N.J.) Regional, and they'll enter the tournament undefeated for a fourth time (1995, '97 and 2002).

The Cardinals (29-4), seeded second in this tournament, took a riotous trip to the finals, winning hard-fought games against Rutgers (double-overtime) and Pittsburgh, while the Huskies breezed through.

McCoughtry, forward Candyce Bingham and guard Deseree Byrd had played 266 of a possible 270 minutes leading to the final.

Louisville said it wasn't tired, but the Huskies led 33-9 with 7:47 left in the first half and 50-24 at halftime. It was the most points they've scored in a first half against a Big East opponent this season.

The Huskies held Louisville scoreless for the first 8:03 of the second half and when Moore came out with 7:52 to play, she had outscored the Cardinals, 28-27.

(Optional add end)

They won with a whirlwind defense that would not let Louisville maneuver. The Cardinals hit only three of their first 19 shots.

They did it to the growing frustration of Walz, who was hit with a technical with 12:16 to play in the half after a non-call on McCoughtry.

Distributed by the Los Angeles Times-Washington Post News Service