WBB: Happy Returns Define Win Over Creighton
STORRS-Though the college basketball world continues to combat the ongoing health crisis, a sense of normalcy started to return to Harry A. Gampel Pavillion on Sunday afternoon.
Staging their first game since December 19th, the 11th-ranked Connecticut Huskies’ women’s basketball team got back in the win column with a 63-55 win over the Creighton Bluejays. Sunday’s win featured many happy returns, as UConn (7-3, 2-0 Big East) not only played its first official home game since December 5th but also welcomed back veteran contributor Nika Muhl from a foot injury. Muhl had not played since the aforementioned previous home game and was the first of the Connecticut quartet beset by medical woes (alongside Paige Bueckers, Azzi Fudd and Aubrey Griffin) to make her return.
While Muhl was on a minutes limit in her first game, there were, unfortunately for the Bluejays (10-4, 5-1 Big East), no restrictions on Caroline Ducharme. The freshman sensation continued to make an impact in increased duties brought upon by the injuries, as, with a team-best 17 points (7-of-13 FG), she reached double figures for the third time in the last four games. She was one of four Huskies in double-figures, joined by fellow starters Christyn Williams (13) and Dorka Juhasz (10) alongside Aaliyah Edwards with 12 points (and three steals) off the bench.
The most recent matchup between Connecticut and Creighton threw recent history, one that saw the former win their first two Big East meetings by a 32.5 average last season, out the window. Creighton built a strong start while UConn recovered from roster issues brought about by COVID-19, going 9-1 in their prior ten games, which included a conference-best five victories. Sunday’s game provided their first ranked test of the season.
The Bluejays refused to back down despite the massive odds against them, keeping pace with their Husky hosts that weren’t able to get their lead past 10 points in the first half. A 19-7 Connecticut run over the latter stages of the third quarter and into the middle of the fourth seemed to be enough for the Huskies to pull away. The run was primarily supported by seven points from Ducharme but was capped off by a successful and-one opportunity from Olivia Nelson-Ododa that made it 61-44 with just under six minutes remain.
Alas, UConn’s fourth quarter issues, the main culprit behind their three losses before the year’s calendar flip, continued to surface, though the Huskies were able to overcome the issues on Sunday.
The start of Nelson-Ododa’s unconventional triple wound up being Connecticut’s final successful field goal of the contest, allowing Creighton to at least make things respectable over the final stages. An 8-0 run amidst the Husky misses led to the Bluejays embarking on a late attempt at extending the final minute out through intentional fouling, though Edwards’ two conversions from the foul line more or less ended that idea before it truly began. Mogan Maly wound up leading the Bluejays with 14 points off the bench, while Emma Ronsiek also reached double figures with 10. UConn will venture to Omaha for a rematch with Creighton on February 2nd.
In the meantime, the Huskies will look to start a winning streak on Wednesday night on the road against Butler (7:00pm ET, SNY). UConn swept their first pair as conference rivals last season, which included a 103-35 victory in Storrs last January. The Bulldogs (1-11, 0-3 Big East) haven’t played since a 77-55 loss to Xavier on December 29th, as their last four games have been pushed back due to COVID issues. They picked up their first win of the season a week prior against Evansville.
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
