WBB: Return of Ducharme, Nelson-Ododa leads to balanced blowout in road finale
CINCINNATI - Poised and reloaded after welcoming back two major contributors, the Connecticut Huskies closed out their 2022 road schedule on a dominant note on Friday night.
Caroline Ducharme and Olivia Nelson-Ododa each returned to action from medical absences when the Huskies descended upon Cintas Center for the opener of a two-game weekend set. The rearriving pair united for 19 points in a balanced Connecticut scoring effort, with Ducharme’s 11 (tied with Azzi Fudd and Piath Gabriel) trailing only Christyn Williams (13) in what became a dominant victory, as the Huskies crushed hosting Xavier by an 89-35 final to secure a season sweep of the Musketeers.
Friday marked the final true road game of the 2021-22 season for the beleaguered Huskies (18-5, 12-1 Big East), who seemed destined for a challenge from an increasingly desperate Xavier group missing its two top scorers Nia Clark and Kae Satterfield. Though it took the Musketeers (8-17, 3-13 Big East) nearly five full minutes to get on the board (doing so through Mackayla Scarlett free throws), the Huskies only tallied five points in return. Their lead jumped up to 11 at 18-7 before Shelby Calhoun’s jumper beat the first quarter’s buzzer, but Xavier refused to budge, trailing only 25-19 with 6:23 to go in the second. Ducharme and Ododa-Nelson’s came at a perfect time: despite Azzi Fudd picking up two early fouls, the Huskies were able to work with a rotation after working with six players over the prior couple of contests.
The Musketeers’ repsectiable early showing was swiftly tossed aside in the middle stages of the second quarter. After a two-pointer jumper from Ayanna Townsend with 6:23 left in the half, Xavier failed to tally even a mere point over the next 14:18, a drought that stretched into half time and far beyond. Such a defensive outing allowed the Huskies to go on a jaw-dropping 37-0 run that defined the rest of the contest. Seven different players contributed to that impenetrable scoring trek that defined UConn’s visit, which finally ended with 2:05 left in the third thanks to Scarlett free throws.
Even as the Huskies loosened things up a bit, they still managed to win the game by 54, their largest margin of the evening. Removing their relatively lukewarm first quarter (7-of-13), UConn shot a scorching 66 percent (27-of-41) from the field over the final three frames, including 9-of-17 from three-point range in that span. Despite the balanced attack not allowing anyone single scorer to break away from the group, the late stages provided a strong showcase for the sophomore Gabriel, who reached double figures for the first time in her Connecticut career by hitting 5-of-7 from the field.
Elsewhere in the UConn box score, Aaliyah Edwards reached double-figures in another complete effort, complementing her 10 points with seven rebounds. Nika Muhl sank all three of
her shot attempts while Williams and Evina Westbrook each assisted on a team-best five field goals.
Though downtrodden Xavier endured its worst loss of the season (the previous such defeat also at the hands of UConn by 37 on Jan. 15), freshman Kaysia Woods led all of Friday’s scorers with 14, thanks primarily to a 4-of-6 shooting effort beyond the arc.
Connecticut will end its 2021-22 regular season with four straight home games, the first being a visit from Georgetown on Sunday afternoon (2 p.m. ET, CBSSN). The Hoyas (7-16, 2-13 Big East) have lost six in a row of 12 of their last 13 after dropping a 64-57 decision to Marquette on Friday. A game between the two conference rivals was originally scheduled for Jan. 5 in Washington D.C., though it was postponed due to COVID-19 issues in the Connecticut program and is not likely to be rescheduled.
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
