Spring Break
Huskies survive Knights siege
Brittany Perotti
Issue date: 2/4/09 Section: Sports
HARTFORD - Snow covered the roadways. A chill was in the air.
Yet, inside the XL Center, the stands were packed and the No. 1 women's basketball team was red-hot, winning 75-56, against Rutgers.
Kalana Greene got the Huskies' offense starting quickly, sinking a lay-up and completing a 3-point play within the first 14 seconds.
It looked like things were going smoothly for UConn until Rutgers' first-half 11-0 run tied the game, 22-22. It was the longest run that UConn had allowed all season.
"We knew that UConn was going to go on runs," said Rutgers center Kia Vaughn. "We just didn't know exactly when, so we had to pick and choose when we were going to pick our runs."
Throughout the first 20 minutes, the Huskies were unable to break out against the struggling Scarlet Knights, who would just not go away.
"Sometimes when you play teams you just have to grind it out," said UConn forward Maya Moore. "You have to battle. You're not going to be up 20 in two minutes."
Early on, Rutgers played scrappy and outshot UConn. In response, it appeared that the Huskies were playing anxiously, firing off shots - and missing them.
It looked as though it could be an abysmal night after all, a repeat of last year's result: the No. 1 Huskies going for perfection, only to fall short against its biggest conference rival.
Indeed, the Huskies' 31.6 first half shooting percentage was the worst of the season for the team. UConn coach Geno Auriemma called two uncharacteristic timeouts as his team struggled to sink baskets during much of the last 10 minutes of the first half.
The team needed a spark - and it got one.
It was not the usual spark from All-Americans Moore nor Renee Montgomery that got the offense going. It was not Tina Charles, either.
It was the hustle and grit of Meghan Gardler.
Through the first 21 games of the season, Gardler saw 10.4 minutes per game. Tuesday night, she had three crucial steals in 10 minutes.
Yet, inside the XL Center, the stands were packed and the No. 1 women's basketball team was red-hot, winning 75-56, against Rutgers.
Kalana Greene got the Huskies' offense starting quickly, sinking a lay-up and completing a 3-point play within the first 14 seconds.
It looked like things were going smoothly for UConn until Rutgers' first-half 11-0 run tied the game, 22-22. It was the longest run that UConn had allowed all season.
"We knew that UConn was going to go on runs," said Rutgers center Kia Vaughn. "We just didn't know exactly when, so we had to pick and choose when we were going to pick our runs."
Throughout the first 20 minutes, the Huskies were unable to break out against the struggling Scarlet Knights, who would just not go away.
"Sometimes when you play teams you just have to grind it out," said UConn forward Maya Moore. "You have to battle. You're not going to be up 20 in two minutes."
Early on, Rutgers played scrappy and outshot UConn. In response, it appeared that the Huskies were playing anxiously, firing off shots - and missing them.
It looked as though it could be an abysmal night after all, a repeat of last year's result: the No. 1 Huskies going for perfection, only to fall short against its biggest conference rival.
Indeed, the Huskies' 31.6 first half shooting percentage was the worst of the season for the team. UConn coach Geno Auriemma called two uncharacteristic timeouts as his team struggled to sink baskets during much of the last 10 minutes of the first half.
The team needed a spark - and it got one.
It was not the usual spark from All-Americans Moore nor Renee Montgomery that got the offense going. It was not Tina Charles, either.
It was the hustle and grit of Meghan Gardler.
Through the first 21 games of the season, Gardler saw 10.4 minutes per game. Tuesday night, she had three crucial steals in 10 minutes.
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