UConn women lose 2nd straight game for 1st time since 1993
MILWAUKEE (AP) — UConn coach Geno Auriemma might sense from the beginning of the evening that one thing was off about his staff.
By the point the evening ended, the Huskies have been observing their first shedding streak in three a long time, ending one of the vital exceptional achievements in school basketball historical past.
Chloe Marotta had 19 factors and Jordan King added 18 as Marquette defeated UConn 59-52. The Huskies, who have been enjoying three nights after an 81-77 dwelling loss to No. 1 South Carolina, dropped consecutive video games for the primary time since March 1993.
“When individuals learn that stat and so they look again, that may be a fairy-tale stat,” Auriemma stated. “And all fairy tales – they do not at all times come true – however all the pieces has an finish. So this ended right here at Marquette.”
Marquette (16-8, 9-6 Huge East) beat UConn (21-4, 13-1) for the primary time in 17 conferences.
The Golden Eagles had led UConn early within the fourth quarter at dwelling final season earlier than fading down the stretch and shedding 72-58.
This time, the Golden Eagles closed the deal, holding the Huskies to their lowest level complete of the season.
“We got here right into a huddle and we have been on the media timeout within the fourth quarter, and I used to be like, ‘We have been right here final yr. I am not watching movie on how we misplaced within the final 5 minutes,’ ” King stated. “It’s important to put 40 minutes of basketball collectively. For us, I felt we did that.”
Marquette coach Megan Duffy, who performed at Notre Dame from 2002-06, grew to become simply the third individual ever to beat an Auriemma-coached UConn staff as each a participant and a coach. The others are South Carolina’s Daybreak Staley and Villanova’s Denise Dillon.
“In some methods, I am speechless,” Duffy stated. “The subsequent emotion is I am simply extremely happy with these ladies and what they did tonight – a historic win for Marquette ladies’s basketball. We knew we have been up towards a buzzsaw with Connecticut shedding on Sunday.”
Dorka Juhasz led UConn with 15 factors. Aubrey Griffin and Lou Lopez Senechal added 12 factors every.
After lacking eight of its first 9 photographs, Marquette went on a 21-2 spurt over an eight-minute stretch to show an 8-2 deficit right into a 23-10 benefit. The Golden Eagles by no means trailed once more, although UConn briefly tied the sport within the third quarter.
King began the momentum shift by scoring 10 straight factors on her personal, together with a pair of 3-pointers.
“I feel that simply utterly and completely deflated us,” Auriemma stated. “After the week that we have had – after the ten days, two weeks, no matter – we simply, I feel mentally, all of us … I feel we simply checked out. It was a serious battle as a result of they have been so locked in, their staff, in what they needed to do.”
UConn tied the sport at 31 on an Aaliyah Edwards basket with 6:10 left within the interval. Marquette regained the lead 21 seconds afterward Marotta’s 3-pointer and carried a 39-38 edge into the ultimate quarter.
Marquette step by step constructed the lead within the ultimate interval and received forward 51-44 on a Marotta jumper with 1:35 left. UConn made its final cost by slicing the margin to 51-47 on a Juhasz 3-pointer with 1:20 remaining.
After Marquette initially struggled to get the ball inbounds and needed to name a timeout, the Golden Eagles beat the press and received the ball to Emily La Chapell for a layup with 1:15 remaining.
That began a 6-0 run that put the sport out of attain.
“I stated this to them within the locker room,” Auriemma stated. “I do not know if it was residue from Sunday, whether or not one thing in observe yesterday, one thing on the journey over, however there was a collective one thing completely different about right now.”
BIG PICTURE
UConn: Even after the Huskies dug themselves such a deep gap within the first half, UConn had purpose to consider it might put this recreation away by dominating the fourth quarter, simply because it had in final season’s recreation at Marquette. It didn’t occur. Azzi Fudd, who scored 24 factors and sparked that fourth-quarter surge in final season’s recreation at Marquette, hasn’t performed since injuring her proper knee Jan. 15 towards Georgetown.
Marquette: The Golden Eagles are on the NCAA Event bubble, so this recreation was enormous for his or her postseason hopes. Marquette now should ensure it doesn’t have any letdowns the remainder of the season.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
UConn moved up a spot within the ballot after shedding an in depth recreation to South Carolina. The Huskies determine to fall out of the highest 5 now.
HISTORIC LOSS
The Huskies had been 74-0 after shedding video games since they misplaced the consecutive video games in 1993 to Windfall within the Huge East Event semifinals and Louisville within the NCAA Mideast Regional first-round recreation.
UP NEXT
UConn: At Georgetown on Saturday.
Marquette: At Windfall on Feb. 15.
___
AP ladies’s school basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25
