For the past two decades, Connecticut's (5-0) women's basketball team has represented sheer dominance. The Huskies own the largest winning streak in college basketball history (90) and hold the best record since 1994-95 (579-43).
It would take a flawless performance from Buffalo (2-5) to upset the No. 2 team in the nation. But the Bulls didn't get that against the Huskies or the other two teams they played against in last weekend's World Vision Classic.
The Bulls were blown out by UConn, 90-34, in Gampel Pavilion on Saturday. Buffalo did fare better against its other two opponents, but lost to Dayton (3-3), 94-74, and Farleigh Dickinson (2-5), 63-54.
It looked like Buffalo was going make it a tough contest against UConn in the opening minutes. The two teams traded baskets early, and the Bulls even took a 4-2 lead. Buffalo wouldn't pose much of a threat, though, as the difference in talent proved too much to overcome.
UConn's full court pressure choked the Bulls. Buffalo turned the ball over 32 times. The defending Big East Champions capitalized off Buffalo's mistakes and scored 39 points off turnovers.
"[UConn] just executed extremely well and forced a ton of turnovers," said head coach Linda Hill-MacDonald. "We probably saw eight to 10 good minutes of basketball from Buffalo, and then the ship started to sink."
The Bulls could barely find any ways to reciprocate UConn's pressure, as the Huskies shot 47.8 percent from the field. Buffalo held down the Huskies' leading scorer, guard Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, to just two points – well below her average of 17 points per game.
However, guard Tiffany Hayes more than made up for Mosqueda-Lewis' lack of production, scoring 30 points in 30 minutes.
The Bulls were led in scoring again by senior guard Brittney Hedderson, who finished with 12 points with 6-of-15 shooting, but her teammates didn't follow her lead.
"She can't take this team on her shoulders against a team like [UConn]," Hill-MacDonald said. "Everybody else has to step up. She has done a great job of putting her team on her back, but UConn is just too strong at every position, and they basically shut her down."
Hedderson also lead her team in scoring against the other two opponents. The guard had her second straight 20-point performance in Friday's game against Dayton, scoring a game-high 22 points. She totaled 17 points against Farleigh Dickinson.
Hedderson and the Bulls couldn't overcome their competition's hot shooting and strong performance on the boards. Dayton attempted 42 shots from beyond the arc and made 15 of them. The Flyers also had four players score in double figures.
The Bulls jumped out to a solid start against Dayton, much like they did against UConn. After a pair of free throws by sophomore forward Nytor Longar gave the Bulls an 18-16 advantage, the Flyers went on a 14-0 run to take a lead they would never relinquish.
Farleigh Dickinson outrebounded the Bulls, 55-39, with 23 offensive rebounds. The extra opportunities given up directly hurt the Bulls, as the Knights' 13 second-chance points to Buffalo's five almost accounted for the final score's nine-point margin.
Buffalo was up 24-22 at the end of the first half, but the play of Knights guard Mariyah Laury and her team's strong performance from the charity stripe eventually did the Bulls in. Laury scored 28 points, with 21 of them coming in the second. Farleigh Dickinson made 23-of-27 free throws in the second half to put the Bulls away.
The teams Buffalo faced were top-notch, and Hill-MacDonald hopes that her team will only grow from the experience.
"I think we learned a lot about ourselves and the things we need to work on," Hill-Macdonald said. "I think that really opened our eyes to what it's like to play on the next level."
The Bulls will return to Alumni Arena on Wednesday after losing four straight road games. They will host Wright State (3-1) and tip-off is scheduled for noon.
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Photo: Courtesy of UB Athletics
