No. 1 Connecticut 86, Sacred Heart 32

No. 1 Connecticut 86, Sacred Heart 32

Published Dec. 5, 2010 9:27 p.m. ET

Maya Moore made quick work of Connecticut's career scoring record.

Moore scored 17 points Sunday as top-ranked UConn routed Sacred Heart 86-32 to win its 86th consecutive game. Her 2,355 career points, just eight games into her senior season, break the record of 2,346 set by Tina Charles last season.

The senior All-American hit 8 of 9 shots while playing just 21 minutes.

''It was done in the context of helping the team win,'' coach Geno Auriemma said. ''As opposed to scoring a lot of points, and then wishing your team had one more championships.''

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Tiffany Hayes led UConn (8-0) with 18 points, while Bria Hartley and Samarie Walker added 11 apiece. Callan Taylor scored 11 points to lead Sacred Heart (3-4).

The Huskies are on track to tie the UCLA men's all-time Division I winning streak of 88 games on Dec. 19 against Ohio State in New York, and could break it two days later in Hartford against Florida State.

Moore came into the game needing nine points to break the points record, and it didn't take her long to get them. She tied the mark on a tip-in just over 7 minutes into the game and broke it on a short jumper 27 seconds later, giving the Huskies a 23-5 lead.

The crowd immediately gave her a standing ovation, which lasted until Sacred Heart called a timeout after Hayes make a layup the next time down the floor.

''I'm happy that it was able to happen at home for (the fans) to celebrate like that,'' Moore said. ''In the stats, they should get one of my assists, because it was during that ovation that I found Tiffany under the goal right before the timeout. That was just really fun.''

Moore hit her first eight shots and had 15 at halftime, helping UConn to a 57-16 lead.

Charles, who was celebrating her birthday Sunday, sent Moore a message before the game.

''I'm allowed to score but I can't get any more rebounds,'' Moore said.

Moore needs 346 more to pass Charles' rebounding record.

The Huskies hit 20 of their first 25 shots, shot 74 percent from the field before intermission and 59 percent for the game. Everyone on Connecticut's bench played by the end of the first half.

Connecticut never trailed, opening with a 15-2 run that was capped by a Bria Hartley's 3-pointer. The Huskies dominated the boards, outrebounding Sacred Heart 50 to 14. Kelly Faris had 10 rebounds to go with her five points.

Sacred Heart hit just 11 field goals, and shot 22 percent from the field.

''Just the energy that (Auriemma) has them playing with on defense, it takes you out of a lot of things you want to do,'' Sacred Heart coach Ed Swanson said.

Connecticut hasn't let a team shoot better than 50 percent from the field since Boston College did it on March 8, 2004. UConn has been winning by an average of over 32 points per game during its winning streak, and only 10 opponents have lost by 10 points or fewer.

Sacred Heart got its first win over a major-conference opponent when it beat Auburn 65-53 on Nov. 26. This was just the second game ever between Connecticut and the Pioneers. UConn won the other meeting in the 2006-07 season 82-40.

UConn is now 26-0 against instate opponents under Auriemma.

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