Breanna Stewart has double-double; UConn back to winning ways

STORRS, Conn. -- Top-ranked UConn does not lose often, but the Huskies are pretty good about bouncing back when they do.

Breanna Stewart scored 25 points and added 10 rebounds to lead UConn (2-1) to a 96-60 rout of Creighton on Sunday, six days after the Huskies' 47-game winning streak was snapped in a loss to Stanford. Stewart hit all 10 of her shots for UConn, which hasn't lost consecutive games since 1993.

"We wanted to get back to Connecticut basketball, so we were excited to get on the court and we were having fun out there," she said.

In her first start, UConn freshman Kia Nurse scored 22 points. And Morgan Tuck, who played just eight games last season before having major reconstructive surgery on her right knee, finished with 15 points.

Marissa Janning, last season's Big East Player of the Year, paced Creighton (2-2) with 15 points, and Alexis Akin-Otiko added 12 points.

UConn never trailed, scored the first nine points and led by 21 at halftime. In the second half, a 3-pointer by Nurse capped an 11-0 run to make it 64-34, and the Huskies cruised from there.

Coach Geno Auriemma said Nurse came into this game with a chip on her shoulder, having scored just nine points before fouling out against Stanford on Monday.

"We've encouraged her to find her offense," Auriemma said.

The Huskies came into the game at .500 -- the first time in a decade since losing the second game of the 2004-05 season to North Carolina.

UConn pressed the Bluejays early, scoring 17 points in the first half on 11 Creighton turnovers.

UConn outscored Creighton 44-8 in the paint and shot 55 percent from the floor, holding Creighton to 35 percent.

The Bluejays tried to stay in the game by shooting from the outside.

"We weren't going to score in the post," said Creighton coach Jim Flanery. "We're not big enough and they're too long. We were going to have to make a lot of 3s."

They were successful initially. The first three Creighton baskets came on 3-pointers and the Bluejays made five of their first seven shots from behind the arc to stay within 10 points at 27-17. But they went 1 for 7 from 3-point range the rest of the half, and finished 13 of 30.

The 13 made 3-pointers tied a record for the most made against the Huskies.

Janning, who was guarded by Nurse, made just two of her 12 first-half shots.

Creighton also had no answer for Tuck, who had 14 points in helping UConn to a 49-28 lead at halftime.

"I felt fine physically," Tuck said. "Everything feels good. I think everything was just clicking for us in the first half."

UConn freshman Gabby Williams had 10 of her 11 points in the second half, and Moriah Jefferson added 10 points and six assists.

The Huskies now have gone 775 games without losing twice in a row and is 57-0 after a loss during that streak.

TIP-INS

UConn: The Huskies played without preseason All-American Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, who has been suffering from flu-like symptoms for the past few days. Freshman Courtney Ekmark will miss the next four to six weeks with a stress reaction in her right foot.

Creighton: This was the Bluejays' first game against a top-ranked opponent. They are now 4-21 against ranked teams under Flanery, who is in his 13th season.

RING DAY: Members of the 2013-14 national championship team received their rings in a pre-game ceremony. Stefanie Dolson and Bria Hartley, now playing professionally overseas, were not there, but Hartley's mother accepted the rings on their behalf.

HOME-COURT ADVANTAGE: UConn is now 29-1 in home openers under Auriemma, and has won its last 22.

UP NEXT

UConn heads to Florida where the Huskies will face the College of Charleston in the Gulf Coast Showcase on Friday.

Creighton plays their second consecutive American Athletic Conference opponent, heading to the Cal Classic for a game against Cincinnati on Friday.