No. 5 UConn beats South Florida to advance to 7th straight AAC final
UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) Megan Walker scored 21 points and No. 5 UConn beat South Florida 79-38 on Sunday to earn a chance at its seventh straight American Athletic Conference tournament title.
Christyn Williams added 15 points and Crystal Dangerfield had 13 in the semifinal win for the Huskies (28-3). Connecticut improved to 20-0 all-time in AAC tournament play after finishing 118-0 during the conference's seven regular seasons.
The Huskies are leaving the conference to return to the Big East next season.
Elena Tsineke had nine points to lead South Florida (19-13), which suffered its second blowout loss to the Huskies in less than a week. UConn won 80-39 on Monday in Hartford.
UConn never trailed. The Huskies held South Florida to a single field goal on 13 shots in the first quarter and led 18-5 after 10 minutes.
They built the lead to 38-17 at the half, dominating in the paint, where the Huskies outscored the Bulls 19-2 and 32-10 in the game.
Walker had 12 of her points before intermission and UConn scored 13 first-half points off 14 USF turnovers.
That defensive performance came after UConn held USF to 14 first-half points while forcing 15 turnovers in Monday's win.
The Bulls didn't get their first basket of the second half for more than six minutes. The jumper by Tamera Henshaw made the deficit 51-19. It was 56-22 after the third quarter.
UConn held South Florida to just 12 baskets on 58 shots (21 percent)
The Huskies did lose senior Kyla Irwin to injury. The reserve forward went down going for an offensive rebound in the third quarter and landed hard on her left arm. She was taken to the locker room and did not return.
BIG PICTURE
USF: The Bulls have made it to at least the semifinals of the AAC tournament in all seven years of its existence. They've lost to UConn in the finals four times, and were also beaten by the Huskies in last year's semifinals.
UConn: The Huskies will be playing Monday for their 12th conference tournament championship in the last 13 seasons. They last lost a conference tournament game in 2013, when they were beaten by Notre Dame.
UP NEXT
USF: The Bulls await a possible postseason bid.
UConn: The Huskies will play either UCF or Cincinnati for the title on Monday night.