Sarah Strong had 18 points, including the 1,000th of her career, as top-ranked UConn beat Notre Dame 85-47 on Monday and extended its winning streak to 19 games.
Strong added 11 rebounds, three steals and three blocked shots the Huskies (19-0) snapped a three-game losing streak against Notre Dame.
KK Arnold had 12 points, five assists, two steals and one turnover while drawing the defensive assignment on Notre Dame star Hannah Hidalgo. Azzi Fudd added 15 points and Ashlynn Shade finished with 10 points and four assists as UConn won its 35th consecutive game and posted its largest margin of victory against the Fighting Irish.
Hidalgo, who averaged 31.5 points in the previous two games against UConn, had 16 points on 5-of-15 shooting for her 85th straight game of scoring in double figures. Cassandra Prosper added 12 points for Notre Dame (12-6).
UConn used an 18-2 run in the third quarter to break the game open.
Notre Dame missed its first seven shots and the Huskies jumped out to an early eight-point lead. A basket by Arnold gave the Huskies their first double-digit point lead late in the first quarter.
Hidalgo was held scoreless in the first quarter. With UConn up 25-11, Hidalgo scored 10 of the final 12 points in the second quarter as Notre Dame cut its deficit to 32-23 by the break and became the first team this season to be trailing by less than double digits going into the second half against UConn.
Strong scored her 1,000th career point on a 3-pointer with 7:31 left in the first half. She hit the milestone in 59 games. Paige Bueckers and Maya Moore are the only Huskies to reach the milestone in fewer games.
KK Bransford hasn’t played since a Dec. 11 win over Morehead State. That left Notre Dame playing three starters at least 36 minutes.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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