Connecticut a win away from a perfect season

One more game, and Connecticut has the perfect finish.

All those others who would stand in their way? They’re not even close.

Renee Montgomery scored 26 points, Maya Moore had 24, and unbeaten Connecticut cruised to its first title game in five years with an 83-64 victory over Stanford on Sunday night.

The outcome never in doubt, Connecticut overwhelmed Stanford, crushing the latest challenger to the Huskies’ bid for a third undefeated season and sixth national championship.

Connecticut will face Louisville for the title Tuesday night, setting up the first all-Big East final in NCAA women’s basketball history.

UConn (38-0) already has routed Louisville twice this season, including dismantling the Cardinals, 75-36, in the Big East tournament championship game in early March.

“They’re not the same team,” Connecticut Coach Geno Auriemma said. “Once you get into the NCAA tournament, your team changes.”

The Huskies have made almost everyone look silly this season, winning by nearly 31 points a game and not allowing a team to come within single digits.

With an imposing lineup that featured five starters over 6 feet, Stanford (33-5) was supposed to challenge Connecticut. The Cardinal was the last team to beat Connecticut, knocking it out of the Final Four last season.

That challenge didn’t last long -- just like most of the other ranked teams UConn has faced this season.

Jayne Appel finished with 26 points for Stanford, but she had little help. Nnemkadi Ogwumike had 12 points and 12 rebounds and Kayla Pedersen scored 10 points.

Connecticut had perfect seasons in 1994-95 and 2001-02. The Huskies entered the NCAA tournament unbeaten in 1997 but fell to Tennessee in a regional final.

Louisville 61, Oklahoma 59 -- Angel McCoughtry scored 14 of her 18 points in the second half and grabbed 11 rebounds, helping the Cardinals crawl out of an early hole to beat the Sooners and end Courtney Paris’ stellar career.

Down 12 points at halftime, Louisville got back into the game with a 15-1 run while the Sooners’ shooting went south -- only 26.9% in the second half. Still, Oklahoma had a chance to win it in the final seconds with Nyeshia Stevenson’s good look on a three-point attempt, but the ball rattled out.

Keshia Hines added 10 rebounds and nine points for the Cardinals (34-4).

The four-time All-American Paris had promised to pay back the cost of her four-year scholarship if the Sooners failed to win the title. She had 14 points and 16 rebounds, and left the court in tears after exchanging hugs with McCoughtry and huddling with her team for a final time. Oklahoma finished 32-5.