No. 1 Connecticut Routs Northridge

Jessica Moore, a 6-foot-3 redshirt freshman, scored a career-high 21 points in her first collegiate start Thursday night to lead top-ranked Connecticut to a 101-44 rout of Cal State Northridge at Storrs, Conn.

The Huskies (12-0) cruised from the opening tip against the overmatched Matadors (0-8). Moore scored her first eight points in just under five minutes. Her layup with 15:18 left in the first half gave Connecticut a 17-4 lead.

The Huskies scored 12 points in the final three minutes of the half to take a 54-21 lead at the break.

The second half was much of the same. Asjha Jones scored nine of her 20 points in the first six minutes of the half for a 69-29 lead.

The Matadors didn’t have many answers for the Huskies, especially in the post. The Huskies outscored the Matadors, 64-10, in the paint.

Denise Cardenas led the Matadors with 19 points and Jenny Shetters added 16.

The lopsided loss was one more bump in what has been a tumultuous year for the Matadors. Head coach Frozena Jerro quit on Dec. 8, leaving coaching duties to two first-year assistants--Ken Turner and Paula Nirschl-Montgomery.

“It’s been a tough year in a sense that a lot of changes had to be made quickly, but it allowed us to kind of get on the same page. It took away the excuses. We might as well make the most of the rest of the season,” Turner said.

He said playing the top team in the nation can give the Matadors confidence going into conference play in the Big West.

“We realized we were overmatched, but nobody was scared and that’s the most you can ask for as an athlete,” he said.

No. 2 Tennessee 89, No. 9 Duke 68--Reserve Gwen Jackson had 20 points and 10 rebounds as the Lady Vols overpowered Duke in the second half at Atlanta.

Kara Lawson added 19 points for the Lady Vols (9-0).

Tennessee led by nine at halftime, but pulled away by holding the Blue Devils (9-3) to two points in an eight-minute span of the second half. It was their first meeting since the Blue Devils’ upset victory in the 1999 NCAA tournament that ended the Lady Vols’ three-year national championship run.

Alana Beard led Duke with 18 points.

Tennessee never trailed, and the score was tied only once.

No. 10 Georgia 69, Georgia Tech 52--Kara Braxton had 22 points and 11 rebounds at Atlanta as Georgia beat Georgia Tech for the 24th consecutive time.

Georgia (9-0) trailed once in the first half and fell behind by five early in the second half before rallying.

Georgia Tech (6-4) didn’t score for the next five minutes, and the Bulldogs took control with 10 points in that span.

Niesha Butler scored 14 of her 15 points in the first half for Georgia Tech.

The Yellow Jackets pulled within 48-45 with 5:58 left, but they couldn’t overcome another dry spell. An 11-2 run gave Georgia a 12-point lead and effectively ended the game.