Another rout, title for Huskies
WOMEN'S NCAA BASKETBALL | UCONN 76, LOUISVILLE 54
ST. LOUIS -- With one final blowout, UConn grabbed the national title and a piece of basketball history.
Tina Charles had 25 points and grabbed 19 rebounds Tuesday night as Connecticut routed Louisville 76-54 and captured the Huskies' sixth national championship.
It wasn't just that Connecticut claimed another title. It was how they did it.
UConn won every one of its 39 games by double digits, an unprecedented run in college basketball.
Charles was the star of the last big win. She commanded both ends of the floor and Louisville, which lost to UConn for the third time this season, had no one who could stop her.
Coach Geno Auriemma had said before the tournament that his junior center would be the key to UConn winning the title. A year after he benched her in the NCAAs for inconsistent play, Charles delivered.
She was 11-for-13 from the field, and fell just one rebound short of becoming only the second player ever in a championship game to have at least 20 points and 20 rebounds. Charles was named the outstanding player of the Final Four.
Maya Moore and Renee Montgomery each added 18 points for the Huskies.
Angel McCoughtry finished off her stellar career for Louisville (34-5) with 23 points. The Cardinals shot 31 percent from the floor.
NOTE: For the first time since 1992, the championship game was not a sellout. Scalpers waved reams of tickets outside the Scottrade Center about an hour before the game.
''Certainly, to break that streak is sad," said Sue Donohoe, vice president for Division I women's basketball. ''But we're understanding of the economy and people need to do what they're going to do.''
AP