Wake Forest Wake Forest/Connecticut UConn Women's College Basketball recap on ESPN

STORRS, Conn. (AP) -- Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma got a game ball during pre-game festivities Friday to commemorate his 400th win earned earlier this month.

Wake Forest would rather forget his 401st.

Auriemma's Huskies (8-0) dominated the Demon Deacons from wire-to-wire in 107-52 victory.

"Well, our team just had a UConn experience...and it was an experience," Wake coach Charlene Curtis said.

Svetlana Abrosimova scored 16 points and Tamika Williams had four of UConn's 19 steals in the win.

The game was a homecoming for Curtis, a former UConn assistant from 1995-97.

"It felt good because Geno already agreed to come out to our place next year. Hopefully, it won't be this kind of margin. They're so active with their hands and they come after you. It's like they're hunting meat and the meat is the ball."

The Huskies turned the game into a 40-minute feeding frenzy.

They forced the visitors into 16 first-half turnovers. UConn, meanwhile, played surehanded ball for most of the period and didn't commit a turnover in the first nine minutes.

Eight players contributed to UConn's opening 27-7 run in the first eight minutes. The overmatched Demon Deacons (7-3) stumbled into foul trouble early and UConn was shooting bonus free throws with just six minutes gone. The Huskies had a 49-25 lead at halftime.

UConn shifted into offensive high gear in the second half, shooting 76 percent. By the time reserve Christine Rigby banked in a shot to give UConn a 91-43 lead at 6:09, the Huskies had made 14 of their first 17 shots and finished out the period 19-for-25.

Defensively, all but three Huskies had steals as UConn scored 41 points off 28 Wake Forest turnovers. Sue Bird and and Shea Ralph each had three steals.

The Huskies' last game was Dec. 12. If there was any rust on the defending national champs Friday, it didn't show.

"It's very rare that I worry about our effort," said Auriemma. "I worry about if we executed and if we're going to be distracted by final exams and Christmas. If we could schedule the toughest team for today's game we would because that would keep our focus during practices this week."

UConn's toughest test may be just a week away when the Huskies play No. 2 Tennessee in Hartford on Dec. 30.

"I've been around a long time and I know you don't have to overstress playing Tennessee," said Bird, a junior. "We know what we have to do and we have to show the younger (players) what to do."

Williams, who also had eight points and four rebounds, helped anchor UConn's post game that outscored Wake Forest 46-14.

"We needed to do that, especially going into this next game with Tennessee. They rebound a lot," said Williams. "It's going to be a war in the lane, just like last year."

The Huskies got another big boost from the bench. Freshman reserve Diana Taurasi had 13 points and a team-high five rebounds. Kennitra Johnson had 12 points and two steals in just 13 minutes.

The game also marked the return of UConn center Kelly Schumacher, who sat out six games with a stress fracture in her right leg. The 6-foot-5 Schumacher had NCAA-best nine blocks in last season's title game against Tennessee. In 15 minutes Friday, she scored eight points, had three rebounds and one block.

Eafton Hill led Wake Forest with 11 points and Kristen Shaffer added 11. Brenda Kirkpatrick led the Demon Deacons with six rebounds.

"You have to experience playing against the team to truly understand how good they are, so I didn't say to the team that we couldn't win this game," Curtis said. "But we have to make sure this is a positive experience when we walk off the court."

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Women's College Basketball Scoreboard

Wake Forest Clubhouse

Connecticut Clubhouse