STORRS, Conn. — UConn is the No.1 team in the nation and the defending national champion, yet the Huskies went into Saturday’s matchup with No. 4 Marquette coveting something the Golden Eagles won a year ago: a Big East championship.
Donovan Clingan had 17 points and 10 rebounds to help the Huskies to an 81-53 rout of Marquette and control of the conference race.
“We were just trying to prove who we are, and we’re just trying to win,” Clingan said.
It was a historic blowout; UConn’s 28-point margin of victory was the largest in an AP Top-5 conference matchup in poll history, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.
Tristen Newton added 15 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists for the Huskies (24-2, 14-1), who have won 14 straight games. Cam Spencer and Hassan Diarra each added 14 points.
Kam Jones scored 15 points and Oso Ighodaro had 14 for Marquette (19-6, 10-4), which came into the game with an eight-game winning streak.
The Huskies now lead the second-place Golden Eagles in the Big East by three games in the loss column with five to play.
The Huskies led by 16 points after a strong defensive first half and 18 after a putback by Newton to open the second half.
They took a 21-point lead at 51-30 after an offensive rebound by Newton, who fed Clingan for an emphatic dunk through the lane. UConn built its lead to as many as 29 points in the second half.
“You play elite offense, you play elite defense and you’re a great rebounding team and you play harder than the opponent, it doesn’t give them a lot of places to go,” UConn coach Dan Hurley said.
The score was tied at 18 before UConn took control. The Huskies held Marquette without a field goal for almost four minutes, went on a 13-0 run late in the half and went into the break leading 42-26.
The teams will meet again on March 6 in Milwaukee.
“What we need to do better the next time we play UConn? It’s like Santa Claus’ list that unfolds,” Marquette coach Shaka Smart said. “But I think starting with that we have to play with more of a level of violence and toughness about us. They had that edge today.”
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
