No. 2 Connecticut 85, San Diego St. 53

12/22/2007 1:20 AM

SAN DIEGO (AP) -Despite a lopsided victory, Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma found little to like about his team's win.

Renee Montgomery scored 14 of her 19 points in the first half and Brittany Hunter added 14 points to lead No. 2 Connecticut to an 58-53 rout of San Diego State on Friday night.

But Auriemma was dissatisfied about the performance of his undefeated team.

``If it wasn't so chilly out there,'' Auriemma said, ``I would have gone outside, had a cigar, sat on the bus and waited for the game to end. I didn't want to watch it anymore. It got to a point where it was unwatchable.''

Connecticut (9-0) scored the first seven points and took a 23-8 lead just more than six minutes into the game as it remained one of six undefeated teams in the country. The Huskies hit nine of their first 13 shots.

But Connecticut also committed 28 turnovers in a game that Auriemma described as ``bizzare and weird.'' He noted that the teams combined for 53 baskets compared to a combined 51 turnovers.

``It didn't look good,'' he said. ``It was bad and sloppy. Both teams were playing ugly basketball.''

San Diego State (8-2) shot only 31.7 percent from the field and turned the ball over 23 times.

The Huskies were playing without junior guard Kalana Greene, who suffered a torn ligament in her right knee during Monday night's 97-39 win over South Carolina. She was replaced in the starting lineup by freshman Maya Moore, who finished with 12 points and six assists.

Moore started her first game after leading the team in scoring coming off the bench. She became the first freshman in UConn history to open the season with nine straight games in double figures.

``We can't continue for the rest of the season for (Greene) to be a loss,'' Montgomery said. ``We have to make things better after a while.''

Connecticut used its size advantage inside with the 6-foot-3 Hunter and 6-4 Tina Charles to score 42 points in the paint. Hunter was perfect on the night, hitting all six of her field-goal attempts and going 4-for-4 from the line. Charles finished with 12 points and three blocked shots.

``They were so much bigger than we were,'' San Diego State coach Beth Burns said. ``I'm not ashamed at all. I thought we competed hard.''

Montgomery made four 3-pointers to lead Connecticut, which held a 49-23 halftime lead.

``When she decides she's going to be the best player on the floor, then she is,'' Auriemma said. ``There's not much anyone can do to stop her.

The game was never close as San Diego State shot 9-of-34 (26.5 percent) in the first half. The Aztecs were outrebounded in the game 53-25, and Charles led all rebounders with 11.

Connecticut appeared to be on the way to one of its biggest wins of the season, but the Aztecs played slightly better in the second half, hitting 37.9 percent of their shots.

Freshman Paris Johnson was the only San Diego State player in double figures with 14 points. But her night was indicative of the Aztecs' struggles, making only five of 15 shots.

The loss snapped the Aztecs' five-game winning streak.

Mel Thomas scored 13 points for Connecticut, which entered the game leading the nation in six categories. The Huskies fell below their national-leading averages in scoring margin and scoring defense but exceeded its season average by making 54.1 percent of its shots.

The lure of the one of the most prestigious women's college basketball programs drew a record crowd of 5,271 to Cox Arena. But the Huskies made sure that the home crowd had little to cheer about.