STORRS, Conn. -- Connecticut Coach Geno Auriemma said he would rather still be coaching against the late Pat Summitt than moving past her on the all-time wins list.
The Huskies routed Butler 103-35 on Tuesday, giving Auriemma his 1,099th win. The victory leaves him just behind Stanford's Tara VanDerveer (1,105) and gives him one more than his former rival, Summitt, who died in 2016 at the age of 64. It comes just two days before the Huskies visit Knoxville to take on the Lady Volunteers.
"I wish she were still coaching and I wish I had to work a lot harder to catch her," Auriemma said. "It's ironic that it plays out the way it played out, because to be honest with you, I didn't think I'd be coaching long enough to be in this position."
Olivia Nelson-Ododa led a balanced attack with 18 points for the Huskies, who were playing for the first time in 10 days. Christyn Williams (Central Arkansas Christian) and Aubrey Griffin, who made her first start, each scored 17 points for unbeaten UConn (8-0, 7-0 Big East).
Tennessee transfer Evina Wesbrook chipped in with 14 points and freshman Paige Bueckers had 13 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds and 4 steals.
Okako Adika scored 18 points for Butler (1-9, 1-8), despite spending most of the game in foul trouble, and Genesis Parker added 15 points.
The Huskies led 25-15 after a quarter, then used a stifling defense to hold Butler to just 20 points the rest of the game.
Williams stole an inbounds pass and hit a layup just before the halftime buzzer to give the Huskies a 45-20 lead. Adika had 14 of Butler's 20 first-half points, but she also picked up three fouls.
The Huskies then outscored Butler 58-15 in the second half.
"I think it's just a mindset that we came out with, especially out of halftime," Nelson-Ododa said. "Going into the third quarter, we just really focused on not letting them get easy buckets."
Williams was coming off her worst game at UConn, going scoreless and playing just 14 minutes in an 87-50 win over Providence on Jan. 9.
"I'm not going to ever let that happen again," she said.
NO. 23 SYRACUSE 88,
NORTH CAROLINA 76
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Kiara Lewis scored 10 of her 23 points in Syracuse's 27-9 fourth quarter, freshman Tiana Mangakahia had 19 points and 13 assists, and the No. 23 Orange rallied past North Carolina.
Emily Engstler closed the third quarter with a three-pointer to pull Syracuse within 67-61, and Mangakahia capped a 7-0 run to open the fourth to give the Orange the lead. North Carolina was within 80-76 with 4:48 remaining, but did not score again.
Mangakahia and Engstler, who had 11 points and 13 rebounds, each had a double-double for the second consecutive game. Kamilla Cardoso added 10 points, a career-high 16 boards and 4 blocks, and Priscilla Williams also scored 11 points with 9 rebounds for Syracuse (7-1, 4-1 ACC).
Janelle Bailey led North Carolina (7-5, 2-5) with 22 points. Stephanie Watts had 15 points. Alyssa Ustby scored 13 points. The Tar Heels handed Syracuse its only loss of the season, 92-68, on Dec. 17.
NO. 24 IOWA STATE 64, OKLAHOMA 63
AMES, Iowa -- Ashley Joens had 32 points and a season-high 16 rebounds, and her go-ahead layup with 10.2 seconds left helped No. 24 Iowa State get past shorthanded Oklahoma.
The Cyclones (10-4, 6-1 Big 12 Conference) have won eight of their last nine, including a 75-71 victory on Saturday over then sixth-ranked Baylor to snap the Bears' 61-game home winning streak.
Joens pulled the Cyclones to 63-62 with 21 seconds left and her game winner followed a Sooners' turnover on a charging call. After an Oklahoma timeout, Navaeh Tot and Tatum Veitenheimer each missed shots to end it.
It was the Cyclones' first lead since 51-50, coming with 3:05 to play in the third quarter.
Joens was 13-of-25 shooting, with 21 points coming in the first half. Lexi Donarski added 11 pints for the Cyclones.
Taylor Robertson scored 21 of her 26 points in the first half and finished 8 of 15 from long range to lead Oklahoma (4-6, 1-4), which played its first game since Jan. 6. Gabby Gregory added 12 points and Madi Williams had 11. The Sooners only dressed eight players.