Griffin leads No. 5 UConn over No. 21 Villanova, 63-58

Updated Jan. 29, 2023 4:34 p.m. ET

Associated Press

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Aubrey Griffin scored 19 points, and No. 5 UConn topped No. 21 Villanova 63-58 on Sunday.

Dorka Juhasz added 16 points and Aaliyah Edwards had 13, including some key free throws for the Huskies (20-2, 12-0 Big East) in the team's 13th straight win.

Maddy Siegrist scored 25 points for Villanova, which won here a year ago to hand the Huskies their last conference loss. Lucy Olsen had 19.

The Wildcats (18-4, 9-2) had won nine in a row.

The Wildcats led 51-45 with eight minutes left, but UConn went on a 15-4 run for a 60-55 advantage with 51 seconds left.

Lucy Olson's 3-pointer made it a two-point game with 22 seconds left. But Edwards hit three late free throws to secure the win.

Siegrist gave Villanova the lead at 34-33 on a pair of free throws, part of a 12-0 run. The Wildcats outscored the Huskies 15-10 in the third quarter and led 45-43 going into the fourth.

Griffin put the Huskies back in front with a three-point play on a driving layup with 3:48 left in the game.

BIG PICTURE

Villanova: Siegrist has scored 20 or more points in every one of the Wildcats' games this season. She came into the game leading the nation in scoring at 28.5 points per game.

UConn: UConn was again without guards Caroline Ducharme, who has missed the Huskies' last nine games with a concussion, and Azzi Fudd, who has missed 13 games this season after twice injuring her right knee. Former national player of the year Paige Bueckers and freshman Ice Brady were lost for the season with knee injuries.

UP NEXT

Villanova: Returns home to host Marquette on Wednesday.

UConn: Visits Providence on Wednesday. It's the finale tune-up for the Huskies before their showdown next Sunday with top-ranked South Carolina.

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AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25