DALLAS -- Winning 91 in a row -- that's nice.

Now Geno Auriemma and his UConn Huskies can focus on the real goal -- a return to Dallas to play for a fifth straight national championship.

UConn broke its own NCAA record with its 91st consecutive victory Saturday with an 88-48 romp over SMU after scoring the game's first 21 points.

"Even afterward, there's a feeling of accomplishment -- they feel like they've done something significant," Auriemma said. "But there isn't this over-the-top screaming and yelling as if we just won a national championship."

While the Huskies have stayed on an even keel, Auriemma told them the streak "was maybe more significant than winning a national championship.''

UConn (16-0, 4-0 American Athletic Conference) broke the record of 90 consecutive wins that Auriemma's team first held more than six years ago. UConn matched that mark with a 65-point rout of No. 20 South Florida last Tuesday.

"I'm not taking for granted at all this is one of the coolest things I've ever been a part of," Katie Lou Samuelson said. "Now we can really just focus each game at a time and not have to worry [about] anything if we're keeping it up or not."

The four-time defending national champion Huskies haven't lost a game since falling in overtime at sixth-ranked Stanford on Nov. 17, 2014.

Their first 90-game winning streak broke the Division I record of 88 straight wins by the UCLA men's basketball team and famed coach John Wooden. That UConn streak also started after a loss to Stanford, in the 2008 national semifinal game, and ended with another loss at Stanford on Dec. 30, 2010.

While the Huskies don't play Stanford in this regular season, they do have wins over second-ranked Baylor, third-ranked Maryland and sixth-ranked Notre Dame -- the latter two on the road.

Auriemma said his team's focus has been on getting in position for another national title shot.

"All of sudden you wake up one day, like today, and you realize that along that way, I can't believe we did this," he said. "It's a lot, 91 games is a lot."

Samuelson scored 28 points, one short of her career high, on 11-of-21 shooting with five 3-pointers. Napheesa Collier added 19 points and a career-high 16 rebounds for UConn, while Gabby Williams also had a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds, along with six assists.

Alicia Froling, a junior from Australia, led SMU (10-7, 1-3) with 16 points and 12 rebounds.

"What a very, very good team," first-year SMU coach Travis Mays said. "I hear people say at the beginning of the year UConn was supposed to have a down year. ... That's a program that has championship pedigree, and the culture is there. You go there, they just plug you in and they keep on winning."

Big picture

UConn: With another NCAA record in hand, the real focus for the Huskies is getting back to Dallas in about 2 1/2 months for the Final Four and going for their 12th national championship. The national semifinal games are March 31 at the American Airlines Center, the home of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks, which is about 5 miles from the SMU campus.

SMU: The Lady Mustangs clearly were overwhelmed by UConn, but so are most other teams. But this game is no measure of the progress being made under Mays, who worked under three Hall of Fame coaches before his first head-coaching job. SMU went into the game with the league's best field goal defense (35.6 percent) while allowing 58 points a game, third among the 11 AAC teams.

Dominant numbers

UConn is 58-0 in American Athletic games in its four seasons since joining that league, plus nine more wins while sweeping through the conference tournament each of the past three seasons. ... SMU is 0-7 against UConn and had lost the first six by an average margin of 51 points. ... The Huskies have won 118 consecutive games against unranked opponents over the past five years, and they have won 293 of the past 294 such games.

Staying in Dallas

Before going to Tulsa for their next game, the Huskies are staying in Dallas. They will go to the Mavericks game on Sunday. After that, long-suffering Philadelphia Eagles fan Auriemma said his team "will be required to sit and root for the Packers against the Cowboys." He said anyone he sees smiling even "a little bit" about the Cowboys will be running sprints.

Up next

UConn goes for its 92nd consecutive victory at Tulsa on Tuesday night, then the Huskies go home to play Tulane on Jan. 22.

After three straight losses, SMU plays three of its next four games on the road. The Mustangs go to Cincinnati on Tuesday night.</s>DALLAS (AP) UConn women’s basketball wins 91st straight game, breaking own NCAA record with 88-48 win over SMU.</s>Geno Auriemma has been the head coach of the University of Connecticut’s women’s basketball team for 31 years. The high standards he holds his team to, both on and off the court, have created the definition of dominance in college basketball. Over the course of his time at UCONN, Auriemma has earned 11 national championships with a record fourth-straight national title in 2016. Auriemma not only cares about his team’s performance on the court but off the court as well where he carries a 100% graduation rate among all of his four-year players.

Today Auriemma’s team not only continued their undefeated streak this season but won their 91 straight game. With this win the current UCONN huskies team have beaten the previously held record of 90 straight wins. The previous record was also held by the UCONN huskies from 2008-2010 during the era of star players, Maya Moore and Tina Charles.

This current record began in 2014, four years after the previous record was stopped, when the team was being lead by four-time NCAA Basketball Tournament Most Outstanding Player: Breanna Stewart. Stewart also was able to rely on teammates Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck throughout their time at UCONN. Upon graduation Stewart, Jefferson and Tuck were the top three picks in the WNBA draft.

After losing their top three players last year, many were skeptical as to how long this team would be able to hold on to the win streak. With Kia Nurse and Gabby Williams being the only two starters returning this season, even Auriemma has admitted that he did not believe they would be able to continue the streak to this point and that he had set up their schedule in order to be beaten. However, game after game this team has proven him wrong and continued to win.

With close games against Florida State, Baylor and Maryland there were numerous times that UCONN proved their dominance on the court. Lead by Nurse, Williams and sophomores Katie Lou Samuelson and Napheesa Collier the team has been able to beat all of their opponents by an average of 38.3 points per game. The huskies average 87.6 points per game this season.

With a 88-48 win over Southern Methodist University, the huskies have officially claimed the title of the longest win streak in NCAA history for both men’s and women’s basketball. Samuelson lead the team with a total of 28 points followed by Collier and Williams with 19 points each. Collier and Williams also came up strong defensively with 26 rebounds between the two.

After the game when asked what sets UCONN apart from other teams, Nurse responded with “The way we work.”. The way Auriemma runs his practices and works his team is what sets the UCONN women apart from every other college team. He pushes them to keep playing their hardest no matter what the score is and that is what will prepare them for March.

The huskies look to continue their streak at Tulsa on Tuesday, January 17 with 91 wins and counting.</s>STORRS, Conn. — UConn’s women’s basketball team is on the verge of winning its 91st straight game, which would break its own NCAA Division I record that was set between 2008 and 2010. The Huskies play Saturday at SMU, a team that is 10-6 and just lost to Tulane. UConn’s streak ranks among the most impressive in sports, but there are plenty of others. Here’s a look at some of them:

UConn’s women don’t own the longest winning streak in college sports history, or even in the state of Connecticut. That streak belongs to the Trinity men’s squash team. The Bantams won 252 consecutive matches, including 13 national championships, between February 1998 and January, 2012, when they lost to rival Yale.

The Huskies also don’t own the longest streak in women’s college basketball. Wayland Baptist in Plainview, Texas, won 131 straight between 1953 and 1958, when the Flying Queens finally lost in the AAU national semifinals to their rivals, the Nashville Business College. Their streak included four straight AAU national championships.

UConn’s streaks are most often compared to the 88-game benchmark put up by John Wooden and the UCLA men between 1971 and 1974. There are parallels. Both programs are considered the best in the history of their sport. UCLA won 10 titles during the Wooden era. UConn and Auriemma have 11. UCLA won the final three of its seven consecutive titles during the winning streak. UConn has won four straight, two during the streak.

Oklahoma went more than three seasons without losing or tying a game. Their 47 consecutive wins between 1953 and 1957 is seven games longer than the second longest major college football streak, put up by Washington between 1908 and 1914. Alabama, by comparison, won 26 straight before losing to Clemson on Monday.

New England won 21 straight games between October 2003 and October 2004, including two playoff games and a Super Bowl (32-29 over Carolina). The Patriots’ streak was broken in 2004 by Pittsburgh. But the Patriots recovered to go 14-2 that season and beat the Eagles for a second consecutive title.

Moses holds perhaps the most impressive individual winning streak. The two-time Olympic champion hurdler won 122 consecutive 400-meter races, including 107 straight finals between August 1977 and June 1987. Moses was 31 years old when he lost to fellow American Danny Harris, who was 10 years younger, at a meet in Spain.

Byron Nelson dominated the PGA Tour in 1945, winning 18 tournaments, including an unprecedented 11 in a row. The closest any other golfer has come to that record is seven straight, accomplished by Tiger Woods 2006 and 2007.

Martina Navratilova won 74 straight matches in 1984, including 13 straight tournaments. She also holds the doubles streak record with Pam Shriver. The pair won 109 straight matches between 1983 and 1985.

The games were a lot more exhibition than competition, but the Harlem Globetrotters lay claim to an 8,829-game winning streak that ran between 1971 and 1995. The streak was ended in Vienna, Austria by an all-star team led by Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.</s>There aren't many guarantees in sports, but the Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team remains the safest bet.

UConn defeated SMU 88-48 on Saturday, extending its historic winning streak to 91 games.

Per the Associated Press Top 25's Twitter account, the Huskies broke their own NCAA record of 90 straight wins.</s>Geno Auriemma and UConn celebrated win No. 90 on Tuesday against USF. They broke their own record with No. 91 Saturday at SMU. (Getty)

College basketball has a new win streak queen. It’s the same program as its predecessor, but this time one win more impressive.

UConn women’s basketball won its 91st game in a row Saturday at SMU, blitzing the Mustangs 26-2 in the first quarter and easing to a 88-48 victory. In doing so, it surpassed its own record of 90 consecutive wins set in 2010.

The current streak began in November 2014. It includes the last two national championships, two conference championships, and dominant wins of all kinds.

Auriemma has admitted that he set up this year’s non-conference schedule to end the streak; he filled it with seven top-15 teams despite losing the Nos. 1, 2 and 3 picks in last April’s WNBA draft. But his team had other ideas. It passed its 12 November and December tests by more than 22 points per game, and has now won its four American Athletic Conference games by an average margin of 46.5.

The most recent real obstacle that the Huskies cleared was a Dec. 29 trip to Maryland. They opened the second half with a 14-0 run, then held off the fourth-ranked Terrapins, 87-81, to claim victory No. 87 in a row.

After No. 87, No. 91 seemed inevitable, just as so many of the other 90 had before it. The perceived inevitability is one of the things that has made the streak so remarkable. UConn has redefined the word blowout. It has made top-25 teams look like high school squads and average Division I teams look like middle school clubs. Victory No. 90 was a 102-37 rout of USF — 20th-ranked USF, that is.

The next potential roadblock arises on Feb. 13, when No. 5 South Carolina and Dawn Staley visit Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Conn. A win that night, assuming no slip-ups between now and then, would give the Huskies their 100th-straight win.

The 2008-10 streak ended with a 71-59 non-conference loss to Stanford. This one doesn’t appear to be ending anytime soon as the Huskies roll through the AAC.

If the top-ranked Huskies were to run through the rest of the season undefeated and win a fifth-consecutive national championship, the win streak would reach 113.

At this point, though, no matter how far Auriemma and the Huskies go before their next loss, the streak won’t soon be forgotten. And this era of UConn women’s basketball — which also includes the second-longest and third-longest win streaks in women’s college basketball history — will forever live in college basketball lore.</s>HARTFORD – Given the domination of the UConn women’s basketball program over the last few seasons, it was only fitting the Huskies’ record-tying 90th win in a row Tuesday night came in a rout in which the Huskies outhustled yet…

BY ROGER CLEAVELAND STORRS – Ever since freshman point guard Crystal Dangerfield played fearless, carefree basketball against Baylor in the second game of the season, coach Geno Auriemma had been waiting for her to replicate that approach. Instead, Dangerfield started…

STORRS – While the UConn women’s basketball team has now won 90 straight games for the second time in seven years, the longest streak in men’s NCAA Division I college basketball is UCLA’s record of 88 victories in a row…

STORRS – Ever since freshman Crystal Dangerfield played fearless, carefree basketball against Baylor in the second game of the season, coach Geno Auriemma had been waiting for her to replicate that approach. Instead, Dangerfield started thinking too much. Self-doubt created…

STORRS – Because the UConn women’s basketball team has been in this situation before – poised to make history by setting yet another record – the Huskies feel no undue pressure and no need to bring attention to themselves. While…

No. 1 UConn vs. SMU TV, radio: SNY, WTIC-AM (1080) Records, rankings: No. 1 UConn, 15-0, 3-0; SMU, 10-6, 1-2 Series: UConn leads, 6-0 Last meeting: UConn won, 88-41, on 2-24-16 Worth noting UConn can break the Division I women’s…

Connecticut guard Gabby Williams (15) reaches for a loose ball as SMU guard Mikayla Reese, center, and forward Dai’ja Thomas (20) defend during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

Connecticut forward Napheesa Collier, center, battles SMU guard Devri Owens, second from right, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

Connecticut forward Natalie Butler (51) battles SMU forward Klara Bradshaw (13) for space during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

Connecticut forward Katie Lou Samuelson (33) attempts a shot as SMU forwards Alicia Froling (10), Klara Bradshaw (13) and guard Mikayla Reese (4) defend during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

SMU forward Alicia Froling (10) looks for room against Connecticut forward Napheesa Collier (24) and Connecticut forward Katie Lou Samuelson (33) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. Connecticut won 88-48, their 91st straight win. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

Connecticut forward Katie Lou Samuelson (33) looks for room against SMU guard Kamray Mickens (24) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. Connecticut won 88-48, their 91st straight win. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

SMU guard Devri Owens, center, looks for room against Connecticut guard Saniya Chong (12) and forward Napheesa Collier (24) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. Connecticut won 88-48, their 91st straight win. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

SMU guard Kiara Perry, second from left, attempts a shot as Connecticut guards Saniya Chong (12), Molly Bent (10) and forward Natalie Butler, background, defend during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. Connecticut won 88-48, their 91st straight win. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

SMU guard McKenzie Adams (3) battles Connecticut forward Katie Lou Samuelson (33) for space during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. Connecticut won 88-48, their 91st straight win. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

Connecticut guard Kia Nurse (11) battles SMU guard Kamray Mickens (24) for space during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. Connecticut won 88-48, their 91st straight win. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

SMU guard Stephanie Collins (15) battles Connecticut forwards Kyla Irwin (25), Natalie Butler (51) and guard Molly Bent (10) for space during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. Connecticut won 88-48, their 91st straight win. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

Connecticut guards Gabby Williams, left, and Kia Nurse celebrate the teams 91st straight win after an NCAA college basketball game against SMU, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. Connecticut won 88-48. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

Connecticut guard Saniya Chong (12) and her teammates wave to fans after an NCAA college basketball game against SMU, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. Connecticut won 88-48, their 91st straight win. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

Connecticut fans celebrate the women’s basketball team’s 91st straight win after an NCAA college basketball game against SMU, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Dallas. Connecticut won 88-48. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)</s>Top-ranked University of Connecticut broke its own NCAA record with its 91st consecutive victory, 88-48 at Southern Methodist University on Saturday.

The Huskies scored the game’s first 21 points on their way to breaking the record of 90 wins in a row that coach Geno Auriemma’s team first accomplished more than six years ago. They matched that...</s>The UConn women's basketball team broke its own NCAA record with its 91st consecutive victory by defeating SMU 88–48.

UConn has not lost a game since November 17, 2014 when its 90-game winning streak was ended by Stanford in double-overtime. Had UConn not lost that game, Geno Auriemma and his team would be riding a 139-game winning streak.

With the victory, the Huskies also broke the school's record of 57 straight regular-season conference. The previous streak spanned from 2008 to 2012.

Saniya Chong, Gabby Williams, Kia Nurse and Tierney Lawlor have been part of the team for all 91 victories.</s>The UConn women’s basketball won their NCAA-record 91st consecutive game Saturday, an 88-48 victory at SMU.

The Lady Huskies surpassed their own record of 90 consecutive wins set in 2010.

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The last time coach Geno Auriemma’s squad lost was Nov. 17, 2014 at Stanford, and the Huskies have won four straight NCAA titles.

UConn rode a 75-game winning streak into this season and its win on Saturday improved its record to 16-0 on the season.

Eight of the Huskies' wins have been against ranked opponents, and while most teams haven't come close to beating them, they did survive a two-point win in their season-opener at then-No. 12 Florida State and a six-point win Dec. 29 against then-No. 4 Maryland.
In U.S. college women's basketball, Connecticut defeats SMU 88–48 for the Huskies' 91st straight win, breaking the school's own record for the longest winning streak in NCAA Division I basketball history for either sex.