HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - By UConn standards, this was surely a slow start - trailing Houston four minutes into the game.
The funk didn't last long.
The No. 1 Huskies went on a 21-0 run and blew out the Cougars 91-42 on Saturday to extend their record winning streak to 95 games.
Gabby Williams scored 19 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead UConn (20-0, 8-0 American Athletic Conference). The sophomore, coming off the first triple-double of her career, has scored and rebounded in double figures 16 times, including seven this season.
"Sometimes, we just throw the ball into Gabby and we stand there and watch her play," said UConn coach Geno Auriemma . "Because she's able to leap tall buildings with a single bound and all the other stuff she does, we kind of get fascinated by watching her and everybody else stands. The first quarter seemed to be Gabby against them."
The rest of the team eventually got involved.
Katie Lou Samuelson and Kia Nurse each scored 16 points and Napheesa Collier added 12 points and 10 boards for the Huskies, who are 20-0 for the 10th time in school history.
The Huskies (8-0 American) outshot the Cougars 49 percent to 29 percent from the floor, forced 25 Houston turnovers and outrebounded the Cougars 47-31.
Freshman Jasmyne Harris had 14 points and Jacqueline Blake added 13 to lead Houston (8-13, 1-7 American Athletic Conference), which has lost seven in a row after an 8-6 start to the season.
Houston took a 6-4 lead on a drive by Chyanne Butler. That was the first time the Huskies had trailed in more than 10 games, since facing a 4-2 deficit on Dec. 11 during a 17-point win over Kansas State.
UConn responded by scoring the last 13 points of the first quarter, part of the run that put the Huskies up 25-6.
Samuelson missed her first four shots before draining a long 3-pointer. She had 11 points by halftime, Williams had 14, Nurse had 10 and UConn led 43-18.
"(Katie Lou) is never going to have an entire game where she's off, ever," Williams said. "She's going to find her shot, eventually. So, I am just trying to get the offensive rebound and kick it back out to her to get her rhythm going."
BIG PICTURE
UConn has been relying on its starters for the bulk of the scoring this season. UConn's bench scored just 20 points, 10 from center Natalie Butler. The bench came in averaging just 19.5 points. ... UConn has won 122 straight games against unranked opponents, a streak that dates to a loss to St. Johns on Feb. 12, 2012. That was the only loss in the last 299 such games.
Houston: Freshmen Angela Harris and Jasmyne Harris (not related) both started, getting their first game experience against the nation's top-ranked team. Jasmyne didn't seem fazed by the big stage, hitting four of her first seven shots from the floor. Angela, who led the team in scoring through their first eight games, missed all eight of her shots and finished scoreless.
Houston coach Ronald Hughey to come away from this game understanding what it takes to be an elite team.
"This is what it looks like, feels like, smells like, tastes like," he said. "This is it. I want them to take it in. They just saw the example of what elite looks like. I want the team to be able to go every single day with that kind of energy, stamina, heart, desire and everything and be able to add that to who we are."
SAMUELSON SISTERS
Samuelson's three 3-pointers give her 150 in just 57 games. She becomes the third sibling in her family to have at least 150, joining sisters Bonnie and Karlie. Bonnie had 273 during her career at Stanford. Karlie, who still plays for the Cardinal, has 203.
"They pushed me to get better every day," Katie Lou said. "I always wanted to be the little sister that did everything they did."
ADDS UP
The jersey numbers of UConn's starting five, Samuelson (33), Collier (24), Williams (15), Saniya Chong (12) and Kia Nurse (11) add up 95, the length of the Huskies' record winning streak.
UP NEXT
UConn: The Huskies face perhaps their toughest conference road test this season Wednesday when they travel to Philadelphia to face Temple. The Owls, coached by former UConn assistant Tonya Cardoza, are 16-3 and undefeated in the American.
Houston: The Cougars return home to play Tulane on Tuesday.
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This story has been corrected to show the length of the early UConn run was 21-0 not 17-0.