Big East tournament: No. 1 UConn blasts Creighton, will face Villanova in final

Field Level Media|published: Sun 8th March, 19:12 2026

Mar 8, 2026; Uncasville, CT, USA; UConn Huskies guard Kk Arnold (2) reacts with forward Blanca Quiñonez (4) after her basket against the Creighton Bluejays in the first half at Mohegan Sun Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images

Sarah Strong, KK Arnold and Azzi Fudd rarely missed as No. 1 UConn earned its 49th straight victory by thrashing Creighton 100-51 in the Big East tournament semifinals Sunday in Uncasville, Conn.

Strong scored 23 points on 9-of-11 shooting, Arnold (8-for-9) put up 18 points and Fudd (6-for-10) added 16 points to fuel the Huskies (33-0), who are on the verge of a 13th consecutive conference tournament championship between the American and Big East. They'll face second-seeded Villanova on Monday.

UConn outshot fifth-seeded Creighton 57.1% to 33.3% overall and made 14 of 22 3-point tries (63.6%). Strong went 4 for 4 from outside, and eight Huskies made at least one triple. UConn also outrebounded Creighton 43-25, with Kayleigh Heckel going for nine points and a team-high eight rebounds.

Kennedy Townsend finished with 13 points for the Bluejays (16-15), who fell behind 29-9 at the end of one quarter after surrendering a 17-0 run in less than three minutes of game time.

Villanova 62, Seton Hall 48

Brynn McCurry scored 16 points, Jasmine Bascoe racked up 15 and the Wildcats rode the strength of a game-opening 12-0 burst to eliminate the third-seeded Pirates.

Denae Carter and Bascoe combined to account for the first 12 points of the game, ensuring that Villanova (25-6) would never trail. Carter finished with 11 points and a team-high seven rebounds, and the Wildcats overcame 5-for-28 3-point shooting by converting 16 Seton Hall turnovers into 23 points.

Jordana Codio and Zahara Bishop each scored 13 points to lead Seton Hall (19-12), with Bishop adding seven boards and two steals.

--Field Level Media