UConn's 23 steals lead top-ranked Huskies past DePaul on a day when Sue Bird's number is retired

STORRS, Conn. (AP) — Sarah Strong had 20 points, five rebounds, five steals and four assists, Azzi Fudd scored all of her 16 points in the first half and had four steals, and top-ranked UConn beat DePaul 102-35 on Sunday to extend its Big East regular-season winning streak to 40.

UConn (9-0, 2-0) finished with 23 steals, its third game this season with at least 20. Fifteen of those came in the first half as the Huskies led 58-18 at halftime on a day when UConn retired Hall of Fame guard Sue Bird’s No. 10 in a ceremony before the game.

Kayleigh Heckel had 16 points, six rebounds and five assists, and Jana El Alfy had a season-high 11 points. KK Arnold added seven points and seven assists.

Fudd and Strong combined for 10 points as UConn scored the first 14 points. UConn shot 75% from the field in the first quarter to race out to a 28-9 lead. Strong had four baskets in the first four minutes of the second quarter to put the Huskies up by 30 as the Huskies won their 27th game in a row against DePaul.

This was UConn’s largest margin of victory in 28 meetings against the Blue Demons, topping a 47-point win in 2013.

Gina Davorija and Devin Hagemann with eight points apiece for DePaul (2-8, 0-2). Ally Timm had back-to-back 3-pointers in the second quarter.