UConn starts season by stomping Bison

Emeka Okafor and Ben Gordon are gone, but Connecticut’s latest inside-outside combination showed it can be just as potent.

Rashad Anderson scored 23 points, hitting 4 of 9 from 3-point range, and Josh Boone scored all 18 of his points from the paint in the Huskies’ 90-68 win over Buffalo Saturday night in Storrs, Conn.

It was the season opener for both teams as the No. 8 Huskies began defense of their NCAA title. UConn overpowered Buffalo early with strong post play and a crisp transition game.

“We just came out and played hard. We played Connecticut basketball,” Anderson said.

(9) Kentucky 77, Coppin St. 46: New guards Patrick Sparks and Rajon Rondo combined for 21 points and led a strong defensive effort as the Wildcats beat the Eagles in Lexington, Ky.

Chuck Hayes added 12 points and 13 rebounds for the Wildcats, who are 87-15 in home openers.

(11) Duke 88, Tennessee-Martin 46: J.J. Redick and Daniel Ewing each had 20 points to help the Blue Devils beat the Skyhawks in Durham, N.C.

Sheldon Williams added 13 points and 15 rebounds, and Shavlik Randolph scored 11 for Duke.

(14) Louisville 89, BYU-Hawaii 79: Taquan Dean and Larry O’Bannon each scored 18 points as the Cardinals won in Laie, Hawaii.

The game marked the return of Louisville coach Rick Pitino to Hawaii. Pitino began his coaching career at Hawaii as a graduate assistant in 1974-75 and was an assistant coach in 1975-76.

(17) Pittsburgh 81, Howard 55: Chevon Troutman scored 18 points as the Panthers beat the visiting Bison.

Pittsburgh started three regulars from last season’s 31-win team, but it was freshman Ronald Ramon who quickly hit three 3-pointers against a pulled-back Howard defense to help the Panthers build a 40-15 halftime lead.

(21) Wisconsin 77, Penn 44: Mike Wilkinson’s 19 points led a balanced Badgers attack as Wisconsin routed the Quakers in Madison, Wis.

All 10 players in coach Bo Ryan’s deep rotation scored and all 10 grabbed at least one rebound.

Pac-10

Dijon Thompson scored 17 points and UCLA pulled away in the second half to beat Chicago State 64-53 in Los Angeles.

The Bruins, who ended last season with six straight losses and an 11-17 record, didn’t build a double-digit lead until about 14 minutes were left in the game.

Chicago State’s Tony Weeden and Royce Parran scored 17 apiece.

Women

Jacqueline Batteast scored seven points in No. 11 Notre Dame’s game-ending 12-0 run and the Irish rallied to win the Preseason WNIT championship game over No. 10 Ohio State, 66-62 in South Bend, Ind.

Batteast finished with 32 points on 11-of-23 shooting from the field and blocked a potential tying 3-pointer by Caity Matter with 2 seconds left.

(14) Minnesota 70, Virginia Tech 56: Jamie Broback scored 23 points, and Janel McCarville added 12 with 14 rebounds as the Golden Gophers beat the Hokies in Minneapolis. … (15) Michigan State 77, Central Connecticut 42: Kelli Roehrig had 15 points, including 11 during a 24-2 run to start the game, as the Spartans won the first game of the Spartan Classic in East Lansing, Mich. … (17) Rutgers 90, Rider 42: Michelle Campbell scored a career-high 33 points and had 10 rebounds as the Scarlet Knights routed Rider in Piscataway, N.J. … (18) Boston College 71, Western Michigan 50: Jessalyn Deveny, Clare Droesch and Brooke Queenan teamed for 55 points as the Golden Eagles won the second game of the Spartan Classic. … No. 20 DePaul 99, Southern Cal 77: Jenni Dant scored 29 points to lead the Blue Demons past the Trojans in Chicago.