Charles 24 points leads No. 1 UConn to 50th straight victory with 78-59 win at Fla. State

No. 1 UConn tops FSU 78-59 for 50th straight win

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Tina Charles scored 16 of her 24 points in the second half Monday night to lead No. 1 Connecticut to a 78-59 victory over 12th-ranked Florida State for its 50th straight win.

Maya Moore added 16 points for the Huskies, including a dozen in the game’s first seven minutes, keying a 17-0 run that gave UConn an early 12-point lead on its way to a 41-35 halftime advantage.

UConn (11-0) led the rest of the way, opening a double digit lead just four minutes into the second half and won going away. The Huskies have won all 50 of their games by at least 10 points.

Florida State (11-2) pulled within 31-29 on Courtney Ward’s jumper with 4:26 in the first half, but never got closer.

Jacinta Monroe led the Seminoles with 14 points and freshman Chasity Clayton added 12.

Courtney Ward scored 11 points, all in the first half, but committed eight of Florida State’s 21 turnovers.

Tiffany Hayes added 13 points and Caroline Doty 10 for the Huskies, who failed to score 80 or more points for the first time this season.

It was the second win in five days over ranked teams for UConn, which defeated second-ranked Stanford 80-68 last Wednesday.

The Huskies won their first nine games this season by an average of 46 points and no team was closer than 25 before the win over Stanford.

UConn is now 5-0 against Florida State, defeating the Seminoles 83-71 in a holiday tournament in Mexico last season.

Coincidentally, the Huskies also defeated Florida State in 2002 for its 50th straight win during its NCAA record 70-game streak.

The Seminoles’ only other loss this season was eight days ago to DePaul. A Florida State women’s basketball record 6,440 fans attended the game.