I chuckled when I read Geno Auriemma's quote saying that UConn junior forward Maya Moore was going to have a tough offensive night after missing a couple of early shots because in my advance I basically said that Moore would not be repeating her 40-point outburst the last time UConn and Syracuse played.

Well, I was right. Moore only had 38 points and a career-high 20 rebounds as she joined Rebecca Lobo to become only the UConn player with 30 points and 20 rebounds in the same game. It was a much different way of piling up the points as Moore got into the lane early and often. After hitting a Connecticut single-game record 10 3-pointers in last year's demolition of Syracuse, Moore had almost as many points at the free-throw line (10) as she did from 3-point range (12).

A year after the bizarre post-game antics of UConn coach Geno Auriemma and Syracuse Nicole Michael, there was another strange scene when Syracuse junior guard Erica Morrow was ejected after the three officials reviewed the footage and ruled that Morrow threw a punch at UConn's Tiffany Hayes after Hayes and Morrow collided while going for a loose ball.

Hayes did not return to the game after her head collided with Morrow's. Hayes finished with 22 points in 25 minutes.

I thought it was interesting that Caroline Doty played deep into the second half. It wasn't a matter of Auriemma attempting to run up the score but clearly a chance for Doty to regain some of her confidence as she continues to regain her shooting eye.

TOUGH END FOR ENGELN
The anticipated showdown between UConn recruits Lauren Engeln and Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis appeared set when Engeln's Laguna Hills team led Beverly Hills 51-49 in the closing seconds when Jaina Abdul-Mansour hit a desparation half-court buzzer beater to give Beverly Hills the 52-51 win and a date with Mosqueda-Lewis and Mater Dei on Saturday in the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Class Division 2A semifinals.

Engeln finished with 25 points, 12 rebounds, two assists and two steals. Engeln averaged 19.2 points, 10.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 2.4 steals as a senior. Engeln finished her career with 1,984 points, 1,108 rebounds, 256 assists and 318 steals in 113 games.