The UConn women's basketball team is no stranger to these No. 1 vs. No. 2 games, going into tonight's showdown with top-ranked South Carolina with a 16-3 mark in such games. However, what's a little different about this game is that it is not against an opponent without a history against the Huskies.

"It works both ways," UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. "They don't know much about us, we don't know much about them and a lot of times when you get into the NCAA tournament that is the case too and you end up with somebody you don't end up with any experience with. I think non conference games at this time of the year are the best thing because you are going to have to learn things on the fly. You are not going to have 15 previous tapes of games you have played against them that you go 'I know what they do, I've got it.' Everything is going to be instinctive, they are going to see things, we are going to see things and I think that is what helps teams get better. I think it is a positive there isn't a history between the two teams."

The players seem excited at the prospect of seeing a new team challenging UConn for national supremacy.

"I think it is exciting to play a team that is new, fresh and it is also a little unnerving because you don't know what to expect from them," UConn senior forward Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis said. "At the same time we kind of have that edge too because they haven't play against us also. I think it is going to be an exciting game."

Here's the breakdown of UConn's previous No. 1 vs. No. 2 games
1-16-95            No. 2 UConn 77, No. 1 Tennessee 66
1-10-99             No. 2 Tennessee 92, No. 1 UConn 81
1-8-00               No. 1 UConn 74, No. 2 Tennessee 67
4-02-00             No. 1 UConn 71, No. 2 Tennessee 52 (National championship)
12-30-00          No. 1 UConn 81, No. 2 Tennessee 76
3-06-01             No. 2 UConn 78, No. 2 Notre Dame 76
3-30-01             No. 2 Notre Dame 90, No. 1 UConn 75 (National semifinal)
1-05-02            No. 1 UConn 86, No. 2 Tennessee 72
3-31-02             No. 1 UConn 82, No. 2 Oklahoma 70 (National championship)
2-01-03            No. 2 UConn 77, No. 1 Duke 65
1-19-09            No. 1 UConn 88, No. 2 North Carolina 58
4-05-09             No. 1 UConn 83, No. 2 Stanford 64
12-23-09          No. 1 UConn 80, No. 2 Stanford 68
4-06-10             No. 1 UConn 53, No. 2 Stanford 47 (National championship)
11-16-10          No. 1 UConn 65, No. 2 Baylor 64
12-18-11          No. 1 Baylor 66, No. 2 UConn 61
12-29-12          No. 2 UConn 61, No. 1 Stanford 35
12-17-14          No. 1 UConn 83, No. 2 Duke 61
4-8-14              No. 1 UConn 79, No. 2 Notre Dame 58 (national championship)