second conference game was at home against the University of South Florida. UConn started out with an 18–2 run, but Charles and Moore got into early foul trouble, and had to sit on the bench. Nevertheless, UConn had a double-digit lead at halftime, leading coach Auriemma to quip, "This is the only place in America where you've got to apologize for being up 14 at halftime." UConn's next game, against Cincinnati, was notable more for the coaching match up than the game. After twelve years as an assistant coach at Connecticut and four years as a player, Jamelle Elliott took the head coaching job at Cincinnati. This would be the first match up between Cincinnati and Connecticut since Elliot left Connecticut. UConn won easily 83–51. UConn returned to Big east play after the UNC game with a game against Marquette at their arena. The game outcome wasn't in doubt, as Tina Charles had a double-double (23 points, 11 rebounds) leading to a 24-point halftime lead, and a final score of 68–43. The game was unusual for a rare coaching decision near the end of the game. UConn typically declines to attempt to score if the game result is not in doubt, and they are inbounding the ball with less than 30 seconds to play, preferring just to dribble out the end of the game. However, in this game, with 72 seconds on the clock, Coach Auriemma instructed his player not to even cross half-court, deliberately accepting a shot clock violation and a turnover. The announcers were unsure of the reason at the time, but subsequent remarks by Auriemma clarified that he felt the officials were not doing enough to stop rough play, and he didn't want to "put his players into any more physical danger by crossing midcourt". UConn's game against Notre Dame on 16 January didn't tipoff until 9 pm, but the arena opened at 7:30 in the morning. The ESPN CollegeGame Day event, traditionally held at the campus on a men's basketball game, held its first ever College Game Day in connection with a women's basketball game. The campus, shut down for winter break, opened a day earlier than usual to allow students to return in time to attend GameDay. Thousands turned to be in the backdrop of the 10 am national coverage. Because the event occurred in the morning, the UConn team was able to participate. The