Connecticut 66, USF 53: Ryan Boatright scored 19 of his career-high 28 points in the second half to lead the defending national champion Huskies past the visiting Bulls in an American Athletic Conference game.

Boatright, who nailed four 3-pointers, was 7-of-10 from the field and 10-of-11 from the foul line to power UConn (11-7, 4-2 AAC), which won its second consecutive game. Rodney Purvis added 17 points off the bench, and Daniel Hamilton grabbed 10 rebounds for the Huskies.

Nehemias Morillo scored 11 of his career-high 18 points in the first half to lead USF (7-13, 1-6), which extended its losing streak to five games, a streak that began with a 58-44 loss to UConn on Jan. 6. Corey Allen Jr. chipped in 11 points for the Bulls.

UConn took a 10-8 lead on a 3-pointer by Sam Cassell Jr. and never trailed again. The Huskies led by as many as 12 points and held a 30-20 advantage at halftime thanks to Boatright and Purvis, who scored nine points apiece.

USF, aided by 3-pointers from Anthony Collins and Morillo, produced a 13-3 run to cut it to 39-37 with 12 minutes remaining. But Purvis made a pair of free throws and Boatright scored the Huskies’ next 13 points to make it 54-43 with 4:46 to play and UConn held on to win.

GAME NOTEBOOK: USF played without leading rebounder Chris Perry, who left Saturday’s practice with chest pain, and Bo Zeigler started in his absence to give the Bulls their ninth different starting lineup this season. … USF’s 20 points at halftime were the fewest for a UConn opponent this season. … The Huskies outrebounded the Bulls 35-18 and improved to 14-2 in the series.