STORRS, Conn. (AP) -- UNC Asheville keyed in on Connecticut sharpshooter Khalid El-Amin and, as a result, left Kevin Freeman all alone.

The senior forward led Connecticut (No. 8 ESPN/USA Today, No. 5 AP) with 18 points in a 98-68 rout Saturday night over winless UNC Asheville.

El-Amin finished with 14 points, five below his team-leading average, and had a career-high 10 assists.

"They felt if they stopped K it would hurt us. Why not take a 19-point scorer out of the flow?" said Freeman. "And if it leaves me open, that's good for us."

The game was the first meeting between UConn (5-1) and Asheville (0-7) and the first of three straight road games for the Big South team against a former national champion.

When he took over the Bulldogs program three years ago, coach Eddie Biedenbach said he wanted to play the defending national champions each season for the experience and exposure.

"We think we can win our league and if we do we think we're going to play a team like Connecticut in the NCAA, so it's good to have this experience," said Biedenbach.

UConn coach Jim Calhoun said his team also learned a thing or two from the scrappy Bulldogs.

"We had to play defense," said Calhoun. "They never let us relax. They gave us some different looks on defense. It was very good for (El-Amin) to really run the show."

The Bulldogs' penchant for turnovers was exposed early. Averaging 23.5 a game, Asheville committed 10 in the first half and 16 in the game that resulted in 28 UConn points.

Asheville had its only lead in the first two minutes of the game when Brett Carey's 3-pointer put the Bulldogs up 5-4. El-Amin was shaken up on the next play when he was fouled beneath the Huskies' basket and left the game for one possession.

Tony Robertson hit both foul shots in his place giving the Huskies the lead for good at 6-4, starting a 15-6 run. The Huskies outscored Asheville 30-10 to close out the half with a 53-25 lead.

Freeman scored six points in UConn's 10-4 spurt to open the second half. The Huskies led by as much as 43 points with 8:22 left in the game on an El-Amin three pointer to go up 84-41.

The Bulldogs are off to their worst start in school history. Up next for the Asheville are 1998 national champ Kentucky on Tuesday and North Carolina on Sunday. Connecticut, Kentucky and North Carolina have a combined 10 national titles, including the last two.

Brandon Carter hit 4-of-5 3-pointers to lead Asheville with 14 points. Carey finished with 11.

Connecticut takes on No. 4 Arizona on Tuesday. Arizona's win over Texas made for prime time viewing in on Huskies' locker room TV after the Asheville win.

"To be the best, you've got to beat the best," said El-Amin, "And Arizona is playing well right now."