After Connecticut’s 96-36 thumping of Seton Hall on Sunday afternoon, head coach Geno Auriemma was asked what led to such a high-volume offensive performance that saw three starters eclipse the 18-point mark.
“We kind of slashed our offensive playbook – a lot, I mean there were way too many things to choose from,” Auriemma said post-game. “We just scaled it down to four or five things that we wanted to do and just [stuck] with those the entire game and I think that’s where the confidence and the flow [came] from.”
That confidence was showcased through the box score. All 12 eligible players scored at least one basket in Sunday’s win, as the Huskies – who shot over 55 percent from the field and 53 percent from deep – claimed their largest margin of victory in over three years (Jan. 2021 vs. Butler).
No stat line was more impressive than that of freshman Sarah Strong, who piled on a first half double-double en route to winning Big East Freshman of the Week for the seventh time this season (23/11/2). Redshirt senior Paige Bueckers recorded her 2,000th point as a Husky, becoming the 12th – and fastest – player to reach the milestone in program history.
Connecticut also welcomed the return of veteran forward Aubrey Griffin on Sunday, who played her first game in 381 days after a torn ACL last January ended her season early.
With the way Strong has been playing on the post for the Huskies, it is unlikely Griffin cracks the starting lineup at the four. If Auriemma chooses to experiment with a small-ish ball lineup (which he has done at times this season), it is very possible the down-low duo of Strong and Griffin breaks itself in on the blocks.
UConn is 8-0 in conference play for the fifth straight season since rejoining the Big East in 2020-2021. One of those eight wins is the team’s next opponent, the 10-9 (4-3) Villanova Wildcats.
Following its 83-52 loss to UConn on Jan 5, the Wildcats are 3-1, with a loss to Marquette being sandwiched between wins over Georgetown, DePaul and Saint John’s.
The Huskies are 4-0 since last meeting Villanova, beating Xavier, Georgetown, Saint John’s and Seton Hall by an average of 42 points. During that stretch, the Huskies ranked second nationally in effective field goal percentage (63.5) and first in two-point percentage (64).
The offensive resurgence, while largely due to the Huskies’ playbook purge, has been aided by Azzi Fudd’s consistent, high-level play. Assuming the role as the Huskies’ leading scorer after Bueckers sprained her knee, Fudd has averaged 18.8 ppg on 56.5 3PT percentage shooting.
Adding Fudd’s lights-out shooting performances with the return of Bueckers and uber-consistent play of Strong down low, the Huskies have assembled one of the more formidable trios in college basketball.
“I do think that if the three of them are playing at a real high level and executing their stuff the way they did today, we have an opportunity,” Auriemma said after Seton Hall.
The Wildcats will be the first team to experience a full weeks-worth of practice of the Huskies’ slimmed down offensive playbook. Connecticut ran away early from Villanova in Philadelphia three weeks ago, using its size advantage to bully the Wildcats down low.
It may very well be the same formula this time around for Connecticut, who will look to exploit the Wildcats’ 23.5 offensive rebound percentage. Winning down low – especially with Jana El Alfy – may also help the Huskies as preparation for heavyweight bouts with Tennessee and South Carolina loom in the near future.
Connecticut leads the all-time series against Villanova 45-7 and is 9-1 in its last 10 games against the Wildcats.
The game will be broadcasted on SNY, with coverage beginning at 7 p.m.