The worst thing about playing on the UConn women’s basketball team isn’t the overwhelming external pressure felt to win (and win convincingly). It isn’t the gut-wrenching thought of failing to meet the UConn standard chiseled by the decades of champions before you. And it isn’t the overbearing social media presence that some choose to ignore.
It’s the fact that you have to eventually leave.
Azzi Fudd’s shouldered the pressure of winning. She’s met the UConn standard. She’s embraced social media. But that doesn’t change the fact that she has to leave.
Fudd just came back from her final trip to Chicago as a Husky. She is off the heels of her last rivalry duel with Tennessee. She’s already disposed of Notre Dame and USC for (perhaps) the final time.
The beginning of the end, as pessimists would say.
But hey, there still are four home games on the schedule, and over a month until post season play begins in Uncasville. Look on the bright side, will you?
The Huskies (24-0, 13-0) return to Hartford on Saturday to host Butler (9-14, 3-10) in PeoplesBank Arena. It’s another chance for Connecticut to iron out its rotational kinks and, more importantly, get healthy.
Freshman forward Blanca Quiñonez, who’s missed the last three games with a reaggravated shoulder injury, could see the court for the first time this month. The Huskies felt Quiñonez’s absence the most the last two games in the second quarter, when they were outscored by Tennessee and DePaul, respectively, failing to break 20 points on both occasions.
Quiñonez’s return will put into the place the final rotational cog of the Husky machine, which looks to run nine deep at full strength. The emergence of Allie Ziebell as a consistent perimeter shooter, exemplified by her 34-point showing against Xavier last week, gives Geno Auriemma a third reliable piece to use off the bench. Whether or not Jana El Alfy can sustain her 10-minute per night average in the NCAA Tournament remains to be seen, but the redshirt sophomore has been steady on the glass (0.3 rebounds per minute when on the court) and a defensive anchor on the other end of the court.
Saturday is also an opportunity for the Huskies to shore up on the defensive glass, something that plagued them in the first half against Tennessee last Sunday; Butler ranks 314th in Division I on the offensive glass and 298th in second chance points per game. Look for Sarah Strong and Serah Williams to pull down boards at a frequent clip against a relatively undersized Bulldogs team.
Tip-off is scheduled for noon, with streaming available on FS1.