I like to write things down. I guess it’s part of my job.
In fact, I like to write so many things down that I have a stack of six steno pads on my desk chronicling every single point the UConn women’s basketball team has scored the past two seasons (since I got the job). It helps me write my stories — I don’t do it for fun.
A few are withered and bent from the months spent rattling around at the bottom of my backpack; some pages are worn and curled up, the victims of my excessive flipping between notes as I attempt to file my story before deadline.
I scribble down each basket as it happens, capturing not only some of the players’ reactions but my own mesmerization in real time.
“Incredible!” “Holy cow!!” “DAGGER.”
Those are a few of my reactions, not the players’.
Anyways, I got a new desk the other week and had to move my steno pads. I combed through them all and got this idea before stuffing them in my closet. Here’s what I came up with.
Paige Bueckers vs. Oklahoma, NCAA Regional Semifinal, March 29, 2025
Few performances — if any at all — rival Bueckers’ season-saving 40-bomb in the Sweet 16.
I remember distinctly Bueckers hitting her sixth 3-pointer of the day, giving her an at-the-time new career-high of 36 points, turning to press row and screaming, “Let’s go!” as Oklahoma called for another timeout.
The Sooners were in front at the half; Bueckers’ second-half firework show hides the fact that UConn was 20 minutes away from championship run No. 12 ending prematurely.
My steno pad note reads, simply, “unbelievable… scream had aura.”
Azzi Fudd at South Carolina, Feb. 16, 2025
Yes, Fudd’s 28-point, 11-field goal, five-rebound stat line is incredibly impressive, but the context around the box score is what makes this performance even more remarkable.
For one, mighty South Carolina was riding a 71-game home winning streak and a four-game win streak over UConn dating back to 2021. Connecticut had just been picked off by another rival, Tennessee, a week beforehand and was diagnosed nationally as a reeling fraud.
Naturally, Fudd hit 11 of her 22 field goal attempts and shot 6-of-10 from 3 as UConn stomped the Gamecocks by 29 points. She didn’t attempt a free throw, either.
Allie Ziebell vs. Xavier, Jan. 28, 2026
Ziebell’s well-documented penchant for exploding against Xavier reached its zenith in January, when the soft-spoken sophomore erupted for a program record-tying 10 3-pointers on 14 attempts (71%).
By the time Ziebell got to nine triples, the crowd started imploring Geno Auriemma to keep her in for a literal shot at history. They got what they wanted.
Ziebell’s prior career-high in scoring was 17. Doubling that on a Wednesday night in front of a less-than-capacity Gampel Pavilion was an unexpected jolt.
Ashlynn Shade vs. Iowa St., Dec. 17, 2024
I struggled to write most of Shade’s first-quarter baskets down when she went for a career-high 27 points against Iowa St. at Mohegan Sun. Most of my notes are half-written scribbles that say no more than, “Shade again,” or “Shade can’t miss.”
She couldn’t: 27 points, 20 of those in the first quarter, 10-of-13 shooting, 7-of-10 from 3 in 33 minutes.
She guided UConn to a 57% mark from the field and scintillating 59% from deep. Sheesh.
Sarah Strong vs. South Carolina, NCAA National Championship, April 6, 2025
Although Fudd was fantastic in both of UConn’s Final Four blowouts (see below), Strong paced the Huskies in points (24), field goals (10), rebounds (15), assists (five) and blocks (three) in the national title game.
Against South Carolina. As a freshman. While fighting through double teams the whole game. None of UConn’s stars could miss, but Strong’s 37 minutes of terror inflicted on the Gamecocks were particularly galvanizing as UConn demolished South Carolina for title No. 12.
Azzi Fudd vs. South Carolina, NCAA National Championship, April 6, 2025
What would a list comprising great UConn performances be without Fudd’s signature slashing of South Carolina (round two) being on it?
Fudd, heralded as the best shooter in America, was just 1-for-6 from 3 but still managed 24 points, five rebounds and three steals, including the all-but game-sealing pick off and lay-in late in the second half.
In what was perhaps the best defensive performance on this list, Fudd wrecked South Carolina’s entire perimeter offense and knocked down nine field goals on the other end. Her play was the difference, as indicated by her MOP recognition.
Sarah Strong vs. Michigan, Nov. 21, 2025
Astute readers will note my language on reactions above: I note some — not all — players celebrating. That’s because select athletes, like Strong, don’t say or do anything of the sort.
Strong scored 16 points, grabbed 20 rebounds, dished six assists, poked three steals and blocked four shots as UConn staved off Michigan at Mohegan Sun. She played all 40 minutes.
Strong never clapped, never flexed, never yelled. She just ran back on defense. And she wasn’t any more jubilant postgame.
“I mean, yeah, I was just rebounding,” Strong said. “I wasn’t really thinking about it.”
Azzi Fudd vs. Syracuse, March 23, 2026
I never pre-write a basket. I’m cautious of the ink in my pen and, like UConn Men’s Basketball Head Coach Dan Hurley, the omnipresent threat of a jinx. But this was a special circumstance.
Fudd couldn’t miss if she tried: 28 minutes, 34 points, 13-of-18 shooting, 8-of-11 from 3. There were times in the first half when Strong would grab a rebound and chuck the ball down court to a wide-open Fudd and I wouldn’t even watch her shoot — I’d scribble down “Fudd 3PT” as the crowd erupted around me. Throw in three assists, five rebounds and four steals for good measure.
Good times.