In its first game without Paige Bueckers since 2022-23, the UConn women’s basketball team routed Xavier 81-27 at the XL Center to remain undefeated in the Big East this season.
Bueckers was ruled out with a left knee sprain for Wednesday’s matchup, but the No. 7 Huskies didn’t miss a beat with their leading scorer sidelined. UConn was powered by 23 points from star guard Azzi Fudd, marking the redshirt junior’s highest-scoring performance since Nov. 27, 2022 against Iowa. She shot 9-for-14 from the field and 3-for-5 from 3-point range, also adding three steals, two rebounds, an assist and a block.
Freshman phenom Sarah Strong also shined with 15 points and seven rebounds plus a team-high five steals in just 20 minutes of playing time.
UConn dominated in the first quarter behind a stifling defensive effort, forcing 10 turnovers including five over the first six minutes of the game to power a 9-0 run. The Huskies scored 12 of their 21 first-quarter points off of turnovers and allowed just two field goals to Xavier, holding the Musketeers without a make from the floor for the final four minutes of the quarter.
Though the Huskies struggled from 3-point range early, the team remained highly efficient hitting 55.6% from the field in the first half. Both Fudd and Strong had double-digit points less than five minutes into the second quarter. Fudd matched her season-high 18 points in just 15 minutes, and Strong added 15 points plus five rebounds and four steals. The pair shot a combined 73.7% from the field and accounted for UConn’s only made 3-pointers in a 3-for-13 opening half from beyond the arc.
UConn remained in complete control in the second quarter, even after coach Geno Auriemma emptied the bench with more than three minutes left in the half. The Huskies held Xavier to just four points on a single 3-point field goal in the second quarter while forcing 10 more turnovers, and four different players ended the first half with multiple steals. Sophomore Qadence Samuels grabbed two in just three minutes of playing time, and freshman Allie Ziebell sank a midrange jump shot at the buzzer to send UConn into halftime on a 15-1 run.
The Huskies opened the second half on another string of turnovers against the Musketeers, forcing five over the first five minutes to open up a 40-point lead early in the third quarter. Most of UConn’s starters checked out midway through the third, and no player on the roster saw the court for more than 25 minutes. Even with some of their youngest lineup combinations on the floor, the Huskies went on another 18-2 run and outscored Xavier 22-10 in the third quarter.
Ziebell got hot from 3-point range late in the third with a pair of makes, and she finished with a career-high 17 points shooting 5-for-9 from beyond the arc. KK Arnold also sank her third 3-pointer of the season in the fourth quarter, marking her first time making a three in back-to-back games after she hit one at Villanova on Sunday.
The Huskies never allowed more than 10 points to Xavier in a quarter and finished with 42 points off of 32 forced turnovers against the Musketeers. The biggest challenge for UConn’s young rotation was foul trouble: Samuels fouled out playing just nine minutes, while Arnold picked up her third midway through the fourth quarter.
