UConn women’s basketball making it to the NCAA championship game used to be as inevitable as the sun rising. Breanna Stewart led the Huskies to four-consecutive national championships from 2013 to 2016, leaving a legacy that will likely never be replicated. Since Stewart departed from Storrs, UConn has faltered, thanks to everything from injury to the parity of the women’s college basketball.
Then came Paige Bueckers.
The basketball phenom won both National Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year during her first year at UConn. The next two seasons were then filled with injury for Bueckers, along with most of her teammates. For the first time in over a decade, UConn lost a Sweet 16 game, as Bueckers was out recovering from an ACL injury. She returned for her redshirt junior season in 2023-24, leading the Huskies to a Final Four game despite Azzi Fudd then being out with her own ACL recovery. UConn lost to Iowa in a close battle, and Bueckers decided to come back to Storrs for her redshirt senior season.
It feels like Bueckers is back playing to best of her ability this season, but especially this March Madness tournament. We already know it’s her last ride—she has confirmed she will be declaring for the WNBA Draft later this month. It’s raised the stakes, as…
