Paige Bueckers’ legendary career gets a fairy tale ending.
UConn women’s basketball is back on top of the basketball world. The Huskies claimed their 12th national title — and first since 2016 — with a dominant 82-59 win over the top-seeded South Carolina Gamecocks on Sunday.
Paige Bueckers, who collected every possible individual award over her time with the Huskies, claims the elusive championship she coveted in her final career game.
Sarah Strong was unstoppable, putting up 24 points and 15 rebounds. Azzi Fudd was also sensational with 24 points while Bueckers capped her career with 17 points.
Offense ruled the day early as UConn made seven of its first 11 shots while South Carolina knocked in six of its first 10. At the first media timeout, the Huskies led 15-13.
Then the defenses caught up. The Gamecocks failed to score over the final 3:59 of the opening quarter, but UConn failed to capitalize, scoring only four points during that same span.
The second quarter was all about the runs. The Huskies pulled ahead by nine, South Carolina cut it down to three, and they pushed it up to as many as 11. UConn had a chance to extend the gap even further but went scoreless for over three minutes.
Even with that, Ashlynn Shade hit a 3-pointer at the end of the half to send the Huskies into the locker room with a 36-26 lead.
Out of the break, Fudd and Strong took over. The pair combined to out-score the Gamecocks 20-16 in the third quarter, which put UConn ahead by 20 through 30 minutes. In the fourth, it was KK Arnold’s turn. The sophomore stepped up for eight points in the fourth quarter to help the Huskies put the game away.
As the final buzzer sounded and the confetti rained from the rafters, UConn came out with a 23-point victory.