The UConn Huskies have opened their season with a dominant and easy victory. Looking to shake the injury bug and finally win a championship, Paige Bueckers is in full winning mode in her last college basketball season. Luckily for her, and perhaps more so for head coach Geno Auriemma, the Huskies’ new freshman entry is as talented as they want her to be. And could even fill in for Bueckers when needed.

Making a promising start in her college debut against Boston University, Sarah Strong lived up to her name and hype. With a game-high 17 points, the UConn No. 21 had 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 6 steals in 25 minutes. And Auriemma was clearly impressed. He spoke at the post-game conference, “You have to look at it as one big picture. If you have Paige on the floor, everybody gets better immediately,” the HC says.

He also points out, “Then if she’s not on the floor, that doesn’t mean they’re not able to. They just don’t have someone setting it up for them, and so that’s gonna take somebody to do that. Some players just need people to set them up.”

Aside from Paige ‘Buckets‘, Sarah Strong also does it. “Obviously, Paige does that for everybody. And Sarah does that quite a bit.” There have been concerns before about how the Huskies rely too much on Bueckers to perform better. Well, looking for their first championship in 8 years might mean that the 22-year-old will be heavily involved, but this might lead to disorientation in the team when she leaves next year, bringing them back to square one.

According to Emily Adams’ words on Locked On UConn podcast, “Geno said this, ‘Everybody plays really well when Paige is on the floor. Everybody else is good at making plays when Paige is on the floor and can kind of have that gravitational pull, and can facilitate and she just impacts so many areas of the game.'” But the Hall of Famer coach’s problem with other players not stepping up can be resolved.

Strong adds a serious presence to the Huskies roster, someone who Auriemma can build the team around even after Bueckers leaves for the WNBA. The former No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2024 stands at level with the Minnesota-born, and will only add to the talented squad when injuries stop hitting them.

Soon, Azzi Fudd will be back. Meanwhile, freshmen Morgan Cheli, Allie Ziebell, and Jana El Alfy also stood out in their debuts. Alfy posted a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds while Cheli and Ziebell combined for 9 points. As Auriemma says, one player can’t help win a championship. But he certainly has expectations from Strong, who is still trying to figure out her role on the team.

All-American Sarah Strong gets repped by Geno Auriemma

On media days during practice, Sarah Strong had made it clear that she had no defined role in the team yet. The multi-talented player went where she was needed and did what she had to do, and Geno Auriemma sees it as a huge advantage, especially after last year’s injury bout.

After last night’s game, Auriemma said, per CT Insider’s Mike Anthony, “Sarah is able to contribute in so many different ways. Having her on the court is like having two or three players because she fills so many roles.” Strong may only be a freshman but committing to UConn after showing out in high school places certain expectations on their shoulder.

“So if you say, ‘What role on the team does she have to play to get us where we want to go?’ She has to play like an All-American. She has to come in here and act like it and play like it,” Auriemma continued.

Yesterday, Strong certainly did all of those things and more, and as the Huskies get ready for their next outing against South Florida, they will be taking inspiration from their good start.