Texas just secured their first-ever game against UConn at the Moody Centre on Sunday in front of 10,763 people. But at a certain point in this game, the Huskies’ head coach Geno Auriemma lost his cool due to a sudden collision. But as refs turned their eye blind, the missed foul disappointed the spectators. But even then, the Huskies ended their night with another disappointment.
It’s tough to imagine a world without the UConn brand, the UConn name, or the UConn tradition in women’s basketball. However, opponents are now aware that the Huskies are no longer sporting their invincible armor due to roster realities. As Texas became the latest to own Huskies, it was a miscall that defined this court encounter.
Fall without foul
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
No. 10 Texas upset No. 11 UConn 80-68, marking the program’s first-ever win against the Huskies, who had previously lost three games this season. Rori Harmon had 27 points and 13 assists to lead the offense. Freshman Madison Booker produced 20 points and four assists in her debut game against the Huskies (4-3) to help Texas (9-0) win.
Texas stormed out to an early 15-3 lead in the biggest game of the Longhorns’ season so far, but the Longhorns missed their first six tries. Three-pointers were made in a row by Shaylee Gonzales, Booker, and Harmon. Amina Muhammad’s layup and two free throws by Harmon with 46 seconds remaining restored the advantage to 10 for UConn after the team made its first 10 shots of the game to close the gap to 74-68.
However, the sudden collision with Amina caused a commotion, which led to the hyped emotions of the UConn head coach fearing a foul in a further deteriorating game.
Huskies standout Paige Bueckers finished with 13 points, but just five of those came in the first half as Harmon shut her down defensively. She shot just 4 out of 11 and was scoreless in the second quarter. This made her coach delve into the team’s crippling crisis.
Coach’s loss comment
The invincible Huskies are plagued with injuries, and the team is suffering a lot to establish their dominance in the current NCAA season. Head coach Geno Auriemma opened up about the injury-plagued season conveying the team’s predicament, “I don’t think anybody deserves to be in this situation as many times as we’ve been in.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Ducharme, a junior from Massachusetts, has suffered from head and neck issues in the last two seasons. Due to these concerns, she missed the Huskies’ previous two games in the Cayman Islands, while Azzi Fudd is out of action due to the season-ending injury.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Watch This Story: Impressing A’ja Wilson With NCAA Fierceness, Angel Reese Opens Up About Impact on WNBA
But despite their defects and defeats, the Huskies are capable to bounce back and stamp their authority on the ring. With Azzi Fudd out of the action, much depends on Paige Bueckers’ court exploits now.