The UConn women’s basketball team secured a 36-pont win over Holy Cross on Tuesday night (88-52) but head coach Geno Auriemma expressed concerns about the lingering effects of the team’s recent international trip. Despite the win, Auriemma acknowledged the difficulty of transitioning back to routine play following travel, drawing parallels to similar experiences earlier in his coaching career.
“Morgan Valley said she knew this was coming, because you come back from a trip, it’s not the same,” Auriemma said, as reported by Maggie Vanoni of CT Insider. Reflecting on a comparable situation in 2002, he noted the challenges UConn faced returning from a Thanksgiving tournament in Hawaii to play Holy Cross. “It’s always bad jet lag, bad everything when you come back. We had won the tournament out there. When we came home, I think I threw three kids off the team. I mean, it was only for a day, but it’s just really, really hard to get back into the rhythm of things.”
Tuesday’s game at Gampel Pavilion was UConn’s final test before facing three consecutive ranked opponents. Holy Cross (4-4) briefly led early in the game, capitalizing on a sluggish start from UConn, which missed six of its first eight shots and endured two separate three-minute scoring droughts.
Geno Auriemma credits UConn women’s basketball newcomers for overcoming early struggles
Freshman Sarah Strong led the Huskies’ turnaround with 22 points, seven rebounds and two steals. She contributed a personal 10-0 run in the second quarter to help UConn establish a 10-point lead. Fellow newcomer Kaitlyn Chen added 14 points and seven assists. Newcomers accounted for 46 of UConn’s points, with Strong and Chen combining for 19 in the second half.
Auriemma also monitored the minutes of guard Azzi Fudd, who returned to the starting lineup for the first time since November 2023 after recovering from injury and illness. Fudd played 18 minutes, scoring seven points.
Expected No. 1 2025 WNBA draft pick Paige Bueckers recorded 11 points, seven rounds and five assists in 28 minutes.
While pleased with the outcome, Auriemma remained focused on lineup experimentation and addressing inefficiencies ahead of tougher competition.
“It’s Christmas time, right? So, in every piece of coal, if you keep digging hard enough, you might find a Christmas ornament,” he said.
The Huskies (7-0) now prepare for a ranked-opponent stretch that begins Dec. 6 at Barclays Center, where they will face No. 22 Louisville.
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