UConn star Paige Bueckers found herself in awe of teammate Kaitlyn Chen’s spectacular play during the second-ranked Huskies’ 85-52 win over 22nd-ranked Louisville on Saturday. Bueckers reposted the Huskies’ Instagram post of Chen’s ankle breaker on the Cardinals’ Tajiana Roberts in her IG story.
Chen followed her penetration move with a bounce pass to her teammate Ice Brady for an easy layup, extending UConn’s lead by nine points at the 5:29 mark of the first quarter.
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“My goodness,” Bueckers said in her caption.
Kaitlyn Chen finished with six points, four rebounds, and four assists in 21 minutes of play. Paige Bueckers wasn’t as hot as usual with her scoring stats, tallying just eight points on 2-for-11 shooting, but still had significant contributions in both offense and defense, recording 10 rebounds and six assists.
Chen is currently having a down year, averaging 7.0 points, 1.9 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.0 steals per game, compared to her last year’s stats of 15.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4.9 assists, and 1.3 steals at Princeton. The highlight play has got to be a confidence booster for the fourth-year guard, who has been a key figure in the Huskies’ 8-0 record so far.
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Legendary coach Geno Auriemma’s still-undefeated squad is scheduled to face Hannah Hidalgo and the 10th-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish (7-2) on Thursday.
Paige Bueckers also high on Sarah Strong
Aside from Kaitlyn Chen, Paige Bueckers also showed her admiration for Sarah Strong by reposting the Huskies’ IG reel featuring the freshman.
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“Rahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh,” Bueckers’ caption said.
When Bueckers had shooting troubles that night, the 18-year-old forward stepped up to cover for her and help secure the win for the Huskies. She finished with a game-high 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting, along with eight rebounds, three assists, and one each of a block and a steal.
The game against the Cardinals featured another breakout game from the freshman, who is touted as one of the best freshmen this season. She is averaging 16.3 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 2.5 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game.
The growing chemistry within UConn’s roster is undeniably bearing fruit for the team, as proven by their ongoing undefeated streak. With Paige Bueckers being the de facto floor leader supporting her teammates on the court and receiving it back, they are just going to add more to their current success.
Meanwhile, Notre Dame is going to try and put an end to their winning ways on Thursday.
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