The Huskies won the first quarter 34-5 and never looked back. Azzi Fudd scored 21 points in the first half for UConn and contributed 27 overall.
STORRS, Conn. — The UConn women’s basketball team put on a masterclass in both offense and defense Saturday in the process of defeating Arkansas State 103-34 during first-round March Madness action at Gampel Pavilion.
UConn, the No. 2 seed in the Spokane Region, suffocated No. 15 Arkansas State from the opening tip onwards. The Red Wolves, champions of the Sun Belt Conference, were no match for the Big East champion Huskies, who played on their home court in Storrs.
Arkansas State made the game’s first bucket, taking a brief 2-0 lead before UConn surged ahead. The Huskies won the first quarter by a score of 34-5, as the Red Wolves struggled to answer back on either end of the floor.
By halftime, UConn increased the lead to 66-16, thanks in large part to the shooting clinic put on by graduate guard Azzi Fudd, who scored 21 points in the first frame. Fudd finished with a game-high 27 points and made six three-pointers. She did so in just 22 minutes, as head coach Geno Auriemma rested his starters during the fourth quarter.
Freshman sensation and Second Team All-American Sarah Strong, a UConn forward, added 20 points and 12 rebounds, securing a double-double in her first NCAA Tournament appearance. She played just 21 minutes and shot 9/10 from the field while nailing two three-pointers.
First Team All-American UConn guard Paige Bueckers had a quiet day, scoring only 11 points while letting her teammates do most of the damage. Husky fans can be confident that Bueckers will raise her game as the competition stiffens during UConn’s March Madness run. She played 22 minutes on Saturday.
The third quarter was more of the same. UConn won the period 26-8, as Auriemma began removing his starters from the game.
That gave his bench players an opportunity, and sophomore guard Ashlynn Shade made the most of it. Shade contributed 20 points while shooting 3/6 from beyond the arc in 17 minutes.
As Geno cleared out his bench, the game slowed down in the fourth quarter. The teams only scored a combined 21 points during the final 10 minutes.
Ultimately, UConn’s 69-point thrashing of Arkansas didn’t set any major records, but it made a statement that the Huskies are ready to make a memorable NCAA Tournament run.
Moving forward, UConn can only hope that future stat sheets resemble Saturday’s. The Huskies shot 58.8% from the field compared to 17.1% for the Red Wolves. UConn also connected on 46.4% of their three-point attempts; Arkansas State shot 15% from beyond the arc.
UConn turned the ball over just 12 times compared to 20 for Arkansas State, and the Huskies won the rebounding battle 52-31. During the game, UConn had runs of 22-0, 12-0 and 13-0 en route to winning in the first round for the 31st time in a row.
For Arkansas State, not much went right during their trip to Gampel Pavilion. The team’s leading scorer was sophomore guard Crislyn Rose; she had only seven points.
The Huskies will play Monday in what will be Bueckers’ final game at Gampel Pavilion in a UConn uniform. The team will face No. 10 South Dakota State, who beat No. 7 Oklahoma State Saturday in Storrs.