UConn wins Big East tournament title by dominating Villanova

UConn capped its Big East tournament title run Sunday night with a 90-51 drubbing of Villanova. The championship is the Huskies’ 24th Big East crown and marked the program’s 50th consecutive win, the fifth-longest winning streak in NCAA women’s hoops history.

The Huskies had four players in double figures, led by fifth-year senior Azzi Fudd, who finished with 19 points and sophomore Sarah Strong, who finished with 18 points and eight rebounds in 22 minutes. Strong, who averaged 17 points, seven rebounds and five steals through three Big East tournament games (while shooting 68 percent from the floor), was named the conference’s Most Outstanding Player. Fudd and KK Arnold, who set the tone defensively for UConn in its three Big East tournament games, were both named to the All-Tournament team.

Advertisement

The Huskies have averaged a near 40-point margin of victory so far this season, their highest margin since the 2015-16 season, and their performances through the Big East tournament were no different. While playing a deep bench — no Huskies player logged more than 27 minutes in any Big East tournament game — UConn outscored its Big East opponents by an average of 45 points per game.

The added rest for UConn’s main rotation through the conference tournament should be an added benefit to the Huskies’ momentum as they enter the NCAA Tournament as the favorites. UConn is seeking to become the first team to repeat as national champions since the program did so in 2015 and 2016.

They probably went into this season with the specter of ‘Well, they just lost arguably the best player in the country last year (Paige Bueckers) and there’s no way they can repeat,’ and I think there’s a real drive in them to prove that we’re worthy,” Auriemma said. “It’s not going to be easy. It’s never as easy as, sometimes, it looks. It’s going to be really hard. … But, I think we’re prepared for whatever happens. If we play well, we have a chance to win. If we…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/uconn-wins-big-east-tournament-013106638.html

Author :

Publish date : 2026-03-10 01:31:00

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.