NCAAW: UConn Huskies rising stronger, win Large East Event

Aaliyah Edwards had 19 factors, 15 rebounds and three assists and her No. 7 UConn Huskies defeated the No. 10 Villanova Wildcats 67-56 within the Big East championship recreation Monday evening at Mohegan Solar Area in Uncasville, Connecticut.

UConn led by 5 after one and by 10 at halftime earlier than breaking the sport huge open with a 27-15 third quarter. Villanova fought again with a 17-6 fourth, but it surely was not sufficient.

UConn’s standing as a feared workforce was in query down the stretch of the common season as they continued to barely beat some very weak groups in Georgetown, DePaul and, worst of all, Xavier (0-20 Large East).

Nevertheless, 2021’s No. 1 Hoop Gurlz recruit Azzi Fudd returned from a proper knee damage for the Big East Tournament and it has been domination for the Huskies ever since. They took care of Georgetown by the right margin of 30 within the quarterfinals, beat Marquette by 29 within the semis after which defeated an excellent Wildcat workforce extra simply than the ultimate rating signifies.

With the win, UConn earns an automated bid to the NCAA Event; they have been projected as a No. 3 seed within the newest ESPN bracketology, which got here out earlier than the Large East championship recreation. No 1 or 2 seed desires to face UConn of their bracket with Fudd again.

Fudd had 11 factors and two steals in 32 minutes on Monday. Her teammates, who’ve carried the workforce for therefore lengthy, have been those who actually stepped up. Edwards was backed up by Dorka Juhász’s 16 factors, eight rebounds and two blocks. Nika Mühl added 5 factors, six boards and eight helpers, whereas Lou Lopez Sénéchal was good for 14 factors. Mühl not too long ago broke UConn’s report for assists in a single season, a report beforehand held by the nice Sue Chook. She performed all 40 minutes on Monday whereas Edwards performed 38.

Lucy Olsen had a stable stat line of 14 factors, six rebounds, 5 assists and two steals for Villanova, however went 4-of-20 from the sphere and 1-of-9 from 3-point vary. Wildcat sharpshooter Maddie Burke additionally struggled from distance, going of 1-of-7. These performances from past the arc actually damage the workforce’s possibilities. Celebrity Maddy Siegrist led the Wildcats in scoring with 22 factors to go together with her 9 boards. She was 1-of-4 from exterior.

UConn gained area objective share 49.1 to 30.