Women's Fastbreak On SI

Fans Wonder Whether Star Freshman Sarah Strong Is UConn's Best Player

Some fans believe UConn Huskies freshman Sarah Strong is already her team's best player after their dominant win against the Louisville Cardinals.

Grant Young

Nov 20, 2024; Storrs, Connecticut, USA; Connecticut Huskies forward Sarah Strong (21) shoots a three point basket during the second half against the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Mark Smith-Imagn Images
Nov 20, 2024; Storrs, Connecticut, USA; Connecticut Huskies forward Sarah Strong (21) shoots a three point basket during the second half against the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Mark Smith-Imagn Images / Mark Smith-Imagn Images

The UConn Huskies cruised to an 85-52 win over the No. 22 ranked Louisville Cardinals on Saturday night in what might have been the most impressive team performance (considering the quality of their opponent) Huskies have produced all season.

This big win was especially impressive because of the sub-par night that Huskies superstar Paige Bueckers had on offense. Bueckers finished the game with just 8 points on an extremely uncharacteristic 2-11 shooting from the field; although it's worth noting that she also added 10 rebounds and 6 assists.

But UConn was able to brush Bueckers' game off because of another excellent outing from superstar freshman Sarah Strong, who finished the contest with 21 points (on 8-10 shooting from the field and 3-5 from three-point range), 8 rebounds, and 3 assists.

After Saturday's game, Strong is averaging 16.3 points (Bueckers still has the edge with 18.9 ppg), 7.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 2.5 steals per game this season.

As a result of her excellence, some fans are wondering whether Strong — who doesn't turn 19 years old until February 3 — is the best player on UConn at the moment.

"Don’t come for me on this one, but Sarah Strong might just be the best player on UConn right now," wrote On3 Sports' Talia Goodman in an X post that has over 75,000 views in 12 hours.

"You’re not wrong. She is," one fan commented.

Another fan added, "Don’t look now but Sarah Strong might be the best player on UCONN. 👀".

Ultimately, UConn fans are simply stoked they have both Bueckers and Strong (and a hopefully healthy Azzi Fudd) on their roster this season.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.

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