Geno Auriemma Updates Status of UConn Star Paige Bueckers After Knee Injury
During the UConn Huskies January 5 win over the Villanova Wildcats, star guard Paige Bueckers was rolled up on by an opposing player while going after a loose ball and had her left knee (the same knee she received reconstructive surgery on in August 2022 after tearing her ACL) injured.
Bueckers, who is the projected No. 1 pick of the 2025 WNBA Draft, fell to the ground and immediately began writhing in pain. She then limped off the court and into the locker room. A few moments later, she emerged from the locker room and could be seen wiping tears from her away as she sat on UConn's bench. She didn't return to the game.
Paige Bueckers limps towards the locker room after a collision: pic.twitter.com/nbdDgibTJj
— UConn on SNY (@SNYUConn) January 5, 2025
Fortunately, UConn head coach Geno Auriemma showed optimism when speaking about the injury by saying, "She's pretty good," after the game.
"She'll be fine," Auriemma added. "She looks good. I'm optimistic, let's put it that way. I feel good."
This, combined with Bueckers' postgame demeanor, had fans feeling good about the eventual diagnosis.
But there wasn't an official diagnosis until Tuesday, which Auriemma conveyed when speaking with the media.
"Geno Auriemma says Paige Bueckers has a knee sprain. Nothing torn or seriously damaged. Her ankle is fine but sore. He’s hoping she’ll be back in a week.
"He says she wasn’t involved in drills this week. He adds it’s a similar situation to what Azzi Fudd had in December," wrote an X post from CT Insider's Maggie Vanoni.
Geno Auriemma says Paige Bueckers has a knee sprain. Nothing torn or seriously damaged. Her ankle is fine but sore. He’s hoping she’ll be back in a week.
— Maggie Vanoni (@maggie_vanoni) January 7, 2025
He says she wasn’t involved in drills this week. He adds it’s a similar situation to what Azzi Fudd had in December
UCTV Sports' Avery Becker also quoted Auriemma saying, "She's in great spirits," when talking about Bueckers in an X post.
“She’s in great spirits.”
— Avery Becker (@averyybecker) January 7, 2025
Geno Auriemma on Paige Bueckers mindset after the news from her injury.
Jake McCreven of The Daily Campus also noted that Bueckers didn't need an MRI to diagnose the injury.
Geno Auriemma says no MRI was needed to diagnose Bueckers’ injury.
— Jake McCreven (@mccrevenjake) January 7, 2025
Geno said that practice today was like “Christmas Day” since nobody “rolled their eyes” when he gave directions.
Jim Fuller posted an X video of Auriemma addressing Bueckers' directly, which is shown below.
.@UConnWBB coach Geno Auriemma said Paige Bueckers has injury similar to Azzi Fudd’s recent injury. She won’t play tomorrow but it is not a season-ending injury pic.twitter.com/jNeZKmJYod
— Jim Fuller (@Jim_Fuller1) January 7, 2025
While Bueckers will likely miss a few games, UConn fans can breathe a sign of relief that the superstar avoided a serious injury and should be back to the court soon.
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.