Women's Fastbreak On SI

UConn's Geno Auriemma Notes How 'Average Paige' Bueckers Game Influences Young Fans

UConn Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma made an interesting comment about fans watching Paige Bueckers play on Wednesday.

Grant Young

Dec 3, 2024; Storrs, Connecticut, USA; UConn Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma watches from the sideline as they take on the Holy Cross Crusaders at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images
Dec 3, 2024; Storrs, Connecticut, USA; UConn Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma watches from the sideline as they take on the Holy Cross Crusaders at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images / David Butler II-Imagn Images

The UConn Huskies women's basketball team improved to 12-2 in the 2024-25 NCAA season after their dominant 77-45 win over Marquette on Wednesday.

Superstar guard Paige Bueckers didn't have her typical offensive output, as she only scored 12 points on 4 of 12 shooting while also adding 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, and 2 blocks in the victory.

Marquette's Al McGuire Center was packed to the brim with fans on Wednesday, many of whom were young fans that showed up to support Bueckers and her Huskies squad.

UConn head coach Geno Auriemma spoke with the media after the game. And at one point, he was asked about young fans who travel to watch UConn with dreams of playing college basketball and offered an intriguing response.

"These kids that play today have such a unique opportunity today... There's so much attention being paid to everything they do. It comes with a lot of responsibility," Auriemma said, per SNY.

Later on in his answer, Auriemma added, "You might not be able to get to Paige Bueckers' level, but that doesn't mean there isn't a school in America that you can play at and be really really really good at. There are more kids watching Paige play that will never play at this level, and they need to understand that there's a level for them, too.

"So Paige has to be able to do all of the things that good basketball players do. Not just only crazy things only that Paige can do," Auriemma added. "And I thought she was really good at that today, being average Paige."

What's for sure is that fans are happy to see Bueckers performing, regardless of how "average" the outcome may be.

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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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