2020–21 UConn Huskies women's basketball team

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2020–21 UConn Huskies women's basketball
Big East tournament champions
Big East regular season champions
NCAA tournament, Final Four
ConferenceBig East Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 3
APNo. 1
Record28–2 (18–0 Big East)
Head coach
Associate head coachChris Dailey (36th season)
Assistant coaches
Home arenaHarry A. Gampel Pavilion
XL Center
Seasons
2020–21 Big East Conference women's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 1 UConn† 18 – 0   1.000 28 – 2   .933
Marquette 14 – 4   .778 19 – 7   .731
Seton Hall 12 – 5   .706 14 – 7   .667
DePaul 11 – 5   .688 14 – 10   .583
Villanova 9 – 5   .643 17 – 7   .708
Creighton 6 – 7   .462 10 – 12   .455
Providence 4 – 10   .286 7 – 14   .333
St. John's 4 – 12   .250 8 – 15   .348
Xavier 2 – 8   .200 5 – 10   .333
Butler 3 – 15   .167 3 – 17   .150
Georgetown 2 – 14   .125 2 – 15   .118
† Big East tournament winner
As of April 3, 2021
Rankings from AP poll

The 2020–21 UConn Huskies women's basketball team represented the University of Connecticut (UConn) during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Huskies, led by Hall of Fame head coach Geno Auriemma in his 36th season at UConn, split their home games between Harry A. Gampel Pavilion and the XL Center and were members of the Big East Conference, which they joined for women's basketball that season. UConn was previously a member of the original Big East Conference from 1979 through 2013, and one of the original women's basketball teams of that league in 1982.

UConn was ranked no. 3 in both the AP and Coaches pre-season polls. During the regular season, they had a record of 21–1, including 18–0 in the Big East to win the conference regular season championship. In February 2021, they defeated no. 1 ranked South Carolina; it was UConn freshman Paige Bueckers' third straight 30-point game. UConn won the Big East tournament, winning all three of their games by over 30 points. They were ranked no. 1 in both polls at that time. As a no. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament, they won their region with a victory over no. 5 ranked Baylor in the Elite Eight. UConn then lost to Arizona in the Final Four and finished their campaign with a record of 28–2. Bueckers, the team's leading scorer, won several awards at the end of the season, including the Naismith College Player of the Year.

Offseason[edit]

Departures[edit]

Name Number Pos. Height Year Hometown Reason for departure
Megan Walker 3 F 6'1" Junior Chesterfield, VA Declared for 2020 WNBA draft
Crystal Dangerfield 5 G 5'5" Senior Murfreesboro, TN Graduated / 2020 WNBA draft
Molly Bent 10 G 5'9" Senior Centerville, MA Graduated
Evelyn Adebayo 14 F 6'1" RS Senior London, England Completed college eligibility[a]
Kyla Irwin 25 F 6'2" Senior State College, PA Graduated
Batouly Camara 32 F 6'2" RS Senior New York, NY Graduated
  1. ^ Adebayo was a graduate transfer in the 2019–20 season, having graduated from Murray State.

Recruits[edit]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Paige Bueckers
PG 		Eden Prairie, MN Hopkins High School 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 98
Aaliyah Edwards
W 		Kingston, Ontario Crestwood Secondary School 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 97
Mir McLean
W 		Owings Mills, MD Roland Park Country School 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 97
Piath Gabriel
F 		Manchester, NH N/A 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:3/5 stars   ESPN grade: 90
Nika Mühl
PG 		Zagreb, Croatia N/A 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:3/5 stars   ESPN grade: 90
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2020 Player Commits". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on November 13, 2020. Retrieved November 13, 2020.

Recruiting class of 2021[edit]

US college sports recruiting information for 2021 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Azzi Fudd
G 		Arlington, VA St. John's College High School 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 98
Caroline Ducharme
G 		Milton, MA Noble & Greenough School 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 98
Amari DeBerry
F 		Williamsburg, NY Williamsville South High School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 96
Saylor Poffenbarger
G 		Middletown, MD Middletown High School 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 94
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Recruiting class of 2022[edit]

US college sports recruiting information for 2022 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Isuneh Brady
P 		San Diego, CA Cathedral Catholic High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 98
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Roster[edit]

2020–21 UConn Huskies women's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Year Previous school Hometown
G 2 Autumn Chassion (W) 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) Fr Lafayette Christian Academy Lafayette, LA
F 3 Aaliyah Edwards 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) Fr Crestwood Preparatory College Kingston, Ontario
G 4 Saylor Poffenbarger 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) Fr Middletown Middletown, MD
G 5 Paige Bueckers 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) Fr Hopkins Hopkins, MN
G 10 Nika Mühl 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) Fr III. Gimnazija Zagreb Zagreb, Croatia
F 11 Mir McLean 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) Fr Roland Park Country Baltimore, MD
G 13 Christyn Williams 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) Jr Central Arkansas Christian Little Rock, AR
F 20 Olivia Nelson-Ododa 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) Jr Winder-Barrow Winder, GA
G 22 Evina Westbrook 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) RS Jr Tennessee Salem, OR
G 24 Anna Makurat 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) So Sport Championship School Sierakowice, Poland
F 32 Piath Gabriel 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) Fr Bradford Christian Academy Manchester, NH
G 44 Aubrey Griffin 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) So Ossining Ossining, NY
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

  • Saylor Poffenbarger was only on the roster for the spring semester, joining the team in January.[1]

Schedule[edit]

[2]

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
November 28, 2020*
12:30 pm, SNY 		No. 3 vs. Quinnipac
Basketball Hall of Fame Women's Challenge semifinals 		Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic Mohegan Sun Arena 
Uncasville, CT
November 29, 2020*
 ESPN 		No. 3 vs. Maine or No. 6 Mississippi State
Basketball Hall of Fame Women's Challenge 		Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic Mohegan Sun Arena 
Uncasville, CT
December 4, 2020*
7:00 pm, ESPN 		No. 3 vs. No. 5 Louisville Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic Mohegan Sun Arena 
Uncasville, CT
December 12, 2020*
1:00 pm, SNY 		No. 3 UMass Lowell W 79–23  1–0
  17 – Bueckers   9 – Tied   5 – Tied  Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, CT
December 15, 2020
6:30 pm, SNY 		No. 3 at Seton Hall W 92–65  2–0
(1–0) 		 25 – Bueckers   10 – Nelson-Ododa   7 – Tied  Walsh Gymnasium 
South Orange, NJ
December 17, 2020
6:30 pm, SNY 		No. 3 Creighton W 80–47  3–0
(2–0) 		 24 – Nelson-Ododa   8 – Tied   5 – Bueckers  Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, CT
December 19, 2020
1:00 pm, SNY 		No. 3 Xavier W 106–59  4–0
(3–0) 		 24 – Williams   11 – Nelson-Ododa   9 – Bueckers  Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, CT
December 22, 2020
7:00 pm, SNY 		No. 3 at Villanova W 90–52  5–0
(4–0) 		 19 – Tied   9 – Makurat   7 – Williams  Finneran Pavilion 
Villanova, PA
December 29, 2020
6:30 pm, SNY 		No. 4 No. 18 DePaul W 75–52  6–0
(5–0) 		 18 – Bueckers   14 – Nelson-Ododa   5 – Williams  Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, CT
January 7, 2021*
8:30 pm, ESPN 		No. 3 at No. 6 Baylor Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic Ferrell Center 
Waco, TX
January 9, 2021
1:00 pm, SNY 		No. 3 Providence W 87–50  7–0
(6–0) 		 23 – Bueckers   9 – Griffin   5 – Bueckers  Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, CT
January 16, 2021
1:00 pm, SNY 		No. 4 Villanova Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, CT
January 19, 2021
6:30 pm, SNY 		No. 3 Butler W 103–35  8–0
(7–0) 		 18 – Nelson-Ododa   10 – Griffin   8 – Bueckers  Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, CT
January 21, 2021*
7:00 pm, ESPN 		No. 3 at No. 25 Tennessee
Rivalry 		W 67–61  9–0
  20 – Williams   11 – Nelson-Ododa   7 – Bueckers  Thompson–Boling Arena (3,553)
Knoxville, TN
January 23, 2021
2:00 pm, SNY 		No. 3 Georgetown W 72–41  10–0
(8–0) 		 19 – Nelson-Ododa   9 – Nelson-Ododa   9 – Westbrook  Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, CT
January 26, 2021
 No. 3 at Providence Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic Alumni Hall 
Providence, RI
January 28, 2021*
6:00 pm, ESPN2 		No. 3 at No. 19 Arkansas L 87–90  10–1
  27 – Bueckers   6 – Tied   7 – Westbrook  Bud Walton Arena (4,400)
Fayetteville, AR
January 31, 2021
1:00 pm, FOX 		No. 3 at No. 17 DePaul W 100–67  11–1
(9–0) 		 29 – Williams   14 – Westbrook   10 – Bueckers  Wintrust Arena 
Chicago, IL
February 3, 2021
6:30 pm, SNY 		No. 3 St. John's W 94–62  12–1
(10–0) 		 32 – Bueckers   9 – Edwards   7 – Tied  Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, CT
February 5, 2021
7:00 pm, SNY 		No. 3 at Marquette W 87–58  13–1
(11–0) 		 30 – Bueckers   8 – Nelson-Ododa   9 – Mühl  Al McGuire Center 
Milwaukee, WI
February 8, 2021*
7:00 pm, FS1 		No. 2 No. 1 South Carolina W 63–59 OT 14–1
  31 – Bueckers   7 – Tied   6 – Nelson-Ododa  Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, CT
February 10, 2021
6:30 pm, SNY 		No. 2 Seton Hall W 70–49  15–1
(12–0) 		 23 – Bueckers   13 – Nelson-Ododa   7 – Westbrook  Gampel Pavillon 
Storrs, CT
February 12, 2021
6:00 pm, CBSSN 		No. 2 at Georgetown W 64–40  16–1
(13–0) 		 19 – Tied   7 – Tied   9 – Bueckers  McDonough Gymnasium 
Washington, D.C.
February 17, 2021
6:00 pm, SNY 		No. 1 at St. John's W 77–32  17–1
(14–0) 		 21 – Williams   8 – Westbrook   9 – Bueckers  Carnesecca Arena 
New York, NY
February 20, 2021
3:00 pm, SNY 		No. 1 at Xavier W 83–32  18–1
(15–0) 		 22 – Williams   11 – Edwards   7 – Bueckers  Cintas Center (922)
Cincinnati, OH
February 25, 2021
5:00 pm, SNY 		No. 1 at Creighton W 81–49  19–1
(16–0) 		 19 – Mühl   11 – Nelson-Ododa   9 – Bueckers  D. J. Sokol Arena (278)
Omaha, NE
February 27, 2021
4:30 pm, SNY 		No. 1 at Butler W 97–68  20–1
(17–0) 		 24 – Edwards   14 – Edwards   14 – Bueckers  Hinkle Fieldhouse (1,721)
Indianapolis, IN
March 1, 2021
8:00 pm, CBSSN 		No. 1 Marquette W 63–53  21–1
(18–0) 		 19 – Nelson-Ododa   10 – Nelson-Ododa   3 – Tied  Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, CT
Big East Women's Tournament
March 6, 2021
12:00 pm, FS1 		(1) No. 1 vs. (8) St. John's
Quarterfinals 		W 77–41  22–1
  17 – Bueckers   11 – Nelson-Ododa   3 – Bueckers  Mohegan Sun Arena 
Uncasville, CT
March 7, 2021
3:00 pm, FS1 		(1) No. 1 vs. (5) Villanova
Semifinals 		W 84–39  23–1
  26 – Williams   7 – Tied   8 – Bueckers  Mohegan Sun Arena 
Uncasville, CT
March 8, 2021
8:00 pm, FS1 		(1) No. 1 vs. (2) Marquette
Championship 		W 73–39  24–1
  23 – Bueckers   8 – Edwards   5 – Nelson-Ododa  Mohegan Sun Arena 
Uncasville, CT
NCAA tournament
March 21, 2021*
8:00 pm, ESPN 		(1 R) No. 1 vs. (16 R) High Point
First Round 		W 102–59  25–1
  24 – Bueckers   12 – Edwards   6 – Bueckers  Alamodome 
San Antonio, TX
March 23, 2021*
9:00 pm, ESPN 		(1 R) No. 1 vs. (8 R) Syracuse
Second Round 		W 83–47  26–1
  20 – Bueckers   8 – Nelson-Ododa   4 – Tied  Alamodome 
San Antonio, TX
March 27, 2021*
1:00 pm, ABC 		(1 R) No. 1 vs. (5 R) Iowa
Sweet Sixteen 		W 92–72  27–1
  27 – Williams   11 – Nelson-Ododa   10 – Westbrook  Alamodome 
San Antonio, TX
March 29, 2021*
7:00 pm, ESPN 		(1 R) No. 1 vs. (2 R) No. 5 Baylor
Elite Eight 		W 69–67  28–1
  28 – Bueckers   8 – Nelson-Ododa   4 – Nelson-Ododa  Alamodome 
San Antonio, TX
April 2, 2021*
9:30 pm, ESPN 		(1 R) No. 1 vs. (3 M) No. 11 Arizona
Final Four 		L 59–69  28–2
  20 – Williams   7 – Edwards   4 – Bueckers  Alamodome 
San Antonio, TX
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
R=River Walk M=Mercado.
All times are in EST.

Rankings[edit]

Main article: 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings
Regular Season Polls
Poll Pre-
Season		 Week
2		 Week
3		 Week
4		 Week
5		 Week
6		 Week
7		 Week
8		 Week
9		 Week
10		 Week
11		 Week
12		 Week
13		 Week
14		 Week
15		 Week
16		 Week
17		 Final
AP 3 3 3 (2) 3 (1) 3 (1) 4 (1) 4 (1) 4 3 (1) 3 (1) 3 2 1 (26) 1 (28) 1 (27) 1 (22) 1 (23) N/A
Coaches 3 3^ 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 4 5 1 (17) 1 (22) 1 (30) 1 (29) 1 (27) 1 (27) 3
Legend
  Increase in ranking
  Decrease in ranking
  Not ranked previous week
RV   Received votes
NR   Not ranked
( )   Number of first place votes

^ Coaches did not release a Week 2 poll

Player statistics[edit]

Player Games Played Minutes Field Goals Three Pointers Free Throws Rebounds Assists Blocks Steals Points
BueckersPaige Bueckers 29 1049 222 64 73 141 168 11 66 581
WilliamsChristyn Williams 29 998 187 49 49 124 64 14 27 472
WestbrookEvina Westbrook 30 920 104 40 35 158 128 20 52 283
Nelson-OdodaOlivia Nelson-Ododa 30 783 152 4 52 234 87 53 19 360
EdwardsAaliyah Edwards 29 631 131 0 49 164 26 29 28 311
MühlNika Mühl 23 562 40 24 8 56 62 4 40 112
GriffinAubrey Griffin 29 486 69 3 40 138 24 23 34 181
MakuratAnna Makurat 16 327 21 13 4 52 38 5 15 59
McLeanMir McLean 24 167 26 1 15 51 11 6 6 68
GabrielPiath Gabriel 22 55 6 0 3 12 2 5 0 15
PoffenbargerSaylor Poffenbarger 12 32 2 1 1 4 0 1 0 6
ChassionAutumn Chassion 8 15 3 2 0 2 3 0 0 8

[3]

Awards and honors[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "UConn women's basketball adds 2021 signee Saylor Poffenbarger a semester early". January 15, 2021.
  2. ^ "2020–2021 Schedule". UConnHuskies.com. Archived from the original on December 11, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
  3. ^ "2020-21 Women's Basketball Cumulative Statistics". uconnhuskies.com. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  4. ^ "Bueckers Becomes First Freshman to Earn Naismith Trophy". University of Connecticut Athletics. April 3, 2021. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  5. ^ "UConn's Bueckers Wins 2020-21 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award" (Press release). United States Basketball Writers Association. April 4, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
  6. ^ Feinberg, Doug (March 31, 2021). "UConn's Paige Bueckers is AP women's player of the year". Associated Press. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  7. ^ "UConn Huskies freshman Paige Bueckers caps standout season, wins John R. Wooden Award". espn.com. April 5, 2021. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  8. ^ "Basketball Hall of Fame Reveals Winners of Women's Naismith Starting Five Awards" (Press release). Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. April 4, 2021. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  9. ^ "UConn freshman Paige Bueckers leads women's AP All-America team". ESPN. Associated Press. March 17, 2021. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
  10. ^ a b "USBWA Names Tamika Catchings Award, Coach of the Year Winners" (Press release). United States Basketball Writers Association. April 2, 2021. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  11. ^ "Bueckers Tabbed to WBCA Coaches' All-America Team". University of Connecticut Athletics. April 3, 2021. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  12. ^ "UConn's Bueckers, Iowa's Clark named 2021 WBCA NCAA Division I Co-Freshmen of the Year presented by adidas". Women's Basketball Coaches Association. March 30, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Bueckers Sweeps BIG EAST Player, Freshman of the Year Honors". Big East Conference. March 4, 2021. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  14. ^ "Paige Bueckers, UConn Huskies beat Marquette Golden Eagles for Big East women's basketball title". ESPN. Associated Press. March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
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