Paige Bueckers’ freshman season isn’t over yet, but she has already left her mark in many ways. Each game seems to bring another precision pass or clutch shot that quickly circulates across the internet. And this week, the UConn point guard became the first freshman in women’s college basketball history to win the AP Player of the Year award.
Bueckers has scored in double figures in all but one game, and her first performance without an assist came in the Elite Eight. She leads the Huskies in points, assists and minutes per game and has racked up the accolades, including the Big East Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year.
“Nothing that’s happened has surprised me,” coach Geno Auriemma said of the No. 1 recruit in the class of 2020. “How quickly it’s happened and how consistent it’s been throughout the year, that’s been quite surprising and quite rewarding.”
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Before UConn faces Arizona in the Final Four on Friday night, we went back through the highlight reel to pick out our 10 favorite Paige Bueckers moments from this season. Let us know what your favorites were in the comments section, and keep your eye on Bueckers because this list is sure to grow.
The Tennessee shot
PAIGE. BUECKERS. pic.twitter.com/W1F8dQrECM
— UConn Women’s Basketball (@UConnWBB) January 22, 2021
Bueckers made her entrance onto the national stage with a game-winning 3-pointer against Tennessee. Bueckers caught a quick pass from Evina Westbrook with the shot clock expiring, and her 3 padded the Huskies’ lead with 24 seconds to play. Only minutes earlier, Bueckers had been hobbling around the court after rolling her ankle on a highlight-reel pass. The UConn trainer taped her up, and she re-entered the game. The freshman had also been struggling with her shot until the fourth quarter, starting the game 1-for-10 before hitting the one that mattered. UConn won 67-61, and Bueckers was welcomed into UConn lore.
The South Carolina shot
THE BOUNCE pic.twitter.com/emL0LtGbZF
— UConn Women’s Basketball (@UConnWBB) February 9, 2021
Just over two weeks after the Tennessee game, Bueckers added to her freshman legend against then-No. 1 South Carolina. She recorded the final four points in regulation, leading UConn to overtime, before scoring all nine of UConn’s points in the extra period. Bueckers finished with 31 points, becoming the first UConn women’s player to score 30-plus points in three straight games. She also added six steals, five assists and four boards in 45 minutes. But the most memorable moment of the game was her gravity-defying, game-winning 3-pointer. With fewer than 15 seconds remaining in overtime, Bueckers heaved the ball from the top of the key. As the shot clock expired, the ball took a fortuitous bounce upward and sailed through the net to seal a 63-59 victory. Afterward, Auriemma said, “There’s not much you can say. She’s that player.” That she is.
The hook
Paige.
WHAT. pic.twitter.com/Kco*kq5CVOb
— UConn Women’s Basketball (@UConnWBB) February 9, 2021
The final 3-pointer will be Bueckers’ most memorable bucket of the UConn-South Carolina game, but this third-quarter shot deserves equal consideration for its craftiness. Bueckers took the ball from the corner to the rim as three Gameco*ck defenders surrounded her. Instead of caving to the pressure or giving the ball up, Bueckers went for the one-handed hook shot, banking it off the glass and into the basket. And once she released the ball, she casually backed away as if it were just another shot.
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The butt slap
You think Paige Bueckers and @UConnWBB are having fun???#ncaaW pic.twitter.com/2IPqSxpijH
— NCAA Women’s Basketball (@ncaawbb) March 27, 2021
If this didn’t make your jaw drop, I don’t know what else we can offer you. In the final minute of UConn’s Sweet 16 win over Iowa, Anna Makurat hit a late 3-pointer. As Bueckers was running back down the court, she slapped Auriemma’s backside, to the surprise of her coach and everyone watching on ABC. In the postgame press conference, Bueckers said it was an inside joke: “We were just really excited that Anna came in and hit a huge 3. I just gave him a little pat on the butt to let him know that it was a great play.” Auriemma said, “Paige was letting me know. She never passes up an opportunity to let me know when I’m wrong — trust me when I tell you that.”
The Baylor comeback
Big Time Bueckers ‼️
28 points to lead @UConnWBB back to the #WFinalFour! pic.twitter.com/pMmvOCdFx6
— NCAA Women’s Basketball (@ncaawbb) March 30, 2021
If it wasn’t already clear, Bueckers knows when to take over a game. So it didn’t come as a surprise that, when UConn went down 10 against Baylor in the Elite Eight, Bueckers picked her teammates up. She scored 10 points to lead UConn on a 19-0 run and take back the lead. Auriemma said Bueckers, who had a game-high 28 points, helped ignite everyone around her. She also intercepted Baylor’s last-ditch attempt to seal a 69-67 UConn victory. As a result, Bueckers was named the Most Outstanding Player of the River Walk Region.
The behind-the-back pass
Paige Bueckers has officially redefined dish duty 🙌@UConnWBB#ncaaW pic.twitter.com/GzlmKTXUcm
— NCAA Women’s Basketball (@ncaawbb) March 24, 2021
Bueckers’ clutch shooting has become her trademark, but it’s her passing that sets her apart as a truly special player. In UConn’s second-round win over Syracuse, Bueckers scored 16 of her 20 points in the first half to help the Huskies pull away. But in the second half, she took a back seat to her teammates’ scoring as a distributor. Bueckers tossed one no-look pass from the top of the key to Olivia Nelson-Ododa in the paint. On another, she found Nelson-Ododa underneath with a quick no-look. Bueckers’ pass-first mentality led coaches to urge her to shoot more in the beginning of the season, but her ability to find her teammates is an art.
The freshman-on-freshman charge
gg🤝 pic.twitter.com/6RWnM9hUIP
— Ben Dull (@ben_dull) March 27, 2021
The Sweet 16 matchup between Iowa and UConn was billed as the Bueckers and Caitlin Clark show. The two standout freshmen are friends and tried to downplay the hype by shifting the focus to their teams, but they shined anyway. Clark finished with 21 points and five assists, and Bueckers nearly recorded a triple-double (18 points, nine rebounds, eight assists) in UConn’s 92-72 win. One play that might have gone unnoticed came in the final seconds, when Bueckers took a charge against a driving Clark. The Hawkeye helped the Husky to her feet, and they exchanged smiles and pats.
The coach-player chemistry
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If the butt slap didn’t provide enough evidence of Auriemma and Bueckers’ unique relationship, there was also the time in January that Bueckers posed a question to her coach about his hair. “When you get hair as nice as mine, you can have my product,” Auriemma said at the time. Another fun moment came after the South Carolina win, when the team swarmed the coach in the locker room. Bueckers led the charge with a noogie, which others copied, and Auriemma’s hair went down in defeat.
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The touchdown pass
OH MY, Paige Bueckers with the touchdown pass. 😱
(🎥: @UConnWBB) pic.twitter.com/7ZwnfgPUZ4
— theScore (@theScore) February 20, 2021
Bueckers has thrown some pretty nifty no-looks this season, each somehow more impressive than the last. But Bueckers also has range. She’s thrown multiple touchdown passes to Christyn Williams during the season, connecting with the junior for the score. Bueckers’ court vision is one of her most respected traits, and these stretch passes are further proof of how she can read the floor.
The pick-six
Steal-and-score for Bueckers
*scheduled tweet*
(via @UConnWBB) pic.twitter.com/7GwQKQrwAs
— UConn Videos (@SNYUConn) March 7, 2021
Bueckers’ ability to read plays before they happen translates to the defensive side of the floor. The freshman leads UConn with 65 steals, and that’s included a fair share of picks turned into buckets. t’s happened so often that it feels like a regular part of any UConn game.
(Photo: Benjamin Solomon / Getty Images)
