Ziebell buries ten threes, Edwards enters Huskies of Honor as No. 1 UConn Women’s Hoops down Xavier
There is just something about playing the Xavier Musketeers that causes Allie Ziebell to turn into Ray Allen.
In each of her first two tangos with Xavier, Ziebell knocked down five three-pointers. But on a chilly Wednesday evening in Storrs, the 6-foot-0 sophomore from Wisconsin had that many in each half.
Ziebell canned a career-best 10 three-pointers as the No. 1 UConn women’s basketball team mashed the Musketeers 97-39 inside Gampel Pavilion.
“The number is not as impressive to me as watching her play with so much confidence,” head coach Geno Auriemma commented postgame about the 2024 Wisconsin Miss Basketball winner, whose 34 points are the most by a bench player. “That is the Allie that I saw in high school…that is the kid that we recruited.”
It was only fitting that Ziebell had UConn’s first four triples and two-thirds of their 15 on the night. The two-time Wisconsin Gatorade Player of the Year’s splits were equally impressive. In addition to her five threes in each half, she knocked down one in the odd-numbered quarters and four in the even-numbered quarters. Most of them were uncontested.
“When you are shooting and they are going in, you just know you are in that rhythm,” Ziebell explained. “My teammates did such a great job of just finding me, and you could tell how happy they were.”
The other three players with double-digit threes, Maya Moore, Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis and Katie Lou Samuelson, are in the Huskies of Honor. Aaliyah Edwards joined all three national champions in that distinct club before Wednesday’s contest.
Edwards, a 2024 WBCA All-American, is one of six players in program history with 1,800+ points and 1,000+ rebounds. No one appeared in more games between the 2021-22 and 2023-24 seasons than the 6-foot-2 Canadian native’s 110.
“I never set out to get recognized for individual accomplishment, but it truly feels so good to see my name up there in the rafters,” Edwards expressed during her speech. “To be up there forever, it truly means the world to me.”
It just so happened that the injury bug that afflicted the program during her college career also returned to Storrs.
Serah Williams (ankle), Blanca Quiñonez (shoulder), Caroline Ducharme (migraine) and Gandy Malou-Mamel (illness) were all ruled out three hours before tip-off. Ice Brady and Morgan Cheli’s absences left the Huskies with just nine available players.
But as was the case countless times during that three-season stretch, an All-American forward willed Connecticut onward.
Nine-time Big East Player of the Week Sarah Strong scored 25 points, which matches her season high in conference play. Strong complemented her offense in ways that Edwards usually did: five rebounds, three assists, a block and two steals.
Harkening to those teams with depleted benches, the Huskies got a versatile tertiary option and stellar point guard play. Ashlynn Shade dropped 12 points after recording 13 in her last two games combined. When she was not scoring, however, Shade flirted with a quadruple-double with nine steals, six rebounds, six assists and a plus-minus of plus-52.
“Little by little, her defense has gotten better,” the 12-time national champion said about his latest Big East Sixth Player of the Year winner. “Nobody works harder than her. I am always rooting for her.”
KK Arnold matched her fellow junior teammate with six dimes while racking up two steals and five points. USC transfer Kayleigh Heckel had six points, eight boards and eight apples.
Azzi Fudd’s first missed free throw of the season could have caused the sky to fall further in Storrs. It added insult to the second consecutive competitive start UConn faced as well as an Arnold injury scare.
The 5-foot-9 junior took an elbow from Mariyah Noel following two Strong free throws and squinted as she walked toward the bench. Referees deemed the contact unnecessary, ultimately resulting in a lead the Huskies never relinquished.
Fittingly, the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watch List forward scored the go-ahead basket on a jumper. Strong added one more floater for 12 points in a first-quarter duel.
Ziebell canned her first triple of the night not long after the North Carolina native’s fourth field goal of the period. Strong scored on consecutive offensive possessions to open the ensuing frame and Heckel drove for a layup.
Those ended up being Connecticut’s last three two-pointers of the half as the 2024 McDonald’s All-American guard heated up from downtown. Ziebell nailed one from the elbow, then followed that up with two in 30 seconds to force a Xavier timeout. The Huskies’ top two recruits in its 2024 class each made one more trey for a 19-point halftime advantage.
UConn carried the momentum they found from long range into the second. Arnold knocked down her lone three and, following a second Musketeer timeout, Shade and Fudd each joined in. Behind an offense that shot 10-19 from the field and a defense that forced nine turnovers, the Huskies outscored Xavier 31-7 in the third quarter.
Ziebell’s hot hand remained ablaze in the final frame. Neenah High School’s all-time points leader canned four more threes on four attempts in almost two minutes. Each basket Ziebell made from behind the arc raised the pandemonium levels tenfold. Ayanna Patterson and Jana El Alfy both scored as the Huskies beat the Musketeers by 50+ for the third straight game.
Connecticut’s defense held Xavier under 50 points for the first time since the Big East opener on November 30. The Huskies forced the Musketeers into a season-high 34 turnovers and only allowed eight assists (again).
Noel guided Xavier with 12 points while hauling in eight rebounds. Meri Kanerva had both of the Musketeers’ threes and dropped 11. Savannah White, who missed the last meeting between both schools, scored six points and grabbed nine boards.
Auriemma noted postgame that Williams and Quiñonez essentially remain day-to-day. If the reigning national champions are this shorthanded on Sunday, the whole game could be as challenging as the first quarter was.
Why might that be the case? Another one of UConn’s longtime rivals, this time the No. 15 Tennessee Lady Volunteers, next enters the Nutmeg State. Tip-off from PeoplesBank Arena is at 12 p.m. on Fox.
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