Paige Bueckers prepares for her final showdown wiht the UConn Huskies in Sunday’s NCAA Tournament Championship Game against the South Carolina Gamecocks. (Photo: UConn Athletics)
TAMPA, Fla. — Paige Bueckers is set to close out her illustrious college basketball career under head coach Geno Auriemma with the UConn Huskies. A native of Hopkins, Minnesota, the redshirt senior’s years with the renowned program have been nothing short of inspirational and remarkable.
In many ways, Bueckers exemplifies what it means to put on the Huskies uniform. At 24, Bueckers is a scoring phenom—her midrange touch and deep shooting range make her one of college basketball’s most thrilling players to watch.
In Friday’s 87-58 win over UCLA, the 2025 Nancy Lieberman Award winner added another highlight to her reel—a crafty tip-pass to Kaitlyn Chen that perfectly showcased her elite playmaking vision.
As Bueckers prepares for her final game with the Huskies, fittingly the 2025 NCAA Tournament Championship Game against the South Carolina Gamecocks, she hopes fans will remember her years with the program with fond memories.
“I’m just somebody that gave their all to the program, wore their jersey with great pride, was a great teammate, was a great leader, was selfless, loved sharing things with others, loved just being a part of this program,” Bueckers said. “Never took it for granted and just was somebody who was proud to be part of this program.”
In sports, there is often talk about adopting a team’s culture—like the New England Patriots in the NFL or the New York Yankees in MLB. Likewise, the UConn Huskies way dates back to 1985 when Auriemma and Chris Daley joined the coaching staff.
Over the past 40 years, Auriemma and Daley instilled a winning mentality that continues to this day with the 11-time national champions.
Along the way, greats like Rebecca Lobo, Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird, Maya Moore, Breanna Stewart, Katie Lou Samuelson, Napheesa Collier and Stefanie Dolson have all carried the torch, leaving lasting legacies that Bueckers now follows. Talent and leadership matter but selflessness in catalyzing strong, genuine teamwork go a long ways with being among the best to wear UConn’s colors.
It is no secret that Bueckers epitomizes that hustle, grit and unselfish play that has made her one of the greatest not only to play for the Big East Conference powerhouse, but in college basketball.
On the other hand, Auriemma wants Bueckers to take more shots and to take charge. Scoring 117 points in the past four games, the projected No. 1 pick in this year’s WNBA Draft has done so but points out how she plays to her authentic approach.
“I feel like he still has to beg me to shoot sometimes, but that’s just the UConn way,” Bueckers quipped. “It’s the way I love to play. Being selfless, feeding my teammates, making sure everybody’s getting involved. But at the same time, the game at the moment might call for something different and it might call for me hunting my shots more or getting to my spot more, being more aggressive, looking to score.
“And you always realize when you look to score and aggressive to look to score, it opens up everything else for your teammates as well. So just finding the balance in that and every game is different. So not going into a game predetermining what I’m going to do, but reading what the game calls for.”
In some cases, it is not about the number of points, but the difference Bueckers can make that cannot be measured by a stat sheet. Instead, the difference comes from her abilities with inspiring her teammates, accepting constructive criticisms from Auriemma and Daley and trusting herself to be a servant leader.
“I think being a lot comfortable using my voice with experience and with age, you get more comfortable using your voice,” Bueckers shared. “So. And I think holding people accountable, I used to look at it as a bad thing and like, me getting on my teammates and demanding excellence out of them was a negative. And like me, it’s not me picking on anybody. It’s really instead of calling people out, it’s calling people up. And that holds yourself to a new level of accountability for yourself. And knowing you can’t call your teammates out on something if it’s something you’re not doing yourself.
“So balancing that and then just leading by example. And how hard I work on and off the court and how much I invest myself into the game and how much it’s it’s my whole life and my whole being and just giving everything I have to it and then connecting with people off the court. I think people trust people way more when they actually have a genuine relationship with them. And trust is a huge key piece to basketball. And so connecting with all of my teammates, just going to the rooms, chatting about stuff when somebody’s going through something, just being there to support them. So all in all, being connected with my teammates and using my voice.”
In her five years at UConn, Bueckers has built lasting bonds—not just with teammates like her closest friend Azzi Fudd, but across the roster from freshman phenom Sarah Strong to the energetic KK Arnold. Make no mistake — Bueckers genuinely cares for each of her teammates, whether it is being a vocal, positive leader to ensuring each of them marshals their talents on the court.
That unwavering ability to resonate with a team will be indelible in Sunday’s game against South Carolina, the three-time and defending national champions.
Since Dec. 17, 2007, UConn and South Carolina have gone head-to-head 15 times with the Huskies most recently defeating the Gamecocks, 87-58. In the Feb. 16 win, Fudd tallied 28 points and Strong earned a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds.
Sure, a victory against the scrappy South Carolina squad might seem beneficial for Bueckers and the Huskies ahead of this anticipated matchup at Amalie Arena. Then again, past laurels may not mean a whole lot considering how both teams have evolved since that game.
Paige Bueckers hopes to win her first and only national championship with the UConn Huskies in Sunday’s matchup against the South Carolina Gamecocks. (Photo: UConn Athletics)
“We don’t want to think whatever we did in the past, good or bad, will help us,” she said. “But obviously using the experience and In what we learned from those experiences. I think like I’ve always talked about and we’ve always talked about as a team, as our defense, and we want to continue to do that make them as uncomfortable as we can, limit their threes limit what they do inside the paint and try to disrupt everything that they do offensively.
“And then just be aggressive on both sides of the ball. Look to get threes but look to score in the paint, get paint touches which leads to stuff on the outside. And just play with the energy and the passion and leave everything out on the floor.”
Perhaps Sunday’s game will be the fitting finale for Bueckers whose only other experience in a national championship game was in 2022 against the Gamecocks in a 49-64 loss at her hometown Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Bueckers recognizes the emotions will run high but it will be about trusting her teammates and staying true to her playing style.
“I think everything in life has kind of taught me not to take things for granted,” she shared. “Being in the national championship game, it’s extremely hard to get to and extremely rewarding to be a part of and just how much we need to play 40 minutes and how connected we need to stay throughout the game.
“It’s going to be a game of runs. It’s extremely high stakes. There’ll be nerves at the beginning, but once you settle in, just staying connected, staying composed and doing what got us there. Not trying to get too outside of ourselves and try to win the game in one possession. But play every possession by itself and take it possession by possession.”
Beyond the game films, previous games and successes in this year’s March Madness run, Bueckers knows it comes down to the hard work put forth that put her team in position to battle for a national championship and her devotion to her faith.
“I think leaning on your preparation, doing what got us here,” Bueckers observed. “I know the coaching staff. Our practices are extremely hard. The way we prepare in the weight room, the way we prepare by how we eat, how we sleep, you’re just leaning on that.
“And I have a faith in God that I believe everything happens for a reason, and everything is in His hands already. So just leaning on that, leaning on his strength, leaning on his comfort and leaning on the preparation.”
Regardless of Sunday’s result, it marks the culmination of Bueckers’ sacrifices, relentless work ethic, and unshakable belief in herself and the support system that’s lifted her all the way here.
When it all comes down to it, if Bueckers could offer advice to her past self with her life and journey, it is about having a healthy perspective on anything that happens along the way. Perseverance may be the greatest teacher for the dynamic hooper.
“Have fun in everything you do in life, good or bad. The way you think about and frame whatever is happening to you in life, you’ll get the most out of it,” Bueckers said. “Not everything that you think is bad will be bad.
“And how can you turn around that to make it better and change you as a person, and just attack everything with a great mentality of working hard, never letting anything stop you. Have a great faith. I think that’s gotten me to where I am today, believing in God, and just have fun with every with whatever you’re doing.”
Editor’s Notes
Brenden Potts of World Exposure Report contributed to this feature story ahead of Sunday’s NCAA Tournament Championship Game at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.
