UConn’s Williams struggling with her confidence

Christyn Williams is in a bit of a rut.

In Wednesday’s 70-49 victory over Seton Hall, the junior guard missed all six shots she attempted and failed to score for the second time this season and the third time in her UConn career. This came on the heels of a six-point, 3-of-11 performance two nights earlier against No. 1 South Carolina.

“Right now, it’s a real struggle for Christyn,” UConn coach Geno Auriemma said.

Let’s take a deeper look at Williams’ recent play, and to what her struggles can be attributed.

WELL, WHAT ARE THE NUMBERS?

Williams didn’t score against Seton Hall. The bigger concern, at least from Auriemma’s perspective, is that she didn’t do much of anything else, either.

Her stat line read: 0 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 turnover, 0 steals, 0 blocks in 25 minutes.

The next step in Williams’ maturation is being able to contribute when her shot isn’t falling. We’ve seen her do it in spurts — remember, there’s a reason why she was voted Big East preseason player of the year — but not enough.

Over the last two games, she’s had more turnovers (five) than rebounds and assists combined (four).

“Most good players go through periods like this where you just can’t feel like you can get anything going. It

doesn’t matter, in any sport,” Auriemma said. “All you can do is keep giving yourself opportunities. The more opportunities you give yourself, the more times you put yourself in those situations, then the more chances that you’re going to get back on track.”

Williams’ 3-point shooting has been, and still is, an issue. She’s 4 for 27 from beyond the arc over her last six games and is 27% on the season.

To counter that problem, Williams has tried to get to the rim more. It paid off in a big way last week in wins over No. 17 DePaul and Marquette — she scored 29 and 18 points, respectively, on 20 of 27 combined shooting — but again, consistency remains a problem.

OK, SO WHAT’S THE DEEPER ISSUE?

Call it a funk, a temporary malaise, some ill-timed misfortune. But whatever it is, it’s clearly getting to Williams’ head.

“She’s just going through a really bad stretch right now,” Auriemma said. “She’s not a very confident shooter right now, not a very confident offensive player. Hopefully, it’s a phase and she’ll snap out of it.”

Junior Evina Westbrook said she tried to encourage Williams in the huddle Wednesday, as it was clear that she was “just not really being herself.”

Her message? Snap out of it.

“You have to in a game like this,” Westbrook said. “You’ve got to come ready to play. You’re going to have tough stretches like this. We all have a bad game here and there.”

Williams understands the big picture. She knows how this all works, how fast a career can fly by, how time is of the essence.

She talked last month, prior to her homecoming game at Arkansas, about the urgency she felt to get her game into gear.

The problem is, right now, she can’t seem to get out of her own way.

“It’s not easy playing here, playing in these games contrary to what a lot of people believe and how they watch and stuff,” junior Olivia Nelson-Ododa said. “As teammates and as a closer friend of mine, we just support her. That’s the biggest thing, and helping her as much as we can. …

“Everything here is definitely a challenge. We’re just going to be there for her.”

HOW DOES IT IMPACT THE TEAM?

Well, for one, freshman phenom Paige Bueckers could use a little more help. As talented as she is, she can’t carry the Huskies every night.

OK … maybe she can. Seriously, Bueckers — the first player in program history with back-to-back-to-back 30point games — is THAT good. The sensational freshman has either tied or led the team in points 10 times this season. In addition to leading the Huskies in scoring (21.3), Bueckers is first in assists (5.4) and steals (2.5) and fourth in rebounds (4.8).

“It’s been a long time since one player has had to carry a team as much as she’s had to in some of these games,” Auriemma noted.

Williams, the Huskies’ second-leading scorer (15.0), certainly has the talent to take some of the pressure off Bueckers, but will she?

Suggested Westbrook: “She’s going to figure it out on her own as soon as she just gets in a rhythm and gets in a flow.”