Leaps and bounds

Freshman Patterson ready to show her game is more than dunking

STORRS — There will probably come a time over the next four years when UConn women’s basketball freshman Ayanna Patterson dunks in a game and sure, that will be a hoot. XL Center and Gampel Pavilion crowds would eat it up. Patterson herself would enjoy the moment.

“Hopefully down the road somewhere, I can get one here,” she said last week, when all the Huskies, newcomers and veterans and healthy players and injured ones, spread out in the Werth Champions Center to meet the media and discuss basketball goals.

One of Patterson’s is to show that she is more than what she is known for. Yes, she can stuff the ball through the hoop. Quite easily, in fact. Off two feet, even. Videos from workouts go viral, a buzz develops and voila, the summation in some circles becomes as follows: UConn has that kid who can dunk.

“I want to show that I have the skill to go with that athleticism, and I’m going to continue to build on that skill,” said Patterson, a 6-foot-2 forward who is suited to the fluid, position-less basketball Geno Auriemma prefers. “I also want to show I’m a really good defensive player, being able to block shots and get rebounds. … I’ll do a little bit of everything everywhere. I’m still trying to figure out where my strength will be.”

A dunk counts for the same two points as a layup or pull-up, of course, but one’s ability to actually throw one down, particularly in the women’s game, does showcase potential to impact a game in numerous ways.

Patterson’s ceiling, like her vertical leap, is high. She was the consensus No. 4 overall recruit in the high school Class of 2022, and the top-rated wing. She averaged 25.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 2.1 blocks a senior at Homestead High in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and was named a McDonald’s All American and

Rod Parker / Contributed photo UConn’s Ayanna Patterson averaged 25.4 points and 12 rebounds as a senior for Homestead High, the No. 1-ranked high school team in Indiana.