Not in the cards
Huskies suffer first loss at Mohegan Sun in program history
UNCASVILLE — For the first time in program history, UConn left Mohegan Sun Arena without a win.
The No. 7 Huskies fell 69-64 to No. 6 Louisville Sunday, snapping UConn’s 30-game win streak at the arena where they’ve won eight conference tournament titles.
UConn (6-3) is 1-2 since star Paige Bueckers went down with a left knee injury. The Huskies are also without Azzi Fudd (right foot), Nika Mühl (right foot) and Aubrey Griffin (back).
Sunday’s loss marked the first time since the 2004-05 season that UConn has had three losses in its first nine games. UConn begins a 10-day break for the Holidays on Monday.
Despite a breakout game for freshman Caroline Ducharme, who finished with 24 points and eight rebounds, UConn couldn’t keep up with the Cardinals when it mattered most in the fourth quarter.
“The same things have been occurring whether it was before Paige and Azzi and Nika. There’s some element to our team where we are our own worst enemy a lot of times,” UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. “A lot of unforced errors that we make, they’re just not very typical of Connecticut teams. This is not how we play . ... But there was a lot of things that we do really really well. We obviously needed more help than just what Caroline was providing. We needed more contributions from more people. We didn’t get them. You’re not gonna beat a really good team without that.”
Here are takeaways from UConn’s loss to Louisville in the Basketball Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase:
DEFENSE DOES HEAVY LIFTING
The Huskies smothered Louisville on defense in the first half. Halfway through the second quarter, UConn pressured the Cardinals into five straight turnovers: a shot clock violation, a bad pass, a travel, a Christyn Williams’ steal and another travel. Louisville (10-1) was kept scoreless for over four minutes and 20 seconds in the second period.
OFFENSE FINDS GROOVE
In its third game without floor general Bueckers, UConn looked much more organized on offense. By the first minute of the second quarter all five starters had scored, with Dorka Juhász leading at halftime with nine points followed by Williams with eight.
Ducharme (who earned her second start) split time carrying the ball up court along with senior Evina
Westbrook. Ducharme opened UConn’s scoring by blocking a Louisville shot at the top of the key. She grabbed the ball, ran down court and side-stepped around a Louisville defender for the game’s opening layup.
After missing six free throws in the final 30 seconds last Saturday against UCLA, UConn started Sunday’s game going 6-of-6 from the free throw line.
UConn fought its way back from a Louisville six-point lead thanks to a clutch third quarter performance from Ducharme. The freshman made seven straight points before all three of UConn’s bigs (Juhász, Aaliyah Edwards and Olivia Nelson-Ododa) made a basket each to get UConn back on top. Going into the fourth, the Huskies were outscoring Louisville 28-8 in the paint.
“Watching Caroline in practice, you knew that there was something pretty good about her,” Auriemma said. “This isn’t by any stretch of the imagination something new that we haven’t seen. And now the trick is when we do get healthy, building on that and coming out with individuals being better and our team being better two months from now.”
Ducharme’s 24 points led UConn, including scoring 13 of UConn’s 19 points in the fourth quarter. Juhász followed with 15 points and eight rebounds.
SECOND HALF FATIGUE?
Louisville began its fullcourt press in the final minutes of the second quarter and tripped up UConn in back-to-back turnovers. The Cardinals used the possessions to drain two straight 3-pointers to cut a 10-point UConn lead to two.
The Cardinals came out of the halftime continuing its tight coverage and kept UConn scoreless for the first three and a half minutes of the third quarter. Louisville used a 7-0 run to gain its first lead of the game at 29-28.
Westbrook snapped UConn’s scoring drought at 6:32 in the third, but it wasn’t enough to slow down Louisville as it led by as much as six.
Ducharme made UConn’s first 3-pointer of the game at 4:20 in the third. The freshman followed with two straight layups (seven straight points) to get UConn ahead briefly before a 4-0 Louisville run.
Auriemma didn’t reach for his bench in the second half until 2:18 in the third, subbing in Edwards for Westbrook. Williams and Ducharme were the only players to play the full 40 minutes — a first for Ducharme.
“I think they just hit shots they needed to hit,” Ducharme
said. “We were battling all game, I don’t think it was because how many people we have. We had enough.”
In his second game in the span of 10 days with just eight available players, Auriemma used seven of his players in the first half and only six in the second. Five finished playing 27 minutes or more, including four over 36 minutes.
“When you’re limited and your guards gotta play 40 minutes it’s wearing. I don’t think anybody is having pity parties for Connecticut,” Auriemma said. “We know what the reality is and we know what we’re dealing with. We show up and play for as hard as you can for as long as you can and hope that it’s enough. We should have won the game tonight. We did enough things to win the game tonight. They made shots when they had to make them and we didn’t and that was the difference.”
Despite Ducharme’s efforts, UConn couldn’t keep up with the Cardinals in the fourth quarter. Louisville gained a five-point lead from back-to-back 3-pointers with less than three minutes remaining and led 61-55 with 1:30 to go. A minute later, Williams appeared to make her first 3-pointer of the game, but officials ruled her foot was on the line and she was awarded two points. It was still a two-possession game with Louisville up by four, but UConn was unable to climb back.
“There are some things that need to be addressed and it’s going to be ongoing,” Auriemma said. “This isn’t a one-week thing, a one-month thing, this is a season-long thing for us.”
UP NEXT: UConn will take a 10-day break for the holidays, allowing players to return home to their families. The Huskies’ next game will be on Dec. 29 at 7 p.m. against Marquette at the XL Center.