Takeaways from #3 Texas at #5 UConn
The season's first top five matchup taught us plenty about both teams
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No. 5 UConn defeated No. 3 Texas, 83-76, in the first top-five matchup of the NCAA women’s basketball season. While the absence of Rori Harmon for the Longhorns took some punch out of this matchup, we still learned plenty about both squads from the early season test. Here’s three takeaways for each team:
No. 3 Texas Longhorns
The good: Big contributions from the Texas bench
Despite being without Harmon, Texas was able to execute enough offensively and make big plays down the stretch to keep the final margin in single digits. Part of the success can be attributed to the Longhorns getting meaningful contributions off their bench, which allowed them to top 75 points against a ranked opponent - a mark they hit only twice last season - even without Harmon.
Texas’ bench scored 27 points against the Huskies, a strong follow up to a 33-point contribution in Friday’s opener. Oregon State transfer Taylor Jones continues to be a bright spot, adding ten points and eight rebounds in Storrs. Freshman Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda has also scored in double figures in both of the Longhorns’ first two games, and was 5-7 from the floor against UConn.
The bad: Turnovers, turnovers, turnovers
If you’re looking for one thing to point to for why Texas lost this game, it’s the turnovers. The Longhorns gave up the ball 18 times in the matchup (nearly a quarter of their possessions), and UConn turned those turnovers into 23 points.
The good news is getting Harmon back should help with this issue. Harmon was Texas’ primary ball handler last year and finished the season with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.25, which ranked among the top one percent in the nation When she returns, having Harmon alongside Shaylee Gonzales and Sonya Morris to facilitate the offense should help clean up the Longhorns’ offensive execution.
Something to keep an eye on: Perimeter shooting
Texas hit just one three-pointer in their season opener on Friday. They rebounded nicely from beyond the arc on Monday, making eight triples and shooting 44 percent from deep. Five of those threes came from Sonya Morris. Morris is a proven threat from beyond the arc, ranking in the top 25 percent of the country for three-point percentage in each of her last three seasons with DePaul.
Texas, however, does not have another threat from outside so far. Harmon shot under 32 percent from deep last season and Gonzales really struggled in her third season with BYU at just shy of 23 percent from beyond the arc. If Texas can’t establish another perimeter threat, it will allow teams to collapse their defenses, which could hinder the Longhorns’ ability to space the floor and be effective in the lane.
No. 5 UConn Huskies
The good: Azzi Fudd has arrived
In the absence of Paige Bueckers this year, there has been a lot of pressure on Azzi Fudd heading into the season to be the new go-to player for the Huskies. The sophomore seems to be handling it well so far, dropping a career-high 32 points on Texas to carry UConn to victory.
Following a relatively quiet first quarter, Fudd scored 22 points in the second half at a clip of 1.47 points per play to give the Huskies the separation they needed. She tallied 17 of UConn’s 20 points in the final quarter including two key triples - one of which put the Huskies up by 17, and one of which ended a 8-0 run from DePaul to put UConn back ahead by double-digits with under two minutes remaining.
Fudd also had 29 points in UConn’s season opener against Northeastern. If she continue to put up big time performances, the outlook for the Huskies this season improves.
The bad: Interior defense
According to Synergy, Texas had 39 of their 76 points at the rim in Monday’s game and the Longhorns scored 1.26 points per possession (includes made field goals and trips to the free throw line) there. The Huskies struggled to be effective in guarding Texas under the basket without sending them to the line.
Part of this can be attributed to a lackluster performance from Aaliyah Edwards in the first half, which improved in the final twenty minutes. Even still, UConn will need to improve it’s defensive presence inside to compete with other top teams in the country (i.e. South Carolina, Stanford) that have as much, if not more, length than Texas.
Something to keep an eye on: Navigating the point guard position without Bueckers
While perhaps an expected question for UConn, especially early on, ten turnovers in the first twenty minutes against Texas evidenced that the Huskies are still figuring things out at the point.
In particular, Fudd took on a more extensive role handling the ball and facilitating in the first half when Lou Lopez-Senechal was in foul trouble. Fudd had six of those ten first half turnovers herself, indicating that navigating that point guard role is still very much a work in progress. This should improve with time and experience for this group on the court together, but could be costly for UConn with an upcoming slate that (likely) includes three more top-10 teams in the next three weeks.