Redshirt freshman Jana El Alfy needed a little time getting back up after trying to grab a missed three-pointer in the second quarter. As she returned to the bench, El Alfy gripped the lower part of her back.
The No. 7 UConn women’s basketball team’s offense stagnated when the athletic trainer evaluated the Egyptian native. The Huskies went three minutes without a point before first-year student Morgan Cheli ended it with a driving layup.
When El Alfy rejoined the bench minutes later, Connecticut’s small-ball offense rediscovered some momentum. The Huskies, ahead 34-22 at that point, went on a 9-2 run over the final 3:32 of the first half.
It gave UConn a 19-point lead going into the intermission; the Marquette Golden Eagles never got closer than 17. A balanced offense and a tight defense helped the Huskies down Marquette 77-45 at the Al McGuire Center Wednesday afternoon.
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El Alfy’s return to start the second half yielded a relieving sigh from any Connecticut fan. In turn, the 6-foot-5 center broke a month-long drought without crossing double figures with 10 points and four rebounds.
Two-time Big East Player of the Week Sarah Strong complemented the Huskies’ frontcourt with 15 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Mixed with the Egyptian National Team center’s outing, UConn got the most production from their frontcourt as they have had all season.
Head coach Geno Auriemma did not always have both forwards on the court at once. There were times throughout Wednesday’s game when Auriemma instead opted for a small-ball lineup like the one that entered Milwaukee last season. That lineup worked effectively.
Sophomore KK Arnold grated the Golden Eagle defense in her second collegiate game in Wisconsin. In 23 minutes off the bench, Arnold posted season highs in points (13) and assists (seven) while snagging four rebounds. No Marquette player could slow down the Big East All-Freshman Team guard, resulting in several breakaway drives to the bucket.
Arnold’s return to the Badger State boosted her confidence. As the 40th-year head coach witnessed firsthand, being in familiar territory also raised her intensity level.
“I just liked how aggressive she was,” Auriemma told SNY about the 5-foot-9 sophomore postgame. “All her assists come from when she is aggressive with the ball. Today, at both ends but mostly on the offensive end, that was the most aggressive that I have seen her in quite some time.”
The balanced attack from those three alleviated some pressure off redshirt senior Paige Bueckers. While her streak of 20-point games ended at five, Bueckers still picked up 12 points, grabbed four rebounds, swatted two shots and recorded two steals. Azzi Fudd and Kaitlyn Chen rounded out the starting lineup with a combined 15 points and seven assists.
It was not just the offense that rang in the new year for the Huskies. Connecticut’s defense tightened up again, holding the Golden Eagles below 50 points for the first time all season and a season-low in three-point percentage.
Sophomore forward Skylar Forbes accounted for the majority of Marquette’s offense. Forbes shot 6-12 for a game-high 20 points and had both of the Golden Eagles’ three-pointers across the first three quarters.
Fellow sophomore Halle Vice crashed the glass more than the Canadian forward did, however. Although she only scored five points and committed seven turnovers, Vice snagged 11 rebounds in her second consecutive conference game. Junior Kennedi Perkins also dropped five points while senior Lee Volker had six points and six boards.
Forbes scored each of Marquette’s first eight points, which helped them take a six-point lead over the Huskies three minutes into the game. UConn opened 1-6 from the floor in that span, though three-pointers on consecutive possessions quickly evened the contest at eight.
Both teams each had 12 points through the game’s first seven minutes. The last of those points, a Fudd layup 15 seconds after Olivia Porter’s, sparked the Huskies’ 12-4 run that ended the first quarter. Connecticut forced four Golden Eagles turnovers and gave up just one field goal over the frame’s final three minutes.
Perkins made that jumper five seconds before the buzzer sounded. The Huskies, up six after 10 minutes, quickly took their first double-digit lead behind an 8-0 run. Chen converted each of her first two attempts for the first five points; Bueckers’ three-point bucket forced a Marquette timeout.
The Huskies’ offense slowed down significantly when El Alfy temporarily exited the game. Even with UConn’s three-minute scoring drought, however, the Golden Eagles could not pull within single digits.
The Golden Eagles committed three turnovers over that stretch, and the Huskies could not slow down once they started making more shots. Connecticut scored on four out of their last six possessions, giving them a 43-24 halftime lead.
But like they did three days ago in Hartford, the Huskies’ offense struggled early in the second half. This time around, though, UConn only went 30 seconds between their first two field goal makes. The 2023 FIBA U19 World Cup participant accounted for both field goals as she crossed the double-digit mark.
Free throws and two-pointers consistently kept Marquette within 20 points of the Huskies throughout the third quarter. Even with Arnold getting more involved offensively in the second half, the Golden Eagles still trailed by merely 20 points after 30 minutes.
The sophomore’s speed, mixed with smooth ball movement, helped Connecticut produce one of their best fourth quarters. The Huskies scored 10 points and got two more players into double figures before most of their starters checked out.
Once that had happened, UConn tacked on another 10 points over the last 3.5 minutes. Allie Ziebell, back in her home state of Wisconsin, spearheaded that charge. Ziebell scored the contest’s final five points on consecutive possessions as the Huskies clipped the Golden Eagles for the sixth straight time.
UConn remains on the road during the first seven days of 2025 when they face the Villanova Wildcats in Pennsylvania. Tip-off from the William B. Finneran Pavilion on Sunday is at 1:30 p.m. on SNY.
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