For the first 16 minutes of UConn women’s basketball’s second-round matchup with Syracuse, the Huskies struggled with the Orange’s 2-3 zone. UConn turned the ball over on three of their first five possessions and took too much time to execute their movement and decision-making, often resulting in bad looks.
Paige Bueckers’ first two shots were emblematic of the Huskies’ problems. On the first, the freshman tried to drive towards the elbow for one of her patented pull-up jumpers but got swallowed up by Syracuse defenders as she fired a well-contested, off-balance shot that glanced harmlessly off the rim. Shortly after, Bueckers tried to get to the side of the basket but once again couldn’t get a clean look and missed badly.
UConn was being too stagnant and didn’t take care of the ball – a bad combination against a zone.
“I thought the first couple minutes, we were a little rushed and we weren't getting enough movement,” acting head coach Chris Dailey said. “Against their zone, you really have to move in and make it difficult for them to find us and I thought the first few possessions, we were just standing around.”
With UConn’s offense sputtering, Syracuse hung around within single-digits – until the last four minutes of the half when the Huskies’ defense came alive. It all started with a traveling violation committed by the Orange, then came a block from Olivia Nelson-Ododa, a steal from Aubrey Griffin, an offensive foul on Kamilla Cardozo, and another steal from Griffin. With its defense leading the way UConn got out running and sparked a 7-0 run to close the first half.
“Our defense was just tremendous,” Dailey said. “I can't even say enough about our defense.”
“I just thought the communication was so good and the movement and we just made it really difficult on Syracuse to get the shots and really good looks,” she added later. “Because we did such a great job on the backboard, we were able to get out in transition, and once we got into transition, that turned the game around and increased our lead.”
Out of the locker room with the momentum on their side, the Huskies put on a clinic on how to attack a zone. UConn buzzed around the court with constant movement, causing havoc for Syracuse. The Huskies made a concerted effort to get the ball to the free-throw line, which drew the low defenders away from the basket and created easy opportunities down low.
“Once we got movement – ball movement, people movement – we started to click,” Dailey said.
“I think once we got the ball into the middle, I thought we did a really good job of going high-low and just sort of finding the gaps in between the zone,” Bueckers explained. “I think the bigs did a really good job of just finding the openings and finishing down low when we got them the ball.”
All but two of UConn’s baskets were layups in the third quarter and they added seven free-throw attempts during the frame. Nelson-Ododa particularly feasted on the Orange during this time, scoring 13 of UConn’s 23 points in the third on 6-for-8 shooting. Syracuse could have countered Nelson-Ododa's size by matching her up with 6-foot-7 freshman Kamilla Cardoso but opted to stay on the sinking ship by sticking with their zone instead.
The Huskies were so dominant, in fact, that Bueckers didn’t need to do much. After a 16-point first half, the freshman took just two shots and scored four points over the final two quarters. It wasn’t for a lack of aggression either – Bueckers just didn’t want to mess with what was working.
“We were pounding the ball on the paint. I feel like the perimeter didn't really need to do much when we had Aaliyah (Edwards) and Liv and Aubrey and everybody who stepped in the paint, they did their thing,” Bueckers said. “My job was to get the ball to them and get the ball inside and into the gaps of the zone and I didn’t really feel the need to shoot just because we were getting easy layups in transition and in the half-court set against the zone.”
That third quarter proved to be the difference in the game. Though UConn still had a 15-point lead after halftime, the Huskies didn’t let Syracuse stick around or make a comeback bid. UConn came out, picked apart the zone, and buried them. By the end of the period, the Huskies led by 29 and the fourth quarter was all but a formality.
