Six different players on last season’s UConn women’s basketball team hauled in 100+ rebounds. All but one of those athletes also recorded at least 30 steals. Rising redshirt senior Aubrey Griffin did not hit either milestone but nevertheless made a huge impact for the Huskies when she did.
Over 14 games, Griffin averaged 9.5 points and six rebounds, collected 20 assists, recorded 21 steals and rejected 13 shots. The Ossining, New York, native made up for not recording a double-double with 10 games where she shot better than 50% from the floor. Had she played the entire year, Griffin could have easily made an All-Big East team and potentially earned All-American Honorable Mention recognition.
Those possibilities vanished on January 3, however, when the No. 33 recruit in ESPN HoopGurlz’ Class of 2019 rankings suffered a torn ACL. Griffin’s premature end to her fifth season in Storrs was part of her decision to come back for one final ride. Exercising her last year of eligibility is a massive win for a Connecticut program whose frontcourt took a major hit with Aaliyah Edwards going pro.
The Huskies’ longest-tenured player has experienced it all in her collegiate career, from converting 11 consecutive shot attempts to missing 1.5 total seasons because of injuries. It is not talked about enough, but there is a possibility that Griffin could be UConn’s deadliest defender during the 2024-25 season.
Sure, the 2023 All-Big East Honorable Mention does not possess Big East All-Freshman Team selection KK Arnold’s blazing speed or Paige Bueckers’ shot-blocking pedigree. She also might not be the most aggressive player when it comes to grabbing loose balls like Nika Mühl was. Despite those deficiencies, Griffin succeeds by letting her work ethic define her on-court reputation.
It goes beyond her career 52.9% clip from the floor on 635 shot attempts. Extrapolated across the full 39-game campaign, the 2019 McDonald’s All-American would have finished second in total rebounds with 284. Her 92 offensive boards—a category Griffin led before her season-ending injury—would have been tops on the team.
It would have been seven more than what the 2018 New York Section 1 Player of the Year posted as a redshirt junior. Across 35 games then, Griffin was second on the Huskies with 85 offensive boards and third in total rebounds at 232. In a season where Bueckers was sidelined, Connecticut’s last-remaining active American Athletic Conference Tournament champion provided a major spark on both ends of the floor.
Griffin does not make a name for herself as an athlete by primarily crashing the glass and controlling the paint, though. Had she played all 39 games, the 2020 AAC All-Tournament Team selection would have finished tied for second in blocks at 36 and fourth in steals with 58.5. A full season of her presence would have further lowered the Huskies’ 52.2 points allowed per game in Big East play and 57.2 overall.
The best example of the 2019 Miss New York Basketball recipient’s suffocating defense in action occurred against the then-No. 24 North Carolina Tar Heels. The final box score from December 10—five points on 2-6 shooting with eight rebounds and two steals—does not tell the full story.
North Carolina scored six points in the opening 2:17 of the 2023 Basketball Hall of Fame women’s showcase’s tripleheader finale. From the time Griffin entered until the end of the first quarter, the Tar Heels amassed just four points and turned the ball over six times.
Even without getting heavily involved on the scoresheet, the 2016 New York State champion helped establish some of the separation UConn needed to truly stay ahead. Griffin played a pivotal role in containing both of North Carolina’s eventual All-Atlantic Coast Conference guards, Deja Kelly and Alyssa Ustby, from downtown. The Huskies do not win by 12 without her lockdown performance.
The 2018 New York all-state selection also made life difficult for the then-No. 20 Maryland Terrapins at the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion three weeks earlier. Maryland, one season removed from their first-ever victory over Connecticut, scored fewer points (three) than Griffin had boards (four) in the opening four minutes of the game.
It was not the only instance where the Terrapins’ offense went silent. During the third quarter, Maryland scored more points (eight) when the 2019 WBCA All-American was on the bench than when she was on the court (one). Both of those stretches contributed to the Huskies’ 32-point triumph versus the Terrapins, the largest between both teams.
With how this upcoming season’s roster is constructed, Griffin’s role seems pretty straightforward. The 2023 All-Big East Honorable Mention will likely be one of the first bench options and a defensive menace. Her multi-directional style of play could be similar to Big East Sixth Man of the Year Hassan Diarra’s on the back-to-back champion men’s team last season.
Griffin providing key minutes off the bench will allow players like Bueckers and Class of 2021 No. 1 recruit Azzi Fudd to get critical rest throughout the year. UConn’s energy levels will remain high into March Madness because of ESPN HoopGurlz’s Class of 2019’s 33rd-ranked recruit.
If the Big East Conference had an all-defense team like the Women’s National Basketball Association does, Griffin would undeniably be on it. Even without a Big East Defensive Player of the Year award to her name, the 2019 McDonald’s All-American would represent the Huskies multiple times.
Connecticut already has several defensive stalwarts in their potent lineup, from Bueckers to Arnold to Princeton transfer Kaitlyn Chen (99 steals in 90 career games). While each player stands out in their own way, Griffin possesses a triple-threat attack that can make it more complex for opposing offenses to find a rhythm.
Between crashing the glass, blocking shots and giving her team extra possessions, the New York native could spell worlds of trouble for everyone but the Huskies. It might be wise for other teams to plan their offense around getting past Griffin on top of every other player, or there could be serious consequences.
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