UConn Dominates Villanova in Big East Championship Game
- Natalie Zona
- 5 hours ago
- 3 min read
The Huskies rolled to their sixth straight conference title with a 90-51 victory over the Wildcats.
After winning by a margin of 14 in their last matchup, Connecticut (UConn) didn’t let up at any point to put Villanova away early in this game.
Azzi Fudd led all scorers with 19 points and tacked on 3 steals. Sarah Strong followed closely with 18 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals of her own. UConn's two star players showed out in the championship game.
Strong was awarded Most Outstanding Player of the tournament for her performance of 17 points, 5 steals, and 7 rebounds per game. KK Arnold and Azzi Fudd also earned spots on the All-Tournament Team.
Despite the loss, Villanova’s Jasmine Bascoe and Kennedy Henry both received honors of the All-Tournament team as well. Bascoe averaged 20 points per game throughout the tournament.
From the first tip, UConn was very aggressive on both sides of the ball. Four Husky starters scored on their way to an early 11-3 lead before Villanova Head Coach Denise Dillon had to call a timeout.
Arnold’s defense and UConn’s offense kept them up at the end of the first quarter, 23-11. Dani Ceseretti for the Wildcats scored all of Nova’s eight points after the timeout. Despite this run by Ceseretti, the Huskies’ pressure defense caused more turnovers for the Wildcats.
KK Arnold talked about how she was able to set the tone with her defense in this game. She said, "Yeah, it's very important to me, honestly, to set the tone for my teammates, I'm playing for them. And just to go out there to play with that same energy knowing that they feed off of it means a lot. Just this year, each and every game I've learned from myself, I've learned from my teammates, and learned how to get better each and every day, each and every second in practice, and translating it into the game."
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In the second quarter, both teams played more physically, leading to steals on both sides and a lot of fouls. Blanca Quinonez, the Big East Freshman of the Year, contributed to UConn’s scoring in this quarter being aggressive to the rim and getting to the foul line three times, scoring nine of her thirteen total points in this quarter.
At the half, the Huskies were up 49-23.
In the third quarter, Strong put on some finishing touches to her day with 3 quick points and a steal. She would soon sub out of the game for the day. Fudd also added 8 points to end her outing with 19 points.
The fourth quarter finished with UConn outscoring Villanova 19-9 in the quarter with bench players Kayleigh Heckel, Allie Ziebell, Jana El Alfy, and Ayanna Patterson all adding to the Huskies’ point total.
Fudd talked about her emotions after her final Big East Tournament. "Just how grateful I am to be part of this program, fortunate to have had that confetti fall on me five times here, whether I was playing, not playing. But to be able to be a part of an incredible team all five years, and then also seeing people go through it for the first time, like, seeing everyone, it means a lot it me, but to see everyone who this is their first time, like, seeing the joy on all the freshmen, on Kayleigh, on Serah Williams' face, it was a great moment."
UConn was victorious over Villanova 90-51 when the last buzzer sounded, winning their 24th Big East Title. Now 34-0 and the #1 team in the country, the Huskies will await their seeding and bracket for the NCAA tournament which will happen on March 15th. The first round officially starts on March 20th.
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