The 2021–22 UConn Huskies women's basketball team represented the University of Connecticut (UConn) during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Huskies, led by Hall of Fame head coach Geno Auriemma in his 37th season at UConn, split their home games between Harry A. Gampel Pavilion and the XL Center and were members of the Big East Conference, which they joined for women's basketball the previous season. UConn was a member of the original Big East Conference from 1979 through 2013, and one of the original women's basketball teams in that conference in 1982.

Quick Facts UConn Huskies women's basketball, NCAA tournament, runner-up ...

2021–22 UConn Huskies women's basketball
Big East tournament champions Big East regular season champions
NCAA tournament, runner-up
Conference	Big East Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 2
AP	No. 5
Record	30–6 (16–1 Big East)
Head coach	Geno Auriemma (37th season)
Associate head coach	Chris Dailey (37th season)
Assistant coaches	Jamelle Elliott (2nd season) Morgan Valley (1st season)
Home arena	Harry A. Gampel Pavilion XL Center
Seasons ← 2020–21 2022–23 →

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Returning from a 28–2 season with no graduations, the team went into the season highly regarded,^[1][2] starting the season ranked 2nd in the AP poll. The Huskies returned three seniors and sophomore consensus 2020–21 NCAA player of the year Paige Bueckers, while adding a 2nd ranked recruiting class. Several athletes transferred during the offseason and early season, leaving the team with 12 players.^[3] The no. 2 Huskies lost a November game against no. 1 South Carolina. Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic caused game postponements and cancellations. Injuries plagued the team; only two athletes played every game.^[4] In December, Bueckers suffered a knee fracture which kept her sidelined until late in the season.

With Bueckers out, UConn's offense struggled against several teams, with losses against unranked Georgia Tech and no. 6 Louisville before semester break, no. 9 Oregon in January, and unranked Big East Conference opponent Villanova in February. Coach Auriemma had the team focus on defense, keeping the Huskies in games when their offense was struggling. Nine different players started, and Auriemma tried eleven different starting lineups during the season. By the time Bueckers returned to the lineup for limited minutes, the Huskies were dominating without her. After winning the Big East regular season championship, the team won the 2022 Big East tournament and accepted an automatic bid to the 2022 NCAA Division I tournament.

As a number 2 seed in the NCAA tournament, UConn defeated 15th seed Mercer, 7th seed Central Florida, 3rd seed Indiana, and 1st seed North Carolina State to win their region and advance to their 14th consecutive Final Four. The Huskies then beat defending national champion Stanford before losing to South Carolina in the championship game. UConn finished the season with a record of 30–6.

UConn was ranked no. 3 in both the 2020 AP and Coaches pre-season polls. During the regular season, they had a record of 21–1, including 18–0 in the Big East to win the conference regular season championship. In February 2021, they defeated no. 1 ranked South Carolina; it was UConn freshman Paige Bueckers' third straight 30-point game. UConn won the Big East tournament, winning all three of their games by over 30 points. They were ranked no. 1 in both polls at that time. As a no. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament, they won their region with a victory over no. 5 ranked Baylor in the Elite Eight. UConn then lost to Arizona in the Final Four and finished their campaign with a record of 28–2. Bueckers, the team's leading scorer, won several awards at the end of the season, including the Naismith College Player of the Year.

At the season's outset, the Huskies returned several starters: seniors Christyn Williams, Olivia Nelson-Ododa, and Evina Westbrook, plus accomplished sophomore Paige Bueckers. Westbrook was eligible to enter the 2021 WNBA draft but chose to exercise her redshirt year option to play for the Huskies through her last year of eligibility.^[25][26] Two-time All-Big Ten forward Dorka Juhász, an Ohio State graduate transfer, was expected to add experience and depth in the post. Aubrey Griffin was the sole returning junior. Sophomores Nika Mühl, Aaliyah Edwards, Mir McLean, and Piath Gabriel returned. Highly touted freshman recruits Azzi Fudd, Amari DeBerry, Caroline Ducharme, and Saylor Poffenbarger were expected to compete for playing time.^[27][28]

In the season's opening weeks, Griffin was affected by a back problem and missed the entire year due to injury.^[29] Poffenbarger and McLean both announced transfers. Towards the end of the team's sixth game, Bueckers suffered a tibial plateau fracture^[30] and after surgery was forced to sit out most of the regular season, only returning before the Big East Conference tournament, where she played limited minutes. Guards Fudd and Mühl both suffered early season injuries which caused them to miss several games. Four canceled or postponed contests in December (due to pandemic or travel issues) allowed time for recovery. During the season, eight UConn players missed multiple games due to injury; with forwards Gabriel and DeBerry still in development, sometimes only six players were available for play. The only players able to compete in every regular season game were Westbrook and Edwards. Accordingly, the team tried eleven different starting lineups during the season, with nine different starters and eight different players leading a game in scoring. Caroline Ducharme assumed a scoring role originally anticipated for Fudd, but when Fudd returned both players continued to score effectively. With their scoring threats largely neutralized early in the season, the Huskies focused on defense, limiting their opponents to 54.2 points per game and collecting an average of 9.3 steals and 4.7 blocks per game. Mühl, the vocal floor leader of an aggressive and effective defense, was recognized as Big East Conference defensive player of the year.^[31] First team all-conference honors went to seniors Williams and Nelson-Ododa, with Ducharme on the second team. Both Fudd and Ducharme were named to the conference's all-freshman team.^[31] Williams won the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award as the best shooting guard in the country. UConn finished the regular season with a record of 22–5; they were 16–1 in conference play.

All the Huskies (except for Griffin) were back in playing condition by the time of the Big East Conference tournament, where they dominated all three games, including the tournament final against Villanova, the only Big East team that had defeated UConn during the regular season.^[32] In the first ever 68-team NCAA women's March Madness, UConn won games at the Storrs sub-regional against 15th seed Mercer and 7th seed Central Florida to advance to the Sweet Sixteen for a record 28th consecutive appearance. At the Bridgeport regional, the Huskies took a lead in the second quarter against 3rd seed Indiana and never looked back, advancing to a record 16th consecutive Elite Eight. In the regional finals against 1st seed North Carolina State, the teams battled through two overtimes in what game announcers called an "instant classic," and UConn won 91–87 to reach their 14th consecutive Final Four.^[33] Juhász suffered a fractured and dislocated wrist in that game and was out for the rest of the tournament.^[34][35] In the Final Four contest, UConn overcame defending national champion Stanford to advance to a rematch against no. 1 South Carolina in the final. In the national championship game, South Carolina jumped out to an 18-point lead while dominating the boards and held off scoring runs to defeat UConn. The Huskies finished the season with a record of 30–6 and were ranked 2nd in the final Coaches poll.

More information Players, Coaches ...

2021–22 UConn Huskies women's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Year Previous school Hometown F 3 Aaliyah Edwards 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) So Crestwood Preparatory Kingston, Ontario G 5 Paige Bueckers 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) So Hopkins Hopkins, MN G 10 Nika Mühl 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) So III. Gimnazija Zagreb Zagreb, Croatia F 11 Mir McLean (I) 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) So Roland Park Country Baltimore, MD G 13 Christyn Williams 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) Sr Central Arkansas Christian Little Rock, AR F 14 Dorka Juhász 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) GS Ohio State Pécs, Hungary F 20 Olivia Nelson-Ododa 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) Sr Winder-Barrow Winder, GA G 22 Evina Westbrook 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) RS Sr Tennessee Salem, OR F 32 Piath Gabriel 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) So Bradford Christian Manchester, NH G 33 Caroline Ducharme 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) Fr Noble & Greenough Milton, MA G 35 Azzi Fudd 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) Fr St. John's College HS Arlington, VA F 42 Amari DeBerry 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) Fr Williamsville South Williamsville, NY F 44 Aubrey Griffin   6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) Jr Ossining Ossining, NY	Head coach Geno Auriemma (West Chester) Assistant coach(es) Chris Dailey (Rutgers) Jamelle Elliott (Connecticut) Morgan Valley (Connecticut) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster Last update: March 3, 2022

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^[37][38]

^ Coaches did not release a second poll at the same time as the AP.

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• 2021–22 UConn Huskies men's basketball team