Caroline Ducharme is the key to unlocking UConn's offense

All the questions surrounding the Huskies' offense can be answered by the junior guard.

Author

Daniel Connolly
November 23, 2023

Photo: Ian Bethune

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  • KK Arnold won Big East Freshman of the Week. UConn has now won the award both times this year after Qadence Samuels took it the week prior.

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Caroline Ducharme holds the key to unlocking UConn's offense

UConn women’s basketball’s offense hasn’t gotten off to the start it expected. In their first real challenge of the season, the Huskies put up 81 points in a loss to NC State, but most of that was a result of strong individual efforts from Paige Bueckers (27 points), Aaliyah Edwards (21) and Qadence Samuels (14).

Afterward, Geno Auriemma called it “the worst offensive performance in terms of running our offense, in terms of ball movement, sharing the ball, moving without the ball, changing sides of the floor.”

It looked better when UConn returned home and beat Maryland 80-48 but then immediately struggled again in the team’s next road game. At Minnesota, the offensive stagnation returned outside of a good third quarter and the Huskies finished with just 62 points.

Caroline Ducharme has gotten off to a similarly disappointing start.

Finally healthy after a lost sophomore campaign, she played well in the secret scrimmage vs. Syracuse, the exhibition against Southern Connecticut, and the opener against Dayton, averaging 10.0 points across the latter two. In the three games since, she’s managed six points total across a combined 38 minutes.

Following the win over Maryland, Auriemma seemingly took the blame for Ducharme’s lack of production.

“When Caroline's got it going, I might play her 39 minutes. And when she looks a little bit off — like she did today — then I gotta try to figure out: ‘What am I gonna do about it?’” he said. “So I don't know that it was as much Caroline today as the decision that I made.”

So what’s the issue? From the sound of it, it’s related to the various issues Ducharme’s dealt with over the last two seasons due to multiple head injuries.

“I see ‘What do we got going here?’ and some nights, it’s going to be a lot. Some nights it's going to be not as much,” Auriemma said about the junior. “Given her history of stuff, you just don't know. So you just go by what you see right now.”

It’s not a coincidence that both Ducharme and UConn’s offense have gotten off to slow starts. The Huskies have two known quantities on offense: Edwards in the frontcourt and Bueckers in the backcourt. Those two lead the team in scoring and have been good every time out.

Behind that pair, UConn doesn’t have another healthy player averaging double-figures with Azzi Fudd out for the season. Different players have picked up the scoring load each time out — Samuels at NC State, KK Arnold and Ashlynn Shade vs. Maryland, Nika Mühl against Minnesota — but there’s been little consistency game over game. The Huskies need another player they can rely on in the backcourt.

Nobody is better equipped to fix that than Ducharme.

While the freshmen have impressed, they’re still freshmen and will deal with their share of ups and downs. In fact, that’s already happened — despite her 14-point outburst at NC State, Samuels played just five minutes at Minnesota while Shade has averaged 14.0 minutes since not playing against the Wolfpack. Meanwhile, Mühl has shown progress as a scorer but is still better equipped as a distributor on offense and Griffin has spent more time in the lane than on the perimeter.

But Ducharme is a born scorer who can pile up points from both inside and out — unlike most of the other guards. When she’s on, she can put the ball in the basket from practically anywhere on the floor by whatever means are necessary. That allows her to fit into most lineups because she’s not restricted to one spot.

Ducharme could also help in another area that UConn has been lacking: 3-point shooting. The Huskies have attempted just 20.0 3-pointers per game, well below Auriemma’s desired mark.

“If we don't get at least 25 (threes), that's not a good day for us,” he said after the win at Minnesota.

Ducharme’s ability to knock down shots from the perimeter will be crucial, especially as UConn navigates life without Fudd for an indeterminate amount of time. Aside from Bueckers, the Huskies don’t have another floor-stretcher who is guaranteed to be in the lineup.

Samuels has taken the most 3-point attempts on the team despite playing a combined 15 minutes over the last two games. Mühl has taken 10 but typically only lets it fly when defenses leave her open. Arnold is a capable shooter but has only shot it from deep four times.

Most of the questions surrounding UConn’s offense can be answered by Ducharme — and the team knows it.

“She's a huge factor in what we want to do the rest of the season, for sure,” Auriemma said after Maryland.

Now, the Huskies just have to figure out how to get her going. Regardless of whether it’s rust, hesitation from all the injuries, a tentativeness about her role, or something else, Auriemma is confident she’ll turn it around.

“She's not going to not start the next game, that’s for sure,” he declared.

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