The Aftermath: UConn's defense forces turnover frenzy against Providence

On Providence’s first five possessions on Wednesday night, it managed just a single shot compared to four turnovers. At the end of the first quarter, the visitors had 13 giveaways. When the night ended, the Friars had twice as many turnovers as made baskets — 28 to 14.

From the opening tip, UConn’s defense attacked — and didn’t let up until the final buzzer sounded.

“The way we started the game, we wanted to set a certain tone,” Geno Auriemma explained.

During one sequence in that first quarter, Providence coughed the ball up four times in 35 seconds. At one point, the Friars could barely inbound the ball, let alone get it over half-court.

UConn didn’t do anything complicated defensively Wednesday night. The Huskies just leaned into their strength: The backcourt. KK Arnold racked up a career-high eight steals, most by any Husky since Moriah Jefferson had nine against Memphis in Jan. 2014. Paige Bueckers added four, as did Ashlynn Shade — who came in with just six steals in her first 14 games.

“I feel like the way we were pressing today and the way we're starting to incorporate that kind of defense into our lineup, it fits a lot of these players’ game,” Nika Mühl explained.

That should be a blueprint for this team going forward, especially without Aubrey Griffin.

“That's how we gotta play with the lineup that we have,” Auriemma explained. “We really don't have any other choice than to play that way.”

That doesn’t mean UConn plans to force nearly 30 turnovers every night. While the Huskies deployed a disruptive defense, the 28 giveaways were as much a product of an overmatched and undermanned Providence team as anything the hosts did.

“It doesn't necessarily mean we’re gonna force a turnover every time but if we can make you maybe speed up a little bit, maybe take some time off the shot clock — anything that we can do to dictate the tempo of the game,” Auriemma said.

Dictating the tempo of the game and turnovers go hand-in-hand, though. During UConn’s eight-game winning streak, its offense has been at its best when it can get out and run. The Huskies had plenty of chances to do that thanks to all those turnovers, scoring 25 points in transition.

Other notable quotes about the defense

Geno on Ashlynn Shade: “The bench kept reminding me how many steals she had because I think her career high coming into today was like one a month. So I’m trying to make her a little more ball-hungry… We did a little drill today where it’s like throwing the Frisbee on the playground with your pet or something. I will go ‘Here!’ and I would throw it up in the air and she would go chase it and get it. Just to get her into the habit of ‘This is what it feels like to steal the ball.’”

Nika Mühl on KK Arnold: “When KK first came here, I was like ‘I hate playing against players like her. I hate it.’ So I know how much everybody that we play against hates it. You know those pests, little defenders that get into you — super aggressive, super vocal. They’re just always there. They’re so annoying for the whole game and it’s true. She’s annoying. It’s the worst type of player that you can play and be defended by.”

Other notes and quotes from UConn’s win:

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