The Aftermath: UConn weathers another first quarter storm

The first half of UConn’s 83-59 win at Seton Hall had a familiar feel to it.

The Pirates jumped out to a 16-9 lead behind white-hot shooting but the Huskies stayed calm and built an 18-point buffer at the half. That script has played out twice before in conference play already this season.

When Butler came to the XL Center on Dec. 18, it started 5-6 from three, was up after one, and led by as many as six in the second quarter. Once those shots stopped falling, UConn ultimately won by 26.

On New Year’s Eve, Marquette sprinted out to a 10-0 lead but the Huskies answered back almost immediately to erase the deficit and hold a five-point lead at the end of the first quarter en route to a 31-point victory.

When it happened again on Wednesday night, UConn knew it had to just ride out the storm. Seton Hall made seven of its first nine shots and four triples in the opening quarter despite averaging just 5.5 made 3-pointers per game entering the contest.

“They were shooting the three like they were the best 3-point shooting team in the country,” Geno Auriemma said postgame. “That’s going to happen some nights.”

The Huskies were also complicit in the early deficit. They turned it over just nine seconds into the game and had five giveaways at the 4:24 mark of the opening quarter.

Through 10 minutes, UConn trailed 23-21 but then quickly flipped the game on its head. In the second period, the Huskies out-scored Seton Hall 30-10 thanks to a 5-0 run followed by a 14-0 run followed by a 6-0 run followed by another 5-0 run to close the half.

“We didn’t really change that much, we just kind of figured at some point it’ll even itself out,” Auriemma said.

As has been the case all season, the spark came from the defense. UConn allowed just three baskets in the second quarter but it didn’t need to force turnovers to shut down the Pirates’ offense. They had just three in the second period but held the hosts to 3-19 shooting.

“The better we play defense, the better we’re gonna be able to operate down the other end,” Auriemma told SNY at the half.

Seton Hall made it interesting by out-scoring UConn 18-10 in the third quarter (more on that in a second) and even pulled within single-digits with 8:08 left in the game. But from there, the Huskies allowed just one more basket the rest of the way en route to a 24-point win.

“We should have to work hard for wins on the road,” Auriemma told SNY postgame. “I’m really proud of my time. We hung in there, we lost it a little bit but we got it back. We learned a lot tonight.”

Injury scare

Midway through the third quarter, Paige Bueckers and KK Arnold both dove after a loose ball and collided. Bueckers remained on the floor in obvious pain before walking to the bench under her own power. The replay showed that Arnold’s shoulder caught Bueckers in the head.

“I felt like my head and my neck were in different places,” she told SNY postgame.

Bueckers remained at the end of the bench and put an ice pack on her neck for a few minutes before moving back to her usual spot next to associate head coach Chris Dailey. Although it felt like an eternity, Bueckers only missed 3:47 of game time. There didn’t seem to be any lingering concerns about her health afterward, either.

"I'm feeling good, I'm feeling better than I did when it happened,” she said to SNY. “I might feel it on the bus ride but we won so I’m good.”

“She seems to be okay,” Auriemma added. “It wasn’t concussion stuff or anything like that.” He also added: “You don’t see many players of her caliber diving on loose balls like that face-first.”

Bueckers further backed that up with her play when she returned the floor.