UConn routs Arkansas St. by 69 in NCAA opener

STORRS, Conn. -- Coach Geno Auriemma wouldn't call his UConn Huskies' 103-34 demolition of Arkansas State in the first round of the NCAA tournament perfect, but it was still pretty tough to take issue with most of it.

The No. 2 seed Huskies came ready to dominate from the get-go, outscoring the No. 15 seed Red Wolves 34-5 in the first quarter and setting the tone for what was one of the program's largest wins in its storied March Madness history.

Graduate student Azzi Fudd and freshman Sarah Strong combined for 47 points on the afternoon, comfortably outscoring the visitors between the two of them. Twenty-six of those points came in the first quarter.

The Huskies' 69-point margin of victory was the fourth-largest for an NCAA tournament game in program history, while their 66-16 edge at the half marked the second-largest halftime lead in NCAA tournament history and was tied for the second-most points in any half in the event's history.

The Huskies will face 10-seed South Dakota State on Monday, their 31st consecutive season making reaching the second round.

Fudd finished with 27 points, seven assists, six steals and two blocks. Most of her damage was done in the first half, where she became the first player with 20 points, five assists and five steals in any half in the past six tournaments.

The performance was all the more special given it marked her first NCAA tournament game since the 2023 Sweet 16; Fudd missed all but two games last season due to an ACL tear.

"I had a lot of fun, and it felt great to be out there, especially it's tournament time, it's been a while," Fudd said. "I'm so grateful. ... Especially being at home, getting the great crowd, the great fans. The atmosphere never fails here, so it was amazing."

Added Auriemma: "A lot of times when kids haven't played and then you throw them out there, they put a lot of pressure on themselves to make up for two years of missing NCAA tournaments and try to get it all back in one night. For me it's putting Azzi in a position where she likes being in and letting her do what she does best.

"It's great that she's been able to experience that kind of confidence this early in the tournament. Hopefully it carries over to the next game."

Fudd was flanked by a similarly impactful outing from Strong in the latter's NCAA tournament debut (20 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, five blocks): The star freshman became the first player with 20-10-5-5 in any NCAA tournament game over the past 25 seasons.

With the game out of hand early, none of UConn's starters played more than 22 minutes. Paige Bueckers, the presumptive No. 1 overall WNBA draft pick next month, finished with 11 points, while sophomore Ashlynn Shade joined the other three in double figures with 20 points.

On the night, the Huskies shot 59% and held Arkansas State to a 17% clip. Their defense gave the Red Wolves fits most of the game; in the first half alone it helped force the Red Wolves into 16 turnovers, off which UConn scored 27 points.

The Huskies don't want to assume, though, that such an impressive showing would have any bearing on Monday, when they'll face a South Dakota State team that boasts the best active win streak in the nation at 20 games.

Auriemma said, "On a coach's mind, we're looking at things going ... will that carry over to Monday, because if we do it just like that on Monday, yes. That won't. Will that carry over? No. If we do that Monday night, that ain't going to work. It only worked tonight because of circumstances ... if we're fortunate enough to play next weekend, how much of this stuff that if we do it exactly the way we did it is going to help us win that game? 50%? 60%? Who knows?

"If you do 10 things and you know they only work because the opponent couldn't match it, but now what happens when the opponent can? So that's how you judge how did we play."

Fudd concurred with her coach.

"I definitely wouldn't say it was perfect," Fudd said. "There are still things we need to work on, things we need to clean up. I think that it's March. It's not a time to get complacent. "