Azzi Fudd credits ‘unselfish basketball’ for UConn’s USC blowout appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
It should come as a surprise to nobody that UConn is continuing to dominate the 2025-26 NCAA season. The nation’s No. 1 seed wound down the non-conference part of its schedule with a seemingly effortless 79-51 victory over No. 16 USC on Saturday to move to 10-0 on the campaign.
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Azzi Fudd led the way for the Huskies with 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting with four rebounds and assists each, but she didn’t keep the spotlight on herself. The star senior made sure to share the credit with the rest of the UConn women’s basketball teammates after the game.
“On a team like this, you have to play unselfish basketball. You have to be aggressive, whether it be from three or taking it to the rim,” Fudd said after the game. “It doesn’t matter if we’re up, if we’re down, or who we are playing. We’re trying to play UConn basketball, trying to get better, trying to learn, trying to play together.”
Fudd shouted out specific teammates that she felt were largely responsible for the win. Ashlynn Shade put up her best performance of the season so far, finishing with 15 points and three 3-pointers. Blanca Quiñonez added 12 points and four steals off the bench, contributing to the 20 turnovers UConn forced USC to commit.
“I think we just stayed really disciplined today. It was a team effort. It wasn’t just me,” Fudd added. “Blanca played incredible offensively and defensively today. It felt like she was everywhere, pressing in the half court. And her offense – she’s so talented.”
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Shade spread the love even further, giving credit to head coach Geno Auriemma and the rest of the staff for their motivating words that came after the first quarter’s media timeout.
“The coaches put us in a great position every time we step on the court,” Shade said. “They’re able to teach us and guide us every day in practice. We’re super fortunate for them.”
For his part, Auriemma told the media that the bulk of the praise should go to his players.
“It felt like we were locked in,” Auriemma said. “We [the coaches] were encouraging. It was nothing really magical that I said.”
The Huskies will take on Marquette on Wednesday before facing their next big challenge in their next ranked opponent, No. 11 Iowa, on Saturday afternoon.
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