Paige Bueckers is delivering on her promise and rewriting UConn’s log books

There were famous players everywhere when No. 2 UConn received No. 1 from South Carolina at Storrs on Monday night, but it was a 5’11 freshman guard who stole the show in the 63-59 victory in the extra time for the Huskies.

It is a cliché to say that Paige Bueckers is not an ordinary freshman, but it is also true. Bueckers was the number one general recruiting in America from Hopkins High School in Minnesota, already holding four gold medals in several international competitions before arriving at UConn. Bueckers was voted National Player of the Year by Gatorade and impressed at Steph Curry’s camp for the best high school guards. The hype was real when entering college and could have smothered an inferior player. Instead, Bueckers is showing that he is worthy of praise for every passing game. His performance against South Carolina was the best so far.

Bueckers finished with 31 points, five assists, six steals in 14 of 26 shots from the floor in UConn’s victory. In a game in which both defenses were closing and closing the basket, Bueckers was the Huskies’ only two-digit marker.

With the game in play, Bueckers hit a three-point ball to seal the victory thanks to a ridiculously friendly jump. When you are so talented, the ball always seems to find the bottom of the net.

There’s been no luck in Bueckers’ game lately. She is now the first player in UConn’s history to score more than 30 points in three consecutive games. Breanna Stewart did not do that, neither did Sue Bird, Maya Moore or Diana Taurasi. Again – she is just a freshman.

The Bueckers scoring package is so impressive. She’s a ridiculously good sniper. She is currently hitting 56.9 percent of her field goals, 55.6 percent of her three (in 4.5 attempts per game) and 80.6 percent of her free throws. It’s not like she’s getting open doses of a spoon, either. Bueckers have to work for everything she gets, whether it’s off the dribble or running across the screens.

Bueckers is a moving sniper. Watching UConn is watching her run around the court looking for openings in the middle lane or from three. It also has an advanced dribbling game and an impressive float. Here are some examples of Bueckers’ off-shot shooting ability:

For a player who is not going to win with size, she has a ton of tricks to stock buckets in a hurry. The speed, agility and touch that Bueckers displays in every game is why she should be a WNBA star eventually.

Here’s what coach Geno Auriemma said about his first-year star after the game:

Let’s not pretend that Bueckers was the only player on the floor. This was a great battle between two incredible teams with tons of future professionals. Aliyah Boston was South Carolina’s second All-American last season and finished with 17 points and 15 rebounds in defeat. Gamecocks owner Zia Cooke has been receiving enthusiasm from the WNBA draft and ended with 11 points, four rebounds and three assists. Credit from fellow freshman UConn Aaliyah Edwards for leaving the bank to score eight points.

You can watch the full highlights of UConn vs. South Carolina here.

Bueckers’ career is just beginning. Jump on the move early. It will be one hell of a trip. Our Huskies community, The UConn Blog, is clearly enjoying the trip.

We can’t wait to see what Bueckers do next.