UConn basketball’s Paige Bueckers had an off night against No. 17 Tennessee in a battle of blue bloods on Thursday night, although she still scored 14 points with eight assists in the loss.
Bueckers shot 5 of 16 from the field and 2 of 6 from 3-point range in the 80-76 loss on the road against the Vols. She also finished with eight assists and three rebounds in the loss, which was the No. 5 Huskies’ first since Dec. 21.
Bueckers, one of the top contenders for player of the year and the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft, fell short of her season average of 19 points per game this season, although she was finding success as a distributor, as she entered the game averaging 4.2 assists per game.
Tennessee did a valiant job of keeping Bueckers under control defensively, as the 6-foot guard entered the game shooting 54.4% from the field but shot 31.2% on Thursday.
Here’s a look at Bueckers’ full stat line against the Vols on Thursday night:
How many points did Paige Bueckers score tonight?
Bueckers poured in 14 points on 5 of 16 shooting in a loss to Tennessee on Thursday night. She missed a 3-pointer with four seconds left as the Huskies were down 80-76. Bueckers also hit a game-tying 3-pointer with under two minutes remaining, but Tennessee immediately answered with a three of its own to pull back ahead.
Bueckers scored the second-most points for UConn in the game, as forward Sarah Strong led the way with a game-high 18 points on 8 of 13 shooting.
Paige Bueckers stats
Here’s Bueckers’ full stat line from Thursday’s loss to Tennessee:
Points: 14
Rebounds: 4
Assists: 8
Steals: 1
Shooting: 5 of 16 (2 of 6 from 3-point range)
Fouls: 3
Here were Bueckers’ season averages before the game:
Points: 19.0 per game
Rebounds: 4.2 per game
Assists: 4.2 per game
Shooting: 54.4%