UConn loses to No. 15 Notre Dame 82-67 as they fall apart.

The women’s basketball team of UConn lost its first game at home this year, 82-67, to No. 15 Notre Dame at Gampel Pavilion. The Huskies lost their first game since December 3rd, and Paige Bueckers’ poor performance wasn’t enough to offset the team’s diminished lineup.

Even though Bueckers finished the game with 17 points, she was not her usual efficient self, shooting just 5-17 from the field. The Huskies were unable to overcome this in addition to Nika Muhl playing just 19 minutes because of foul trouble and missing almost the whole fourth quarter.

In order to compensate for some of their offensive shortcomings, the Huskies were unable to capitalize on their defensive woes. Hannah Hidalgo, the freshman phenom from Notre Dame, scored a game-high 34 points with ease. Additionally, UConn gave up 23 to Maddy Westbeld. Hidalgo, Westbeld, and Sonia Citron each contributed 40 minutes of play, which allowed them to surpass the Huskies’ whole squad in scoring.

Despite the loss, Aaliyah Edwards was a positive influence. With 23 points, 10-14 from the field, and 11 rebounds, she demonstrated her supremacy. KK Arnold scored 11 points, while Ashlynn Shade contributed 12.

The Huskies and Irish exchanged buckets to begin the contest. By the close of the first quarter, with Edwards and Shade playing well, UConn was starting to pull away.

Early in the second quarter, UConn appeared poised to break the game open as they increased their advantage to double digits. Rather, the Irish came roaring back, tying the score at thirty after a 12-0 surge.

Hidalgo scored 19 points in the first half on 7-12 shooting, and the Huskies had no answer for him. The defensive setbacks compounded with Muhl’s foul trouble and Bueckers’ poor performance (having only four points in the first half), made a poor run worse. Having all four of its freshman on the court and Muhl and Bueckers on the bench, Notre Dame continued to dominate, leading by nine points at the half.

The third quarter began with a three-pointer by Bueckers, indicating a change in the momentum. At that point, Buckers began to locate Edwards in the post as some Husky legends started making their way to the student section and Gampel started acting more gregarious.

With little under five minutes remaining in the third quarter, Edwards made four consecutive baskets in the lane to bring the score back to even, but that was the end of the Huskies’ comeback. While both teams scored baskets in the third quarter, UConn and Notre Dame were unable to pull away, leaving the Huskies trailing three points going into the fourth.

A turning point in UConn’s defensive woes came in the fourth quarter. They needed Bueckers’ heroics to save them in the fourth quarter after Muhl fouled out with little than nine minutes remaining, but her shots weren’t falling. In the last quarter, the Huskies shot just 2–12 from the field, letting Notre Dame win by a score of 15 points.

On Wednesday, the Huskies (17-4, 9-0 Big East) will play their first Big East game of the season away from home against Villanova.