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UConn’s Azzi Fudd and Paige Bueckers are ready to steal the show

We are now just days away from seeing Azzi Fudd and Paige Bueckers don their UConn Huskies uniforms and step out on the court together. Geno Aureimma and his squad will begin to work out the kinks in early season action against Arkansas on Sunday, November 14 at 1pm ET. Nationwide, women’s hoops fans will have to wait for UConn’s first nationally televised game against Notre Dame on December 5 (Noon ET on FS1).

Bueckers, the number one recruit of the 2020 class, lived up to the hype and then some with an explosive freshman year at UConn. Her 20 points per game set a new freshman record for the dynastic program. She added 5.8 assists, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.3 steals per game, all while maintaining an overall shooting percentage of 52.4. She swept all the national player of year awards for which she was eligible, including the Naismith Trophy, AP Player of the Year, and the Wooden Award, and was the first freshman to ever win each of those honors on the women’s side.

Even then, amidst the showers of praise heaped on Bueckers, you’d hear someone mutter, “But just wait ‘til to you see Azzi Fudd.” 

Just like Bueckers, Fudd was the top recruit in the country for her own class of 2021. She started out as a point guard like Bueckers but has developed into a shooting guard with lights out ability from both inside and outside the arc. In 2019, she became the first sophomore to ever be named the Gatorade National Player of the Year, which she earned by averaging 26 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game that season. After recovering from a nasty knee injury the following summer, her junior season was cut short and her senior season was cancelled completely due to Covid-19. But Fudd never pulled her foot off the gas and stayed focused by training at home, playing for her club team, and with Bueckers on USA Basketball. Before starting her freshman year in Storrs this fall, Fudd helped lead Team USA’s U19 squad to the gold medal at the FIBA World Cup over summer in Latvia.

 

Now, Fudd and Buecker’s basketball journeys have finally converged at UConn, stoking premature chatter about how this duo could outshine that of Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi.

The two athletes have been close friends since first meeting at USA Basketball youth team trainings, and Bueckers had no shame in recruiting Fudd to follow her to UConn. 

Fudd recalled to the Associated Press a time when Bueckers came to her house and played an assist-reel of herself showing all the amazing passes Fudd could reap the benefits of on the court with her. Granted, after the ink had dried on Fudd’s Letter of Intent, Beuckers quipped, “That deal’s over. The recruiting tactic worked. But if she’s open and I’m open, I’ll probably take the shot.”

This is where the real magic of this pairing can be found, not on the stat sheets or highlight reels, but in the genuine connection and endearing banter they have off the court.

Whereas Bueckers is outgoing, witty, and showy, Fudd is more reserved and pensive with less outward bravado. 

“I was just nervous about how I would fit in,” Fudd confessed at a recent media event about arriving to UConn. “I don’t think she [Paige] gets nervous. She helps calm my nerves, but at the same time, I still don’t understand her. We’re very similar, but at the same time very different.” 

The deep friendship they’ve formed is cemented at its core by their shared work ethic and commitment to the pursuit of perfection. They put in the work together in the gym and then let loose off the court, charming viewers with TikToks and friendly ribbing.

@whitechocolate535

Never been dusty 😮‍💨💧 #mediaday #uconn

♬ Help me hit 10k - Shane

When Bueckers capped off last year’s award season by winning the ESPY for Best College Athlete in Women’s Sports, she used the spotlight to call out racial bias in media coverage that continues to give white players, like her, more attention than black players.

“I want to shed a light on Black women. They don’t get the media coverage that they deserve,” Bueckers said. “I think it’s time for change. Sports media holds the key to storylines. Sports media and sponsors tell us who is valuable, and you have told the world that I mattered today, and everyone who voted, thank you. But I think we should use this power together to also celebrate Black women.”

Interestingly, Buecker’s challenge to the sports industry to do better now has a perfect test case. Fudd, who is Black, checks all the same boxes as Bueckers: number one recruit, same program, same market, and just one year younger. (The two even have a joint TikTok account facetiously named @WhiteChocolate535.) 

And if Fudd proves to be a comparable, or even more talented, player on the court — as many expect her to be — then we’ll be able to hold our own feet to the flame on differential media treatment.

While the spark between Fudd and Bueckers is the chief attraction, the UConn squad as a whole is focused on winning another national championship. Sitting at No. 2 on the AP preseason rankings (and No. 3 in the JWS rankings) heading into play, the Huskies are returning all five starters from last year’s Final Four roster, including seniors Olivia Nelson-Ododa, Evina Westbrook, and Christyn Williams. These returners will be joined by the number two recruiting class in the country, headlined by Fudd and the No. 5 overall recruit, Caroline Ducharme. Adding 6’5” Ohio State grad transfer Dorka Juáhsz to the front court was icing on the cake for Auriemma. 

“She could be the difference that puts us into that other level,” he said of Juhász after seeing her in practices.

Given the deep pool of talent and the no-BS program they’ve chosen to play for, if Bueckers and Fudd put on the show we’ve all been anticipating, fans could be in for a historic display of basketball skill, individual drive, and collective brilliance. UConn is always must-watch TV, and with two generational talents sharing the floor, this year has the chance to raise the bar again. 

USWNT Vet Carli Lloyd Announces Pregnancy After ‘Rollercoaster’ IVF Journey

retired soccer player carli lloyd
Lloyd will welcome her first child with husband Brian Hollins this October. (Dennis Schneidler/USA TODAY Sports)

Longtime USWNT fixture Carli Lloyd took to Instagram Wednesday morning to announce that she’s pregnant with her first child. 

"Baby Hollins coming in October 2024!" she wrote. The caption framed a collaged image of baby clothes, an ultrasound photo, and syringes indicating what she described as a "rollercoaster" fertility journey.

In a Women’s Health story published in tandem with Lloyd’s post, the Fox Sports analyst and correspondent opened up about her struggles with infertility and the lengthy IVF treatments she kept hidden from the public eye.

"Soccer taught me how to work hard, persevere, be resilient, and never give up. I would do whatever it took to prepare, and usually when I prepared, I got results," Lloyd told Women’s Health’s Amanda Lucci. "But I found out that I didn’t know much about this world. I was very naive to think that we wouldn’t have any issues getting pregnant. And so it began."

Lloyd went on to discuss her road to pregnancy in great detail, sharing the highs and lows of the process and expressing gratitude for the care and support her family and medical team provided along the way. She rounded out the piece with a nod toward others navigating the same challenges, encouraging people to share their own pregnancy journeys, painful as they may be.

"My story is currently a happy one, but I know there are other women who are facing challenges in their pregnancy journey. I see you and I understand your pain," she said. "My hope is that more and more women will speak up about this topic, because their stories helped me. I also wish for more resources, funding, and education around fertility treatments. There is much to be done, and I hope I can play a role in helping."

The 41-year-old New Jersey native retired from professional soccer in 2021, closing out her decorated career with 316 international appearances, the second-most in USWNT history, in addition to 134 international goals. A legend on the field, Lloyd walked away from the game with two World Cups, two Olympic gold medals, and two FIFA Player of the Year awards.

Project ACL addresses injury epidemic in women’s football

arsenal's laura wienroither being helped off the field after tearing her acl
Arsenal's Laura Wienroither tore her ACL during a Champions League semifinal in May 2023. (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

On Tuesday, FIFPRO announced the launch of Project ACL, a three-year research initiative designed to address a steep uptick in ACL injuries across women's professional football.

Project ACL is a joint venture between FIFPRO, England’s Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA), Nike, and Leeds Beckett University. While the central case study will focus on England’s top-flight Women's Super League, the findings will be distributed around the world.

ACL tears are between two- and six-times more likely to occur in women footballers than men, according to The Guardian. And with both domestic and international programming on the rise for the women’s game, we’ve seen some of the sport's biggest names moved to the season-ending injury list with ACL-related knocks.

Soccer superstars like Vivianne Miedema, Beth Mead, Catarina Macario, Marta, and England captain Leah Williamson have all struggled with their ACLs in recent years, though all have since returned to the field. In January, Chelsea and Australia forward Sam Kerr was herself sidelined with the injury, kicking off a year of similar cases across women’s professional leagues. And just yesterday, the Spirit announced defender Anna Heilferty would miss the rest of the NWSL season with a torn ACL. The news comes less than two weeks after Bay FC captain Alex Loera went down with the same injury. 

Project ACL will closely study players in the WSL, monitoring travel, training, and recovery practices to look for trends that could be used to prevent the injury in the future. Availability of sports science and medical resources within individual clubs will be taken into account throughout the process.

ACL injuries in women's football have long outpaced the same injury in the men's game, but resources for specialized prevention and treatment still lag behind. Investment in achieving a deeper, more specialized understanding of the problem should hopefully alleviate the issue both on and off the field.

USC enters superteam era with transfer portal gains 

Oregon State transfer and USC recruit Talia von Oelhoffen at 2024 NCAA women's tournament
Oregon State transfer Talia von Oelhoffen adds fuel to USC's 2025 NCAA title dreams. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)

With recent transfers Talia von Oelhoffen and Kiki Iriafen joining first-team All-American JuJu Watkins and the nation’s No. 1 recruiting class at USC next season, the Trojans look to transition from an up-and-coming squad to a legitimate title contender. 

Former Oregon State graduate student von Oelhoffen is the latest collegiate talent to commit to the program, announcing her transfer Monday via ESPN. She follows ex-Stanford leading-scorer Iriafen in the jump to the pair’s one-time Pac-12 rival.

The 5-foot-11 Washington native was a two-time All-Pac-12 guard during her time at Oregon State. But after the recent dissolution of the Pac-12, the Corvallis side found themselves without a permanent home conference going forward. Many big name players opted to take their skill elsewhere as a result, with von Oelhoffen’s fellow ex-Beaver Raegan Beers announcing her own departure to Oklahoma on Monday.

According to DraftKings, USC is now tied with UConn for the second-best betting odds to win the 2025 NCAA women’s tournament. Dawn Staley’s tested South Carolina side, poised for a repeat performance, holds down the number one spot.

Last year, LSU loaded up in the transfer portal after beating Iowa to win the 2023 national championship. The Tigers were clear favorites coming into the 2023-24 season, but were bounced in the Elite Eight by Caitlin Clark’s Hawkeyes. Shortly thereafter, star transfer Hailey Van Lith opted to transfer a second time, this time signing with TCU. 

Yet while history proves that an excess of star power doesn’t always translate to on-court chemistry, on paper, USC sure looks ready to hold their own — in 2025 and beyond.

U.S., Mexico drop bid to host 2027 Women’s World Cup 

uswnt fans cheer at 2023 fifa women's world cup in australia
USWNT fans will have to settle for cheering on their home team from abroad in 2027. (Brad Smith/USSF/Getty Images for USSF)

The United States and Mexico have withdrawn their joint bid to host the 2027 Women’s World Cup, per a Monday afternoon release from U.S. Soccer and the Mexican Football Federation.

According to the statement, they will instead focus on developing a "more equitable" bid for the 2031 tournament, with the ultimate goal of "eliminating investment disparities" between the men’s and women’s tournaments.

The federations went on to cite the upcoming 2026 Men’s World Cup in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico as an opportunity to build support for local infrastructure, improve audience engagement, and scale up media and partnership deals in preparation to "host a record-breaking tournament in 2031."

"Hosting a World Cup tournament is a huge undertaking — and having additional time to prepare allows us to maximize its impact across the globe," said U.S. Soccer President Cindy Parlow Cone. "Shifting our bid will enable us to host a record-breaking Women’s World Cup in 2031 that will help to grow and raise the level of the women’s game both here at home as well as across the globe."

The decision leaves just Brazil and a joint bid from Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands in the running for the 2027 host spot. Brazil — the rumored frontrunner — has never hosted a Women’s World Cup, while Germany hosted the 2011 tournament as a solo venture. 

Furthermore, this postponement doesn’t mean the U.S. is a shoo-in for 2031, as it's been previously reported that 2022 UEFA Women's EURO host England is considering their own Women's World Cup bid. FIFA is scheduled to confirm the winning bid after the FIFA Congress votes on May 17th.

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