Azzi Fudd remains sidelined for No. 8 UConn women’s basketball heading into Wednesday’s game against No. 21 Creighton, but coach Geno Auriemma provided a positive update on the star sophomore.

Fudd injured her right knee in a loss to Notre Dame on Dec. 4, and she was expected to miss three to six weeks, the Huskies announced at the time. She will have her knee tested Thursday when the team returns from its road trip, which should provide an updated timeline for her return.

“Depending on what happens there, then she can get out on the court and do some functional stuff, what looks like playing, feels like playing, and then we can go from there,” Auriemma said Tuesday. “But she’s made great progress and she looks great. I think we just want to be sure that everything’s in good order. So that’s going to happen on Thursday and then we’ll take it from there.”

We've got another top-25 matchup tomorrow! #8 UConn's at #21 Creighton at 8:30 PM ET on SNY.https://t.co/h21EVlDnaA

— UConn Women’s Basketball (@UConnWBB) December 27, 2022

Auriemma himself will be back with the team for the road game at 8:30 p.m. ET Wednesday. He missed the previous two contests while recovering from illness.

But the Huskies will play without Aubrey Griffin, who tested positive for COVID-19 over the holiday break and did not travel with the team to Omaha. She could miss Saturday’s contest against Marquette as well.

Another player, Amari DeBerry, had her travel disrupted by an ice storm, but the Huskies are hoping she will arrive in time to join the team against the Bluejays.

These represent just the latest blows for the already depleted Huskies. Fudd, who leads the team with 20.6 points per game, remains out, and Paige Bueckers is sidelined for the entire season while she recovers from an ACL tear. Dorka Juhász and Nika Mühl had been sidelined as well, though both returned to the lineup against Florida State.

On Thursday, US Soccer announced that the USWNT will cap off its 2024 campaign with a December 3rd friendly against the Netherlands in The Hague — the team's 23rd game this year.

The match comes three days after the US side's previously announced meeting with 2022 European champions and 2023 World Cup finalists England at London's iconic Wembley Stadium. 

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To stay the best, the USWNT will play the best

Following their gold medal-winning run at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the USWNT reclaimed their world No. 1 ranking. In order to stay there, head coach Emma Hayes noted, the team must seek out matches against other top international foes.

"It was a fantastic summer for our team, and we’re going to take a lot of great lessons and memories from our time in France, but now we are looking forward to continuing our process,” said Hayes.

"In order for our team to keep learning and growing, and for the coaching staff to continue to evaluate players, we need to play the best teams possible. Playing matches in Europe against some of the world’s top teams will be an important part of our journey."

With England sitting at No. 2 in the world and the Dutch at No. 11, this final 2024 road trip is exactly what the US boss ordered.

The Dutch are a familiar friendly foe

In their 11 previous meetings with the Netherlands, the USWNT has only lost once: a 4-3 defeat in their first-ever matchup in 1991. In the years since, the States have had the upper hand, logging eight wins and two draws.

The duo has ramped up the drama in their matches, though, facing each other in world championships in three of their last four bouts.

The USWNT's 2019 World Cup final win is arguably the team's most meaningful Dutch defeat, though recent tilts have appeared significantly tougher. While the US walked away with the win in the pair's 2021 Olympic quarterfinal, they needed penalty kicks to do so. And in the States's admittedly disappointing 2023 World Cup run, they played the Netherlands to a 1-1- draw in the group stage.

How to watch the USWNT's European friendlies

The US will take on England on November 30th at 12:20 PM ET. Their meeting with the Netherlands will kick off at 2:45 PM ET on December 3rd.

Both friendlies will air live on TNT, or you can stream the games via Max and Peacock.

The NWSL, in collaboration with Tiffany & Co., dropped revamped Shield and regular-season MVP trophies on Wednesday.

The bold new hardware is part of a plan to “set a new standard for recognition in women’s sports” by giving the Tiffany treatment to all NWSL end-of-season awards. This year's two additions join the redesigned Championship and Championship MVP awards that kicked off the league’s partnership with the jewelry company last year.

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An NWSL Shield worthy of superheroes

Both awards are handcrafted by Tiffany & Co. The refreshed MVP award includes a silver soccer ball atop a tall base.

"The best players in the world play here at the NWSL, and it is only fitting that we work with Tiffany to honor the best of the best," said NWSL chief marketing and commercial officer Julie Haddon in the league's announcement. “It has been a long time coming to create a suite of awards that are as extraordinary as our athletes."

Inspired by ancient Greco-Roman armor, the 24K gold and sterling silver Shield features a unique, interactive design. It is equipped with a handle so it can be removed from its base and held like "a true shield." 

Orlando poised to handle the new hardware

As the still-undefeated league leaders, the Orlando Pride are the clear frontrunners to claim the redesigned NWSL Shield.

The second-place Washington Spirit, third-place Gotham FC, and fourth-place KC Current are technically still in the running. However, with four matchdays left, Orlando can clinch the Shield outright by either defeating the Spirit this Sunday or winning two other remaining matches.

The regular-season MVP award race is tighter. Though Golden Boot leader Temwa Chawinga (KC) and the league's next top scorer Barbra Banda (Orlando) have pulled away from the pack.

And if Banda snags the honor, both new trophies will likely be bound for Florida.

Two games into the best-of-five 2024 WNBA semifinals, and the back-to-back defending champion Aces are staring down elimination while the Lynx evened the score last night.

With Friday's Game 3 offering a venue change, Las Vegas will need every ounce of their home-court advantage to continue their playoff run, while Minnesota's aim will be to silence the Connecticut crowd.

Aces on the brink of elimination after Game 2 loss

Tuesday's second-straight loss, an 88-84 defeat by the No. 1 seed Liberty in Brooklyn, has No. 4 seed Las Vegas on the brink of playoff elimination. The Aces are now the first reigning champions to ever fall to a 0-2 deficit in a WNBA playoff series.

Las Vegas has yet to conquer the Liberty this season, falling a franchise record-tying five straight times to same opponent, all after defeating New York in the 2023 WNBA Finals.

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New York's Sabrina Ionescu and Las Vegas's A'ja Wilson led their teams in scoring with 24 points each, while Liberty guard Courtney Vandersloot provided a crucial spark off the bench. 

Should Las Vegas turn things around when the series moves back to Nevada on Friday, they'd become the first team to ever bounce back from 0-2 to reach the WNBA Finals.

Aces guard Chelsea Gray put a positive spin on the challenge, saying "I love being in the history books, so might as well try to start there. That's going to be our mentality."

Lynx level up with Game 2 semifinal win in Minnesota

No. 2 seed Minnesota evened their semifinal score with No. 3 seed Connecticut on Tuesday, earning a 77-70 win in Minneapolis to send the series back East at one victory apiece.

Courtney Williams led the Lynx in scoring with 17 points, while a physical Minnesota defense held the Sun to less than 40% shooting from the field.

In the loss, Sun forward DeWanna Bonner became the third all-time leading scorer in WNBA postseason history. She also inked her name into the league record books as the player with the most appearances in playoff history at 83 games and counting.

Friday kicks off a guaranteed two-game run in Connecticut, with the home side on a mission to reach the Finals for the first time since 2022.

How to watch Game 3 of the WNBA semifinals

Las Vegas and Minnesota will look to pick up critical wins in Friday's Game 3, with the Aces facing a must-win scenario in front of what promises to be a rocking home crowd.

The Lynx will travel to Connecticut for a 7:30 PM ET tip off on Friday, October 4th, followed by a Liberty vs. Aces showdown in Las Vegas at 9:30 PM ET. Both games are scheduled to air on ESPN2.

In this week's episode of The Late Sub, host Claire Watkins takes a look at the first games of the 2024 WNBA semifinals, discussion whether or not Aces and Lynx fans can find the silver lining in their teams' respective shortcomings heading into Game 2.

Then, she shouts out the big winners and losers of this weekend's NWSL's slate, including this season's historic Golden Boot race and the competition to clinch one of the final playoff spots.

The Late Sub with Claire Watkins brings you the latest news and freshest takes in women’s sports. This is the weekly rundown you’ve been missing, covering the USWNT, NWSL, WNBA, college hoops, and whatever else is popping off in women’s sports each week. Special guest appearances with the biggest names in women’s sports make The Late Sub a must-listen for every fan. Follow Claire on X/Twitter @ScoutRipley and subscribe to the Just Women’s Sports newsletter for more.

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