Just days after postponing its matchup with DePaul due to a lack of healthy players, UConn is ready to take the court once again.

The No. 4 Huskies have dealt with injuries and absences all season, the latest of which dropped them below the Big East’s requirement of seven scholarship players available to compete. UConn would have had just six players for the game against DePaul, originally scheduled for Sunday but rescheduled for Jan. 23.

Aaliyah Edwards, who had been the glue for the lineup during a chaotic season, was the latest player to go down with an injury. The junior standout suffered a lower leg injury during the Huskies’ win over Xavier last Thursday, but she will be back for Wednesday’s road contest against St. John’s.

Edwards is averaging 16.5 points and 9.5 rebounds while shooting 63.4% in 15 games played for the Huskies.

She is one of just three players to appear in every game this season, alongside Lou Lopez Sénéchal and Ayanna Patterson. But on Wednesday, that number will dwindle to two, as Patterson is in concussion protocol and will miss that game.

Azzi Fudd, who has been out since early December with a knee injury, may also make her much-anticipated return. Prior to her injury, she was leading the team with 20.6 points per game.

The star sophomore is nearing the end of the three- to six-week recovery timeline provided by the program. She is now considered day-to-day, associate head coach Chris Daily said.

While she has participated in warmups during UConn’s last few games, she did not play in any of them. She will be a game-time decision Wednesday.

Azzi Fudd remains out with a right knee injury, but she’s participating in UConn warmups for the second game in a row. pic.twitter.com/lTrYgRjYbZ

— Lila Bromberg (@lilabbromberg) January 3, 2023

Injuries have been the story of UConn’s season since before it began. Paige Bueckers tore her ACL in August, and freshman Ice Brady is also out for the season with a dislocated right patella. Dorka Juhász, Aubrey Griffin and Nika Muhl have also missed time.

Caroline Ducharme remains in concussion protocol and, like Patterson, will not travel to St. John’s.

Dailey has taken over head coaching duties for Geno Auriemma, who has missed four games this season due to illness. He has remained away from the team so far this week, Dailey said Tuesday.

Despite the absences, the Huskies have maintained their success. They will head into Wednesday’s game with a 13-2 record.

The Kansas City Current continues to hold court atop the NWSL standings, earning their fifth straight win after a brief two-game skid by defeating No. 7 Racing Louisville 4-2 on Saturday.

The Current pounced early, going up 3-0 ahead of the match's 20-minute mark before sealing the win with a second-half stoppage-time goal from star striker Temwa Chawinga.

KC is currently winning the race to stay ahead of 2024 Shield-winner and champions Orlando, who won their third straight match after a second-half dagger by Barbra Banda lifted the No. 2 Pride over No. 9 Bay FC 1-0 on Friday.

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Elsewhere, the San Diego Wave regained their grip on third place with Friday's 3-2 victory over the No. 12 Houston Dash, while the No. 5 Portland Thorns began to encroach on Washington's fourth-place standing with a 2-0 win over the Spirit on Sunday.

The top four teams weren't the only ones moving this weekend, as Gotham earned their first regular-season points since early May with Friday's 3-0 win over the last-place Utah Royals — despite two red card offenses limiting their late-game on-field roster to nine.

Along with boosting the Bats back above the playoff line into eighth place, the victory saw NY/NJ forward Esther pull ahead of Chawinga and Banda in the 2025 Golden Boot race, with her two-goal showing putting the Spanish national at nine goals on the season.

While no team is immune to the midseason blues, this weekend's widening eight-point gap between first and fourth place on the table is separating the contenders from the pretenders.

Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark returned with a bang on Saturday, coming off a quad strain to score 32 points and hand the reigning champion New York Liberty their first loss of the 2025 season.

Despite Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu’s game-leading 34 points, the Fever guard finished the 102-88 victory having contributed to 54 of her team's overall points as either a passer or a shooter, notching nine assists and eight rebounds while sinking 50% from behind the arc.

"Don't we always expect that kind of game from Caitlin?" Fever head coach Stephanie White asked after beating the Liberty.

Despite filling some key roster gaps over the offseason, the dreams of an Indiana title run appear to hinge on Clark being healthy and available, with the Fever sputtering to a 2-3 record during her five-game absence.

"Emotionally, it's a relief, it's a lift," White said. "This group, they stay together. They draw strength from one another; I draw strength from them. Every single day we take one step forward together, we're building trust."

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Angel Reese scores career-first triple-double

Clark's fellow 2024 draftee Angel Reese also hit a milestone this weekend, becoming the second-youngest player to ever record a triple-double, notching the first of her WNBA career in the Chicago Sky's 78-66 win over the Connecticut Sun on Sunday.

"I think some of the best players in the world, if their shot is not falling, they try to find other ways to get the team together and stay involved," Reese said afterwards. "I'm just super excited, and then to add it with a win just feels really good."

With 2025 WNBA All-Star voting officially underway, this stretch of the season gives individual standouts even more incentive to step into the spotlight and shine.

The third-place Atlanta Dream are storming up the WNBA standings, winning their last three games by an average margin of 23.6 points after routing the Washington Mystics 89-56 on Sunday.

Atlanta guard Rhyne Howard opened the weekend by tying the WNBA record for three-pointers made in a single game, recording nine baskets from behind the arc as the Dream took down the Chicago Sky 88-70 on Friday.

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Offseason pick-up Brittney Griner has also been busy, passing WNBA legend Lisa Leslie for No. 2 on the league's all-time career blocks list following this weekend's Atlanta victories.

While the Dream have made the playoffs in each of the last three seasons, a few key roster additions plus a new coaching hire have Atlanta entertaining a shot at a first-ever championship bid.

The momentum shift has largely been on offense, with the Dream hitting a franchise-record 18 three-pointers while guard Allisha Gray put up a career-high 32 points on Sunday.

Also quietly climbing the WNBA's ranks is the only other team currently on a three-game winning streak, the Golden State Valkyries.

Bolstered by a 76-70 Saturday win over the always-dangerous Seattle Storm, the 2025 expansion side secured a 5-5 season record to claim sixth place on the league table this weekend.

How to watch the Atlanta Dream on Tuesday

Nearly the entire league is in action on Tuesday, as 12 of the 13 teams will face off on WNBA courts.

The Dream will have their work cut out for them as they face the 2024 champion Liberty at 7 PM ET, taking on a New York side eager to bounce back from their first 2025 loss.

As for the Valkyries, Golden State will visit Paige Bueckers and the Dallas Wings at 8 PM ET.

Both games will air live on WNBA League Pass.

Simone Biles returned to the headlines this week, with the seven-time Olympic gold medalist taking to X to voice support for trans athletes in women's sports, emphasizing that she believes the conversation "starts with empathy and respect."

Earlier this month, Biles called out anti-trans athlete activist and former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines for ridiculing a Minnesota high school softball team, calling Gaines a "sore loser" and a "bully."

Gaines, who swam for the University of Kentucky, tied trans UPenn swimmer Lia Thomas for fifth place in the 200-yard freestyle at the 2022 NCAA Division I Swimming and Diving Championships. The event sparked her outspoken campaign against trans athletes in women's sports.

"You should be uplifting the trans community and perhaps finding a way to make sports inclusive OR creating a new avenue where trans [athletes] feel safe in sports," Biles originally tweeted at Gaines.

Biles later clarified her comments, posting "I've always believed competitive equity & inclusivity are both essential in sport."

"The current system doesn't adequately balance these important principles, which often leads to frustration and heated exchanges," she continued.

While Biles apologized for a comment made about Gaines's body, she also defended her objection to Gaines singling out individual trans youth athletes.

"I was not advocating for policies that compromise fairness in women's sports," said Biles. "My objection is to be singling out children for public scrutiny in ways that feel personal and harmful."

"Individual athletes — especially kids — should never be the focus of criticism of a flawed system they have no control over."