UConn fell to its lowest ranking in 30 years on Monday, clocking in at No. 17 in the latest women’s college basketball AP Top 25.

The ranking brings UConn’s 357-week stretch of being in the top 15 to an end. It was the second-longest such span in AP poll history, dating back to 1977. Tennessee holds the record for the longest top-15 streak at 428 consecutive weeks.

The Huskies were last ranked this low in 1993-94, when they were No. 18 in the second poll that season. The last time they fell out of the top 15 was in 2005.

UConn’s drop in ranking comes after they suffered their first-ever loss to Texas on Sunday. The Longhorns, who had been ranked 10th, moved up to No. 5 in the latest poll. UConn (4-3) hasn’t lost three games this early in a season since 1980. Their three losses, however, have come against some of the best teams in the country — Texas, UCLA and NC State are all now in the top five.

The road doesn’t get much easier as the Huskies continue to face a tough schedule without star guard Azzi Fudd, out for the season with a knee injury, and junior guard Caroline Ducharme (neck spasms).

South Carolina maintained its hold on the No. 1 ranking, taking all 35 first-place votes. UCLA, NC State and Iowa rounded out the top four.

UConn’s injury woes have continued into this season, and it’s led to the Huskies’ players and coach experiencing déjà vu from years past.

“It just kills me to watch us play sometimes,” head coach Geno Auriemma told reporters after practice on Friday.

Last month, star guard Azzi Fudd went down with an ACL and meniscus tear in her right knee that will sideline her for the rest of the season. Junior guard Caroline Ducharme, meanwhile, remains out with neck spasms, and her timeline for return remains unclear.

“Don’t ask me how long, because I wish I knew,” Auriemma said of Ducharme. “You don’t know when they’re coming and you don’t know how long they’re going to last. We just keep trying and trying and trying. … I feel terrible for the kid.”

Many had thought this year would be different. Paige Bueckers, the 2021 National Player of the Year, is back from the ACL tear that kept her sidelined last season. Fudd, who has dealt with injuries throughout her career, started the season fully healthy. Now, Fudd and Jana El Alfy, who tore her Achilles tendon in July, will both miss the rest of the season. Sophomore forward Ayanna Patterson is also out following an offseason knee surgery.

In their absence, UConn has lost two of their last three games, including an 80-68 defeat to Texas on Sunday. The 4-3 Huskies haven’t lost three games this early in the season since 1980.

“I think they were all anticipating that this year was going to be different, that this year all that was going away and that was all behind us. And the response, I think, has been like a real punch in the gut. Like, ‘I’ve got to do this again,’” Auriemma said. “Me seeing that and me seeing their frustration, and them seeing mine, I think it’s inevitable. You can’t hide it.

“And I probably have not handled it great internally, and probably externally at times, as well. And that’s my job is as an adult, to make sure that I handle it, make sure that I am in complete control of myself and that I’m able to [answer], ‘How do I get each individual through another season?’ Like anybody else you know, I don’t think anybody deserves to be in this situation as many times as we’ve been in it.”

After all the injuries UConn has dealt with in the past few years, senior guard Nika Mühl said Friday that she doesn’t “know any different.”

“I feel like that’s the only cards we’ve been dealt since I’ve been here,” Mühl said. “So overcoming adversity is not something unfamiliar to us.”

Azzi Fudd’s family couldn’t quite believe it when she told them that she had torn her ACL and would miss the rest of the season for UConn basketball.

“I was in a state of devastation for her,” her father Tim Fudd told CT Insider. “She’s worked so hard to get herself right and to have this now happen again, it’s like, ‘Dang, like, she has worst luck with stuff in this.’

“We felt like she had gotten over these stupid injuries and like all of a sudden, she calls and it’s like, ‘Oh my gosh. What is it? Why does this keep happening?’”

Fudd tore the ACL and meniscus in her right knee during practice on Nov. 14. So after playing just two games for the Huskies, Fudd will miss the remainder of the 2023-24 season.

The No. 1 recruit in the class of 2021, Fudd has struggled with injuries throughout her three years at UConn. A foot injury in her freshman season kept her out of 11 games, and a knee injury last season had her absent from 22 games.

And Fudd is not the only UConn player to struggle with injuries over the last two seasons. Paige Bueckers tore her ACL and missed her junior season before returning for the 2023-24 campaign. Freshman Ice Brady also missed last season with an injury. And that’s not accounting for the time missed by other players throughout last season; at one point, UConn had to postpone a game due to a lack of available players.

And with Fudd and Jana El Alfy out for this season, the injuries have raised questions about the Huskies’ support staff. WNBA star Diamond DeShields posted on social media after Fudd’s injury: “Who the strength coach there …? Cuz WTF.”

But Tim Fudd quickly came to the defense of Andrea Hudy, the director of sports performance for UConn women’s basketball.

“It has nothing to do with the strength coach,” he tweeted Friday. “She is actually really good. These injuries are the flukiest things I’ve ever seen. Things have occurred that you would see in some rare occasions.”

Hudy and the UConn staff have been focusing on limiting injury risks through different pre-rehabilitation workouts and data studies on each individual athlete. The Fudds met up with Hudy in the Cayman Islands to discuss how best to help Azzi moving forward.

“You can’t control every scenario, right?” Azzi’s mother Katie Fudd told CT Insider. “You can prepare their bodies but there’s nothing you can do to manipulate situations to keep everyone safe but there’s nothing you can do to manipulate situations to keep everyone safe and healthy. You know, it’s kind of like driving down the street. You might be the best driver in the world, but you can’t control a bad driver, right?

“She (Azzi) really likes Hudy and really trusts her. And we do too. I think she’s taking the time to get to know us and let us get to know her a little bit so that we have that trust and respect. And we’re confident that they’re gonna get her where she needs to be. I don’t have any doubts about that.”

No. 2 UCLA beat No. 6 UConn basketball for the first time in the history of the program on Friday night, 78-67 — not for Paige Bueckers’ lack of trying. 

Despite the Huskies receiving their second loss of the season at the Cayman Islands Classic, Bueckers performed exceedingly well. But even with her multiple team-leading outings, UConn has earned its second double-digit loss this season, its most in its first five games since the 1991-92 slate. 

The Huskies’ struggles are best summed up by their head coach Geno Auriemma: “You can’t beat a really good team with one player.”

Bueckers’ 31 points against the Bruins came in at just under half of her squad’s total on the night. The senior guard is a consistent high-scorer, but without Azzi Fudd and Caroline Ducharme in the lineup, UConn is going to need more. 

“It was disappointing that we didn’t get more contributions from more people. Our combinations are all screwed up right now, so that’s got to get sorted out. We struggled, we had our runs, we just didn’t have enough,” Auriemma said. 

Aubrey Griffin went off on a few runs to register a good performance for the Huskies. She clocked 11 points, seven rebounds, four steals and a block. 

“The way Aubrey played for long stretches in that game, that’s how she’s got to start the game,” Auriemma said. “Aubrey needs to do it before we get down 15 points. That’s the issue with some of our players, they just take a long time to get going.”

No other UConn players had notable performances against the Bruins. Even Aaliyah Edwards, the Huskies highest scorer last season, struggled in the Cayman Islands. She went 2-12 before fouling out late in the game. 

“Basically, UCLA defended one player and was content to let anyone else have any shot they wanted and they didn’t make any,” Auriemma said. “… Other people are going to have to step up and have to make shots. We have to find a way to get some sort of cohesiveness on offense, we look disjointed a lot of times. I’ve got to fix that.”

No. 2 UCLA basketball remains undefeated this season, in no small part due to Kiki Rice’s contributions against No. 6 UConn. 

The sophomore guard dropped 24 points en route to her program’s first-ever win against the Huskies. She also grabbed 11 rebounds and eight assists. She led her squad to its fifth win of the season in its toughest match so far, 78-67. 

“We wanted her to come out with an attack mentality,” UCLA head coach Cori Close said to Michael Voepel. “She has put so much work in. She’s just been a rock star for us.” 

Charisma Osborne and Lauren Betts also showed out at  the Cayman Islands Classic with 18 and 13 points, respectively. 

“We really were confident that if we executed the game plan, that we were going to win,” Close said to the Associated Press. “I say that with great respect (for UConn) but I really believe in what this team is building.”

Paige Bueckers had a standout night for the Huskies, leading all scorers with her 31 points — almost half of UConn’s total. But no one else on the team scored more than 11 points. And head coach Geno Auriemma does not believe that is enough to win games. 

“You can’t beat a really good team with one player,” Auriemma said. “It was disappointing that we didn’t get more contributions from more people. Our combinations are all screwed up right now, so that’s got to get sorted out.. We struggled, we had our runs, we just didn’t have enough.”

UConn women’s basketball head coach Geno Auriemma has dealt with a number of injuries to his squad over the last two years, including the most recent — Azzi Fudd, who is out the remainder of the year with an ACL tear.

The school announced the news on Wednesday, noting that Fudd will have surgery at a later date. Fudd has dealt with injuries over her first two college seasons, including missing two months due to a foot injury in her freshman season and dealing with a number of knee injuries during her sophomore season.

She played just two games before suffering her latest knee injury. In a release, Auriemma said the team is “so upset for Azzi.” And on Thursday, he was at a loss for words over the team’s injury woes.

Caroline Ducharme will miss the team’s Friday game against UCLA with neck spasms. Jana El Alfy is out for the year with an Achilles injury and Ayanna Patterson is still recovering from an offseason knee procedure.

“It just sucks every year to look down and see who’s not playing. It’s just gotten overbearing. I mean, I can’t even explain it,” Auriemma told CT Insider from the Cayman Islanders on Thursday. “Some of these kids, man, that’s all they know. They don’t know anything about playing with a full team.”

There’s currently no timeline for Patterson’s return, and it’s unclear if Ducharme will be able to play on Saturday against Kansas.

“I get to the point where I don’t have words,” Auriemma told CT Insider. “I can’t explain the frustration that you have for them; frustrated for them and how much they want to play, frustrated for your team and their teammates. They’re constantly having to play short-handed.

“And it’s not fair to them. And as a coaching staff, there’s only so many answers you can have. There are times when it gets so hard to see a way out of it. It takes a lot of perseverance from the coaches and the players.”

Azzi Fudd will miss the rest of the season for UConn basketball with ACL and meniscal tears in her right knee.

The junior guard played two games to start the Huskies’ season before suffering the noncontact knee injury during practice on Nov. 14. Fudd will have surgery at UConn Health at a later date, the program announced in a news release.

“We’re all just so upset for Azzi,” head coach Geno Auriemma said in a statement. “She worked hard to be healthy for this season, and it’s unfortunate when you put in a lot of hard work and have a setback like this.”

After Fudd’s sophomore season at St. John’s College High School (D.C.), she tore the ACL and MCL in her right knee while playing in a U-18 tournament with USA Basketball.

Over her first two college seasons, Fudd has been in and out of the Huskies’ lineup with injuries. She missed two months due to a foot injury in her freshman season, though she averaged 12.1 points in the 25 games she did play. She dealt with multiple knee injuries during her sophomore season, averaging 15.1 points in just 15 games.

While Fudd entered her junior season with high hopes, she played in just two games before suffering her latest knee injury. UConn has won two games without her in the lineup and will have to navigate the rest of the 2023-24 season without her.

“Azzi loves the game and works tirelessly,” Auriemma said. “I’m confident she’ll rehab with the same work ethic and come back better than ever. We’ll obviously miss her presence on the court, but Azzi will continue to be a great teammate and important part of this team this season. Our program will support Azzi through her recovery however we can.”

No. 6 UConn (3-1) will face No. 2 UCLA (4-0) in its next game at 7:30 p.m. ET Friday.

Dawn Staley has been excited to see early-season upsets in women’s college basketball.

While her Gamecocks are a perfect 4-0, several of their top competitors already have been toppled. Preseason No. 1 LSU lost to Colorado to start the season, and preseason No. 2 UConn lost to NC State. And then-No. 2 Iowa was upset by Kansas State, almost one year after the Wildcats upset a top-5 Iowa team.

Meanwhile, Princeton nearly upset No. 3 UCLA, and Duke pushed then-No. 6 Stanford to overtime.

All of these are signs of growing parity in the women’s game, which Staley called “good for the sport.”

“I think women’s basketball is good,” she said after South Carolina’s 78-38 win over South Dakota State on Monday. “We could talk about parity, but we’re good. Our sport is at a really good place where anybody feels like they could beat anybody. It’s come to pass and I think that helps everybody else when you see it.”

While the Gamecocks have not yet been a victim, the upsets give them reason for better preparation, Staley said. After all, a team never knows if they could be next.

“When you see it, you prepare a little bit better,” she said. “You’ve got examples of what it could look like for you if you lose a basketball game. More so than just coaching your team up, they see it, they feel it. It is a real thing out there when you see teams get upset.”

And the upsets have come as the sport has reached new heights of popularity. With more eyes on the game than ever before, sometimes those upsets can feel monumental. But if you ask Staley, she’s seen this changing of the tides coming.

Earlier this month, Staley discussed the the rise in the sport’s popularity with Vanity Fair.

“Women’s basketball is bursting at the seams,” Staley said. “It is a long time coming.”

And that could mean a greater financial return, too. Broadcast rights for the NCAA women’s basketball tournament are set to be negotiated soon, and the deal could be worth more than $100 million.

“We need somebody to bet on us,” Staley said, “and I know that they’ll get a return on their investment.”

UConn’s Paige Bueckers grew up watching basketball in her home state of Minnesota. She has memories of Lynx and Golden Gophers games at Williams Arena — she attended those games starting when she was 10 or 12 years old.

Now, Bueckers will return to The Barn, but not as a spectator.

“It’s super surreal because I grew up going to games at The Barn and watching the Gophers and watching the Lynx play there,” Bueckers said to the Hartford Courant. “So to be playing there, where I grew up, my childhood, at my dream school wearing a UConn jersey in that arena, it’s like a surreal feeling for me.”

The Huskies are set to take on the Gophers in Minnesota at 5 p.m. ET Sunday in a homecoming game for Bueckers. Bueckers will be taking the same court her childhood idols took over a decade ago.

“I envisioned it when I was younger,” Bueckers said. “Just wanting to be the people who were playing on the court. As a young kid, that was where I wanted to be. You never knew what the future was going to hold, but it was something I aspired to do.”

UConn’s head coach Geno Auriemma goes out of his way to schedule homecoming games for his seniors, including two international matchups this season — one for Nika Mühl in Croatia during the Huskies’ preseason tour and one for Aaliyah Edwards in Toronto, which will be played in December.

Williams Arena is likely to be packed when the local star makes her return — more than 10,000 seats are expected to be filled when Bueckers takes the court at the 14,625-seat arena.

Among those 10,000 people will be Bueckers’ family, friends and other Minnesotans in the basketball community. And Bueckers credits these people with her upbringing.

“You often hear the phrase ‘Minnesota nice,’” Bueckers told CT Insider. “I think everything around here, just everybody knows everybody. Everybody’s nice to each other. Everybody’s like family once you meet them. So, I think that just is sort of why I love relationships, why I love people so much and why I love getting to know people so much and I think that has a lot to do with where I’m from.”

But for Bueckers, a homecoming game isn’t just about seeing family and friends. It’s about being who Rebekkah Brunson and Lindsey Whalen were to her for other young girls.

“I want to be an inspiration to kids,” Bueckers said. “I want people to see that injuries happen, adversity happens, but what do you do to come back from it? How hard do you attack that process? I want people to see passion when they see me play, fire and energy and that I love the game.”

UConn guard Azzi Fudd was on the sidelines for the eighth-ranked Huskies’ 80-48 win over No. 20 Maryland on Thursday. Head coach Geno Auriemma confirmed that Fudd suffered a non-contact knee injury during practice on Tuesday.

In a team release, UConn said it will provide more information “at a later date” after Fudd undergoes testing. Auriemma, meanwhile, said that Fudd has been dealing with some swelling in her knee, which could delay the testing. The program is holding out hope, he said, that “this one might be minor” after Fudd felt something was off following a shot in practice.

“Just random stuff,” Auriemma said.

The No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2021, Fudd has dealt with injuries throughout her collegiate career. As a freshman, she missed 10 games with a foot injury. Last year as a sophomore, she missed 22 games with right knee injuries.

Prior to stepping on campus, Fudd tore the ACL and MCL in her right knee.

The injury has UConn fans feeling a sense of déjà vu. Paige Bueckers, the 2021 National Player of the Year, missed all of last season with an ACL tear. The year prior, she was sidelined 19 games with a separate knee injury. Forward Ice Brady also missed her freshman year in 2022-23 with a knee injury.

As a team, UConn dealt with unprecedented injuries last season, even forcing them to postpone a conference game in January because they didn’t have seven available players.

“We’ve always handled it really, really, really well,” Auriemma said. “We’ve always been pretty resilient. For us to win 31 games last year, given what we went through, they respond, they don’t pout. They really don’t.

“So when I said, ‘Hey, we’re just going to have to figure this one out — for however long this is, whether it’s today, tomorrow, at least through Saturday, and then we’ll see what happens after that – it changes your rotation, obviously. It changes maybe the way you want to play. It certainly changes your offense.”

Bueckers noted that, while it’s impossible to replace Fudd, the team will have to find a way to make up for her absence.

“Nobody’s going to be Azzi, but we can all do stuff that contributes to filling her void and making sure that we’re accounting for her and doing all the little things,” she said.