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Paige Bueckers Storied Career – Search
Paige Madison Bueckers[1] (/ˈbɛkərz/ BEH-kərz; born October 20, 2001) is an American college basketball player for the UConn Huskies of the Big East Conference.
Nicknamed “Paige Buckets“, Bueckers attended Hopkins High School in Minnetonka, Minnesota and was ranked as the number one recruit in her class by ESPN, receiving national high school player of the year honors. In her first season at UConn, Bueckers became the first freshman to be named national women’s player of the year and helped her team reach the Final Four.
She missed most of her sophomore season and her entire junior season with knee injuries but led UConn to the 2022 national title game. Bueckers helped the Huskies return to the Final Four as a redshirt junior, before winning her first national championship and receiving the Wade Trophy as a senior.
She was a three-time unanimous first-team All-American in college and has the highest scoring average in UConn history (19.9). Bueckers has won three gold medals with the United States at the youth international level, including at the 2019 FIBA Under-19 World Cup, where she was named Most Valuable Player. She was a Youth Olympic gold medalist in 3×3 basketball and has played for the senior national 3×3 team. Bueckers was recognized as USA Basketball Female Athlete of the Year in 2019.
Early life and career
Bueckers was born on October 20, 2001, in Edina, Minnesota,[2][3] and grew up in neighboring St. Louis Park.[4] She started playing basketball at age five.[4][3] As a child, she also played Little League Baseball as a catcher, as well as football and soccer, but focused on basketball by first grade.[5][6][7] Bueckers became friends with National Basketball Association (NBA) player Jalen Suggs while in elementary school.[8][9]
She was coached by her father in basketball until seventh grade.[10] Bueckers drew inspiration from NBA players LeBron James and Kyrie Irving, and Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) players Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird.[5][11] She grew up supporting the Minnesota Lynx of the WNBA.[12]
In seventh grade, Bueckers played for the tenth-grade and junior varsity basketball teams at Hopkins High School in Minnetonka.[13] By that time, she was also playing year-round with North Tartan, an Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) program competing in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League, a national circuit.[14][15] Bueckers grew four inches in the year before her eighth-grade season.[16]
She joined Hopkins’ varsity team in eighth grade under head coach Brian Cosgriff, averaging 8.9 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.4 steals per game.[17][18] She led her team in three-point shooting and ranked second in assists. Hopkins finished with a 28–3 record and a runner-up finish at the Class 4A state tournament,[a] where Bueckers was named to the All-Tournament Team.[5][21]
High school career
Bueckers made her freshman season debut for Hopkins High School on November 25, 2016, recording 28 points, five steals and four assists in a 74–34 win over Osseo Senior High School.[21] That year, she assumed a more important role than in her eighth-grade season and became one of the team’s leading scorers and passers.[22] As a freshman, Bueckers averaged 20.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.5 steals and 4.1 assists per game, earning All-Metro first team honors from the Star Tribune.[23] She led Hopkins to a 31–1 record, its only loss coming against Elk River High School at the Class 4A state championship. Bueckers made the Class 4A All-Tournament Team.[24][25]
In January 2018, as a sophomore, Bueckers was sidelined with an ankle injury that had been hurting her for the first two months of the season.[26] She finished the season averaging 22.3 points, 6.8 assists and 5.9 rebounds per game.[27] Bueckers helped Hopkins to a 28–4 record but suffered her third straight loss at the Class 4A state title game, despite leading all scorers with 37 points.[28] She was named Star Tribune Metro Player of the Year, becoming the first sophomore to win the award since its creation 34 years earlier.[27] Bueckers was also recognized as Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year for athletic excellence, academic achievement and exemplary character.[29]
As a junior on February 1, 2019, Bueckers scored a career-high 43 points in a 69–66 win over Wayzata High School and surpassed 2,000 career points.[30][31] On March 16, despite having an illness that had caused her to vomit earlier in the day, she recorded 13 points, seven assists, five rebounds and five steals as her team won the Class 4A state championship, 74–45, over Stillwater Area High School.[32][33]
Hopkins finished the season with a 32–0 record.[34] Bueckers averaged 24.4 points, 5.1 assists, 4.9 rebounds and 4.6 steals per game, repeating as Star Tribune Metro Player of the Year and Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year.[35][36] She was one of three finalists for the Gatorade National Player of the Year award.[37] That year, Bueckers moved to the Minnesota Metro Stars AAU program, following her former North Tartan coach Tara Starks.[38][39] In August 2019, she was named AAU Player of the Year by Prep Girls Hoops.[40]
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Bueckers with Hopkins High School in a state playoff game in 2020
On January 29, 2020, during her senior season, Bueckers became the first female high school player to be featured on the cover of basketball magazine Slam.[37] Toward the end of the season, she suffered from a stress reaction in her right leg due to overuse.[41] Bueckers sometimes wore a walking boot as a preventative measure, was limited in practice and missed the first game of the state tournament.[42][43] She led Hopkins to the Class 4A state championship game, which was canceled on March 13 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.[44]
Bueckers was selected to play at the McDonald’s All-American Game and the Jordan Brand Classic, two prestigious high school all-star games, but both were canceled due to the pandemic.[45][46][47] She averaged 21.4 points, 9.4 assists, 5.4 steals and five rebounds per game, leading Hopkins to another undefeated season and 62 consecutive wins.[48]
Bueckers was again honored as Star Tribune Metro Player of the Year, becoming the award’s first three-time winner.[49] She was named Gatorade Female High School Athlete of the Year,[18] Gatorade National Player of the Year,[50] Naismith Prep Player of the Year,[51] Morgan Wootten National Player of the Year,[52] and Minnesota Miss Basketball.[53] Bueckers finished as Hopkins’ all-time leader in points (2,877), assists (795) and steals (574).[54]
Bueckers has been regarded as one of the best players in Minnesota girls’ high school basketball history.[12][33][55] During her senior season, Star Tribune columnist Chip Scoggins compared her influence in the state to that of Lindsay Whalen, writing, “A generation of girls—now young women—throughout the Twin Cities and greater Minnesota grew up idolizing [Whalen] as a basketball star. Bueckers is having that same impact on a new generation of girls.”[56]
Recruiting
Bueckers was a five-star recruit and ranked the number one player in the 2020 class by ESPN.[56][57] By eighth grade and age 14, she had received scholarship offers from NCAA Division I basketball programs at Minnesota, Iowa State and Illinois.[16] On April 1, 2019, Bueckers announced her commitment to University of Connecticut.
The other finalists she was considering were Notre Dame, Oregon State, Oregon, UCLA, Minnesota, South Carolina, Maryland, Texas and Duke.[58] On November 13, Bueckers signed a National Letter of Intent with UConn.[59] She became the 11th number-one recruit to sign and attend UConn since 1998.[60]
Bueckers was drawn to UConn because she felt that head coach Geno Auriemma would maximize her talents, and because of the university’s reputation and enthusiasm for women’s basketball. She also believed that she could immediately have a key role at UConn, with the expected graduation of point guard Crystal Dangerfield, and was attracted by its team-oriented play style.[58]
Freshman season
Entering her freshman season at UConn, sports publications described Bueckers as the program’s most hyped recruit since Breanna Stewart in 2012.[61][62] Unlike Stewart and other former UConn stars, she became her team’s leader from the beginning of her college career.[63] Megan Walker, UConn‘s top scorer from the previous year, had opted to forgo her senior season to enter the 2020 WNBA draft, leaving the 2020–21 team with no seniors.[64][65] Bueckers was unanimously selected as the Big East Preseason Freshman of the Year by the league’s coaches.[66]
“I think the most impressive thing about Paige is that she plays at the same pace the entire game. That usually comes a bit later for most players, but she’s got it at such a young age. She makes the game slow down for her. I’m always surprised when she shoots and it doesn’t go in.”
– UConn head coach Geno Auriemma on Bueckers after her 31-point game in a win over No. 1 South Carolina on February 8, 2021[67]
On December 12, 2020, Bueckers made her collegiate debut for UConn, recording 17 points, nine rebounds, five assists and five steals in a 79–23 win over UMass Lowell.[68]
On January 21, 2021, she made a three-pointer with 25 seconds left to help defeat rival Tennessee, 67–61, despite shooting 3-of-14 from the field for a season-low nine points.[69] Late in the game, Bueckers sprained her ankle, causing her to miss the next contest against Georgetown.[70]
On February 3, she posted a season-high 32 points and seven assists in a 94–62 victory over St. John’s of New York. It was the highest-scoring performance by a UConn freshman since Tina Charles in 2007.[71]
Two days later, she scored 30 points in an 87–58 win over Marquette.[72] In her next game, Bueckers recorded 31 points, six steals and five assists, scoring her team’s final 13 points, in a 63–59 overtime win over South Carolina, the number one team in the AP Poll. She became the first player in program history to have three straight 30-point games.[73] On February 27, Bueckers posted 20 points, a program-record 14 assists and seven rebounds in a 97–68 victory over Butler.[74]
After leading UConn to the Big East regular-season title, she was named Big East Player of the Year and unanimous Big East Freshman of the Year, joining Maya Moore as the only players to win both awards in the same season. She was also a unanimous first-team All-Big East and Big East All-Freshman Team selection.[75] On March 8, Bueckers recorded 23 points, six rebounds and four assists in a 73–39 win over Marquette at the Big East tournament title game. She was named most outstanding player (MOP) of the tournament.[76]
On March 21, Bueckers recorded 24 points, nine rebounds, six assists, and four steals in a 102–59 win over 16th-seeded High Point in the first round of the 2021 NCAA tournament. Her 24 points were the most by a UConn player in their tournament debut.[77] Bueckers scored a game-high 28 points in a 69–67 win over second-seeded Baylor in the Elite Eight to help UConn reach its 13th straight Final Four.[78] She was recognized as MOP of the River Walk Regional.[79]
At the Final Four, UConn was upset by third-seeded Arizona, 69–59, and finished the season with a 28–2 record.[80] Bueckers was named to the Final Four All-Tournament Team.[81] She won all the national player of the year awards she was eligible for—AP Player of the Year, Naismith College Player of the Year, USBWA Women’s National Player of the Year and the John R. Wooden Award—becoming the first freshman to receive any of the awards.[82] Bueckers was a unanimous first-team All-American: she earned first-team All-American honors from the AP and the USBWA,[83][84] and made the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Coaches’ All-America Team.[85][86]
She was the first freshman to win the Nancy Lieberman Award as the top point guard in the nation.[87] Bueckers shared two major NCAA Division I freshman of the year awards with Caitlin Clark of Iowa—the Tamika Catchings Award, presented by the USBWA,[88] and the WBCA Freshman of the Year award.[89]
As a freshman, she averaged 20 points, 5.8 assists, 4.9 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game, shooting 46.4 percent from three-point range.[90] Bueckers recorded 168 assists, the most by a freshman in program history, despite a shortened season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[91]
In July 2021, she won the Best Female College Athlete ESPY Award.[92] Analysts have considered Bueckers’ freshman season to be among the best in UConn and NCAA history.[65][91][93][94] Bueckers was named to the university’s dean’s list her freshman year, which required a GPA of at least 3.72, and was involved in social justice causes.[95][96]
Sophomore season
Bueckers in her sophomore season debut against Arkansas in 2021
On April 30, 2021, Bueckers underwent surgery on her right ankle to repair an osteochondral defect, joint damage involving the bone and cartilage.[97] She could not practice for most of the offseason while recovering from surgery,[98] but was cleared to return by October.[99] Bueckers entered her sophomore season as a unanimous selection for both Big East Preseason Player of the Year and the AP preseason All-America team.[100][101] Among the newcomers to UConn was Azzi Fudd, the number one recruit in the 2021 class and Bueckers’ close friend.[102]
Bueckers made her season debut on November 14, 2021, recording a season-high 34 points, six rebounds and four assists in a 95–80 win against Arkansas.[103] She matched the program record for points in a season opener set by Kerry Bascom in 1989.[104][105]
On December 5, Bueckers injured her left knee while dribbling the ball up the court with 40 seconds remaining in a 73–54 victory over Notre Dame, and had to be carried off the floor by teammates. An MRI and CT scans revealed that she suffered a tibial plateau fracture with an estimated recovery period of six to eight weeks.[106]
On December 13, Bueckers underwent surgery to repair the fracture and a previously undisclosed lateral meniscus tear. She was expected to be sidelined for eight more weeks.[107] During Bueckers’ absence, UConn had a 15–4 record and briefly fell out of the top 10 in the AP Poll for the first time since 2005.[108]
The team’s winning streaks of 240 games against unranked teams and 169 games against conference opponents ended in losses to Georgia Tech and Villanova, respectively.[109][110] Bueckers with UConn at the 2022 NCAA Final Four
Bueckers was cleared to return against St. John’s on February 25, 2022. She came off the bench for the first time in her career and scored eight points, playing only 13 minutes due to a minutes restriction, in a 93–38 victory.[111]
Bueckers continued to receive limited playing time until the NCAA tournament,[112] and UConn won the Big East tournament despite her scoring only two points in the championship game against Villanova.[113] Her offensive production also declined from before her injury.[114]
On March 28, at the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament, Bueckers led her team to a 91–87 double-overtime win over top-seeded NC State, as UConn reached its 14th consecutive Final Four. She scored a game-high 27 points on 10-15 from the field, including 15 points in the two overtime periods (4-5 from the field and 6-6 from the free-throw line), and was named MOP of the Bridgeport Regional.[115]
In the Final Four, Bueckers recorded 14 points, five assists and four rebounds in a 63–58 victory against top-seeded Stanford, the defending champions.[116][117] In a 64–49 loss to top-seeded South Carolina at the national championship game,[118] Bueckers was the only UConn player to score in double digits as she posted 14 points and six rebounds, and was named to the Final Four All-Tournament Team.[119]
Bueckers was an AP All-American Honorable Mention selection.[120] As a sophomore, she averaged 14.6 points, four rebounds and 3.9 assists per game.[121] In addition to her athletic honors, Bueckers was again named to the university’s dean’s list for her first semester as a sophomore.[1]
Redshirt year
On August 3, 2022, UConn announced that Bueckers had torn the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her left knee during a pick-up game on August 1 and would miss the entire 2022–23 season.[122] She received an additional year of college eligibility after redshirting the season.[123]
On September 1, Bueckers announced she would return to UConn for the 2023–24 season instead of declaring for the 2023 WNBA draft, for which she was eligible.[124] In her absence, the team finished the 2022–23 season with a 31–6 record, winning Big East regular season and tournament titles. UConn lost to Ohio State in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournaments, marking the first time they did not reach the Final Four since 2008.[125]
Junior season
Bueckers in 2023
On August 9, 2023, Bueckers announced that she was fully cleared to return to the court; two months earlier, she had been cleared for all activities except for five-on-five play.[126] Entering her redshirt junior season, she was named an AP preseason All-American and Big East Preseason Player of the Year.[127][128] On November 8, Bueckers made her season debut, recording eight points, seven rebounds and four assists in 21 minutes in a 102–58 win over Dayton.[129]
On November 16, she scored 31 points in a 78–67 loss to AP No. 2 UCLA at the Cayman Islands Classic.[130] Bueckers tied Maya Moore as the fastest player in UConn history to reach 1,000 career points (55 games) on December 10, scoring 26 points in a 76–64 victory against AP No. 24 North Carolina.[131] On January 17, 2024, she posted a season-high 32 points and seven rebounds in an 83–59 win over Seton Hall.[132] At the end of the regular season, Bueckers was named Big East Player of the Year and was a unanimous first-team all-conference selection.[133]
She helped UConn win the Big East tournament, where she was named MOP after recording 27 points and five blocks in a 78–42 win over Georgetown in the final.[134] In the second round of the 2024 NCAA tournament, Bueckers tied her season-high of 32 points, while recording 10 rebounds, six assists and four steals, in a 72–64 win over Syracuse.[135] In the Elite Eight, she posted 28 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in an 80–73 victory over one-seed USC, earning Portland 3 Regional MOP honors.[136] She scored 17 points in a 71–69 loss to one-seed Iowa in the Final Four.[137]
For a second time, Bueckers was a unanimous first-team All-American, being selected to the WBCA Coaches’ All-American team and earning first-team All-American recognition from the AP and the USBWA.[138] On February 16, 2024, she announced that she would return to UConn for the 2024–25 season, despite being projected as a top-three pick in the 2024 WNBA draft.[139]
Senior season
Bueckers in 2025
Bueckers entered her senior season as an AP preseason All-American and the Big East Preseason Player of the Year.[140][141] On November 7, 2024, she opened her season with 13 points, seven assists, and five steals in an 86–32 win over Boston University.[142] Eight days later, Bueckers scored 29 points, including 16 in the first quarter, in a 69–58 win over AP No. 14 North Carolina.[143]
On November 27, she scored 29 points again, leading UConn to a 73–60 victory over AP No. 18 Ole Miss at the Baha Mar Championship final.[144] Bueckers suffered a left knee sprain after colliding with an opposing player against Villanova on January 5, 2025 and missed her team’s next two games.[145] As part of an 18-point effort against Seton Hall on January 19, she became the fastest player in program history to reach 2,000 career points after 102 career games.[146]
On February 16, Bueckers recorded 12 points and 10 assists for her first double-double of the season, helping UConn upset AP No. 4 South Carolina, 87–58.[147] During her final game of the regular season, she was inducted into the Huskies of Honor, a program that honors All-American players at UConn.[148] Bueckers received the Big East Player of the Year award for the third time in her career, and was unanimously named first-team All-Big East.[149] In the 2025 Big East tournament final, she recorded 24 points and eight rebounds in a 70–50 victory over Creighton. She became the first player to win Big East tournament MOP three times.[150]
In the second round of the 2025 NCAA tournament, Bueckers scored 34 points in a 91–57 win over South Dakota State.[151] In the Sweet 16, she scored a career-high 40 points, including 29 in the second half, in an 82–59 victory over Oklahoma. She became the fourth UConn player to record at least 40 points in a game and the first to do so in the NCAA tournament.[152]
In the Elite Eight, Bueckers posted 31 points and six assists, leading her team to a 78–64 win against top-seeded USC and being named MOP of the Spokane 4 Regional. She tied her own program record with three consecutive 30-point games, while scoring a total of 105 points, the most by a UConn player over a three-game span.[153]
Bueckers won her first national championship, scoring 17 points in an 82–59 win over top-seeded South Carolina in the title game. She surpassed Maya Moore for the most career points by a UConn player in the NCAA tournament and moved to third among all players.[154]
Bueckers was a unanimous first-team All-American for the third time in her career, received the Wade Trophy as the top NCAA Division I player, and won her second Nancy Lieberman Award as the top Division I point guard.[155][156] She finished her career with the highest scoring average (19.9) and the third-most points (2,439) in program history.[157]
On March 28, 2025, Bueckers announced that she would enter the 2025 WNBA draft, forgoing her final year of college eligibility. She is projected to be the first overall pick in the draft by many publications.[158]
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Paige’s dreadful ACL injury
Bueckers tore her ACL while playing a pick-up game on August 2, 2022. According to the UConn Blog, she was racing at full speed when she attempted to come to a complete stop, but her left leg gave out unexpectedly, and she heard a crack. She could see right away that it was a major injury. Bueckers had an MRI that same night since the initial tests did not indicate the full degree of her injuries. Doctors verified that Bueckers had ruptured her ACL in her left knee, causing her to miss the whole season.
However, she has recovered and is ready to resume her basketball career. Despite not taking part in the UConn European tour at the time, the 5-foot-11 point guard claimed on social media that she was permitted to participate in August.
When questioned about her rehabilitation, she stated, “I’m in a really good place physically and mentally. Still sort of getting the rust off. I haven’t played in over a year, so it’s going to take some time to adjust and get my rhythm and flow back. But super excited for practice to start, for games to be in the distance in which we can see, and just super excited to be on the court.”
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Her comeback has only made the upcoming season dynamic and has challenged the dominance of the duo known for “You can’t see me” antics.