Geno Auriemma Names UConn's Most Improved Player
The Huskies have once again extended their winning streak, and it now sits at 34 games. Their last game against Villanova ended with a 99–50 win. Sarah Strong led the way with 24 points, nine rebounds, and five blocks, while Azzi Fudd added 14. The real star of the night, however, was KK Arnold.
Arnold had one of her most complete outings of the year with 13 points, seven assists, four steals, and 83.3 percent shooting in just 22 minutes. It was one of Arnold’s best games this season, and soon after the match, Geno Auriemma made it a point to talk about it.
“I was asked by the TV people during the game who I thought was our most improved player up to this point, and I would say that probably would be KK from last season. Her court awareness, her confidence in herself, and just the way she carries herself. She is an energy giver. We talk a lot about that. Kids come in two forms: those that give you energy and those that suck the energy out. She’s an energy giver, and you can plug into her. She’s like a battery, and everybody else feeds off of it. Every team needs that. She inspires other people to be like that,” said Auriemma.
This season, Arnold has been the backbone of the Huskies. In the game against Vilanova, in 22 minutes, Arnold shot 5-of-6 from the field and knocked down a three. Through 17 games, she is averaging 24.1 minutes, 7.3 points, 4.8 assists, and 2.9 steals, while shooting 54.7 percent from the field and 32.3 percent from three.
Similar performances have come from Arnold throughout conference play. She had six steals against St. John’s and five-steal games against Seton Hall and Xavier. Looking back, the growth is evident when compared to her previous two seasons.
As a freshman in 2023–24, Arnold started 33 games, played 30.3 minutes per contest, and averaged 8.9 points, 3.2 assists, and 2.3 steals, but also committed 1.9 turnovers per game while shouldering a heavy workload.
Last season, with Paige Bueckers leading the team, Arnold’s role shifted dramatically. She had zero starts, averaging 21.2 minutes per game, and saw a reduction in production, scoring 5.5 points and 2.8 assists. However, her efficiency improved to 47.4 percent shooting, and her turnovers dropped to 1.2.
This year, Arnold has combined the minutes and responsibility of her freshman season with the control she developed last year. And it is creating what appears to be the most balanced and efficient campaign to date.
Geno Auriemma and a Night That Honored UConn’s Standard
Before Arnold played one of her best games, UConn honored two of the greatest teams the program has ever produced. The 2014–15 and 2015–16 squads that delivered national titles No. 10 and No. 11 were inducted into the Huskies of Honor.
The 2014–15 group went 38–1, losing only once, in overtime at Stanford in the season’s second game, before winning its final 37 contests. A year later, the 2015–16 Huskies went 38–0, completing a four-year dynasty led by Breanna Stewart, Moriah Jefferson, and Morgan Tuck.
Together, that senior class went 151–5 over four seasons, then became the first trio of teammates ever selected 1-2-3 in the WNBA Draft. For Auriemma, who, alongside Chris Dailey, has been part of all 12 national championships, the moment carried weight.
-fd44250df32912986cc6690f0b8bfa32.png "Shivani Menon")
Shivani Menon is a sports journalist with a background in Mass Communication and a passion for storytelling. She has written for EssentiallySports, College Sports Network, and PFSN, covering Olympic sports like track and field, gymnastics, and alpine skiing, as well as college football, basketball, March Madness, and the NBL Draft. When she's not reporting, she's either on the road chasing sunsets or getting lost in the rhythms of electronic soundscapes.