UConn HC Credits KK Arnold for Defensive Masterclass
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The UConn Huskies are undefeated this season and coming off a statement win. In their last match, the Huskies took down the Fighting Irish 85–47, finally breaking the three-game skid streak in the series. Notre Dame’s offense stalled early, missing its first seven attempts, while UConn built an eight-point lead and never looked back.
In the game, the defense, as per Geno Aureimma, was the real hero, and it started with none other than KK Arnold. Arnold drew the toughest assignment against the Fighting Irish. She had to slow down Hannah Hidalgo, one of the most explosive guards in the country.
Hidalgo had averaged 31.5 points in her previous two meetings with UConn. This time, however, Hidalgo had only 16 points on 5-of-15 shooting and didn’t score at all in the first quarter. And no doubt, Arnold is one of the reasons for that drop.
As Auriemma sees it, “KK, for the most part. I told her I thought this is the best game that she’s played since she’s been at Connecticut. It’s a mentality to play really well against a really good player. Yeah, you’ve got to have some strategy and all that, but I think it’s a mentality. She’s one of the top guards in America, and you’ve got to go out there with a certain mindset. And then the whole team has to have that mindset.”
masked KK Arnold is DIFFERENT pic.twitter.com/jeWAUU8yVP
— UConn Women’s Basketball (@UConnWBB) January 19, 2026
That mentality is everything, and it seems to be working well for Arnold. Arnold finished with 12 points, five assists, two steals, and just one turnover in 26 minutes, while shooting 57.1 percent from the field. That production and control have been consistent this season.
This season, Arnold is averaging 7.3 points, 4.8 assists and shooting an efficient 54.7 percent. Despite the Huskies’ defense, Hidalgo did have a brief surge in the second quarter, scoring 10 of Notre Dame’s final 12 points before halftime to cut the deficit to nine. Auriemma had something to say about Hidalgo’s surge, too.
“They’re (Fighting Irish) in a tough spot. They lost a lot of really, really good offensive players, and they’re limited bench-wise. It’s kind of where we’ve been. So, there’s an awful lot put on Hannah’s shoulders, more so than the previous two years that she’s been there. We tried to take advantage of that and make sure she had to do a lot more than just what she normally does for them. And I think defensively, when she was on defense, she wasn’t able to cause as much havoc as she normally does,” added Auriemma.
What’s Next for the Huskies?
The road ahead gets tougher for the Huskies. Next up, UConn will face the Georgetown Hoyas women's basketball in Washington, D.C. History strongly favors UConn in this game. The Huskies are 52–2 all-time against Georgetown, riding a 40-game winning streak in the series.
Their last game ended in a 73–55 road win for the Huskies. Still, road conference games demand focus, especially with a packed stretch ahead. After Georgetown, UConn faces Seton Hall, Xavier, Tennessee, DePaul, Butler, Creighton, Marquette, Villanova, Providence and a rematch with Georgetown before closing at St. John’s.
-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.