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UConn Confirms Paige Bueckers Will Return vs St. John's After Knee Injury

UConn Huskies star Paige Bueckers is confirmed to be back from her knee injury.
Grant Young|
Dec 17, 2024; Uncasville, Connecticut, USA; UConn Huskies guard Paige Bueckers (5) returns up court against the Iowa State Cyclones in the first half at Mohegan Sun Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images
Dec 17, 2024; Uncasville, Connecticut, USA; UConn Huskies guard Paige Bueckers (5) returns up court against the Iowa State Cyclones in the first half at Mohegan Sun Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images | David Butler II-Imagn Images

During the UConn Huskies women's basketball team's January 5 game against Villanova, star guard Paige Bueckers went down in the third quarter after a Villanova player collided with her left knee while chasing after a loose ball.

Bueckers was clearly in pain and laid on the ground for about a minute clutching her knee (the same knee she needed reconstructive ACL surgery on in August 2022) before limping off of the court and out of the game. She didn't return to the contest and was seen wiping tears out of her eyes on UConn's sidelines.

Despite fans' worst fears, Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma revealed on January 7 that Bueckers suffered a minor knee sprain, and would only need to miss a couple of games as a result.

Bueckers hasn't played since. However, there has been speculation swirling among fans that UConn's January 15 game against St. John's University might be when Bueckers makes her return.

This is why fans were thrilled to see the UConn Huskies women's basketball X account make a post that featured a photo of Bueckers smiling with the caption, "tell a friend to tell a friend…"

CT Insider reporter Maggie Vanoni replied to this post by writing, "UConn confirms Paige Bueckers is back tonight after missing the last two games with a left knee sprain." She then noted in an article that this news was confirmed by a spokesperson for the team.

Looks like Bueckers is fully healthy once again and can get back to leading her Huskies squad in their quest for a 2025 NCAAW National Championship.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.

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