Paige Bueckers, Geno Auriemma share heartwarming embrace after title win

Paige Bueckers waited five years for this moment and it finally came on Sunday as Connecticut claimed a national championship. In the waning seconds of a 82-59 win against South Carolina, the Huskies guard stopped to take in the emotions.

Bueckers walked over to coach Geno Auriemma, whom she hugged for several moments. All those years of hard work and the obstacles she had overcome to get here had finally come to fruition. You can view the touching moment below.

Happy tears. Paige Bueckers came to UConn to win and she did just that. A perfect ending to her illustrious college career. pic.twitter.com/Eqv8iTqxwm

— Madeline Kenney (@madkenney) April 6, 2025

Bueckers committed to UConn ahead of the 2020-21 season to a Huskies team that had not won a national championship since 2016. She took them to the Final Four as a true freshman while averaging 20.0 points and 5.8 assists per game to lead the team.

Bueckers won the AP Player of the Year award as a true freshman that season, setting expectations high for the remainder of her career. However, she played only 17 games as a sophomore as she battled injuries.

The hardships only continued to come as Bueckers suffered a torn ACL while playing a pickup game before the 2022-23 season. That forced her to miss all of that year, but she never gave up, eyeing her comeback.

Paige Bueckers returned in 2023-24 to average a career-high 21.9 points per game as UConn once again fell short in the Final Four. Instead of declaring for the WNBA Draft, however, she opted to return to school for her fifth season in search of a national championship.

Her determination to do so was evident all throughout the season, especially in the Huskies’ tournament games. UConn won all six of its March Madness contests by double digits, including defeating UCLA by 34 points in the Final Four to reach the title game.

That was an equally dominant performance as the Huskies jumped out to a 10-point lead against South Carolina by halftime. They didn’t let up to start the second half, extending it to a 20-point lead by the beginning of the fourth quarter.

Bueckers finished with 17 points, six rebounds and three assists in the victory. She can now also count herself among the many UConn greats who have led the team to a championship, including Diana Taurasi and Napheesa Collier. She’ll now look to follow in their footsteps as she prepares to join the WNBA, where she is the projected No. 1 overall pick.