Geno Auriemma's UConn Huskies look for consistency ahead of games against Louisville, Notre Dame, USC

UConn may be undefeated and the No. 2 team in the nation, but this season's edition of the storied program is still trying to find consistency. And with four games against ranked opponents in December, starting with a matchup Saturday night against No. 22 Louisville at Brooklyn's Barclays Center, there's no better time for the Huskies to get it figured out.

"In all the games that we've played so far this year, we've looked really, really good regardless of who the opponent is, and we've looked not so good regardless of who the opponent is," said coach Geno Auriemma.

That inconsistency, he said, is because the team is still "immature" and has not learned to "sustain something for four quarters." The main question for the Huskies ahead of the season was who would support Paige Bueckers, and although the team still has room for improvement, some answers are already apparent.

Azzi Fudd getting her rhythm back

Fudd has already made it back into the starting lineup, so now the Huskies just need her to stay healthy. She looked like her "vintage" self in the Baha Mar Women's Championship against Ole Miss with 18 points going 8 of 11 from the field. Fudd admitted her shot had not been falling in the games before that one, but she just stayed the course and made sure to not force anything.

Her return definitely makes UConn stronger and deeper, but as Auriemma pointed out, it will take time for Fudd to fully get back into playing shape. After the trip to the Bahamas, Auriemma said the team had a hard practice and he made Fudd sit the last 20 minutes to give her some extra rest.

Against Holy Cross, Fudd had a more quiet game with seven points in 19 minutes. Her playing time was being monitored because Auriemma said she was dealing with stomach issues and had been a game-time decision. 

Sarah Strong is next most important player

Strong arrived at UConn as the No. 1 player in the class of 2024 and she proved herself right away with her size and versatility. The freshman is UConn's second leading scorer, behind Bueckers, with 15.6 points per game. She also leads the team with 7.6 rebounds per contest, and a total of 19 steals and 11 blocks. 

Ice Brady described her teammate as "very consistent" and "very humble, but aggressive at the same time." As for Auriemma, he likes her outlook on the game and her confidence.

"She seems to know what we need at what moment. You can see it," he said. "When she gets comfortable, she thinks any shot she takes is going in. Very rare, very rare. I'm a big Sarah Strong fan."

Frontcourt has not reached its full potential

The main frontcourt players for UConn are Strong, Brady and Jana El Alfy. It's not a very experienced group because Strong is a true freshman, El Alfy is a redshirt freshman and Brady is a redshirt sophomore. We already established that Strong is a weapon for the Huskies in more than one area. Meanwhile, El Alfy comes off the bench, but she had a promising performance against Boston University with 17 points and 11 rebounds. 

As for Brady, Auriemma clearly sees her value on the starting lineup because she does some great things defensively and is a solid distributor. However, the coach wants her to find consistency when it comes to scoring. She is averaging 6.4 points per game with her season-high being 10 points against FDU. This seems to be more mental than anything else.

"Ice's confidence depends on the last play sometimes, and that's not good," Auriemma said. "The thing that we're trying to help her with is to understand that the last play is the last play ... You are not sky high after making a great play, and you are not down in the dumps after making a bad play.

"That's why her offense is up and down, and inconsistent. But defensively I think she has figured some things out, so that has been a real positive," he said. "She has to learn to shake off things that don't go her way. She's still way too much affected by that."

Huskies have a strong second unit

UConn hasn't fully shaken off the injury bug because the team is still waiting for the return of Aubrey Griffin (torn ACL) and Caroline Ducharme (head). However, the Huskies do have with more bodies than they did last season.

Two players who recently stood out to Auriemma were Morgan Cheli and KK Arnold. Despite describing the game against Holy Cross as "lackluster," he said Cheli made a lot of good plays and "made a lot of things happen out there."

Meanwhile, Auriemma has been impressed with where Arnold has been physically and mentally this season. He said her assists to turnover ratio is "fantastic" and she "has done a great job of making the right play." One thing Arnold is still working on is becoming more disruptive and creating more opportunities on the defensive end. 

Then there is Ashlynn Shade, who was a starter last season and the beginning of this one, but is coming off the bench because of Fudd's return.

"We are going to go to that second unit as much as we can because I think we've got a second unit that is, technically, they're starters," Auriemma said. "Because when Aubrey comes back, Aubrey used to be a starter. KK, Ash (Shade), you got guys that are going to be way different than what other people's second units are going to be, so yeah that's a great luxury to have."

Upcoming UConn games vs. ranked opponents:

• Saturday, Dec. 7 vs. No. 22 Louisville at Brooklyn, New York
  
• Thursday, Dec. 12 at No. 10 Notre Dame
  
• Tuesday, Dec. 17 vs. No. 20 Iowa State
  
• Saturday, Dec. 21 vs. No. 6 USC