Sarah Strong hasn’t shown a lot of emotion on the court. Poise, composure, acting like she’s been there are hallmarks of the makeup that has made her the national player of the year in college women’s basketball as a sophomore.
The question of how good she will get by the time she’s finished with UConn women’s basketball has taken on a new dimension. Not only will she have a chip on her shoulder lingering from the NCAA Final Four loss to South Carolina, but she expects to lose the nagging soreness in her Achilles that actually hampered her all last season.
Advertisement
“She didn’t practice much in March,” coach Geno Auriemma said. “So we’re trying to go slowly, no rush right now, just trying to get her to be 100 percent come October. Being a vocal, demonstrative leader doesn’t come natural to her. She’s more laid back, quiet. But I sense she’s more intentional with what she says, who she says it to. I do think she understands, there is being unselfish and then there’s winning.”
Strong averaged 18.8 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.8 assists and shot 58.2 percent from the floor last season, and with so many blowout games among the Huskies’ first 38, she did that in limited minutes. She also did it with an Achilles that began to act up long before the season started, while she was playing in the FIBA 3-on-3 World Cup.
As Blanca Quinonez gets healthy, she’s anticipates a better Year 2 with UConn women
“It started last summer when I was in Mongolia, it really started to kind of affect me,” Strong said. “I’m not going to say I didn’t affect me at all, I felt it when I was walking to class, just sleeping, it would be there. I felt it.”
Advertisement
South Carolina, with a smaller player, Raven Johnson guarding her, found a way to disrupt Strong’s quest for a second national title. Though she had 12 points and 12 rebounds in the game, she wasn’t herself and the Huskies scored only 48 points. After a missed shot at the end of the third quarter, a frustrated Strong ripped her jersey, later explaining it was an “accident,” but the point was, and is, the best player in the country could play an angrier brand of basketball next season.
“You can have an unbelievable individual season, but what sticks most with her is that we lost,” Auriemma said. “… That game left a lasting impression on her.”
Strong said she watched film of the game on the plane ride home, and isn’t sure how many times she has watched it since. Trying to play the most important games of the season, against the best competion UConn would be facing, without practice time could not have given a fair representation with the nation watching. Though it was impressive as it was, it’s easy to understand her frustration boiling over in that game.
“A tough loss is going to fuel us,” Strong said, “but you want to be better than you were last year. The way last year ended, we don’t want to get back to that. … Whichever teams want to play defense, I’m going to see everytihng. I would say I have a lot to learn from that game. Not a great memory; take it and learn from it.”
Advertisement
As Strong spoke with state reporters this week on campus, her answers were even more clipped than usual, almost terse. Not being on the court with her teammates beginning workouts doesn’t seem to be sitting all that well with her, either, though she knows it is for the best. She is focusing on lifting, stretching, with pilates, nutrition. For a sore Achilles to get better, it takes a respite from the pounding on the court.
“I feel like my body needs it,” she said. “I’m just trying to get healthier for next season. … I do also worry about it because I do want to be there for my team. I feel like we’re building chemistry now and I want to be a part of that, so I’m just trying to get back soon and start doing that.”
Seniors KK Arnold and Ashlynn Shade, along with Strong, form a leadership core now that Azzi Fudd, Paige Bueckers and their classmates are gone from the program. The national focus will be trained ever sharper on Sarah Strong next season, and one can only imagine, as good as she has been, how good can she be if she is completely healthy — and, maybe, edgier than ever.
“Her ceiling is limitless,” Shade said.
Advertisement
More for your Sunday Read:
Honoring trailblazers in women’s sports
Stamford’s Donna Lopiano was among the trailblazers of women’s sports honored at a banquet staged by Southern Connecticut State University in Prospect this week. She was joined by Donna de Varona, Elana Meyers Taylor and SCSU alum Dawn Stanton, former track star and the mother of Olympic gold medalist Alexis Holmes as Andrea Joyce emceed.
Olympic gold medalist shares words of hope, perseverance with grads at American School for the Deaf
Lopiano, a legendary softball player who was instrumental in the establishment of Title IX and the opportunities as CEO of the Women’s Sports Foundation it has created for women in sports, was presented by her former Texas colleague Jody Conradt. Last month, Lopiano was among the Stamford sports figures honored with the naming of a field in her honor. However, she noted, she could not actually play on the field at Stamford High because as a teenager she was already starring with the famous Brakettes, so at her suggestion the field will be called “Donna Lopiano Title IX Field.” In the late 1950s, Lopiano, 78, was told by the local Little League, “no girls allowed,” the words that inspired all she has gone on to accomplish.
Advertisement
“The lesson is, no child should be told they’re not allowed to pursue their dreams,” Lopiano, also a Southern alum, said in her speech. “It’s our responsibility that, whether it’s a boy or girl, that everybody has their chance.”
SCSU plans to make this an annual event.
Sunday short takes
*Austin Peterson could be the next UConn alum in the major leagues. On Tuesday he threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings, striking out 12 for Columbus, the Guardians’ Triple A affiliate.
*UConn women’s hockey had three players drafted by the PWHL: Goalie Tia Chan (28th overall, by San Jose), Kyla Josifovic (39th, Detroit) and Megan Woodworth (42nd, Hamilton). Yale had four players, Quinnipiac two among 59 players taken.
Advertisement
*Marina Perry of Rocky Hill, a track standout at CCSU, was named an Northeast Conference Scholar Athlete of the Year. Perry, a shot-putter, helped Central capture four league championships in her career.
*Is there anything dumber out there than folks debating the legitimacy of a championship? Happens all the time these days. The Knicks are the NBA Champions in 2026 — no qualifications, no explainations necessary.
Dom Amore’s Sunday Read: CT golfer on verge of his milestone round; support for Tony Reno, and more
Last word
As anticipated after last week’s “Read,” I heard from another local golfer who has played every public course in Connecticut. Gary Berman, 78, of Simsbury, member of the Connecticut Amateur Golf League and the Tour of Greater Boston, wrote to say he has played them all and, in fact, every public course within 100 miles of his home, and counts 768 different courses played since he retired 23 years ago. So a tip of the visor to Mr. B.
Dom Amore: To Japan and back, this former UConn star has helped spur dramatic MLB turnaround
