In Paige Bueckers’ absence, Christyn Williams has become UConn women’s basketball’s consistent weapon - CT Insider

In a final attempt to tie Wednesday's game against Villanova, UConn women's basketball senior Christyn Williams launched a long-shot 3-pointer from above the arc.

But the ball didn't release from her hands until after the final buzzer. The Huskies' 169-game conference winning streak had already snapped by the time the ball came back down to earth in front of the basket.

"As a senior, I have to make sure that my team is ready to go," Williams said afterward. "This game is on me. I apologized to my teammates, and it won't happen again moving forward."

Two days later, Williams stepped up and contributed 20 points, four rebounds and three steals in UConn's win over DePaul to keep its 29-year streak of not losing back-to-back games alive.

Williams has become UConn's most consistent threat this season, especially after the team's holiday and COVID-19 shutdown in early January. In her past eight games, she's scored 17 or more points seven times and has recorded 20 steals compared to seven in her first 10 games.

The senior has less than two months remaining in her collegiate career so her recent consistent streak is coming at right time before the first steps of her professional career begin with April's WNBA draft.

"They need me to be the player that I was during the (2021 NCAA) tournament and then it's just doing anything that I can do for my team. Whatever they need I'll do it, whether that's defensively or offensively," Williams said at UConn's first practice in October.

Outside of sitting out three games last month due to COVID, Williams is averaging 12.6 points per game in the 15 games UConn has played without Paige Bueckers (recovery from knee surgery). But more than that, she's upped her game on both ends of the court, including making an effort to prioritize steals.

Against Butler on Jan. 12, Williams grabbed a career-high seven steals. In Friday's game against DePaul, the senior grabbed three in the first half. At 2:30 in the second quarter, Williams intercepted a DePaul pass, ran it upcourt and passed to an open Evina Westbrook under the basket. The layup put the Huskies up 39-26.

"Coach has been on me about impacting the games in more ways than one, specifically defense and getting more steals," Williams said after UConn's game at Butler. "He challenged me to get two a game, so I took it to heart. I'm just trying to impact the game. People look at me as a scorer and that's how I look at myself but there are other things that I can do on the floor as well."

The senior did struggle against Tennessee this past Sunday, scoring just six points, all in the second half, and shooting 2 of 11. But she turned it around days later when her team needed it most.

Against Villanova, Williams scored 24 points (second to only Azzi Fudd's 29), grabbed three rebounds and two steals in 40 minutes in attempt to keep the Huskies within one possession of the Wildcats.

On Friday, with the Huskies' 1,044-game streak of not suffering consecutive losses on the line, Williams was the second-leading scorer (behind Dorka Juhász with 22 points) and had a game-high three steals against DePaul.

UConn has six games left of the regular season, starting with Marquette on Sunday (2:30 p.m. ET on FOX). Williams will need to continue being the Huskies' consistent offensive weapon in Bueckers' absence to help pair with other offensive options like Fudd's sharp shooting and Juhász's control in the paint. However, when the Huskies enter the postseason, they're going to need even more players to become as consistent as Williams.

"You need balance. You can't just go to one person. You can't say, 'All right, Azzi, bail us out. Christyn, bail us out,'" UConn coach Geno Auriemma said Wednesday. "You need other people to step up and make some plays."

maggie.vanoni@hearstmediact.com

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