“They could both play awful”: Geno Auriemma reviews JuJu Watkins vs Paige Bueckers narrative ahead of UConn vs USC clash
UConn coach Geno Auriemma shared an interesting perspective on his squad's upcoming game against USC. Auriemma addressed the popular narrative of the game being about Paige Bueckers versus JuJu Watkins and flipped it on its head, saying that both players could play terribly on the night.
He made the point that in their meeting last year, JuJu Watkins played really well, but UConn got more production from more players, which helped them secure the win.
"The narrative is, you know, Paige versus JuJu. But is it really? I mean, 'cause again, like I said, they could both play awful and one team wins and one team or the other team wins in spite of that," Auriemma said. (Timestamp: 9:23)
"They could both play phenomenal, and they get more production from somebody else, we get more production from somebody else, you know," he continued. "I thought JuJu played great for them last year (in their Elite Eight matchup). I just thought we had more production from more people (on the night)."
Geno Auriemma said Bueckers and Watkins' performances may not determine Saturday’s outcome, and the team that receives stronger contributions from the rest of its roster is likely to come out on top.
You can watch his full interview with the media ahead of Saturday's showdown below.
Geno Auriemma hopes both Paige Bueckers and JuJu Watkins control the game on Saturday
Believing it would be a fun watch, Geno Auriemma told reporters in the same interview that he hopes both Bueckers and Watkins have control of the game at some point on Saturday.
"I don't think we can rely on 'Hey Paige, you guard JuJu, and you shut her down, and you outscore her by a lot.' I don't know that that's realistic," he said. (Timestamp: 10:08)
"So, I just think the narrative, and it's sexy, and it's fun, and it's great to argue about, but at the end... just put it this way; with five minutes to go I hope both of them have control of the game, then we'll see what happens. I hope both of them take turns controlling the game. That would be fun to watch."
The game will be on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET.