UConn star Azzi Fudd expected to miss 3-6 weeks with right knee injury

UConn star Azzi Fudd will miss three to six weeks due to a right knee injury she suffered during a loss to Notre Dame on Sunday, the team announced.

Fudd entered the game averaging 24 points against the team’s tough schedule. The sophomore guard appeared to injure her knee during the last minute of the first quarter when she collided with teammate Aaliyah Edwards.

She was examined by trainers during the next timeout and returned to the bench in the second quarter. She played for a few minutes before UConn head coach Geno Auriemma took her out for the remainder of the game. She finished the night scoreless on two shots in 13 minutes as the team took its first loss of the season.

Fudd underwent an evaluation and MRI on Monday, according to the team’s release. Her exact injury was not disclosed.

UConn’s struggle with injuries

For now, UConn has only eight healthy players. The Huskies began the 2022-23 season with Fudd as the only healthy returning double-digit scorer.

Former National Player of the Year Paige Bueckers is out for the season with a torn ACL in her left knee. Fudd, who also was a player of the year contender, played a large role in UConn’s rise to a No. 3 AP poll ranking in Bueckers' absence.

Freshman forward Ice Brady, the fifth-ranked recruit in her class, is also out for the season after she sustained a dislocated patella in her right knee during practice in October.

Senior forward Dorka Juhasz broke her thumb in November and was initially expected to be out a minimum of five games, but does not have a clear return.

The Huskies (6-1) are now ranked No. 6 and face Princeton, Maryland and Florida State before the bulk of their conference schedule.

As long as Fudd's recovery timeline remains at three to six weeks, she should be back in time for the team's two remaining nonconference games: Jan. 26 at Tennessee and Feb. 5 against No. 1 South Carolina in Connecticut.