Can Paige Bueckers and UConn finally win a national championship?
Yahoo Sports' Caroline Fenton discusses whether or not UConn and Paige Bueckers can capitalize on their momentum heading into the Final Four and win their first national championship in nine years.

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Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Dallas Wings Turn Heads with Paige Bueckers Announcement on Friday
Dallas Wings Turn Heads with Paige Bueckers Announcement on Friday originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Paige Bueckers entered the WNBA as one of the most anticipated rookies in league history. The Dallas Wings guard played four seasons with the UConn Huskies, having led the women's basketball program to the national title last season. Advertisement After taking over at the collegiate level, Bueckers made the transition to the WNBA. She has acclimated to the WNBA scene quite well, but Bueckers has missed the past two games, having been placed on the league's concussion protocol. Amid her injury absence from the team, the Dallas Wings announced that Bueckers has been named to Adweek magazine's 2025 Most Powerful Women in Sports list. "Ad Week P Congrats to @paigebueckers1 for being named to @Adweek's 2025 Most Powerful Women in Sports List!" posted the official social media account of the Dallas Wings. Upon the release of the announcement, some fans took to social media, sharing their thoughts on the Paige Bueckers news. Advertisement "MY GOAT!!" said one fan. "Congrats to @paigebueckers1—well deserved! @GavinBrookswin's insights on brand growth helped me see why moves like this are so impactful. Big things ahead!" said another fan. "Okay Dallas now give her the keys," mentioned one fan. "My goat," commented one fan. "Now let's just hand her the keys to the team @CurtMillerWBB," said one fan. "Proud of her," said another fan. Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers (5). Jerome Miron-Imagn Images During her rookie season with the Dallas Wings, Paige Bueckers has posted 14.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 6.7 assists per game. Bueckers has also made an impact on the defensive end, averaging 1.0 block and two steals per game. Advertisement Related: WNBA Team Releases Rookie on Wednesday After Scoring 0 Points Related: Chicago Sky React to Angel Reese Announcement Before Indiana Fever Game This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 6, 2025, where it first appeared.

Indianapolis Star
5 hours ago
- Indianapolis Star
Newcomers out, or limited, for first Purdue basketball practice: 3 things we learned
WEST LAFAYETTE — Purdue basketball big man Trey Kaufman-Renn looks up and down the roster and struggles to find a weakness for a preseason national championship favorite. He's eager to finally experience that much-anticipated squad in its complete form. Summer practice began Monday without two of the Boilermakers' biggest offseason additions. South Dakota State transfer center Oscar Cluff is waiting on his renewed visa to arrive so he can board a plane from Australia. He is expected in West Lafayette soon. Incoming freshman guard Omer Mayer remains overseas, as he will play with Team Israel at the FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Switzerland later this month. As a result, his own visa process is less time-urgent. Another incoming transfer, former North Florida forward Liam Murphy, participated in a limited capacity. Purdue coach Matt Painter said Murphy is not expected to be fully cleared from shoulder surgery until the fall. "It's going to take time to get people in different systems, especially the way that we play," Kaufman-Renn said. "We play a little bit differently than a lot of other teams, so it'll take time for it to be perfect. But from what I've heard, what I've seen as far as their film. I think they'll fit right in." Here are three things we learned from Monday's practice on Cardinal Court: Second-year center Daniel Jacobsen will soon depart for the Team USA training camp to compete for a spot in the same FIBA Under-19 World Cup where Mayer will play. Monday, though provided the first public look at Jacobsen participating in full-contact action since the broken tibia which ended his freshman season after two games. Our book on Purdue basketball's Final Four run is the perfect Father's Day gift It was a different look, too, as Jacobsen has added over 30 pounds, weighing in around 253. Beefing up his 7-foot-4 frame had always been part of his freshman plan. Sitting out most of the season accidentally helped that process. "I feel a lot better, a lot bigger," said Jacobsen, who crashed to the floor a few times and bounced right back up. "I feel like I'm not getting moved around as much." Raleigh Burgess remains out after offseason leg surgery and may not participate this summer. The decision not to use a redshirt season with him last season drew the most attention because it came down to the start of the season. Last season's other redshirt decision will lead to a bigger role for Jack Benter. The Brownstown Central grad was somewhat out of sight, out of mind last season while sitting out. Now he'll fight to earn guard rotation minutes and can also play the 4 in smaller lineups. "He's got good length, good size," Painter said. "He can stretch the defense. He knows how to play." Painter called Monday's practice a "glorified pickup game." Yet it's an important first step for freshman guard Antione West Jr., the player with the steepest learning curve. That freshman initiation can be a tough process for those coming in with a big class. Coming in with a small one amplifies the corrective focus of the coaching staff. West was merely getting his feet wet Monday. The NCAA allows up to eight weeks of required summer activities. Of the eight allowed hours per week, no more than four can be spent on skill instruction such as drills and film sessions. The rest of the time can go toward weightlifting and conditioning.
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
U.S. Open preview - Golf's toughest test awaits at Oakmont
Yahoo Sports senior writer Jay Busbee previews this week's major outside Pittsburgh - which will host the event for a tenth time on a track known as one of America's most difficult golf courses. View more Video Transcript Hide your scorecards, my friends, because the US Open is back and the toughest tournament in golf this year is being played at one of the toughest courses in the country. Advertisement That would be Oakmont, the old classic. It's been around since 1904. It's hosted now 10 US Opens, more than any other course in the United States, and it's going to be an incredible challenge for today's golfers for a number of reasons, starting with the rough, as much as 5 inches deep in some places, the famous. Church Pew and piano keys, bunkers, cinematic and also devastating to your score if you happen to end up in them. And then the greens, which are so slick, that Sam Snead once said he put a dime down to mark his ball and it slid off the edge of the green. Now who can handle this kind of course? Advertisement Well, Scotty Scheffer, of course, he's already got 3 majors. He might well win 2 more before the year is out. He's not quite at Scotty versus the field level, but he's very, very close, right behind. Hi. You've got Rory McIlroy, understandably a bit out of form since his emotional win at Augusta back in April. He missed the cut last week at the RBC Canadian. That's a bit of a concern for him and for anybody else who's looking to watch him win his second major. A little further down, you've got John Rohm playing very well on Liv. That's kind of damning with faint praise because while he's been able to hold leads, he hasn't been able to keep leads over the course of the last Few months, most notably last last month at Quail Hollow in the PGA Championship when he let it get away from him late. Advertisement Then of course there's Bryson DeShambo, Rohm's mate over at Liv Golf, playing very well in most phases of the game, always in competition in majors lately, but his iron play is a bit suspect, and you're going to need to be accurate off the tee if you're going to win at Oakmont. He should be in the mix, but will he be holding up the trophy at the end of it? To be determined. Now, in terms of a sleeper, a guy you might want to look at is someone who's had some strong iron play, that would be Terrell Hatton. He's never won a major, but he has made the cut in 13 of the last 14 majors that he's played, and he's extremely accurate with his irons. Advertisement Plus, the side benefit of that is that he would be the first golfer whose celebration speech at the end would be an FCC violation. We will be live all week from Oakmont. Join us at Yahoo Sports. I am Jay Busby. We will see you from the US Open.