Azzi Fudd injury history: UConn guard suffered several setbacks on road to Final Four
Azzi Fudd injury history: UConn guard suffered several setbacks on road to Final Four
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Which celebrities would make players nervous sitting courtside?
The women's Final Four will surely be well-attended by top celebrities so we asked players who would make them nervous if they were sitting courtside.
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The UConn women's basketball team will make the trip to Tampa this week for the Final Four of the 2025 NCAA Tournament in a familiar position.
The Huskies have been the sport's dominant program for the past 30 years, with 11 national championships and 23 Final Fours since 1995. Despite being the lone non-No. 1 seed in this year's Final Four, they're the favorite to leave Amalie Arena with a title heading into Friday night's semifinal matchup with No. 1 overall seed UCLA.
Coach Geno Auriemma's team has gotten to the biggest stage in its sport behind a deep and talented roster, one that features, among others, three-time first-team All-American Paige Bueckers and national freshman of the year Sarah Strong.
REQUIRED READING: Why UCLA coach Cori Close got emotional talking about star Lauren Betts, UConn's Azzi Fudd
Then there's Azzi Fudd.
The No. 1 recruit nationally in the 2021 class has taken a longer road to get to the Final Four than many. While she's excelling now for the Huskies, ranking third on the team in scoring, she has endured several setbacks over the course of her career, particularly when it comes to major injuries.
As UConn looks to add to the program's already robust trophy case, here's a closer look at Fudd and her injury history:
Azzi Fudd injury history
Fudd's injury woes began years before she first stepped on a college court.
As a high-schooler, Fudd was one of the most heralded prospects in recent memory. She was one of the first girls to attend Steph Curry's SC30 Select Camp and once there, she was awarded a trophy by Curry himself for being the best shooter there. She became the first sophomore ever to win Gatorade National Player of the Year, with two-time WNBA MVP Elena Delle Donne handing her the trophy for the honor. ESPN described her as 'the best high school talent the game has seen in decades.'
That rapid ascent, however, soon encountered an obstacle. While competing at the USA Basketball 3-on-3 U18 nationals in April 2019, Fudd's knee buckled when she came down from a contested layup attempt. An MRI confirmed the worst fears — she had torn her ACL and MCL.
After surgery and months of intensive rehab, she attempted returning to play in August of that year at Curry's camp in the Bay Area, where she had a star-making showing the previous year. Her knee began to swell, though, limiting what she could do there.
"All she wanted to do was hoop," Curry said to ESPN in 2021. "And honestly, she wasn't ready. We had to, like, pull her off the court. With that impatience, you could tell how much the game meant to her."
Upon getting to UConn, Fudd's injury woes continued.
She missed 11 games as a freshman due to a foot injury, though she still turned in an impressive debut season, averaging 12.1 points per game and shooting 43% from 3-point range.
As a sophomore in 2022-23, she missed 22 games due to a knee injury she suffered in a December game against Notre Dame, when a teammate fell on her knee. She returned after about five weeks, but reaggravated it, causing her to miss more time. Prior to her injury, Fudd had turned in one of the best performances of her career, scoring 32 points in a win against Texas. It tied Diana Taurasi for the most points ever by a UConn player against a top-five opponent.
Perhaps her most devastating injury in her time in college came last year, when she tore her ACL and medial meniscus in her right knee in a practice in November. The non-contact injury limited her to just two games.
"We're all just so upset for Azzi," Auriemma said in a statement. "She worked hard to be healthy for this season, and it's unfortunate when you put in a lot of hard work and have a setback like this. Azzi loves the game and works tirelessly. I'm confident she'll rehab with the same work ethic and come back better than ever. We'll obviously miss her presence on the court, but Azzi will continue to be a great teammate and important part of this team this season. Our program will support Azzi through her recovery however we can."
This season has offered a welcome absence of bad injury luck for Fudd. She has played in a career-high 32 games for the Huskies and performed well, averaging 13.1 points in 25.9 minutes per game.
She's not done, either. On March 25, Fudd announced that she'll be returning to UConn next season despite being eligible for the WNBA Draft.
Azzi Fudd stats
This season, Fudd's averaging 13.1 points, two rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.3 steals per game for UConn while shooting 46.8% from the field and 44.1% from 3-point range. Her 3-point percentage ranks her 14th among all Division I players.
Here's a look at Fudd's year-by-year stats:
2021-22 : 25 games, 12.1 points per game, 2.7 rebounds per game, 1 assist per game, 1 steal per game, 45.7% on field goals, 43% on 3s
: 25 games, 12.1 points per game, 2.7 rebounds per game, 1 assist per game, 1 steal per game, 45.7% on field goals, 43% on 3s 2022-23 : 15 games, 15.1 points per game, 1.9 rebounds per game, 1.9 assists per game, 1.3 steal per game, 45.6% on field goals, 34% on 3s
: 15 games, 15.1 points per game, 1.9 rebounds per game, 1.9 assists per game, 1.3 steal per game, 45.6% on field goals, 34% on 3s 2023-24 : 2 games, 11 points per game, 2.5 rebounds per game, 2.5 assists per game, 1 steal per game, 32% on field goals, 28.6% on 3s
: 2 games, 11 points per game, 2.5 rebounds per game, 2.5 assists per game, 1 steal per game, 32% on field goals, 28.6% on 3s 2024-25: 32 games, 13.1 points per game, 2 rebounds per game, 1.8 assists per game, 1.3 steals per game, 46.8% on field goals, 44.1% on 3s
REQUIRED READING: March Madness 2025: AI predicts women's Final Four, national championship winners
How tall is Azzi Fudd?
Fudd is listed at 5-foot-11 on the official UConn roster.
Azzi Fudd parents
Fudd is the daughter of Katie and Tim Fudd. Both of her parents played college basketball — her mother at NC State and Georgetown, and her father at American.
According to her official UConn bio, Fudd is named in honor of Jennifer Azzi, a former national college player of the year in 1990 who went on to play in the WNBA. Azzi, who is currently the chief business development officer for the WNBA's Las Vegas Aces, was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.
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American Press
4 hours ago
- American Press
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