Paige Bueckers was 0 for 3 in state championship games in her varsity career heading into the Class 4A title bout in 2019. But there the then-junior was at 5 a.m. on the morning of Hopkins’ title tilt against Stillwater, puking.
Great.
One thing was for sure: it was not going to keep the guard off the floor. Months later, Bueckers recalled the power drinks and “gross” Gatorade gummy chews she forced down that day to ensure she was ready to play.
She led Hopkins to the state championship, and a weight was lifted that evening.
“Nobody was allowed to say I did all this and all that but haven’t won state yet,” Bueckers later said.
Fast forward six years, and Bueckers is in a familiar spot. She was the national player of the year as a freshman at UConn, and is a finalist for those honors again this season. Friday’s national semifinal against UCLA marks the Huskies’ third trip to the Final Four in Bueckers’ tenure. The two times they didn’t go were the season and a half the guard missed following a major knee injury.
Bueckers is a shoo-in to be the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming WNBA Draft and has ascended to become one of the faces of the women’s game. All that’s left to do in her collegiate career? Win a national title.
That’s not to give any credence to the “rings culture” that suggests if you didn’t win the title, all was for naught. A lack of a trophy will do little to take away from Bueckers’ basketball legacy. Caitlin Clark didn’t win a title at Iowa after falling in the championship game of each of her final two collegiate campaigns.
But the reality is Bueckers wants that ring — who doesn’t? Particularly at UConn, a program that doesn’t bother to cut down nets after Elite 8 victories.
“I think before you even get here, you kind of know the pressures that exist by committing to UConn,” Bueckers told reporters on Monday. “So, by making that decision to want to come here and try to live up to that and be a part of a legendary program, it’s a decision you have to make even before you step on campus. And once you walk inside the practice facility, you see all the history, all the names, all the banners. It’s just motivation.
“Obviously there’s expectations here. And anything less than a national championship is really a disappointment. As players, that’s what you play for and what you want to live up to. And the expectations and the pressure, it’s a privilege.”
Brian Cosgriff, who coached Bueckers at Hopkins and is now the Minnetonka girls head coach, believes it’s “very important” to Bueckers to win a championship; not for her own resume, “But because she loves her coaches and teammates so much.”
“And she loves the community and the school,” Cosgriff said. “So, I think it’s very important for her. It’s just the same way it was at Hopkins.”
That yearn to win can be a hindrance on performance. When you want something so badly, it can ...
