UConn Huskies women lose another guard; Nika Muhl might be out several weeks with foot injury
UConn women’s basketball sophomore guard Nika Muhl is out with a foot injury, coach Geno Auriemma said Wednesday in a media call. It’s another blow to a team that already has guards Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd sidelined because of injuries. Muhl’s issue dates back to a foot injury she suffered last season.
Auriemma said he didn’t know how long Muhl — who has played in every game this season for the 5-1 Huskies, averaging 10.5 minutes — would be out. The No. 3 Huskies face Georgia Tech on Thursday (ESPN2, 7 p.m. ET) and UCLA on Saturday (ABC, 1 p.m. ET).
“You’re being cautious so it doesn’t become a worst-case scenario … a broken foot,” Auriemma said. “How quickly people heal depends on each individual. That’s going to be the determining factor.
“But I would think it’s going to be probably three weeks. Maybe more, maybe less. Who knows if we’re lucky.”
The Huskies haven’t had much good luck so far this season regarding injuries. UConn announced Tuesday that Bueckers, the team’s leader in scoring, assists and steals, would be out six to eight weeks with a tibial plateau fracture in her left knee. She was hurt in the final minute of Sunday’s 73-54 victory over Notre Dame. Muhl played 14 minutes in that game, with six points and two rebounds.
In regard to Bueckers being injured so late in a game in which UConn had a commanding lead, Auriemma said injuries can happen at any time and that he can’t coach with a constant fear of someone getting hurt.
“You can’t coach like that. You just can’t,” Auriemma said. “I’ve had so many injuries that happened at the beginning of games, in the middle of practice where no one’s even near you. So I can’t allow myself to go there.
“I can go back and forth and relive that whole thing. Obviously, [Buecker’s injury] happened in that one play, but I think something had to have happened [before that]. You read all the stories about how this is usually a traumatic injury caused by some sort of collision or something.”
UConn now is down to three heathy guards: seniors Christyn Williams and Evina Westbrook and freshman Caroline Ducharme. Guard Saylor Poffenbarger left the program in November and transferred to Arkansas.
Fudd, the nation’s top-ranked recruit, is out because of a foot injury. Also, junior forward Aubrey Griffin is sidelined with ankle and back injuries.
“Aubrey tried to go [Tuesday], wasn’t really successful, and didn’t practice today,” Auriemma said. “So I’m not quite sure what her status could be either Thursday or Saturday. We’ll see day to day how that evolves.
“We’ve been though a lot of unfortunate things, but that’s part of sports. There’s not a coach that had gone unscathed with these things. The last couple of days have been really, really difficult on the entire program.
“You’ve gotta weather the storm. It’s just going to be a long storm. They say tough times make tough people. I feel like we’ll come back on the other side a lot better than we were going in.”
