UConn star guard Paige Bueckers, the reigning Naismith Women’s Player of the Year, had surgery to repair her fractured left leg and a meniscus tear in that knee, the school announced Tuesday.
When Bueckers went down with the knee injury, the initial hope had been that last year’s National Player of the Year had suffered a mere hyperextension. Instead, Bueckers also suffered a lateral meniscus tear and both injuries were repaired during surgery Monday.
Bueckers’ recovery is expected to take two months.
Bueckers was dribbling upcourt late in a blowout win over Notre Dame, when her leg buckled as she attempted to plant it, and she had to be carried off the court by teammates. A five-star recruit, Bueckers had been averaging 21 points per game.
The absence of Bueckers has already had a noticeable impact on the Huskies’ women’s team. In their first game without her, UConn lost 57-44 to unranked Georgia Tech, ending a streak of 239 consecutive games without a loss to an unranked opponent. The team nounced back on Saturday with a 71-61 victory over UCLA.
