UConn

Paige Bueckers Out For Entire UConn Season After Suffering ACL Tear

The junior guard suffered the injury during a pick-up game

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – APRIL 01:  Paige Bueckers #5 of the Connecticut  Huskies against the Stanford Cardinal in the semi-final game of the 2022 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at Target Center on April 01, 2022 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
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UConn women's basketball superstar Paige Bueckers will miss the entire 2022-2023 season after tearing her anterior cruciate ligament in her knee on Monday, according to UConn.

The junior guard suffered the ACL tear in her left knee during a pick-up basketball game, the athletic department said in a release.

An MRI confirmed the injury Monday evening.

Bueckers will undergo surgery on her injured knee Friday at UConn Health.

"It’s so so crazy because you work so hard to get back healthy, you feel stronger than ever, and you are playing your best basketball and with one sudden movement it all shifts," Bueckers said in an Instagram post Wednesday afternoon. "It’s hard trying to make sense of it all now but I can’t help but think that God is using me as a testimony as to how much you can overcome with Him by your side."

"We're all devastated for Paige," Head Coach Geno Auriemma said in a statement. "She's worked really hard to get stronger and healthier this offseason, and this is an unfortunate setback. Paige is obviously an amazing basketball player but she's a better person and teammate and it's really unfortunate that this has happened to her. We'll miss her presence on the court, but she'll do everything she can to still lead and help her teammates this season. Our program will support Paige through her healing process to help her come back better and stronger.

Bueckers missed more than two months during last season after suffering a tibial fracture and meniscus tear in her left knee.

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