Azzi Fudd has emerged as a key figure in UConn women's basketball, overcoming severe challenges, including two ACL tears in five years. Known for her grace and kindness, Fudd's struggles shaped her journey from being a top recruit to a national champion. In the recent championship game, she delivered an outstanding performance with 24 points, securing her recognition as the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player. Her father noted her return to pre-injury form, highlighting a significant moment in her sports career as the team won its first championship in nine years.
"To say that these four years have not gone according to plan or according to how we thought it would go, I would say, is to put it lightly," Fudd said with a chuckle on Saturday afternoon, calm but hungry before the national championship game.
"Freshman Azzi is gone," she told The Athletic before her sophomore year. This weekend, she rued "Tennessee Azzi," who was a non-factor when the Vols upset the Huskies in Knoxville in February.
Fudd logged 24 points, five rebounds and three steals in an 82-59 win over South Carolina that gave UConn the program's 12th NCAA championship and its first in nine years.
Fudd's father, Tim, said he'd just watched "pre-injury Azzi," the strong and explosive guard whose textbook jumper once made her the No. 1 recruit in the country.
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