UConn has all the ingredients. Now comes the blending

“I’m not a cook by any stretch of imagination. I mean, my wife, Kathy, does all that — but I like to eat,” Auriemma told reporters following the Huskies’ 100-68 dismantling of Ohio State on Sunday in Hartford. “I know that when you make something that [is] kind of perfect, and then you go, ‘Let me add another ingredient’ … then you screw the whole thing up.

“So it’s a challenge trying to find the right combinations all the time, and we’re not going to get it right all the time.”

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UConn’s starting five revolves around sophomore sensation Sarah Strong, is steadied by point guard KK Arnold, and features the dangerous shooting of graduate guard Azzi Fudd and junior Ashlynn Shade. All four are returners from the 2025 national championship team.

In the post is newcomer Serah Williams, a Wisconsin transfer who racked up two All-Big Ten first team nods and a conference Defensive Player of the Year award (2024). The 6’4 forward chose to expend her final year of college basketball eligibility to compete for a national championship at UConn.

“This is one of the most talented and deep teams that I think I’ve seen with UConn in a while,” Ohio State head coach Kevin McGuff told reporters on Sunday. “And I think what also makes them a little bit different this year — with Serah Williams coming over — they’re longer, more athletic around the basket. So I think on both ends of the floor, offensively and defensively, that that adds another element that they necessarily haven’t had here in the past couple years.”

Williams has changed the team’s overall identity, largely because she’s displaced 6’5 center Jana El Alfy. El Alfy started 27 of 40 games last season and averaged 16.0 minutes per game. In five games this season, El Alfy has averaged just 9.0 minutes per game, notably seeing just seven minutes of action against Ohio State and four in a 72-69 win over No. 6 Michigan on Friday.

Williams brings an experienced post presence to the Huskies, allowing the 6’2 Strong to play closer to the perimeter. Strong has quick hands and is skilled at making reads on the defensive end. Through five games, she is averaging a team-leading 3.2 steals per game, up from 2.3 per game last season.

“I no longer have to guard the big most of the time, so I’m guarding guards,” Strong told reporters. “So [it] just gives me a hand up on the shooter.”

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Things are even more crowded at the guard position, with three reserves averaging double-digit minutes thus far. That list starts with sophomore transfer Kayleigh Heckel (18.6 minutes per game), a speedy, disruptive guard who can slot in nicely as a backup point guard to Arnold or as an off-ball guard who can change the tempo by cutting and slashing to the basket. On Friday, she faced off against Michigan’s Syla Swords, who was her high school teammate at Long Island Lutheran (LuHi), a prestigious girls basketball program in Brookville, New York.

“LuHi has been a special place. [Head coach] Christina Raiti does a great job there, making sure that we’re pushed to the highest level … and playing against [Division I] players every single day,” Swords told reporters postgame on Friday. “Kayleigh was guarding me a couple times in possession. She just does a great job.”

Beyond Heckel, UConn’s bench guards include freshman Blanca Quiñonez (14.7 minutes per game) and sophomore Allie Ziebell (14.0). Redshirt senior Caroline Ducharme and freshman Kelis Fisher, a top-25 recruit, average just 8.3 and 6.3 minutes, respectively. They’ve played mostly garbage-time minutes across three games.

While the starting lineup has remained consistent so far this season, the UConn coaching staff has experimented with different lineups throughout each game — smaller, guard-heavy rotations that feature Heckel or Ziebell and longer, more athletic lineups with the 6’2 Quiñonez joining Strong to create punishing perimeter pressure. It’s only November, and Auriemma and his staff are still tinkering.

“I do want to see more people in more situations,” Auriemma said. “… I mean, every game, 10 players, double-figure minutes. That’s hard. … We got 40 minutes. It’s 200 minutes [total]. It’s hard, but it’s a luxury, too, because [if] somebody doesn’t have it that night, move over and somebody else will come in.”

It is indeed a luxury to have as much talent as UConn has, and it relieves some of the pressure that players feel, especially against overmatched opponents. In the blowout of the Buckeyes, 12 Huskies saw game action and eight got double-digit minutes. In the down-to-the-wire win against the Wolverines, just nine players saw game action and only five reached double-digit minutes.

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As the season progresses, Auriemma must give the core rotation of seven or eight players enough playing time to get consistent reps together. At the same time, keeping 15 players happy with their minutes remains part of the equation.

“It’s a challenge, because we won a national championship [last] year with everybody playing 38 minutes,” Auriemma said. “So you’re like, ‘There’s nothing wrong with that. Put [those] guys out there.’ They play a lot of time together. They get in great shape. They can play through anything, and they know each other like the back of their hand. And, boom, boom, boom.

“And you go, ‘Oh, you got a lot of depth. You should play them.’ … And you put them in, and everything gets screwed up because all of a sudden, everything changes.”

This year, the Huskies aren’t starving for options — they’re just figuring out how not to overseason the dish.