STORRS — Unlike the rest of her UConn women’s basketball teammates, Princeton transfer Kaitlyn Chen understands exactly how it feels to be the double-digit seed in a first-round NCAA Tournament game. Before joining the Huskies, playing as a postseason underdog was all she’d ever known.
Chen led the Tigers to three consecutive Ivy League championships from 2022-24, and the team pulled off upsets to advance to the second round of March Madness in both her sophomore and junior seasons. Princeton knocked off 6-seed Kentucky as the 11-seed in 2022 before falling by a single point to 3-seed Indiana in its second game. The Tigers then beat 7-seed NC State as a 12-seed in 2023. Chen averaged 19.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and three assists across those two upsets, giving her a unique perspective into the minds of the teams playing in March with nothing to lose.
“I feel like that mindset at Princeton I’m keeping with me, just sort of knowing that no underdog team is really scared of anyone,” Chen said. “They sort of have that mentality where it’s anyone’s game, and they’re coming in confident that they can win, too. So I’m sort of just keeping that mindset and not taking anything for granted, taking no opponent easily.”
The 2-seed Huskies are a favorite to contend for the NCAA championship in 2025, and seeing UConn in the regional round has become a near-guarantee over the last three decades. The team has reached at least the Sweet 16 every season dating back to 1994, and it has missed the Final Four a single time in the past 16 years. But coach Geno Auriemma said the lower-seeded teams are far more competitive now than they were when he started at UConn in 1985, and the Huskies know better than to look past Saturday’s first-round matchup against 15-seed Arkansas State at Gampel Pavilion.
“When we had all those long winning streaks, I think there was this perception that … nobody else can beat UConn, so what make you think we can? And that was pretty powerful,” Auriemma said. “I don’t think that exists anymore. People see us lose now, so because they see us lose, they go, well it ain’t like they’re invincible. And it’s true. The fact that that perception has changed is good, because you don’t ever want teams that you’re playing to feel like I don’t have a chance to win so why even bother … Now having said that, I hope this weekend these guys are scared to death, but I don’t think they will be.”
Arkansas State is making its first-ever March Madness appearance after winning the program’s first Sun Belt Tournament title, and UConn will be its first ranked opponent of the season. But the Red Wolves are no strangers to challenges — in fact, third-year coach Destinee Rogers said they’ve come to thrive off of adversity. The team returned just three players from its 2023-24 roster and overcame a 3-6 start to finish second in the Sun Belt, then pulled off a 17-point overtime comeback in the tournament championship to upset a James Madison squad that went undefeated in regular-season conference play.
“Sue Bird is my favorite point guard of all time, so getting the opportunity at the age of 35 to coach against the Geno Auriemma, that’s a pinch-me moment,” Rogers said. “I’m a small-town kid from Arkansas that has a ton of faith. I believe in things when people think I’m crazy … I feel like we deserve to be here, and we’ve earned the right to be here, so we’re blessed and happy for the opportunity.”
The Red Wolves don’t have anywhere near UConn’s level of talent, but they still pose a challenging matchup because of their unique system and veteran-loaded roster. Auriemma described Arkansas State as “a mini-Tennessee,” running a similar style of offense with the same near-constant flow of substitutions that the Lady Vols used to beat the Huskies 80-76 in Knoxville on Feb. 6. The Red Wolves lead the country in 3-point attempts per game averaging 32.5, and they rank in the top 30 in forced turnovers with 20 per game.
Still, UConn can find an easy advantage over by capitalizing on mistakes with its own highly-disruptive defense. Tennessee had one of the best turnover margins in the country, but Arkansas State gives up almost as many as it creates averaging 16.2 per game. The Huskies are at their best offensively when they can get out in transition, and those opportunities will be especially plentiful if they can control the boards off of the Red Wolves’ missed threes.
“When you’re a certain level in Division I, you tend to be in a silo, and you’re so tunnel-vision … so for me it’s kind of exciting to look and go yeah, there’s a lot of coaches doing a lot of great things that you just don’t know about until now,” Auriemma said. “I can see why they’re here, because their style of play is different. It’s unique. If you’re not prepared for it, if you don’t see it all the time, it could be a major problem … Talent isn’t always the indicator of why you win. Being at home isn’t always the indicator of why you win. Playing great the night that you’re supposed to play is an indicator of why you win.”
Seventh-seeded Oklahoma State (25-6) will face No. 10 South Dakota State (29-3) in the second game at Gampel at 3:30. The winner will face the UConn-Arkansas State winner on Monday at a time to be announced.
How to watch
Site: Gampel Pavilion, Storrs
Time/date: 1 p.m., Saturday
Series record: First meeting
Team records: UConn 31-3, 18-0 Big East; Arkansas State 21-10, 15-3 Sun Belt
TV: ABC
Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: UConn Sports Network on Fox Sports 97.9
