UConn women notebook: Huskies to host SCSU in preseason exhibition

May 2—During her playing days at Southern Connecticut State University, Kate Lynch scored 16 points in an exhibition loss to a UConn team that featured Maya Moore, Tina Charles, and Renee Montgomery.

This fall, Lynch — who will be entering her ninth season as the Owls' coach — will guide her alma mater against a Huskies' squad that will feature Paige Bueckers, Azzi Fudd, and Aaliyah Edwards.

UConn will entertain Division II Southern Connecticut in an exhibition game leading up to the start of the 2023-24 regular season.

It's expected the Huskies will play one exhibition game and have one closed scrimmage against a Division I program for the third straight year. A season ago, UConn took on Division II Kutztown in exhibition play and hosted UMass for a closed scrimmage.

The Huskies and Owls have a history.

From 1977 through 1983, the teams met eight times in the regular season with Southern Connecticut taking seven. It will be the third time in UConn's championship era that the teams have played exhibitions. The Huskies defeated the Owls 119-58 on Nov. 6, 2007 as Charles scored 24 points. On Nov. 15, 2018, UConn rolled to a 99-45 win as Katie Lou Samuelson led the way with 26 points.

UConn finished the 2022-23 season at 31-6, winning its 10th straight conference regular season and tournament titles and advancing to the NCAA tournament Sweet 16 for the 29 consecutive time before falling to Ohio State in the Seattle 3 Regional semifinals. The Huskies will have to replace WNBA Draft picks Lou Lopez Sénéchal and Dorka Juhász, but are expected to return the rest of their roster and welcome back Bueckers from a knee injury as well as adding three freshmen recruits.

Southern Connecticut was 17-11 this past season with Lynch winning her 100th game with the Owls. They saw their season end with a loss to Assumption in the Northeast-10 tournament quarterfinals. The top returning scorer and leading rebounder is forward Katie Williamson.

UConn will play 18 Big East games during the regular season and 13 non-league games. Five will be at home against Ball State, Dayton, Louisville, Maryland, and Notre Dame. Four will be on the road against Minnesota, North Carolina State, South Carolina, and Texas. Neutral site games will be the two in the Cayman Islands Classic, against North Carolina at Mohegan Sun Arena, and a homecoming game in Canada for Edwards against an opponent to be determined.

Travel plans

UConn's European tour is set for Aug. 15-25 with the Huskies traveling to four cities in three countries, the school announced Tuesday.

It begins in Zagreb, Croatia, the hometown of point guard Nika Mühl. The Huskies will then head to Ljublijana, Slovenia and finish up in Italy with trips to Bologna and Venice.

UConn will play an exhibition game in each city on the tour.

"These foreign tours are really beneficial in a lot of ways," coach Geno Auriemma said in a statement. "From a basketball standpoint, we get to play some really good, experienced teams. It's a little like an extended training camp, you get a bit of a head start on getting your team together.

"Off the court, the team gets to experience other cultures and see parts of the world they may never have seen otherwise. We've wanted to go back to Europe for a few years and haven't been able to for various reasons. It should be a fun time for everybody and we're looking forward to it."

KML to retire

Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, a three-time national champion and two-time All-American at UConn, will retire at the end of her season in France. The announcement was made on Instagram by her team La Roche Vendee BC.

Mosqueda-Lewis — from Anaheim Hills, California — was the No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2011 out of Mater Dei High.

During her time at UConn (2011-15), the Huskies were 146-10 with three NCAA titles and three conference tournament crowns, and two conference regular season titles.

The 6-foot forward was the Most Outstanding Player of the 2012 Big East tournament and 2015 American Athletic Conference tournament as well as the 2014 NCAA Lincoln (Nebraska) Regional. She was twice (2013-14) named to the all-Final Four team.

In 142 games, she had 2,178 points (tied for sixth on UConn's list), 756 rebounds, and 329 assists. Her 398 3-pointers are a school record and were the NCAA record when she graduated. She had the Huskies' only NCAA tournament triple-double with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists against Saint Joseph's in the 2014 second round.

She was named a WBCA All-American in 2013 and 2015 and was inducted into the Huskies of Honor program.

Mosqueda-Lewis was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2015 WNBA Draft by the Seattle Storm and was part of their 2018 championship team. She spent five seasons in Seattle and played her last WNBA season in 2020 with the Connecticut Sun, averaging 5.1 points per game in her six years.

For coverage of all sports in the JI's 18-town coverage area, plus updates on the UConn women's basketball team and head coach Geno Auriemma, follow Carl Adamec on Twitter: @CarlAdamec, Facebook: Carl Adamec, and Instagram: @CarlAdamec.