UConn tests new roster
Blanca Quiñonez and Marine Dursus make their debuts before a difficult stretch against Michigan and Iowa.
By Marco Kapoor ·
UConn women’s basketball opens the 2026-27 season on Monday at 5 p.m. against Cornell at PeoplesBank Arena in Hartford. The Huskies will face their first regular season test with a nearly complete roster, as three players who missed exhibitions are expected to be available. This game serves as a diagnostic tool before a challenging start to the schedule.
Blanca Quiñonez makes her season debut after missing all three preseason games while recovering from shoulder surgery in May. Last year’s Big East Freshman of the Year and Sixth Player of the Year was UConn’s third-highest scorer. She is positioned to serve as the secondary option behind Sarah Strong. Quiñonez will likely play limited minutes against Cornell, but the time on the floor prepares her for upcoming games against Michigan and Iowa where her scoring will be essential.
Marine Dursus also makes her debut for the Huskies. The 21-year-old freshman guard spent the previous season playing professionally for Angers in France’s LBWL. She averaged 9.9 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game. Her shooting efficiency stood at 52.9% from the field and 41.2% from three-point range. Her presence is expected to improve perimeter shooting for UConn.
Coach Geno Auriemma prioritized defensive consistency as the primary metric for Monday’s opener. The team held all three preseason opponents to 61 points or fewer, with strong pressure from KK Arnold, Sarah Strong, Jovana Popovic, and Ashlynn Shade. However, Auriemma noted that transition defense requires more attention. Against Army, the Huskies trailed by eight points before outscoring the Black Knights 32 to 7 in the second quarter.
“How’s our defense going to be? That’s No. 1 for me. How’s our transition defense and transition offense going to be? What kind of connection do we have among ourselves, among each other?” Auriemma said Saturday. He acknowledged that preseason performance varied, citing strong defense against Texas and weaker efforts in parts of the Army game.
The schedule intensifies immediately following the Cornell matchup. UConn travels to Ann Arbor on Thursday to face No. 5 Michigan. The team then hosts No. 10 Iowa in Storrs on Sunday. Iowa remains a competitive force despite moving past the Caitlin Clark era, anchored by 6-foot-4 center Ava Heiden, a 2026 All-American honorable mention.
Auriemma views the early stretch as a period for refinement. “What I’m most excited about is after Thursday, we are going to be pretty laser-focused on what we need, and after Sunday, it’ll be burned in our brain exactly who we are, what we are, and what we’re capable of being,” Auriemma said.
