UNCASVILLE, Conn. - The UConn Huskies women's basketball team kicked off its 2026-27 season with a convincing exhibition win over the Syracuse Orange at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. on Monday night.

Just seven months after the Huskies eliminated the Orange with a 98-45 win in the NCAA Tournament, the two teams played closer, but the Huskies still won 88-60.

Here's what you need to know:

The Huskies led 23-8 at the end of the first quarter and it looked like it would be another UConn runaway early, but Syracuse closed the gap in the second quarter and only went into halftime down 38-29.

UConn regained control in the third quarter, leading 63-43 after three.

Blanca Quinonez, the reigning Big East Freshman of the Year and reigning Big East Sixth Woman of the year, didn't play in this game, though she was dressed in warm-up gear. The standout sophomore underwent shoulder surgery in the offseason and we knew she was going to ease into the schedule. Evidently, she wasn't ready to go in this one.

Huskies fans got their first look at talented freshmen Jovana Popovic and Olivia Vukosa. Popovic started, presumably in place of Quinonez, while Vukosa first entered at the end of the first quarter.

Both players showed solid skillsets, with Popovic showing a good ability to handle the ball, play defense and get to the hoop. Vukosa showed a good understanding of where to be on the floor, scoring on a nice back cut early in the second quarter. She then had a nice jump hook on the low block with less than a minute to go in the stanza. She was comfortable on the low block in the second half as well.

Popovic had 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting. Vukosa had 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting.

The reigning National Player of the Year was active, but ultimately had trouble converting from the floor. Now, she still led the team in scoring with 15, but she was just 6-of-16 from the floor and 1-of-5 from three-point range. She had six rebounds and three turnovers as well. 

KK Arnold's speed. The point guard was all over the floor defensively, often picking up full court and forcing multiple turnovers. She also got into the lane easily on offense and was able to finish with an array of jumpstops and Eurostep moves. She showed excellent body control on several of her finishes as well, absorbing contact for multiple "and-one" opportunities.

She finished the game with 11 points, and she was 5-of-6 at the foul line.

The Huskies will need to make sure they can stay out of foul trouble moving forward. Vukosa picked up two fouls in only a handful of minutes in the first half, and Strong had three fouls at the 5:57 mark of the first half too. She picked up her fourth at about the six-minute mark of the third quarter. 

To her credit, she was able to play until midway through the fourth quarter without fouling out, but head coach Geno Auriemma certainly will not be happy at the prospect of the country's best player - and maybe its best freshman - being in foul trouble or on the bench.

Beyond that, the Huskies also struggled mightily from the 3-point line, going just 3-of-22. 

UConn will be back in action next Monday night at PeoplesBank Arena in Hartford against Texas, one of the other top programs in the country. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET.