The UConn women’s basketball program picked up its 12th national title with an 82-59 win over South Carolina, and during the game, Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant chimed in on social media, giving praise to Paige Bueckers, Azzi Fudd and Sarah Strong for their performance.

“Azzi is just surgical..Paige is just an all around monster….Sarah strong, my goodness, how did u get so good so early??? Great bump on espn,” Kevin Durant posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Fudd was named the Final Four Most Outstanding Player for her efforts against UCLA and South Carolina. In UConn women’s basketball’s win over South Carolina, Fudd shot 9-for-17 with 24 points. Strong also contributed 24 points with 15 rebounds as well. Bueckers, who goes out on top before heading off to the WNBA, had 17 on 5-for-14 shooting.

Next season, UConn women’s basketball will have both Fudd and Strong back in the fold while Bueckers departs. It is expected that Bueckers will be the No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks on April 14, so it will be a few weeks filled with celebration for her. Fudd announced that she would be returning to UConn for the next season, foregoing the WNBA Draft this year. Strong is obviously required to return as she was just a freshman this season.

Fudd and Strong will be the focal points for UConn next season, and the Huskies will enter next season as the defending champions. This title is the first for UConn since 2016, and Bueckers, Fudd and others on the team have overcome adversity in the form of injuries to come together and win in 2025.

It will be interesting to see how the Huskies fare come next season, but for now, they will celebrate their first title since 2016 after one of the most dominant championship runs in history.