Auriemma: UConn's Paige Bueckers Uncertain to Return from Injury for Big East Tourney

UConn guard Paige Bueckers is not expected to return before the end of the regular season, coach Geno Auriemma said Sunday.

"There's some really good days when she feels like, 'I could play tomorrow.' And then there's days when she’s reminded, 'No you can't,'" Auriemma told reporters. "So there's more good days than not, but she’s not going to be playing in this coming week. Let’s put it that way. You’re not going to see here Wednesday, Friday or Sunday.”

Bueckers has been out of the lineup since suffering a tibial plateau fracture and meniscus tear to her left knee Dec. 5. She was expected to return in eight weeks, but that timeframe has passed with no firm timetable for her return.

Auriemma would not commit to her being back for the Big East tournament, which gets underway March 4.

"What’s the Big East Tournament look like? I don’t know," Auriemma said. "We'll see. I said this before: When you're coming off an injury, the only person that knows when it's time is the athlete themselves, and you have to get to a point where you trust it and you feel confident in it. That's probably the last thing to come."

The Huskies lost two of their first three games without Bueckers, who was a National Player of the Year candidate, but have rebounded to post a 13-2 record over their last 15 games. They are a mortal lock to win the Big East regular-season championship and go into the conference tournament as the No. 1 seed.

ESPN currently has UConn projected as a No. 3 seed in the NCAA tournament, which would mark the first time since 2013 Auriemma's team is not a No. 1 seed. Bueckers' return to the lineup, provided she's at 100 percent, could have them playing like a No. 1 at the right time of the season. 

Bueckers was averaging 21.2 points, 6.2 assists and 5.5 rebounds before going down with the knee injury.