SPOKANE, Washington — Paige Bueckers knows how to throw a going-away party. A day after confirming she’ll enter next month’s WNBA draft, where she is all but guaranteed to be the No. 1 pick, Bueckers dropped a career-high 40 points on Oklahoma on Saturday and sent UConn into the Elite Eight for the fourth time in her career.

UConn coach Geno Auriemma caused a minor stir during last year’s NCAA Tournament when he proclaimed that his star guard, Paige Bueckers, was the best player in the country.

Paige Bueckers' legend with the UConn women's basketball continues to grow, as she just dropped yet another incredible performance.

UConn women's basketball star Paige Bueckers is one of the biggest stars in the game and projected No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft, and her NIL deals reflect that.

Connecticut star guard Paige Bueckers, long considered the presumptive No. 1 pick in next month’s WNBA draft, will indeed enter that draft after the NCAA Tournament, a program spokesperson said Friday.

Paige Bueckers erupted in the second half and set several school records while leading the Huskies into the Elite Eight on Saturday afternoon.

Paige Bueckers exited the game with just more than three minutes to play against Oklahoma to a raucous ovation that made the arena in Spokane — nearly 2,700 miles from Connecticut’s home court in Storrs — sound like it was right in Bueckers’ backyard.

Paige Bueckers made 16 of 27 shots and scored 40 points for the UConn women's basketball team, carrying the Huskies into the NCAA Elite Eight.

Bueckers and UConn certainly looked like a different team in the first half, taking a 36-32 deficit into halftime. But the second half was a much different story, and Bueckers cre