The No. 5-ranked Michigan Wolverines punched above its weight on Thursday night, snapping a 14-game losing streak against top-five opponents with a statement win over the No. 2-ranked UConn Huskies. The Wolverines’ defensive effort proved too much for the Huskies, who entered the matchup hoping to take another step toward an undefeated regular season. Instead, UConn suffered an early setback against a Michigan team that showed it could compete with the nation’s best.

So as Michigan picks up the highest-ranked win in its school history, here are some of the biggest takeaways from the game.

Foul trouble disrupts UConn’s rhythm against Michigan

UConn entered its matchup against Michigan with plenty of confidence after opening its season with a dominant 100-35 win over Cornell. However, facing the No. 5 Wolverines on their home court proved to be a much tougher test for the Huskies. UConn finished the opening quarter with a 21-17 lead, but the four-point advantage didn’t tell the entire story.

As reported by Daniel Connolly, UConn looked out of sync on offense and had defensive issues to address. Jovana Popovic was one of the few bright spots, leading the Huskies with nine points in the opening quarter.

However, Sarah Strong’s early foul trouble added to UConn’s problems. With Azzi Fudd now in the WNBA, Strong is expected to lead the Huskies’ offense, and the junior forward made an encouraging start to the season against Cornell, finishing with 19 points. Against Michigan, though, she struggled to stay on the floor.

With 2:55 remaining in the first quarter, Strong picked up her second personal foul. Still, Auriemma kept her in the game, and that decision proved to be costly. Within the next 30 seconds, the forward committed her third foul, forcing the Huskies coach to take her out immediately.

Strong remained on the bench throughout the second quarter before returning in the third. Her absence left UConn without one of its primary offensive options, and Michigan took advantage. The Wolverines outscored the Huskies 18-8 in the second quarter, turning a four-point deficit into a six-point halftime lead.

Michigan headed into the break leading 35-29, leaving Auriemma with plenty to address as his team looked to regain control in the second half.

Turnover and foul problems haunted the Huskies

With Sarah Strong back on the court, the Huskies managed to regain some control in the third quarter, outscoring the Wolverines 24-20. However, the improved scoring didn’t necessarily translate into a cleaner performance, as UConn continued to struggle with its discipline and ball control.

Michigan is among the strongest teams in the country, and the Wolverines gave the Huskies a serious challenge even when the two sides met last season. So this was never expected to be an easy matchup for Auriemma’s squad. However, UConn’s recurring mistakes made the contest even more difficult than it needed to be.

Despite winning the quarter, UConn found itself trailing Michigan by two points heading into the final frame. The Huskies committed seven fouls and turned the ball over five times in the third quarter alone, taking their turnover total to 14 by the end of the period.

The continued mistakes caught the attention of UConn WBB Weekly, with Daniel Connolly taking to X to highlight the Huskies’ struggles.

“The Huskies committed seven fouls and five turnovers that quarter. Very sloppy,” Connolly wrote.

The mistakes continued to haunt UConn in the fourth quarter, as Michigan maintained its pressure and refused to let the Huskies find a way back into the game. Although Auriemma’s side came close to cutting into the deficit, the Wolverines eventually pulled away in the closing minutes.

Led by junior guard Te’Yala Delfosse, who finished with 22 points, Michigan secured a 77-66 victory. Olivia Olson provided further support with 19 points, helping the Wolverines hold off UConn’s attempts to turn the game around.

Freshman Jovana Popovic once again stepped up for the Huskies, leading the team with 25 points. Sarah Strong was the only other UConn player to reach double figures, finishing with 13 points. However, her foul trouble continued to limit her availability, and she fouled out before the game came to an end.

Still, this wasn’t a loss that could be pinned on any one player’s performance. UConn’s problems were spread across the team. The Huskies committed 25 fouls compared to Michigan’s 13, while also finishing with 19 turnovers against the Wolverines’ 14.

Their three-point shooting offered little relief either. Michigan converted 45% of its attempts from beyond the arc, while UConn managed just 26%, making it even harder for the Huskies to keep pace offensively.

It’s a tough early-season loss for Auriemma and the Huskies, especially after such a convincing season-opening performance against Cornell. However, the matchup also exposed several areas that need attention, from ball security and defensive discipline to perimeter shooting. Identifying those weaknesses now gives UConn time to address them before the challenges become even more consequential later in the season.

Morgan Cheli makes long-awaited return after 634 days

One positive to come out of this major upset was Morgan Cheli finally making her long-awaited return to the court. The UConn guard last played a competitive game during her freshman season in 2024-25 before ankle surgery forced her to the sidelines. Now, after 634 days away, the redshirt sophomore finally got back on the court.

Cheli underwent surgery in February 2025 after dealing with a stress fracture in her right ankle. The injury wasn’t caused by a single incident but was instead “an accumulation” of wear and tear. Initially, she didn’t think much of the discomfort and tried to play through it. However, the pain continued to worsen and eventually “got to the point where (she) couldn’t walk out of bed.” She ultimately opted for surgery to repair the fracture, bringing her freshman campaign to an early end.

At the time, there was optimism that Cheli would return at some point during the 2025-26 season. Even in late December, head coach Geno Auriemma indicated that the guard was “making some progress.” However, his optimism appeared to fade as January approached, and Cheli eventually missed the entire campaign, watching from the sidelines as UConn made its way to the Final Four.

Her absence continued into the 2026-27 season, with Cheli missing the Huskies’ preseason exhibition games and their season opener against Cornell on Monday. Auriemma never offered a specific explanation for her continued unavailability, repeatedly describing her status as “day-to-day.”

That finally changed ahead of UConn’s matchup against No. 5 Michigan. According to Maggie Vanoni, Cheli was spotted participating in warmups with the team and was dressed in uniform. And with 8:27 remaining in the second quarter, the redshirt sophomore finally checked into the game, ending her long wait.

Understandably, Cheli wasn’t asked to do much during her first appearance back. She spent five minutes on the floor, recording one defensive rebound and committing one foul. With this being only UConn’s second game of the season, Auriemma could be taking a cautious approach to her return, allowing the guard time to regain her rhythm and build up her conditioning.

As a freshman in 2024-25, Cheli averaged 2.5 points, 2.4 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 0.4 steals in 13.3 minutes over 24 games. But she is expected to take on a much larger role this time. And with her back in the rotation, Auriemma now has another perimeter option to work with as the Huskies look to address the issues exposed against Michigan