The 2021–22 UConn Huskies women's basketball team represented the University of Connecticut (UConn) during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Huskies, led by Hall of Fame head coach Geno Auriemma in his 37th season at UConn, split their home games between Harry A. Gampel Pavilion and the XL Center and were members of the Big East Conference, which they joined for women's basketball the previous season. UConn was a member of the original Big East Conference from 1979 through 2013, and one of the original women's basketball teams in that conference in 1982.
Returning from a 28–2 season with no graduations, the team went into the season highly regarded, starting the season ranked 2nd in the AP poll. The Huskies returned three seniors and sophomore consensus 2020–21 NCAA player of the year Paige Bueckers, while adding a 2nd ranked recruiting class. Several athletes transferred during the offseason and early season, leaving the team with 12 players. The no. 2 Huskies lost a November game against no. 1 South Carolina. Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic caused game postponements and cancellations. Injuries plagued the team; only two athletes played every game. In December, Bueckers suffered a knee fracture which kept her sidelined until late in the season.
With Bueckers out, UConn's offense struggled against several teams, with losses against unranked Georgia Tech and no. 6 Louisville before semester break, no. 9 Oregon in January, and unranked Big East Conference opponent Villanova in February. Coach Auriemma had the team focus on defense, keeping the Huskies in games when their offense was struggling. Nine different players started, and Auriemma tried eleven different starting lineups during the season. By the time Bueckers returned to the lineup for limited minutes, the Huskies were dominating without her. After winning the Big East regular season championship, the team won the 2022 Big East tournament and accepted an automatic bid to the 2022 NCAA Division I tournament.
As a number 2 seed in the NCAA tournament, UConn defeated 15th seed Mercer, 7th seed Central Florida, 3rd seed Indiana, and 1st seed North Carolina State to win their region and advance to their 14th consecutive Final Four. The Huskies then beat defending national champion Stanford before losing to South Carolina in the championship game. UConn finished the season with a record of 30–6.
Previous season
UConn was ranked no. 3 in both the 2020 AP and Coaches pre-season polls. During the regular season, they had a record of 21–1, including 18–0 in the Big East to win the conference regular season championship. In February 2021, they defeated no. 1 ranked South Carolina; it was UConn freshman Paige Bueckers' third straight 30-point game. UConn won the Big East tournament, winning all three of their games by over 30 points. They were ranked no. 1 in both polls at that time. As a no. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament, they won their region with a victory over no. 5 ranked Baylor in the Elite Eight. UConn then lost to Arizona in the Final Four and finished their campaign with a record of 28–2. Bueckers, the team's leading scorer, won several awards at the end of the season, including the Naismith College Player of the Year.
Offseason
Departures
The Huskies lost guards Autumn Chassion and Anna Makurat after the end of the previous season but graduated no seniors. Chassion, who had earned a place on the squad as a walk-on and played in eight games, chose to transfer to Louisiana State University at Eunice after the end of her freshman year. Makurat, who had played in 48 games in her two seasons, ended her time at UConn having averaged 6.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game and after entering the NCAA transfer portal, chose instead to return to her native Poland and play professional basketball with AZS AJP Gorzów Wielkopolski of the Basket Liga Kobiet. After the Huskies' first game, freshman Saylor Poffenbarger chose to transfer and then committed to play for Arkansas in late November. On December 13, sophomore forward Mir McLean announced she would be leaving the team at the end of the fall term and later transferred to Virginia.
Incoming transfers
The Huskies added forward Dorka Juhász, a graduate student transfer from Ohio State. Juhász was twice selected to the All-Big Ten team and averaged 14 points and 11 rebounds per game as a junior. Juhász had two years of eligibility remaining.