Storrs — Dorka Juhasz was knocked to the ground and helped from the Gampel Pavilion playing surface early in the third quarter Saturday afternoon.

Then Juhasz spent time on the stationary bike in the tunnel behind the UConn bench.

So when Juhasz, the Huskies’ 6-foot-5 graduate forward, came back into a low-scoring Big East women’s basketball game against Marquette, at times a dirge, really, she received a loud ovation. And when she drilled a 3-pointer, despite shooting 2-for-7 up until that point, the applause came even louder as UConn took a 10-point lead.

Eighth-ranked UConn, physically limited right now with eight players, beat Marquette 61-48 on what graduate senior Lou Lopez Senechal pinpointed as mental toughness.

“It’s always tough when we’re in these situations and we get tired,” said Lopez Senechal, who transferred to UConn this season after a four-year career at Fairfield.

“I think at the end of the day, it’s just getting mentally tough and push through, especially toward the end when everyone’s getting more tired. Whenever I can just ... motivating my teammates and sticking together and trying to get as much points as we can so we can have the lead and get the win.”

Lopez Senechal finished with 22 points and Caroline Ducharme had 19 for UConn (11-2, 4-0) and Juhasz finished with 10 rebounds.

Lopez Senechal and point guard Nika Muhl played 40 minutes each.

UConn had eight players available, minus starters Aubrey Griffin (COVID-19) and Azzi Fudd (right knee), who are close to a return, coach Geno Auriemma said. Auriemma played just seven.

The Huskies struggled with just nine second-quarter points, five from Lopez Senechal and four from Juhasz, going scoreless in the quarter until Lopez Senechal converted a driving layup at the 4:57 mark. They led Marquette 28-22 at halftime.

In the third quarter, the offense still stagnant and the turnovers piling up, Marquette pulled within 37-32 on a layup by Jordan King. Lopez Senechal responded with two free throws and Juhasz, alone behind the 3-point line on a fast break, let one fly from long-range that pushed the lead to 42-32.

“When Dorka hit the 3 and we had a lead of 10 points, I think that helped us a lot just to motivate us just to keep pushing through,” Lopez Senechal said.

The UConn defense held Marquette scoreless for a five-minute stretch in the fourth quarter while the Huskies took off on an 8-0 run fueled by a driving layup and a turnaround jump shot from Lopez Senechal, a sophisticated finger roll from Ducharme and an offensive rebound by Juhasz.

“It’s not good. It’s not healthy for anybody,” said Auriemma of having little relief for his players off the bench. “The biggest thing is not being able to bring any point production off the bench, which is something that I’ve tried to have.

“Right now, in a game like today where you really needed offense, it was tougher than usual.”

Auriemma credited Lopez Senechal for her ability to be a go-to player in the absence of Fudd, UConn’s leading scorer, and he lauded Ducharme’s timeliness.

“I always knew that about Caroline,” Auriemma said. “She has a knack for making a big play when you really need a big play, get a rebound, get a steal, get a basket, make a 3, that’s who she is. That’s part of what she brings to the team. You got kids that can shoot or make a play but she makes them in big moments.”

Auriemma predicted things will only get better for the Huskies as Griffin and Fudd near their returns. Both had a pair of successful workouts this weekend. He said Griffin is expected to play Tuesday when UConn travels to Butler in Indianapolis and he doesn’t expect Fudd (20.6 points per game) to be far behind.

“We’re playing through a lot of things that are only going to get better. You know, they’re not going to get worse,” Auriemma said, then knocked on the table in front of him for luck. “They’re not going to get worse ... as you’re watching Dorka laying on the floor over there.

“(Griffin) should be able to go on Tuesday; whether Azzi is or not, keep our fingers crossed.”

Liza Karlen had a team-high 15 points for Marquette (9-5, 2-3).

v.fulkerson@theday.com