She has provided every reason to be named Big East Conference Player of the Year later this week, an honor Paige Bueckers captured as a freshman at UConn in 2021.

But first the “student” part of student-athlete: Bueckers was named Wednesday as the Big East Women’s Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year, the first UConn player to earn the prestigious award since two-time honoree Maya Moore in 2010-11.

“I think it’s just ... extreme focus on time management and maximizing our free time on off days and trying to get work done on those days,” Bueckers said recently on the topic of academics.

“I think it’s just the culture we have here at UConn. We demand excellence in everything that we do and they prepare us in that way to be professionals in the classroom, on the court, off the court. It’s kind of just what’s expected of us and we all take pride in school so it’s easy for us to demand that of ourselves.”

A redshirt junior guard for the Huskies (26-5), who will be the top seed in this weekend’s Big East tournament at Mohegan Sun Arena, Bueckers is pursuing a bachelor of arts degree in human development and family studies.

A three-time Big East All-Academic team member, Bueckers has a 3.497 cumulative grade point average. She has been named to the UConn dean’s list four times and is a six-time member of the Director of Athletics’ Honor Roll. Bueckers earned a 3.930 for the fall semester.

The honor was granted by the conference’s Academic Awards Selection Committee. Bueckers will receive a $2,000 scholarship, which may be applied to graduate or professional studies.

After missing last season due to injury, Bueckers returned to lead UConn with 20.7 points per game, shooting 54% from field goal range and 41.2% from 3-point range.

She led the Huskies to their 23rd Big East regular-season title and their first undefeated season in league play since 2020-21.

Off the court, Bueckers has provided funding to the Hopkins (Minnesota) West Junior High School grocery store, which will provide groceries for 50 families in need; donated funding to the UConn Foundation to go toward food insecurity; and she partnered with Gatorade to provide equipment and uniforms to the Hartford Hurricanes, a youth sports program which includes a newly founded girls basketball team.

Former UConn players to be named Big East Scholar-Athlete of the Year are Leigh Curl (1985), Wendy Davis (1992), Rebecca Lobo (1994-95), Jennifer Rizzotti (1996) and Moore.

v.fulkerson@theday.com