Paige Bueckers Is Being Called the WNBA's Next Star. Right Now She's Just 'Trying to Cherish' Her Last March Madness (Exclusive)

03/17/2025 12:55 PM

Bueckers tells PEOPLE it's a "crazy surreal feeling" to be playing in her final college tournament

• UConn star Paige Bueckers says it's a "crazy surreal feeling" to play in her final March Madness tournament this month
• The basketball star landed her first-ever beauty brand partnership with Madison Reed
• Bueckers tells PEOPLE how she handles her rising celebrity status before entering the WNBA Draft next month

Paige Bueckers is getting ready for her final March Madness tournament.

Widely expected to go first overall in the 2025 WNBA draft next month, Bueckers, 23, has little time to slow down between school, basketball and her rising celebrity status. Discussing her first-ever beauty brand partnership with Madison Reed during an interview with PEOPLE, Bueckers says she's "trying to cherish" the final weeks of here college career.

"It's like you know the end is near, so you're trying to cherish it and drag it out as long as possible because you don't want it to end," says Bueckers.

The Huskies are spending lots of time in practice and "obviously focusing on one game at a time" leading up to the tournament, says Bueckers. "But yeah, it's definitely a crazy surreal feeling," she admits. "You try not to even think about it being the end."

Related: 6 Women's Basketball Rising Stars Are Playing in March Madness 2025. Here's How to Watch Them Own the Court

While she'll be playing with a goal in mind, Bueckers tells PEOPLE she's mostly hoping to "just have fun and play with joy" in the tournament. "There's a lot of pressures that can come with it. Win or go home. It's my last one ever. There really is no do-overs, so just trying not to think about that and really just playing with passion, joy and to have fun."

Bueckers says she started working with a sports psychologist at the beginning of this season to handle that pressure and her growing fame. "He knows me extremely well and he has different ways of talking to me that help me alleviate that stress," she shares.

The basketball star also leans on her younger siblings, Ryan, Drew and Lauren. "They're so disconnected," Buckers says. "They don't really talk basketball with me. They just are my little siblings. They just bring me a whole bunch of joy. They have this little kid joy about them."

Related: Man Arrested on Suspicion of Stalking and Harassing UConn Star Paige Bueckers Over Several Months

In her first partnership with a beauty brand, in addition to her work with Google Chrome, Chegg and CeraVe, Bueckers is paying homage to her iconic hair style with a fun twist on her school's name. The brand is releasing UConnic Blonde, a limited-edition shade of Madison Reed ColorWonder Demi-Permanent Hair Color, inspired by Bueckers' signature blonde locks.

"It was a very cool opportunity," Bueckers says of the collaboration, noting, "I haven't really done a whole lot in the beauty space."

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"Obviously, my hair is a huge thing for me, whether it's the braids, the color, switching it up to pink," Bueckers continues. "To have this signature hair color is extremely cool as well. And I mean, the UConnic, obviously a play on words against iconic, which is what I feel like the UConn support has been to me."

Bueckers says the Huskies fans are "the best fans and supporters in the country." She explains, "They travel. They're at every game. Sometimes we feel like at road games it feels like a home game just because of how much support we get. But just playing here and how much they've given to me, how much they've given to this team, this program, I just wanted it basically to be an ode to them and how amazing they are. To be able to have that opportunity to give them back some love I think is what we wanted to do."