As Michala Johnson prepared to step foot inside Gampel Pavilion on Monday, the butterflies were working overtime in her stomach.

The 6-foot-3 junior forward from Montini Catholic High in Lombard, Ill. had seen the top-ranked and undefeated UConn women's basketball team play when the Huskies won at Marquette on February. But the prospects of meeting UConn's Hall of Fame coach Geno Auriemma and the rest of the Huskies left the normally even-keeled Johnson a tad bit anxious. Those apprehensive feelings did not last very long.

"I was a little nervous before I met Coach Auriemma," Johnson said. "I didn't know what to expect. But he was funny and after talking to him for a little bit, I didn't feel that way anymore."

Johnson, her mother and younger sister actually arrived in Connecticut on Saturday night but didn't make it to Storrs until Monday. On Sunday they went to New York to meet up with her uncle and spent the day with him.

When Michala and her traveling party got to on Monday, they were greeted by the coaching staff. Then she had the chance to go to a class with freshman guard Caroline Doty and also was able to see the living quarters of the UConn players.

"I really liked meeting the coaches and players," Johnson said. "They were all really nice. I was able to check out the dorms and go to a class. It was a lot of fun, I really liked it."

Johnson saw about half of UConn's practice on Monday before leaving for the airport and compared it to some of the ones she had endured at the successful Montini Catholic program. She was not able to stay long enough to hang out with the Huskies when the NCAA pairings were announced on ESPN but still came away extremely impressed with her visit.

She told her Montini Catholic coach Jason Nichols the prospect of committing to UConn on the spot did cross her mind but she wants to make sure of her decision before making a commitment.

Johnson said she still wants to visit Georgia and Vanderbilt "sometime in the summer" and she is considering visiting Duke as well and doesn't want to make a decision until she is done with her campus visits.

"I just want to make sure I make the right decision," Johnson said.

Johnson saw her junior season end when she tore the ACL in her left knee in Montini Catholic's season opener. Johnson said the rehabilitation process is going well. The hope is she can get return to the court by May although she will not be playing any AAU ball this summer. She will be ready to go for her senior season at Montini Catholic where she will be joined by her younger sister Malayna (who already stands 6-foot-4 as an eighth grader).

SATURDAY'S PRACTICES OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
Just a reminder that fans are invited to watch the four teams playing in the Storrs subregional practice on Saturday.

Here's the schedule:
Connecticut: noon-1 p.m.
Vermont: 1:05-2:05 p.m.
Florida: 2:10-3:10 p.m.
Temple: 3:15-4:15 p.m.

Monday's practices will not be open to the public. Tickets for Sunday's first round games (UConn/Vermont at noon, Florida/Temple at about 2:30 p.m.) as Tuesday's second-round game at 7 p.m. can be purchased at the Online Ticket Center at UConnHukies.com or by calling 1-877-AT-UCONN.