With the news that UConn coach Geno Auriemma was out at incoming freshman Kiah Stokes' most recent game, I thought it was a good time to revisit the next group of freshmen.

Here's what he had to say about the 6-foot-3 Stokes, who had 18 points including the game-winning hoop with 21 seconds to play in Linn-Mar's 48-47 win over Ankeny in Wednesday's Iowa 4A quarterfinal.

"She made a big play at the end," Auriemma said. "It was a great scenario. She tried to take a charge, I thought it was a charge. The ref called it a block and the basket is good so they go from up two to down one. They inbound the ball, she takes it coast to coast, scores and they win by one.

"She is just a good kid who is unselfish. She understands winning, I think her mom and dad understand. They just want her to compete, get better and I think that is what she wants. I think she is going to be really good because she does have skills. She is long, she can pass it, she can shoot it. Like every other freshman, she is going to have to come in and get beat up a little bit, get tougher but she is going to be just what we need in a lot of ways."

Assistant coach Marisa Moseley took advantage of the time between the end of the regular season and when the UConn team returned to practice on Thursday to check out fellow incoming freshman Brianna Banks as the 5-foot-9 guard had eight of her 14 points to lead Fayette County High of Fayetteville, Ga. to a 55-45 win over Mundy's Hill in the Georgia AAAA tournament.

"She probably doesn't play in a way that attracts (attention)," Auriemma said. "You have to pay attention a little bit, she is not 6-3 and she is not Kaleena (Mosqueda-0Lewis) but there are times when she is so dominant and she takes over games and is so good because she impacts games defensively, offensively. She is an incredible athlete, she just plays hard, she is in great shape, she is long, she is wiry and she is going to be good. I think they are all going to be good and all going to help us but I said that last year."

Mosqueda-Lewis is the most highly-touted of three UConn signees. She was named the Women's Basketball Coaches Association high school player of the year award and is a finalist for the Naismith and Morgan Wootten national player of the year awards.

"What happens when you play on a great team, you get a lot of recognition," Auriemma said. "Certainly Kaleena plays on one of the best teams in the country. It is (amazing) to see a conference when the No. 1, 2 and 3 teams in America are all playing in the same championship (Brea and Mater Dei are ranked No. 1 and 2 in the latest USA Today national poll). There is something different about her. She is a true basketball player, she loves the game. I don't know if there is an aspect of the game that she doesn't have a pretty good handle on so I am proud of her. I am happy that people recognized it. I know she is kind of a down to earth kid, doesn't make a lot of noises about stuff like that but I think she probably appreciated it too."

A recruiting source said that Auriemma also went to see UConn commit Morgan Tuck practice on Tuesday. Tuck is a 6-foot-2 junior forward at Bolingbrook (Ill.) High School. Tuck was named to the Illinois 4A All-State team. She was one of three unanimous picks, joining fellow UConn recruiting target Jewell Loyd, a 5-foot-9 junior guard for Niles West, and her Bolingbrook teammate Ariel Massengale, a Tennessee signee.

While having three talented players like Banks, Mosqueda-Lewis and Stokes coming into the program would be a dream scenario for some coaches, Auriemma relayed a humorous story about a recent nightmare he was happy to put behind him.

"I had a (nightmare) that I was sick or something, I didn't coach a couple of games," Auriemma said. "I came back and it was tournament time, I went over and said 'yo, I am back." They are like 'oh.' I said 'what do mean oh?' They said 'we've been pretty good without you.' I said 'what?' They said 'let me go and check with the players? They said to keep it the way it is.' I woke up (in a cold sweat) and said 'let me see if I am still here?'"