Antionette Howard didn't have to search too far back in her memory banks when the name Maya Moore is mentioned.

Twice Howard led her South Gwinnett team to Georgia's AAAAA championship game only to run into a Collins Hill squad powered by UConn's all-time leading scorer.

South Gwinnett lost to Collins Hill 65-55 in 2006 and 61-37 in 2007 in Georgia AAAAA final. Howard, who is Purdue's fourth-leading scorer with an average of 7.1 points per game, also played a year of AAU with Moore.

"We competed every day in practice together so I got the first hand (look) before anybody else in the country," Howard said. "She is an amazing player. Even back then you knew she was going to be one of the best players in the country. She never settled for anything less than that. Maya, she is a great player and she always demanded the most out of everyone on her team when we were playing AAU ball together."

Obviously Howard and Purdue are completely focused on the Kansas State team it will play in the first round on Sunday but if both UConn and Purdue win, a second round game figures to be well received back in Georgia

"Anytime you can see people from back home competing and playing against each other, I think that is exciting for the community," Howard said. "First, we have to take care of Kansas state. But if we both get to that second game, I think it would be exciting for a lot of people back in Atlanta."

Speaking of Moore, President Obama has vivid recollections of the pickup game Moore took part in on his birthday.

For my birthday I had a little all-star game here, and we had Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony and just a whole slew of all-stars.

“Maya, because I’d gotten to know her when she came here, was on the court. She lit the guys up, and was playing hard and they were playing hard. She picked Dwyane Wade - sorry, Dwyane, but I've got to report on this - I mean, she picked him clean on one play. So she can hang with the best players in the world and she’s a winner.”

President Obama picked UConn to win the national title in large part because of Moore.

"I've still got to go to Connecticut. I just think that when you’ve got the top player in the game in a close matchup and somebody who’s a veteran, who’s won the tournament before, they’re not going to get as nervous. They’re going to make the plays down the stretch.

"I think that Maya is going to be hitting her jumper, she’s going to be making rebounds, she’s going to be making plays -- I think Connecticut wins it again."