So just how deep is the 2013-14 UConn team? Well, the Huskies return three players who have been named WBCA All-Americans and none of them were named the preseason Player of the Year in the American Athletic Conference. That honor went to sophomore Breanna Stewart.

Stewart had a sensational performance to lead the Huskies to an eighth national title six months ago. Stewart averaged 26 points per game in wins over Notre Dame and Louisville to earn Most Outstanding Performer honors at the Final Four. Now she looks to build on the impressive ending to her freshman season.

“It is a nice honor but what it is saying if you play well and you do really well this year then maybe this will happen,” Stewart said. “I want to obviously play well and start off in practice.”

Great things are obviously being expected from Stewart, a 6-foot-4 native of North Syracuse, N.Y.

"A lot of us expected a ton from her when she came in freshman year," Mosqueda-Lewis said. "We were surprised that the real Bre  didn't come out until the end of the year because all season we told her 'you can do this, you are capable of doing that.' She didn't believe us and she realized at the end of the season that 'you know what I can do this and I can  do more.' She was unbelievable and everybody saw that."

A few other notes from media day:

UConn will hold its first official practice tomorrow but it will not be open to the media.

Louisville coach Jeff Walz said that his non-conference slate for next year is booked up but he would consider scheduling a non-conference schedule with UConn with the Cardinals heading into the ACC.

"For next year we have our non-conference completed but for the following year it is something I would be interested in talking to Geno about," Walz said.

Walz also said senior forward/center Sheronne Vails, a one-time UConn recruiting target, will miss the season with a knee injury.

"She actually hurt her knee in Baylor game, finished out and played in the Final Four," Walz said. "She had some stuff cleaned up in her knee, had some plugs put in . She could probably play in January if needed but we don't want to do that to her. We are going to have her redshirt, come back and play a full season."

Central Florida head coach Joi Williams was an assistant coach on the U.S. team which won the 2010 FIBA Americas U18 Championship for Women and featured UConn's Dolson and Hartley. She was also an assistant on the U.S. squad featuring Dolson, Hartley, Mosqueda-Lewis, Stewart and Morgan Tuck which won the U-19 World Championship in 2011.

"She was always real positive for us and she is a really good coach," Mosqueda-Lewis said. "She was probably the most quiet coach we had, she was very calm, collected and when she had something to say people listened."