Over the years I have spent my share of quality time with some of the greatest women's basketball players of all time.

I've seen Sue Bird move by the knee injury that cost her most of her freshman season at UConn and become a four-time Olympic gold medalist. Now she stands 101 assists shy of Ticha Penicheiro's WNBA career record. I still remember my phone conversations with Diana Taurasi during her recruiting process and the time that thanks to the folks at USA Basketball, I was able to spend about 30 minutes with Maya Moore before she played her first game at UConn.

Between UConn, the WNBA and USA Basketball, I've interacted with UConn greats so many times. Normally, it is a case of a nosy reporter like me asking the questions and them providing the answers. In those scenarios, they are in their element and so am I. However, it is impossible to know how they will react when we meet in other situations whether it is a case of me staying in the same hotel, boarding the same flight or being at the same hotel. Even the most accomodating of former and UConn player can reach the point when they've seen enough of me and some may say that takes place in the first minute or two that they first meet me. However, I always find it interesting to see how they react when we have chance meetings.

I remember at the 2016 Final Four, it was a who's who of UConn women's basketball waiting to greet the team after the Huskies won the national championship. I was among the media waiting outside the locker room. One by one they walked by, a few would give a polite wave or say hello but the only one who stopped, reached out to shake my hand and ask how I was doing was Tina Charles.

Fast forward to Tuesday night and I was leaving Mohegan Sun Arena after the Connecticut Sun/Los Angeles Sparks game. I turned the corner and started down the hallway leading to the parking garage when I heard a familiar voice say, "hey, what's up." It was Breanna Stewart with a few of her Seattle Storm teammates. Had she kept walking without acknowledging me, I wouldn't have given it a second thought but that is not her way. "You're coming Thursday night, right" she asked as if she needed to ask that question.

When a group of Connecticut media got to speak to her before Thursday's game, she was just as jovial. It speaks volumes into the type of person that she is. If you've met her parents, you would expect her to act the way she does. I still remember when Stewart was a junior and at the Final Four, the press conference to announce the Associated Press player and coach of the year was fast approaching. As I was walking in that direction, her parents asked me where the event was being held so I led them into the room. We all went to the back of the room and I remember her mom asking, "what if is she isn't the winner." I laughed and said if you look around the room, there was only Connecticut media and officials. Then I said, "you'll be the parents of the year if you are here to watch Jewell Loyd win national player of the year." Heather Stewart's response was, "I love Jewell Loyd."

Stewart was among the first of the Seattle players to emerge from the locker room at halftime. The Storm played had every expectation of being able to run onto the floor and get some shots off. However, Katie Douglas, Rebecca Lobo and Nykesha Sales were finishing up a question and answer session as part of the Sun honoring its 15th season. Stewart quickly began to applaud as the three players wrapped up the event. Soon many of her teammates followed Stewart's lead. It was impressive to see.

I've said this before and I will say it again. In all the years I've covered UConn, there has never been a better class to deal with that Stewart, Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck. Not once in four years did they roll their eyes at a question, seem annoyed to talk to us or send out any vibes about them having better things to do that talk to us.

It was more of the same on Tuesday when I sat down with Tuck for a story I am working on documenting the impact of 15 seasons of the WNBA at Mohegan Sun and specifically how UConn and the Connecticut Sun have benefited from both being in this state that loves its women's basketball. Her answers were thoughtful and she was accommodating as always.

As for Stewart's time with the media, she spoke about the warm welcome she receives when she returns to Connecticut.

"It is really special to be here," Stewart said. "I am walking through and everybody stops me, 'I loved your career at UConn and I still follow you.' That feels good and to see a lot of people here tonight whether they have UConn gear, Seattle gear, I am just happy to be back."

See spoke about her "offseason" playing in China.

"I liked Shanghai and China," Stewart said. "I'm going back next year with a lot of the same players so it is exciting.

"Just continuing to feel more and more comfortable and aware of the pressure. I had to do a lot with my team, bringing the ball up, coming off screens, shooting the 3 off the dribble or just creating something. You have full range to do whatever you want."

Then there was talk about her being more willing to voice her opinion on matters both on and off the court.

"Continuing to become a professional, be a professional and hold myself to professional (standards)," Stewart said. "You have (responsibility) on the court but off the court, using my platform to speak and vocalize my thoughts, just doing things as a pro would."

Stewart rarely spoke on subjects outside of basketball during her time at UConn.

"You don't think about it, there are so many things going on," Stewart said. "CD (UConn associate head coach Chris Dailey) has you doing so many things and when I was done with the season at Seattle, there were things that needed to be talked about, when I was at the ESPYs, it seemed like there was a lot happening in our world and instead of spending time (just) saying thank you very much, I was thinking about something that is really important and (speaking) from the heart."

With Stewart and fellow UConn legend Sue Bird returning with Seattle and the game promoted heavily due to the 15th season celebration, the crowd of 8,868 was not only the largest of the season for the Sun but largest since 9,110 turned out when Diana Taurasi and the Phoenix Mercury came to town exactly four years earlier.

Even a couple of months after the season, the UConn women's basketball program had a weekend to remember.

The highlight was former national player of the year Kara Wolters becoming the third member of UConn's first national championship team to be inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.
Rebecca Lobo was the first former Husky honored as she was a part of the Class of 2010, three years later it was Jen Rizzotti's turn.

Kara Wolters, Louise O'Neal and rest of Hall of Fame class
(photo courtesy of Women's Basketball Hall of Fame)

Wolters gave a tremendous and emotional acceptance speech, paid homage to her late mom and was escorted at the induction by her two daughters.

Wolters wasn't the only inductee with Connecticut ties as former Southern Connecticut State coach Louise O'Neal was a member of the class as well.

O'Neal coached the Owls from 1962-76 and helped Southern Connecticut be the only school to play in the first eight National Women's College Championships (an event that predated the NCAA tournament). The Owls finished third in 1973 and 1974 (losing by a combined six points in the semifinals both years) and also advanced to the semifinals in 1975.

After taking Southern Connecticut from a club program to a national powerhouse, O'Neal continued to make an impact even after her coaching career came to an end. She was the former president of the Eastern Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women and served on the NCAA Long-Range Planning Committee, Women’s Basketball Rules Committee, Sears Cup Selection Committee and NACDA Executive Board.

Getting back to UConn, 10 former Huskies had double-digit scoring games and for those wondering, second on that list over the weekend was Duke with six followed by Notre Dame's four.

Stefanie Dolson had a career-high 25 points for Chicago while rookie Saniya Chong had her first career double-digit scoring game with 10 points against Minnesota on Sunday which came two days after she netted a career-best seven points. Breanna Stewart (23 points), Sue Bird (21 points), Moriah Jefferson (18 points), Renee Montgomery (13) and Bria Hartley (10) all set or matched their season highs. Diana Taurasi and Maya Moore, who each celebrated birthdays on Sunday, had games with 27 and 17 points respectively while Tina Charles had a 21-point game.



UConn legend Diana Taurasi closing in on pair
of WNBA career soring records

Taurasi is now 28 points shy of Tina Thompson's WNBA record for most points scored in the regular season. Thompson had 7,488 points in 496 career games while Taurasi has 7,460 in 375 games. Bird recently passed Delisha Milton-Jones to moved into ninth place on that list although it's going to take a while to move up to No. 8 as she is 243 points behind Becky Hammon. If playoff points were included, Taurasi would trail record-holder Tamika Catchings by 66 points.

On Sunday some players who could land at UConn were able to lead the U.S. to the gold medal at the FIBA Americas U16 Championship in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Aliyah Boston, a forward from Worcester and a player very much on UConn's recruiting radar, was named the tournament's MVP. Boston had 15 points and six rebounds in the win over Canada in the gold medal game. She led the U.S. in scoring (11.8 points per game) and rebounding (8.6) in the tournament.

Fellow Class of 2019 UConn recruiting target Samanta Brunelle averaged 11 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1.4 steals and 2.2 blocked shots in the five games and was the team captain. Paige Bueckers and Zia Cooke were other double-digit scorers for the U.S. in the tourney. In the title game, the top scorer was the team's youngest player Azzi Fudd from Falls Church, Va. The 14-year-old Fudd had 18 points as she was 4 of 6 from 3-point range. She also had five steals. Not bad for somebody who is several months away from the start of her freshman season of high school basketball. I would have to think her high school games will feature just a few college coaches in the stands.

The team was coached by another veteran of UConn's 1995 national championship team Carla Berube, the head coach at Tufts.

“We just kept getting stop after stop,” Berube said in the USA Basketball release on the gold-medal game. “In the first quarter, I thought we allowed them to get a lot of easy drives. They were getting to the rim on us. In the second quarter, we really shut that down and got some important defensive rebounds, and that was leading to easy offense. When you get stop after stop, it’s hard to sustain us in transition, because we have athletes and players who can make plays in transition and make plays for each other. It was awesome to watch. For a team that has not been together very long, they worked really well together.”

Finally, I've been out of the loop a little basketball wise over the last few days because of my responsibilities covering the semifinals and championship games in the CIAC softball tournament. While I was there I caught up with UConn incoming softball freshman Brianna Marcelino.

Marcelino scored from first base on a single and later drove in a run as Barlow won its first state title with a 4-2 win over Torrington in the Class L final.

There will be a story on Marcelino going up on the www.gametimect.com site later today focusing mostly on the state final and fact that Marcelino grew up in Madison (along with fellow UConn signee Hollis Wivell) before the family moved to Easton when she was in eighth grade. Heading into the state semifinals, she was batting .617 with 43 runs, 41 RBIs, 10 doubles, 12 homers, 21 stolen bases and just four errors.

With the WNBA regular season ending yesterday I figured I would see where Breanna Stewart and Moriah Jefferson's rookie numbers compare to other former UConn players.

Not surprisingly, they more then held their own.

Stewart's 621 points broke Diana Taurasi's mark for most points by a UConn grad as a rookie. She was also second in rebounding and blocked shots, fourth in assists, seventh in steals and assist/turnover ratio.

Jefferson had the best assist/turnover ratio (with a remarkable 2.41), was second in assists, tied for second in steals and seventh in 3-pointers. More on the assist/turnover ratio, I didn't look at every player but among the WNBA all-time leaders in assists the only player with an assist/turnover ratio better than 2/1 as a rookie were Cappie Pondexter (2.17 with Phoenix in 2006), Nikki Teasley (2.06 with Los Angeles in 2002) and Temeka Johnson (2.01 with Washington in 2005).

Morgan Tuck finished 10th in assist/turnover ratio in an injury-shortened rookie season. If you project her numbers over a full season, she would have been in the top 10 in 3-pointers as well.


POINTS
Breanna Stewart (Seattle 2016) 621
Diana Taurasi (Phoenix 2004) 578
Tina Charles (Connecticut) 2010 528
Swin Cash (Detroit) 2002 474
Moriah Jefferson (San Antonio 2016) 472
Sue Bird (Seattle 2002) 461
Maya Moore (Minnesota 2011) 449
Nykesha Sales (Orlando 1999) 437
Rebecca Lobo (New York 1997) 348

REBOUNDS
Tina Charles (Connecticut 2010) 398
Breanna Stewart (Seattle 2016) 317
Tamika Williams (Minnesota 2002) 229
Swin Cash (Detroit 2002) 222
Kiah Stokes (New York 2015) 219
Rebecca Lobo (New York 1997) 203
Svet Abrosimova (Minnesota 2001) 174
Maya Moore (Minnesota 2011) 157
Stefanie Dolson (Washington 2014) 149
Diana Taurasi (Phoenix 2004) 149

ASSISTS
Sue Bird (Seattle 2016) 191
Moriah Jefferson (San Antonio 2016) 142
Diana Taurasi (Phoenix 2004) 132
Breanna Stewart (Seattle 2016) 114
Nykesha Sales (Orlando 1999) 91
Maya Moore (Minnesota 2011) 90
Swin Cash (Detroit 2002) 86
Tiffany Hayes (Atlanta 2012) 73
Renee Montgomery (Minnesota 2009) 72
Svet Abrosimova (Minnesota 2001) 53

STEALS
Nykesha Sales (Orlando 1999) 69
Sue Bird (Seattle 2002) 55
Moriah Jefferson (San Antonio 2016) 55
Maya Moore (Minnesota 2011) 48
Tamika Williams (Minnesota 2002) 44
Diana Taurasi (Phoenix 2004) 43
Svet Abrosimova (Minnesota 2001) 42
Breanna Stewart (Seattle 2016) 42
Swin Cash (Detroit 2002) 37
Charde Houston (Minnesota 2008) 30

BLOCKS
Kiah Stokes (New York 2015) 67
Breanna Stewart (Seattle 2016) 64
Tina Charles (Connecticut 2010) 57
Rebecca Lobo (New York 1997) 51
Stefanie Dolson (Washington 2014) 37
Swin Cash (Detroit 2002) 31
Kelly Schumacher (Indiana 2001) 29
Diana Taurasi (Phoenix 2004) 25
Asjha Jones (Washington 2002) 17
Maya Moore (Minnesota 2011) 16

3-POINTERS
Diana Taurasi (Phoenix 2004) 62
Maya Moore (Minnesota 2011) 58
Sue Bird (Seattle 2002) 57
Breanna Stewart (Seattle 2016) 45
Renee Montgomery (Minnesota 2009) 42
Nykesha Sales (Orlando 1999) 36
Moriah Jefferson (San Antonion 2016) 33
Bria Hartley (Washington 2014) 21
Tiffany Hayes (Atlanta 2012) 21
Svet Abrosimova (Minnesota 2001) 19

ASSIST/TURNOVER RATIO
Moriah Jefferson (San Antonio 2016) 2.41
Maya Moore (Minnesota 2011) 1.80
Sue Bird (Seattle 2002) 1.75
Bria Hartley (Washington 2014) 1.54
Diana Taurasi (Phoenix 2004) 1.47
Tiffany Hayes (Atlanta 2012) 1.43
Breanna Stewart (Seattle 2016) 1.41
Nykesha Sales (Orlando 1999) 1.31
Ketia Swanier (Connecticut 2008) 1.30
Morgan Tuck (Connecticut 2016) 1.16

Also, Tina Charles led the league in points per game (at 21.5 just percentage points ahead of Elena Delle Donne) and rebounding (9.9 per game). She joins Maya Moore and five-time champion Diana Taurasi as only former Huskies to lead the WNBA in scoring. It is the fourth time Charles won the WNBA rebounding title breaking Lisa Leslie's league record. She joins Chamique Holdsclaw as only players in WNBA history to lead the league in scoring and rebounding in the same season as Holdsclaw accomplished the feat in 2002. With Sue Bird leading the league with an average of 5.8 assists per game, it is the first time in WNBA history that the regular-season leaders in points, rebounds and assists per game played at the same college. They also both happened to attend the same high school (Christ the King in Middle Village, N.Y.). By the way, so did Holdsclaw which may be the most remarkable aspect of all of this.

It's a foregone conclusion that former UConn star Breanna Stewart will become the fourth former Husky to win the WNBA Rookie of the Year award as she is currently sixth in the league in scoring, second in rebounding and third in blocked shots. However, since the middle of July no rookie has been putting up better numbers than Moriah Jefferson, Stewart's former college teammate.

I actually began to research how the rookies have fared since July 12 for a story I wrote yesterday about former Hillhouse High Bria Holmes agreeing to play in Israel this winter because Holmes has been one of the most productive rookies in the second half of the season. While crunching the numbers, it is impossible to overlook how well Jefferson has been playing since that date.

She is leading all rookies in points, assists, steals, field goals attempted, field goals made, 3-point percentage and tied with Stewart for the top spot in 3-pointers made since July 12. Perhaps most impressive of all, she tops all rookies with an average of 21.7 points per 40 minutes. Much of it has to do with opportunity since injuries have limited the options of retiring San Antonio head coach Dan Hughes. As a result, Jefferson played at least 30 minutes in just nine of the first 17 games of the season but has played at least 30 minutes in 11 of the last 15 games.

Looking at these numbers it does appear as if better days are ahead for the Connecticut Sun as Jonquel Jones and Courtney Williams rank among the top five rookies in points scored per 40 minutes since July 12. Jones also leads all rookies with a 53.5 field-goal percentage over that span. I didn't include Morgan Tuck on this list because she missed the last six games but if I did include her, she would rank third in points per 40 minutes (20.8), third in field-goal percentage (45.7) and 3-point percentage (38.5).

PT/40                 REB/40          FG PCT.            3-PT PCT.
Jefferson 21.7    Boyette 12.5  Jones 53.5          Jefferson 42.1
Powers    21.4    Stewart 9.8    Boyette 48.7       Copper 40.0
Jones   19.3        Jones 9.2       Powers 43.2        Jones 36.4
Stewart   19.0     Powers 8.3    Holmes 43.1       Powers 36.1
Williams  17.9    Williams 7.5 Jefferson 42.4    Stewart 33.3
Copper    17.0     Copper 7.3
Holmes    15.3
Boyette   13.6

START TIMES FINALIZED
When UConn's schedule was released earlier this month, the times of four of the road games were listed as "to be announced."

Well, it is time to fill in the blanks as the final start time was announced today when the LSU women's basketball Twitter page reported that the Nov. 20 game will begin at 5:30 p.m. and will air on ESPN.

The times of the three conference road games previously listed as TBA have been updated on UConn's official schedule as the Jan. 17 game at Tulsa will begin at 8 p.m., the Feb. 7 game at Cincinnati will tip shortly after 7 p.m. and the Feb. 18 game at Tulane also has an 8 p.m. listed tip time. Also, the Dec. 11 game at Kansas State will be televised by Fox Sports 1 and the Big Ten Network had the Dec. 21 contest at Nebraska.

Here's the updated schedule
2016-17 UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
Date Opponent Site TV Time
NOVEMBER
Tue. 1 IUP (exhibition) Gampel Pavilion. 7 p.m.
Sun. 6 PACE (exhibition) XL Center, 1 p.m.
REGULAR SEASON
Mon. 14 at Florida State Donald L. Tucker Center, Tallahassee, Fla. ESPN2 6 p.m.
Thu. 17 BAYLOR Gampel Pavilion,  SNY 7:30 p.m.
Sun. 20 at LSU Maravich Center, Baton Rouge, La. 5:30 p.m. ESPN
Tue. 22 DAYTON Gampel Pavilion,  SNY 7 p.m.
Tue. 29 CHATTANOOGA XL Center, SNY 7 p.m.
DECEMBER
Thu. 1 DEPAUL Gampel Pavilion, SNY 7 p.m.
JIMMY V CLASSIC, HOSTED BY THE BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME
Sun. 4 vs. Texas Mohegan Sun Arena,  ESPN 4 p.m.
Wed. 7 at Notre Dame Purcell Pavilion, South Bend, Ind. ESPN2 7 p.m.
Sun. 11 at Kansas State Bramlage Coliseum, Manhattan, Kan. Fox Sports 1 2 p.m.
Mon. 19 OHIO STATE XL Center, CBS-SN 7 p.m.
Wed. 21 at Nebraska Pinnacle Bank Arena, Lincoln, Nebraska Big Ten Network 9 p.m.
Thu. 29 at Maryland XFINITY Center, College Park, Md. ESPN2 6 p.m.
JANUARY
Sun. 1 at UCF CFE Arena, Orlando, Fla. SNY 1 p.m.
Wed. 4 EAST CAROLINA XL Center SNY 7 p.m.
Tue. 10 USF XL Center, CBS-SN 7 p.m.
Sat. 14 at SMU Moody Coliseum, Dallas, Texas SNY 3 p.m.
Tue. 17 at Tulsa Reynolds Coliseum, Tulsa, Okla. SNY 8 p.m.
Sun. 22 TULANE Gampel Pavilion, ESPN2 1 p.m.
Tue. 24 at East Carolina Minges Coliseum, Greenville, N.C. SNY 7 p.m.
Sat. 28 HOUSTON XL Center, SNY noon
FEBRUARY
Wed. 1 at Temple Liacouras Center, Philadelphia, Pa. SNY 7 p.m.
Sun. 5 TULSA Gampel Pavilion, SNY 1 p.m.
Tue. 7 at Cincinnati First Third Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio SNY 7 p.m.
Sat. 11 SMU Gampel Pavilion,  SNY 2 p.m.
Mon. 13 SOUTH CAROLINA Gampel Pavilion, ESPN2 9 p.m.
Sat. 18 at Tulane Devlin Fieldhouse, New Orleans, La. SNY 8 p.m.
Wed. 22 TEMPLE XL Center, SNY 7 p.m.
Sat. 25 MEMPHIS Gampel Pavilion,  SNY 4 p.m.
Mon. 27 at USF Sun Dome, Tampa, Fla. ESPN2 7 p.m.
2017 AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP, MOHEGAN SUN ARENA, UNCASVILLE, CONN.
Fri. Mar. 3 - Mon. Mar. 6 TBA TBD

If this was indeed the international swan song for former UConn teammates Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi, they certainly are leaving with style.

Bird and Taurasi, who first played together during the 2000-01 college season followed up their on-court partnership at UConn by playing together in Russia and of course a remarkable run with the U.S. national team.

Taurasi finished as the leading scorer for the U.S. team and Bird set an Olympic record for assist/turnover ratio as the U.S. won their sixth straight Olympic gold medal with a 101-72 win over Spain.

Taurasi had 17 points as she averaged 15.6 points in the eight games aided by her 58 percent shooting from 3-point range as she joined Bird and Tamika Catchings as four-time Olympic gold medalists.

"It’s huge," Taurasi said. "It says a lot about the people the run USA Basketball.  It says a lot about the youth in our country that when you put this jersey on, there’s a level and it’s not necessarily just basketball, it’s a way to be a great teammate.  We showed that in this tournament "

Former Connecticut Sun guard Lindsay Whalen had 13 points and five rebounds. Former UConn star Maya Moore had 12 of her 14 points in the first half and also had five rebounds and six assists.

Bird, who missed the semifinal win over France with a knee injury, had one assist and one turnover giving her 31 assists versus four turnovers in the tournament which is easily the best mark in Olympic women's basketball history. Bahar Caglar of Turkey had 11 assists and 2 turnovers in the 2012 Olympics while in 1996 Hyun Sun Han of Korea had 16 assists and 3 turnovers.

"I’m just really happy," Bird said. "We just did something that’s pretty incredible. When you get together as a team and you know you only have a month to do something, it’s remarkable in so many ways that we were able to put this together and do it in a fashion that leaves no question marks. This put us on the map as arguable one of the best teams, and we had fun doing it.

"I don’t think I’ve ever been around a group that’s this talented and also played this hard. Again, I’m just super happy. I’m proud of my teammates. I’m proud I’m part of this group. I’m happy for Coach Auriemma and the rest of the staff, and it’s just a really fun day today."

In the second quarter alone, UConn grads Taurasi, Bird, Moore, Tina Charles and Breanna Stewart combined for 26 points, nine rebounds, seven assists, two steals and a blocked shot as the U.S. outscored Spain 28-15 to take a commanding 49-32 lead into the locker room at halftime.
Charles finished with eight points, seven rebounds and five assists while Stewart finished with 11 points.

Charles and Moore join Bird and Taurasi as the only players to win multiple NCAA, World Championship and Olympic titles while Stewart becomes the ninth former Husky to win a gold medal in women's basketball.

"This is in a league of its own," said Stewart, who averaged 8.1 points per game while shooting 73.3 percent from the field. "This is a different kind of toughness to be able to win gold medal just because you come together with 11 other great players, best players in the world, and we had two weeks to prepare really. Then we got here and played well and acted like we been playing with each together for the entire year."

Moore joined Taurasi as the only double-digit scorer for the U.S. averaging 12 points per game, she also had a team-high 16 steals and was tied for the team lead with 45 rebounds. It should be noted that six U.S. players had at least 20 assists and four of them graduated from UConn as Moore had a team high 34 assists, Taurasi had 26 and Charles finished with 25.

It had to be extra special for Auriemma. He made it clear after returning home from the 2012 Olympics that he was done with being in the pressure cooker of coaching the U.S. national team. USA Basketball Women's National Team Director Carol Callan wouldn't take no for an answer and Auriemma decided that being able to coach his former players and especially Bird and Taurasi was too good of an opportunity to pass up.

It wasn't an easy ride. He had to answer questions daily about whether the dominance of the U.S. team was good for the game (like he never heard that question before). When two-time Olympian Candace Parker was left off the team, he faced accusations of picking players because they went to UConn. Those petty claims were on social media even today. None of that seemed to matter after the gold medal game as Auriemma became the first coach to win multiple Olympic gold medals in women's basketball even if he doesn't get a medal.

"Obviously, it was an incredible tournament for us," Auriemma said after the game. "From the very first game that we played to today, with very few exceptions I thought we played basketball at a really high level. I can’t say enough about our players. How quickly they’ve come together, how much they’ve been able to accomplish in less than a month that we’ve been together. It wasn’t as easy as sometimes it looked. These last two games especially with France and today against Spain. These are very good teams that we’re playing, and you could see that it wasn’t just a cake walk, that it was a struggle. Then finally, because of our depth and because of the experience on our team, we were able to separate ourselves. But the way we played, we respected our opponents and we respected the game itself, we earned a lot of respect from a lot of people around the world, and I’m really proud of that."

Catchings has announced that this was her Olympic swan song and we'll have to see if Bird and Taurasi opt to try to become the first five-time Olympic gold medalists in women's basketball in four years time. Also, will UConn coach Geno Auriemma be the head coach for the U.S. in 2020. If I had to guess I would say no on all accounts.

Former Connecticut Sun draft pick Alba Torrens led Spain with 18 points.

Serbia won the bronze medal with a 70-63 win over France. Former Connecticut Sun forward Danielle Page had 10 points as she was one of five players from Serbia in double figures.

While making the rather interesting drive from Newark, Delaware to Tarrytown, N.Y. yesterday for the latest media availability for the U.S. national team, I wanted to come up with a little different story angle than yet another update on the five UConn graduates on the U.S. team.

Since I have seen plenty of caustic posts on Twitter about how the U.S. team has become little more than a chance for Geno Auriemma to get his former players on the squad (a laughable point of view when considering the qualifications of Sue Bird, Tina Charles, Maya Moore, Breanna Stewart and Diana Taurasi), I thought it would be fun to get some people to weigh in on whether an all-UConn team could win the Olympic gold medal. I spoke with Bird, USA Basketball Women's National Team Director Carol Callan, assistant coach Doug Bruno and guard Lindsay Whalen on the topic for a story which ran in this morning's paper.

When I mentioned it to Bird, she said "who is on the team" since she wasn't sure if I meant active players or all UConn players so here is the breakdown of the 15 current UConn graduates in the WNBA.

Current  Olympians
Sue Bird: Averaging 12.5 points and league leading 6 assists per game. Is 241 assists shy of Ticha Penicheiro's WNBA career record. Tied for eighth with 573 career steals.
Tina Charles: Currently the WNBA leader in both scoring (21.4) and rebounding and one of the frontrunners with WNBA MVP. Could join Chamique Holdsclaw as only player to lead WNBA in scoring and rebounding in same season.
Maya Moore: Three-time WNBA champion is fourth in league in scoring (19.4) and sixth in assists (4.4). One of five players to be named WNBA regular-season and finale MVP.
Breanna Stewart: Winner of WNBA Rookie of Month three times, she is second in WNBA in rebounding and fifth in scoring
Diana Taurasi: Sixth-leading scorer in WNBA at 18.9 points per game. One of three WNBA players with more than 7,000 points in regular season and fifth all-time with 1,547 assists


Swin Cash: Ranks 13th in WNBA history with 5,075 regular-season points and a two-time Olympic gold medalist. Key member of championship teams with Detroit and Seattle.
Stefanie Dolson: After averaging a career high 10.6 points and 5.6 rebounds for Washington last season, is contributing 8 points and 4.7 rebounds
Kelly Faris: Averaging 2.1 points and 11.9 minutes in 103 career games with Connecticut Sun
Bria Hartley: Averaging 6.5 points, 2 rebounds, 2.3 assists in 16.9 minutes with Washington Mystics. Since May 21 Mystics are 6-4 when she plays at least 15 minutes, 3-8 if she does not
Tiffany Hayes: Atlanta Dream's No. 2 scorer at 14.5 points per game. Averaging career highs in points, assists, steals and minutes played. Has seven 20-point games, Atlanta is 10-7 when she scores in double figures
Moriah Jefferson: Second on San Antonio in scoring (12.2), contributes 4 assists, 1.4 steals per game. Third among qualifying players with 45.3 3-point percentage. Averaged 17.1 points in last eight games before Olympic break
Renee Montgomery: Averaging 7.8 points per game for Minnesota, highest total since 2013 season. Hit game winner when Minnesota beat Los Angeles in showdown of undefeated teams. Minnesota is 7-2 when she scores at least 10 points
Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis: Averaging 6.4 points and 16.7 minutes while shooting 47 percent from 3-point range in last seven games for Seattle
Kiah Stokes: Eighth in WNBA in rebounding (7.6), sixth in blocked shots (1.5). Second in league in rebounding per 40 minutes
Morgan Tuck: Averaging 7.2 points and 2.9 rebounds in 17.2 minutes as a rookie for Connecticut Sun. Averaged 15.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists in one three-game stretch in June.

There is already a portion of the women's basketball world tired of the "all UConn, all the time" coverage so a team of only UConn alums representing the U.S. in the Olympics might mean the end of Twitter but it was something worth pondering.

Former UConn star Tina Charles shoots over former Connecticut Sun forward Elizabeth
Williams in Monday night's exhibition game in Los Angeles. (Photo courtesy of USA Basketball)

The U.S. women's Olympic team was in danger of dropping its first game when a trio of former UConn stars took control.

The U.S. Select team, a group of young WNBA players, held a two-point lead with a minute to go. Breanna Stewart hit a layup off an assist from Tina Charles to tie the game. Charles also had a pair of key rebounds while Maya Moore was 4 for 4 from a foul line in the final 39.3 seconds to lead the U.S. to an 88-84 victory.

"We were trying to accomplish a lot," said Moore, who tied for the team lead with 11 points. We were putting different lineups out there on the court, trying different schemes, trying to see what we could do…and the Select Team was very aggressive in terms of those moments when we weren’t completely on the same page. But we were able to respond and finish the game the right way. Hey, we could have easily lost this game. So I’m glad we were able to come through and build some momentum for the next game."

Moore also had three rebounds and three assists while Elena Delle Donne also had 11 points. Lindsay Whalen and Angel McCoughtry had nine points each, Stewart had six of her eight points in the fourth quarter, Charles had eight points and four rebounds. Diana Taurasi had seven points and a team-high five assists while Sue Bird finished with six points.

Natasha Howard had 18 of her game-high 24 points in the fourth quarter, Jewell Loyd had 20 points and Odyssey Sims added 17 to lead the Select team.

"I thought the way the Select Team played was really cool," UConn and U.S. coach Geno Auriemma said. "They played as if they play against these guys all the time, which they do. There wasn’t going to be any sense of intimidation of who they are, which is why we play these games. We need the challenges. We need to look at different combinations and figure out what works for us and what doesn’t. For us, in the two days we’ve been together, we did a lot of really good things and we’re going to get better and better every day. And for the future of USA Basketball, there were some unbelievably positive signs out there of what the next group could potentially look like. It was a good day, I think, all the way around."

The U.S. will now play three international friendlies in three different states beginning tomorrow when the U.S. faces France at 7:30 p.m. at the Bob Carpenter Center on the campus of the University of Delaware. That will be preceded by a 5 p.m. game between Canada (featuring UConn's Kia Nurse) and Australia at 5 p.m. On Friday at Webster Bank Arena, Australia and France will play at 4:30 p.m. followed by the Canada/U.S. game at 7. Canada and France will meet at 1:30 p.m. on July 31 followed by the U.S./Australia game at Madison Square Garden. The team will wrap up the state-side preparations with a practice in Houston on Aug. 2 before leaving for Rio.

"They’re three really big games for us against three teams that are going to be at the Olympics that we’ve played before," Taurasi said. "We know what kind of team they are, what kind of quality they have. It’s going to challenge us to go out there and play hard and play really well to win. When you put this jersey on, as coach said, there are no moral victories. At the same time, these games are there to prepare you, to get you in a position where when we get to Rio, we know what we’re going with and the things that we’re really good at. It’ll be a tough and competitive three games."

Breanna Stewart became the fourth UConn basketball player to win the Honda Cup as the nation's top female collegiate athlete.

Baylor's Brittney Griner, the 2012 winner,was the last basketball player to earn the honor. Rebecca Lobo and Jen Rizzotti gave UConn back to back winners in 1995 and 1996 while Maya Moore won in 2010 and 2011 to join swimming legend Tracy Caulkins as the only two-time winner of the Honda Cup.

Stewart was a finalist for the award for the third straight season as gymnast Kim Jacob was the winner in 2014 and swimmer Missy Franklin was the honoree last season.

Stewart had 20 games with at least 20 points as a senior with 16 double doubles as she headlined a senior class that was the first in Division I history to win four consecutive national titles.
Stewart finished as UConn's career leader with 414 blocked shots, was second with 2,676 points, third with 1,179 rebounds.
She was taken first overall in the WNBA Draft by the Seattle Storm and is currently second in the WNBA in rebounding and eighth in scoring.

Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis was recently going through some photos on her phone and one of them really caught her eye.

Mosqueda-Lewis saw a baby-faced Breanna Stewart in a picture with her and she immediately flashed back to that summer seven years ago when they were teammates for the first time as members of the gold-medal winning U.S. U-16 national team.

"I have been reflecting on the fact that we have been playing together since we were 15 years old," Mosqueda-Lewis said before Friday night's Seattle Storm/Connecticut Sun game at Mohegan Sun Arena. "It is crazy that now we are 21, 22 years old that we are still on the same team. Just today I put up a picture from us on the U16 team together, it is pretty crazy that after all of these years we are still playing together."

Mosqueda-Lewis was the leading scorer while Stewart, the youngest player on the squad, was tied for the team lead in blocked shots.

They played together for three years at UConn and were parts of three national championship teams and now they are in their first season together in the WNBA.

Stewart is second on the Storm in rebounds, steals and blocked shots while her 15.7 scoring average is second only to Jewell Loyd, who also took part in the training camp and trials with the U-16 team back in 2009.

Mosqueda-Lewis expected Stewart to make an immediate impact in the WNBA.

"I think it was quite easy for her," Mosqueda-Lewis said. "She has played with a lot of the people that are in the league right now because she is on the national team and has done a great job of doing the things consistently that she knows she can."

Mosqueda-Lewis is averaging 3.6 points per game and the NCAA Division I career leading in 3-pointers made is shooting only 18.2 percent from 3-point range so she is still working to make an impact. The good news is she experienced success as a pro while playing for Charleville-Mezieres in France.

Mosqueda-Lewis was the team's leading scorer at 12.7 points per game and shot 42 percent from 3-point range. More importantly, she helped her team improve from 10-16 in the 2014-15 season to posting a 19-10 mark.

"I spent the year overseas, I was able to gain some confidence and play a lot over there against players who have been playing for a while now really was good for me," Mosqueda-Lewis said. "I don't think there is a better teacher than experience."

One drawback is she didn't get to see UConn's march to a fourth straight national title although she was hardly surprised to see her former teammates cutting down the nets once again.

"I didn't expect anything less from them, they really didn't lose much when me and Kiah (Stokes) graduated and they got in some good freshman," Mosqueda-Lewis said. "It was kind of expected from me that they won another one.

"I probably watched one game I was asleep half the time. I tried to keep up looking at the scores, looking at the highlights that they had or sometimes my parents recorded them and I watched them afterwards. It is different watching from the other side but when they win another one, you feel just a part of it as when you were there."

For almost a week Breanna Stewart had knowledge that another of her basketball dreams had become a reality but needed to keep the information - mostly - to herself.

On Friday USA Basketball Women's National Team Director Carol Callan placed a call to Stewart to inform the former UConn star that she was among the 12 players being named to the U.S. team playing in the Olympics.

"I was nervous when she called. I thought that either she was going to say I made the team or
didn't make the team," Stewart said on Wednesday at an event in New York commemorating the 100 days until the start of the Olympics. "She congratulated me right away, I didn't even know what to say, I was speechless.

"The first people I spoke to were my parents.They have been with me through this the entire process and I want to make sure that (they knew that)  me going to the Olympics means they are going to the Olympics too."

"It is an unbelievable feeling to be able to be here, be a part of the Olympic team, we've talked about it a lot but to for it actually to be coming true, it is amazing. I think definitely being here celebrating 100 days out makes it hit home a little bit more realizing that this is reality, in 100 days I am going to be in Brazil fighting  with my teammates for a gold medal."

Stewart joins Elena Delle Donne and Brittney Griner as the first-time Olympians on the team. Four years ago former UConn stars Tina Charles and Maya Moore were among the Olympic newcomers and they both weighed in on what Stewart and the other first-time Olympians should try to take out of the events in Rio in August.

"I would definitely tell them to appreciate the process of what it takes to win," Charles said. "I think for me I was so excited to be there that I didn't take in  every little detail from Catch (Tamika Catchings), Sue (Bird) and Diana (Taurasi) so anything they can (learn) from them knowing that this is their last go round they should definitely pay attention."

So what does Charles most appreciate about what Stewart will bring to the team?

"I would have to say her eagerness, her eyes are really wide right now and I know she is going to really value every possession and every minute she is on the floor," Charles said. "I think just how eager she is to be on the team and know that she is going to play hard every second."

Moore looks at Stewart and recalls being in a similar situation four and six years ago when she was the rising superstar playing alongside some legendary players.

"Stewie and I have pretty much identical paths as far as being the young one, being a No. 1 draft pick, coming from a successful college career and having to step up and lead in her class, in her generation because she is one of the leaders of the next generation if things go the way we all think they will for her," Moore said. "It is really cool to make this official and look forward to this opportunity. For her to go into her Olympic (debut) with the captains (Bird, Catchings and Taurasi) that we have, then we have Syl (Sylvia Fowles), Seimone (Augustus), Whay (Lindsay Whalen), just so many different ways she can appreciate her time as a young  player but also wanting to go in and contribute as well so I think it is a really memorable time for her."

Bird joins Catchings and Taurasi by being named to her fourth Olympic team something previously only accomplished by Teresa Edwards and Lisa Leslie. She also has the opportunity to see Stewart up close and personal as they are teammates with the WNBA's Seattle Storm.

"Being an Olympian has weight." Bird said. "It is pretty special that Stewie can get to experience that and have that on her resume, I know she is going to make the most of it."

So how has Stewart done in her first couple of days at training camp?

"She is doing great. training camp in the WNBA is so short so you really have to throw a lot out there but she has picked up things very well," Bird said. "Offensively, I think the more we are together we will get comfortable but you can already see her talent, you can already see the things she does and her versatility and that she will be able to play multiple spots on the floor. Her defense day one is just unbelievable. Obviously people have to get used to her just like people have to get used to  a player like Brittney Griner but she was immediately blocking pretty much everybody's shot."

Taurasi, Griner, Augustus and Angel McCoughtry were unable to make it to today's event because of they are still playing overseas.

Breanna Stewart, who was the No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft after leading UConn to four straight national titles, has been signed to a multi-year endorsement deal with Nike.

Connecticut Sun rookies Rachel Banham and Jonquel Jones were also signed by Nike.

Here is the release

NIKE, Inc. is proud to announce the signing of Breanna Stewart to a multi-year endorsement deal, adding to what has already been a historic year for the Syracuse, New York native. Stewart was the number one pick in this month’s WNBA draft, just over a week after becoming the most decorated player in women’s college basketball history. She is also the first player ever, male or female, to win four consecutive national titles while earning four tournament Most Outstanding Player awards.
Throughout it all, Stewart has shown dedication and humility. “My parents are my role models. They taught me the value of hard work,” she says. “The moment that rebounding for my dad at the YMCA as a kid turned into him rebounding for me was special for us both — it showed me that loyalty and support go a long way.” 
The Nike family of athletes is eager for Stewart to join them, and many have compared her versatility and style of play to that of Kevin Durant. She's proven herself a leader with a strong work ethic and a pure love of the game, who will be an invaluable addition to the team.
Stewart’s partnership with Nike will also continue to build basketball’s global footprint. “Being strong and bold while carrying yourself with humility and confidence is something I hope to share with young kids,” asserts Stewart, understanding that as a professional athlete, she has an opportunity to positively influence young players around the world.
The next chapter in Stewart’s journey takes her to the Pacific Northwest, where she will join the Seattle Storm. The team begins its regular season on May 15 against the Los Angeles Sparks.
In addition to Stewart, today Nike Basketball announces the signings of Rachel Banham, Aerial Powers, Jonquel Jones and Tiffany Mitchell.
Rachel Banham was selected fourth overall by the Connecticut Sun. Banham was the Big Ten Player of the Year for the University of Minnesota.
Aerial Powers was selected fifth overall by the Dallas Wings. Powers averaged nearly 19 points and 10 rebounds during her three-year career at Michigan State University and is the sixth MSU player to be selected to the WNBA.
Jonquel Jones was selected sixth by the Los Angeles Sparks and immediately traded. She will join fellow rookie Rachel Banham on the Connecticut Sun. Hailing from George Washington University, Jones finished her collegiate career ranking third at George Washington in rebounds, fourth in scoring and fifth in blocked shots.
Tiffany Mitchell was drafted ninth to the Indiana Fever. The three-time All-American holds the University of South Carolina record for most career starts and is fifth in points.

Breanna Stewart stopped answering a question in mid sentence and slammed her fist onto the table when he was informed that Morgan Tuck was indeed the third pick in the WNBA Draft. Moriah Jefferson, taken second overall just a few minutes earlier, also had a rather exuberant reaction to the news.

The historic achievement of being the first teammates to be taken with the top three picks in a pro draft was special but more than anything else, the three former teammates were incredibly excited at the situations they are all walking into.

Stewart joins Sue Bird (now her teammate in Seattle), Diana Taurasi, Tina Charles and Maya Moore as the UConn players selected No. 1 overall in the WNBA Draft. Jefferson, the first Texas native to play for the Huskies, is returning home to suit up for San Antonio and Tuck was one of five draftees joining an already young nucleus for the Connecticut Sun.

"I have to wonder if it was actually real," Stewart said  "I woke up this morning and my thought (was similar to) when we won the national championship 'wow, I am getting drafted today.' That is a childhood dream and it just came true.

"We've been waiting here, we've been up since 6:30 this morning  and we want to know what is going to happen. I think to have Mo to my left, Morgan (around)  the corner from me and just to be able to look at them, embrace them as I was walking to the podium, that just shows the kind of group we are, we care about each other and how each other are doing."

Jefferson figured she was in a win-win situation as she would either be suiting up in her native Texas or in the state that has become her home away from home these last four years.

"They asked me if I would rather go to Connecticut or come here and they are both like home now," Jefferson said. "Being here for the last four years, it was great to be able to go back home."
Jefferson joked that she would pick up the ball and throw it at Stewart the first time her former teammate blocks one of her shots and would keep her distance from Tuck since she "is going to try to knock me out too."

San Antonio coach Dan Hughes, a two-time WNBA coach of the year, attempted to put in perspective the history that transpired on Thursday night.

"It is equally as remarkable as four straight championships., it is just amazing," Hughes said. "That is the beautiful thing about Connecticut players and all three of those girls came in as freshmen, were impactful and got better every year. The escalation led to a unique time here in the WNBA with 1, 2 and 3.

"You get a Connecticut player, they do things rights whether it is on the court, there is a focus. They are supposed to win the games, how many times did they get out of the gate with a mentality that was professional with just how they did it. I started dealing with them after the season and their ability to communicate with me, I've been fortunate to have some Connecticut players and they all bear that resemblance to me, it just love that because I feel like they are ready."

Connecticut Sun coach Curt Miller said that after consultation with UConn coaches and medical personnel, there were no concerns about Tuck's knee issues impacting her pro career. If there were any concerns, the Sun would have selected George Washington's Jonquel Jones. As it turned out, Connecticut got both of them - at a hefty price by giving up guard Chelsea Gray, the No. 15 pick and next year's No. 1 in exchange for Jones and the No. 17 pick (used to select Oregon State's Jamie Weisner. Oh, the Sun also selected Minnesota's Rachel Banham with the No. 4 pick.

Both Stewart and Jefferson said they felt more joy when Tuck went third overall than when they were selected. For Tuck, it was a night she won't soon forget.
"I was in fourth grade, I loved Lisa Leslie and I did a project in school and since then I wanted to play in the WNBA," Tuck said. "Now to get drafted, it is kind of surreal that is happened."

Another dream was fulfilled when Atlanta selected former Hillhouse High star Bria Holmes with the No. 11 pick making her the first state native taken in the first round of the WNBA Draft.

“It has always been a dream of mine to play in the WNBA, and to finally get drafted, especially in the first round, it was a bitter sweet moment,” Holmes said. “I wasn’t really expecting to go in the first round, but my dream actually came true. I couldn’t be happier and more proud of myself. All of the things that I have been through in high school and at West Virginia really paved the way for me.”

Banham is now the answer to a trivia question for being the first non-UConn player taken in this year's draft. She hopes to be more than just a footnote in the history books.

"I really did want to come here so I was hoping to hear my name, once I did I was in shock," Banham said. "He said 'I want you to score' when I hear that I said absolutely, I am coming there. I am excited to work under him."

Banham seemed to enjoy watching the delight in the faces of Stewart, Jefferson and Tuck as they went right before her.

"Those three girls were going up there and the fans were loving it," Banham said. "This is a championship state. I watch UConn play every year and they just win, that is what they do. The vibes of the fans, they love it and they love basketball and that is fun to play in front of."

The 6-foot-6 Jones is an intriguing prospect as she has the ability to step out and hit from the 3-point range. She is aware that the Sun gave up quite a bit to get her.

"I just don't want to let them down now, you want go in training camp, spend a lot of time in the gym and show you are willing to work," Jones said

"I am really fond of her. I was telling her to make sure she leaves her mark. She was somebody I really enjoyed being around and I was telling her we should keep in touch so I guess we will be keeping in touch."
Weisner, who led Oregon State to the Final Four, and St. John's Aliyyah Handford will also be joining the Sun putting the roster at 19 but there are four players who could remain overseas at the start of training camp. With 15 players allowed in training camp at one time, that would allow the Sun to take a look at the new players before some of the veterans arrive.

Miller said he did not want to trade away Gray and certainly was in no hurry to lose next year's first-round pick but he felt that a talent like Jones was worthy the price of what the team surrendered. He said if Jones were in next year's draft that perhaps she would be the top player available.

The postseason award races have featured as much drama as most of the games for the national champion UConn women's basketball team.

On Friday night UConn senior forward Breanna Stewart was named the winner of the Wooden Award for the second consecutive season adding it to the Wade Trophy, Naismith Trophy, Associated Press Player of the Year and U.S Basketball Writers Association Player of the Year Award.

Stewart, the only Division I women's basketball with at least 400 assists and 400 blocked shots, joins Maya Moore as the only UConn player to score more than 700 points more than once. As a senior she averaged 19.4 points and 8.7 rebounds per game while setting career highs with 147 assists, 16 blocked shots and 67 steals.

Stewart is the only player to be named the Most Outstanding Player in the Final Four four times. She finished second with 71 blocked shots, tied for second with 207 rebounds and third with 446 points in NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament history. She will graduate as the Huskies career leader in blocked shots and will rank second in scoring and fourth in rebounding.

She is up for the Sullivan Award as the nation's premier amateur athlete which will be announced on Sunday and on Thursday is expected to join Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, Tina Charles and Maya Moore as the only UConn players taken first overall in the WNBA Draft.

Stewart was joined on the Wooden All-American by classmate Moriah Jefferson.

Stewart was in Los Angeles to accept the award just two days after making the trip to Indianapolis to Storrs following UConn's 11th national title including the fourth in a row. She will be taking part in Sunday's championship parade in Hartford before going through orientation for the WNBA Draft on Tuesday and Wednesday in preparation for Thursday's WNBA Draft at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Geno Auriemma probably summed up Monday night's events at Gampel Pavilion when classmates Breanna Stewart, Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck combined for 61 points, 25 rebounds, 16 assists and six blocked shots in a 97-51 win over Duquesne.

"It is going to be a long time before we see something like this again," Auriemma said.

The Hall of Fame coach was speaking in general terms about what the trio has managed to accomplish since their arrival but his words also helped capture the essence of the performance put forth by UConn's "Big Three."

Stewart had 21 points, a career-high tying 16 rebounds and five blocked shots (three in one possession). Jefferson had 20 points (on just 10 shots), seven assists, three steals and no turnovers while Tuck chipped in with 20 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.

Fittingly they all came out of the game together with 5:49 left to play to a rousing ovation.

"It was like the perfect ending to playing here at Gampel for all three of us to have the games that we had, it was amazing," Jefferson said. "You can't even think about getting emotional and crying with the way that we played, we were all really excited."

During one stretch the trio had 10 straight baskets for the Huskies and had two other stretches when they accounted for each of the five baskets scored by the Huskies as UConn pulled away from the pesky Dukes.
"It was just fun, we were just excited for each other and excited for our team," Tuck said. "It was by far the mot fun we had playing here before so it was nice that our last time playing together here was a great memory."
UConn posted its 71st win, moving into sole possession of second place on the NCAA Division I women's list  and set up a regional semifinal matchup with Mississippi State on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. at Webster Bank Arena.

"It was unbelievable," Stewart said. "I think for all three of us to play as well as we did, finish the game together essentially was huge. To receive a standing ovation, there is nothing better than that."
Some notes from the game.

Stewart and Jefferson are now the  highest scoring UConn tandem in not only NCAA tournament history but in postseason history as well. They now have 908 career postseason points moving by the previous record of 897 set by Kara Wolters and Carla Berube from 1993-96 and the 587 points in the NCAA tournament tops the mark of 566 set by Diana Taurasi and Jessica Moore from 2001-04.

Stewart posted her 132nd career double-digit scoring game tying her with Minnesota's Rachel Banham (whose career ended with a loss in the WNIT on Sunday) for the fourth highest total in NCAA Division I history. She could still surpass former Oklahoma star Courtney Paris' total of 134 but the record 149 set by Maya Moore and 146 by Brittney Griner is out of reach even for Stewart.

Stewart has now surpassed the 400 mark in both career assists and blocked shots. Blocked shot totals have only been official since 1988 and I went back a little further to when Cheryl Miller and Cindy Brown played and don't have another player with 400 assists and 400 blocked shots.

Jefferson is now sixth on the NCAA tournament list with 46 career steals and is second in NCAA tournament history with a 51.9 3-point percentage trailing only Jennifer Azzi's absurd total of 55.8. Officially Jefferson won't qualify since a player needs to attempt 1.5 3-pointers per game and she is currently at 1.4 per contest.

There are certainly more statistic notes for the two of them but I'll save that for a later day.

The ultimate goal is six wins away for Moriah Jefferson and Breanna Stewart as they attempt to be the first two players to be on the court for four national championship teams. However, their impact can also be quantified thanks to their individual statistics.

They are currently fourth on the list of highest scoring classmates in the NCAA tournament in UConn history and third in program history in combined postseason points.

NCAA TOURNAMENT SCORING
566 Diana Taurasi 428/Jessica Moore 138 (2000-04)
543 Bria Hartley 300/Stefanie Dolson 243 (2010-14)
518 Maya Moore 476/Lorin Dixon 42 (2007-11)
514 Breanna Stewart 324/Moriah Jefferson 190 (2012-present)
511 Kara Wolters 322/Carla Berube 189 (1993-97)
495 Sue Bird 253/Asjha Jones 242 (1998-2002)
492 Breanna Stewart 324/Morgan Tuck 168 (2012-present)
469 Barbara Turner 274/Ann Strother 195 (2002-06)
466 Sue Bird 253/Swin Cash 213 (1998-2002)
463 Sue Bird 253/Tamika Williams 210 (1998-2002)
458 Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis 374/Kiah Stokes 84 (2011-15)
402 Jen Rizzotti 212/Jamelle Elliott 190 (1992-96)

POSTSEASON TOURNAMENT SCORING
897 Kara Wolters 565/Carla Berube 332 (1993-97)
863 Bria Hartley 441/Stefanie Dolson 422 (2010-14)
845 Breanna Stewart 538/Moriah Jefferson 307 (2012-present)
803 Breanna Stewart 538/Morgan Tuck 265 (2012-present)
730 Maya Moore 661/Lorin Dixon 69 (2007-11)
728 Barbara Turner 412/Ann Strother 316 (2002-06)
715 Asjha Jones 376/Sue Bird 339 (1998-2002)
686 Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis 576/Kiah Stokes 110 (2011-15)

Obviously Stewart and Jefferson and pretty high on some NCAA career lists as well. Stewart needs 28 points to move into the top 10 on the NCAA tournament career list, 29 rebounds to break into the top 10 on that list and is currently tied with Sylvia Fowles for third on the career blocked shots list so when she ties Rebecca Lobo's career blocked shots list, she will take over sole possession of third place in NCAA tournament history. Jefferson's 41 steals leaves her one behind Dawn Staley for 10th place on the career list while she ranks third with a 3-point percentage of 46.5.

When UConn signed the trio of Moriah Jefferson, Breanna Stewart and Morgan Tuck, there was talk of them being the best recruiting class in women's basketball history.

The Sue Bird-Swin Cash-Asjha Jones-Keirsten Walters-Tamika Williams class signed in 1997 certainly needs to be mentioned about the best ever. When Tennessee signed a six-player class headlined by Candace Parker, Alexis Hornbuckle and Nicky Anosike, who would all be taken in the top 16 picks in the 2008 WNBA Draft, there were stories speculating that it might be the best class ever.

There were recruiting services that had Stewart, Jefferson and Tuck among the top four players in their class and certainly in the top 10. Their ultimate legacy can't be determined until this season plays out. If the Huskies run the table, UConn would have won an NCAA Division I women's record 151 games since their arrival (topping the 150 won by UConn during Lorin Dixon's and Maya Moore's four seasons) and no other women's recruiting class could lay claim to four national titles in four seasons.

Individually, Stewart has earned the right be to mentioned in the company of Maya Moore and Diana Taurasi when discussing legendary figures in the program history while Jefferson will be able to hold her own alongside of Jen Rizzotti and Bird when the discussion turns to the best point guards to play at UConn. Geno Auriemma has used Jones as a player to compare to Tuck. Anybody who has been around Auriemma dating back to Jones' playing days can appreciate just lofty that praise happens to be.

At the recent national team training camp I asked Bird about the benefits of having fellow star players to deal with the expectations that Jefferson, Stewart and Tuck have dealt with since arriving at UConn.

"To have to do everything is no burden that any player should have to bear," Bird said. "There are some who can do it but something is missing when you have to do it all by yourself. When it is a team, you are together, it is a really special relationship. You have support, it is just a support system, it is there in your dorm room, it is there when you walk out (on the court) and it is extremely helpful."
Stewart is the only Division I women's players with at least 300 assists and 300 blocked shots since blocked became a statistic officially recognized by the NCAA in 1988. Cheryl Miller and Cindy Brown also had more than 300 assists and 300 blocks but since blocked shots totals before 1988 aren't included in the NCAA record book, I haven't been able to come up with a list of other players with at least 300 assists and 300 blocked shots but if Stewart gets to 400 assists and 400 blocked shots, neither Brown nor Miller accomplished that feat.

Jefferson is two assists shy of 600 and when she gets there, she will have the best assist/turnover ratio of any players in that group dating back to the 1999-2000 season.

Finally, they became the first trio of UConn teammates to combine for 5,000 career points and also have the most assists, steals and blocked shots of any three UConn classmates.

POINTS
12-16: Jefferson-Stewart-Tuck 500898-02: Cash-Jones-Williams 4487
02-06: Crockett-Strother-Turner 3930
00-04: Battle-Moore-Taurasi 3899*
10-14: Dolson-Hartley-Walker 3896

REBOUNDS98-02: Cash-Jones-Williams 2467
06-10: Charles-Gardler-McLaren 2104
02-06: Crockett-Strother-Turner 1994
12-16: Jefferson-Stewart-Tuck 192500-04: Battle-Moore-Taurasi 1802*
92-96: Better-Elliott-Rizzotti  1769
10-14: Dolson-Hartley-Walker 1750

ASSISTS
12-16: Jefferson-Stewart-Tuck 122500-04: Battle-Conlon-Taurasi 1098*
92-96: Better-Elliott-Rizzotti 1032
98-02: Bird-Cash-Jones   954
10-14: Dolson-Hartley-Walker  952

STEALS
12-16: Jefferson-Stewart-Tuck 61498-02: Bird-Cash-Williams 578
92-96: Better-Elliott-Rizzotti  567
04-08: Houston-Swanier-Thomas 548
88-92: Baer-Davis-Pattyson 545

BLOCKS
12-16: Jefferson-Stewart-Tuck 43391-95: Dixon-Lobo-Webber 414
06-10: Charles-Gardler-McLaren 413
93-97: Berube-Rose-Wolters 404
11-15: Banks-KML-Stokes  389
*-does not include statistics for Battle and Moore during 2004-05 season

Thanks to the Twitter account of her high school team, the photo of UConn freshman Katie Lou Samuelson having a conversation with another sweet-shooting California native has made quite the splash on social media.

The photo was taken after Diana Taurasi wrapped up the second day of the three-day training camp with the U.S. national team and shortly before Samuelson and the Huskies had a Monday afternoon. The timing couldn't have been much better as Samuelson is coming off a Taurasi-like offensive performance in the first quarter of Saturday's win at East Carolina. Samuelson finished with 15 points, which would have marked the second best scoring effort of her freshman season even if she did not play in the final three quarters.

"She is giving me advice on freshman year and to keep my head up," Samuelson said. "Things are starting to go a little bit (easier) so it is really cool to have somebody that I look up to so much and she just feels connected to this program and connected to all of us. I haven't known her before so it was nice to have that connection."

Samuelson and her teammates were able to check out the three days of practices with the 16 players in the national team pool including teammate Breanna Stewart.

"It was amazing," Samuelson said. "It was cool to see the different intensity level they had, every single one them, the confidence, the skills they all possess. It was really a treat for all of us and I think we all learned a lot."

Samuelson was 4 of 5 from the field including 3 of 4 from 3-point range en route to scoring 15 of her 19 points in the first quarter. She now has 47 3-pointers this season and with three in Wednesday's game against SMU, she will join Taurasi, Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Bria Hartley, Maya Moore, Jen Rizzotti, Ann Strother and teammate Kia Nurse as the only UConn freshmen with 50 3-pointers as a freshman.

"I'll take that any day but if my shots aren't going in, I am going to have to find other ways to contribute," Samuelson said. "I would like to make all of my shots, I am sure my teammates would to but I am going to take it game by game and not limit myself if my shots aren't going in.

"I definitely feel comfortable, during practices I can see a difference, a little more confidence to do more on the team, feeling more responsibility. I am still probably going to make mistakes but I know that each game that I play, I will feel more comfortable

"They don't want me to just sit in the corner, hide and try to take that on and say I am just a freshman. They want me to help out and take on some of the weight off of their shoulders."

INSIDE INFORMATION?
The entire UConn team, when they didn't have classes to attend, were regular observers at the training camp

As a result, the leading scorer on the Canadian national team that earned an Olympic berth by winning the FIBA Americas Championship for Women got to see the defending Olympic champions in action.

"I texted my teammates and said 'I am sitting in enemy territory,'" UConn sophomore guard Kia Nurse said. "They said 'get as much (information) as you can.' All right, I am not going to get anything but all right.

"You get to see some of the best players in the world, their practicing tendencies and just the confidence that they have in having to pick things up so quickly."

SELECT COMPANY
I did some checking and there are three Division I women's players shooting at least 55 percent from the field, 40 percent from 3-point range and 80 percent from the foul line.

One of those players is Maryland junior Shatori Walker-Kimbrough, who is shooting 55.6 percent overall, a stunning 56.7 percent on 3-pointers and 80.2 percent from the free-throw line. The other two players in that category are UConn seniors Moriah Jefferson (58.5 percent on field goals, 41.9 percent on 3-pointers and 88.6 on foul shots) and Breanna Stewart (.589/.417/.817).

In UConn's history, there are two players who hit all three shooting percentage landmarks. Shea Ralph did it as a redshirt sophomore and Jefferson accomplished the feat last season.

DANGERFIELD A NAISMITH FINALIST
UConn signee Crystal Dangerfield is one of five finalists for the Naismith Girls' High School Player of the Year.

Dangerfield, a senior guard at Blackman High in Murfreesboro, Tenn., is averaging 24.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.5 steals per game. Dangerfield has eight 30-point games this season in leading Blackman to a 26-3 record and the Tennessee District 7-AAA championship.

Erin Boley, Lauren Cox, Joyner Holmes and Jackie Young are the other finalists. The winner will be announced on Mar. 10.

Breanna Stewart wasn't going to lie, the UConn senior All-American was a bit on the groggy side when she got up this morning.

Stewart and her teammates played at East Carolina last night and even with the benefit of a chartered flight back to Connecticut, she didn't return to campus until shortly before 2 a.m. Still, Stewart was not going to let anything and not even jet lap or a lack of sleep keep her from putting her best foot forward during the first day of the U.S. national team training camp.

"What drives me when I get tired is looking at the players I am playing with and playing against, this opportunity, nobody else in college has this opportunity and I want to make sure I take advantage of it," Stewart said.

As Stewart mentioned, she is the only active collegiate player among the 16 players taking part in the three-day national team camp being held at UConn. She found herself matched up against Nneka Ogwumike, Tamika Catchings and Brittney Griner, among others, during the morning practice.

While there was a time when her inexperience resulted in Stewart being a little indecisive, that was not the case this time.

"Obviously she wasn't physically ready for all of this (a couple years ago)," UConn and U.S. head coach Geno Auriemma said. "After being around them for a long time and having traveled to Europe she hadn't done that. If you were to bring anybody out here today and say 'pick out the college player' nobody would be able to do that. She is right at home with that group. She blends in, she stands out in certain areas and in other areas the experience part is going to be an issue. Every day that she is with them, she gets better and better."

Stewart doesn't know if she will be among the 12 players picked to represent the U.S. in the quest for Olympic gold but she does think she has earned her spot in the national team player pool.

"I think I am at a point right now where I don't even think of myself as the lone college player, the youngster and that kind of stuff because as you continue to play with them, you get more and more comfortable so now it is just playing basketball," Stewart said.

"You can look at anybody on the court I am playing with offensively or that I am playing against, there is never going to be a team with this many great players on it, you will get better with the ball in your hands, without the ball and defensively."

Stewart's UConn's teammates were among those in attendance at the camp.

"I was thinking about it earlier this morning, 'wow, we are national team (camp) here at Storrs,'" Stewart said.

"Our entire team, we are excited about it. We have a group message going and right away, it is like 'who is coming to practice.' They will be here tomorrow and the next day because when the best women's basketball players come to town, they want to see them."

In many ways the final score was not even close to being the most important aspect of the two hours spent inside Gampel Pavilion on Wednesday night.

More than 8,000 fans turned out to watch the UConn women's basketball dispatch Cincinnati for their 62nd straight win. Many of those in attendance were adorned in pink shirts, belts, shoes or ties since it was the annual Play4Kay Game to raise money for cancer research.

Before the game rather than just have the five starters introduced so they could hand a mini basketball to wide-eyed kids, every UConn player took in the festivities in order to allow cancer survivors to receive a towel and basketball from the Huskies as well. At halftime it was impossible to ignore the pure emotion as Fiona Furlong, a cancer survivor who is affiliated with the UConn Health Center, spoke about the importance of the night not just from a fundraising perspective but also from an emotional one.

Had the cancer-related events come to an end when Furlong got the UConn fans to join her in a UConn chant heard regularly at Husky games, it would have been a memorable evening. However, the Huskies' two-time national player of the year Breanna Stewart had something on her mind. With the blessing of the UConn women's basketball program she asked the fans to join her in wishing ESPN reporter Holly Rowe, the sideline reporter for the Women's Final Four, well in her fight with cancer.

"When I was a freshman, I wouldn't have felt comfortable going this, it would have been out of my element," Stewart said. "The way I have grown over the past four years shows a lot and being a role model to kids and even adults, that is what I want to do besides playing basketball here is to make an impact off the court.

"We had planned it with Kevin (DeMille, UConn's assistant director of women's basketball administration) because we wanted to do the thing (handing out prizes) with the student section to not only put it to the students but also the entire gym.

"It was a big deal. Holly, she means a lot to our team. She has been around us a lot in the NCAA tournament. Anytime we see somebody going through that, you want to wish them the best and just seeing them pull through. Even from reading her tweets and what is being said on SportsCenter, it is unbelievable how strong she is and I can't wait to see her in March."

UConn coach Geno Auriemma, who lost his father Donato to cancer and at one point started Geno's Cancer Team featuring student volunteers, also headed out on the court in the pre-game introductions and exchanged hugs with the cancer survivors. Seeing Stewart taking the lead in engaging the crowd the way she did reminded him how far his senior star has come in the last four years.
"Stewie wouldn't talk to me four years ago much less (the crowd)," Auriemma said. "Stewie has grown up a lot. They had talked about what they were going to do and obviously the cancer awareness thing was important for a lot of people, it is important for the community, it is important for those people who were here. Holly Rowe is a big part of our (women's basketball) community, she is a big part of the college basketball world and Stewie I thought was right on point."

Both Moriah Jefferson and Breanna Stewart have had their share of huge offensive games since arriving at UConn but Sunday's 85-60 win at Temple marked just the second time they scored at least 20 points in the same game.

Jefferson's take on her 25-point effort (to go with eight assists and eight steals) and the 24 points by Stewart (along with eight rebounds, seven assists, four steals and six blocked shots) is almost that it was a necessary evil.

Starters Morgan Tuck and Kia Nurse had one made field goal each and other than a garbage time basket by Natalie Butler, the only reserve to make a shot from the field was Gabby Williams who was a spectacular 9 for 9.

"It is fun but at the same time it is not what we really want to do," Jefferson said. "We want to be consistent we want the flow to be everybody in rhythm and everybody to make a play. Sometimes there are other games when we have to do it and there are other games where you can where we don't need to."

Temple got blown out only a month ago when the Owls played at UConn but when Erica Covile hit a layup, the game was tied at 30 with 4:08 left in the second quarter. Temple missed its final seven shots of the half and had three turnovers allowing the Huskies to use a 10-0 run to take a 10-point lead into the locker room at halftime.

"I thought the first 20 minutes the only thing we did better was we had more All-Americans on the floor than they did," UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. "I don't think we did anything better. I don't think we rebounded better, ran our offense better, played better defense. I don't think we did anything better than them, I told them at halftime the only reason we are 10 points is we have three All-Americans on the floor and they don't."
Jefferson moved past UConn legend Sue Bird in both points and assists while Jefferson, Stewart and Morgan Tuck now are the most productive trio of classmates in UConn women's basketball history in points, assists, steals and now blocked shots.

Temple coach Tonya Cardoza, who was an assistant coach on some of the Huskies best teams, believes that the Jefferson and Stewart deserve to be mentioned among the best guard-forward combos to ever suit up at UConn.

"Both of those guys are unbelievable and the way Jefferson never gets rattled no matter what the situation, she just plays hard, knocked down shots when she has to," Cardoza said. "I just remember the championship game last year and how she just stepped up and won the game for them. I love her and I tell my guards all the time to just watch her. She is busting her butt running all over the place, she is never complained about being tired, she is running her team. You need to pay attention watch her study film of her. I love Jefferson and Stewart she is going to go down as one of the best to play. She is just unbelievable, she is super athletic and the things she is able to do at her size, oh my gosh. I am so excited about her graduating, both of them and Tuck too. Even though Tuck didn't have a great night, I hope Tuck leaves too."

I will have more on Williams in the next day or two as she joins Rebecca Lobo, Stewart, Shea Ralph and Nykesha Sales as the only UConn players to attempt at least nine shots from the field without missing. She finished with 19 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and two steals.