Things were a little hectic yesterday since I had to head straight to the UConn football game after wrapping up my duty at UConn women's basketball practice so I was unable to share my thoughts on what I saw.

The lasting image from the hour or so of practice I was able to witness was how much time UConn coach Geno Auriemma spent running plays through freshman Breanna Stewart.

I have been fortunate enough to have seen some special freshmen arrive on the scene in the years I have been covering the Huskies but don't recall seeing Auriemma specifically running the offense through a freshman this early in the process. Yet there he was instructing Stewart what to do when there was a double team and when to look for a cutting teammate, when she had the chance to spot up and shoot a jumper in the lane or simply take her man off the dribble.

“(In the preseason finale against Holy Family) we said ‘look, the next five possessions we are going to screen for Breanna and pass it to her,” Auriemma said. “We scored like five straight times. Nobody ever accused our coaching staff of being asleep at the wheel so when we need a couple of buckets, we know exactly where we are going. She is pretty comfortable with it. She is pretty good with the ball; she knows what to do with it. The big thing with Breanna is we keep on her about being aggressive. The more she stays aggressive, the more plays she makes. The more plays she makes, the more we go to her. She is a little too unselfish. Right now she is a little reluctant to do as much as I think she can do but in time she will get the idea that nobody minds if every time she is open she shoots it.”
UConn was working hard on some defensive drills for a large portion of the practice we were privy to which is hardly a surprise but I saw a drill I don't recall seeing before.
He spread three male practice players and Heather Buck at spots along the 3-point arc and had four of his players line up one right beside the other in the paint. Then he would pick out which player who would whip the ball to. The four defenders would have to react quickly enough to not only attempt to get out on the 3-point shooter (which wasn't possible due to how rapidly Auriemma delivered the pass) but also who to block out so they could get the rebound. It took a few times but gradually the Huskies began to adapt and make the right decisions.


MCCALL TO ANNOUNCE HER DECISION TONIGHT
From what I am hearing, the people around UConn recruiting target Erica McCall are keeping news of her college of choice to themselves until McCall announces whether she will be attending UConn, Stanford or UCLA tonight around 10 p.m.

It will be interesting to see if word leaks out in the next 12 hours but my guess is it likely will not until it is just before she makes the decision. I've heard that she doesn't even plan on telling the college coaches or her decision until she is ready to make it known at a party she is hosting in her Bakersfield, Calif. home.

UConn recruiting target Erica McCall, a 6-foot-3 forward from Bakersfield, Calif., is expected to announce her college decision Saturday evening.

According to her father, McCall will make her college decision known around 7 p.m. local time (which is 10 p.m. here in Connecticut).

McCall will pick between UConn, Stanford and UCLA.

Recee' Caldwell, a 5-foot-8 junior guard from San Antonio, Tex., is expected to arrive at UConn for her unofficial visit on Thursday according to her high school coach.

Caldwell, a member of the 2011 U.S. U-16 squad, is expected to fly out on Thursday. I'm not sure if she will arrive in time to watch UConn's practice on Thursday but she certainly should be able to watch the Huskies practice on Friday.

Caldwell committed to Baylor back in August of 2011 before reopening her recruitment. UConn head coach Geno Auriemma and associate head coach Chris Dailey were in Johnson High School in San Antonio to watch Caldwell practice last month according to Johnson head coach Randy Evans.


"I know the head coach and associate head coach was here about a month ago and watched one of our practices," Evans said. "I had a good, long talk with Geno and he seemed very interested."

Caldwell averaged 17.4 points, 6.1 assists, 4.4 rebounds, 2.6 steals and 51 3-pointers as a sophomore. She scored in double figures in all but two games last season and had 11 20-point games. Evans said that while Caldwell will start at point guard, she has the versatility to play the off guard.

"The things that kind of stand out are her passion for the game, her coachability," Evans said. "She certainly is an outstanding passer. Her skill level is really high as far as passing the ball. She has real good court vision. She understands the flow of the game offensively. She fits in well with what we are doing. I've got her at the point but she can play the off guard too, she has a good 3-point shot. Everybody has a weakness or two but her weaknesses are pretty hard to find. She is a real student of the game. She is always wanting to do more. She is here early, she comes by all the time. She is constantly trying to improve. She is a better than average free-throw shooter. She is a joy to have around."

Caldwell and fellow UConn recruiting target Jordin Canada were two of the three members of the high school Class of 2014 on the U.S. squad which led the U.S. to the title at the 2011 FIBA Americas U16 Championships. UConn Class of 2013 recruiting target Erica McCall was also a member of that squad.

It looks like we will have to wait until Nov. 10 to see if UConn's incoming freshman class is a class of one or two.

UConn received its first oral commitment from the Class of 2013 when Ossining (N.Y.) senior guard Saniya Chong committed to UConn while she was on her official visit.

Erica McCall, a 6-foot-3 forward from Bakersfield, Calif., also took an official visit to UConn over the weekend. She was in the stands for the First Night festivities on Friday as well as the first official practice the next morning.

However, anybody who is expecting a quick commitment from McCall will be disappointed.

I exchanged emails with McCall's father Greg, who is also the head coach at Cal State Bakersfield and he said the plan is for his daughter to make her decision known on Nov. 10.

Erica McCall is scheduled to visit UCLA this weekend along with former UConn recruiting target Linnae Harper and Stanford also figures to be a major player in the recruitment of McCall.

UCONN WON'T BE GOING TO TRENTON REGIONAL
When the NCAA announced the 2013 regional sites it seemed almost like a foregone conclusion that the Huskies would land in Trenton, N.J.

However, the NCAA announced today that because New Jersey recently passed a state law allowing wagering on college and pro sports in New Jersey that they are pulling five NCAA tournaments previously awarded to cities in New Jersey including the 2013 regional in Trenton.

Saniya Chong, a 5-foot-9 senior guard at Ossining (N.Y.) High School, committed to UConn on Saturday morning while she was on her official visit

Chong is currently on her official visit to UConn. She was in the stands a Gampel Pavilion last night and is currently at the Huskies' first official practice of the season and she is the first player from the Class of 2013 to commit to UConn.

"The players are amazing," Chong said. "I thought I connected with the players here and I thought it was the perfect fit.

"You always want that connection with the players but you also need that connection on the court. I like the speed they play at, the intensity they have."

Chong averaged 33.3 points, 5.2 rebounds,  9.7 assists and 5 steals per game as a junior. She had four 40-point games as a junior and twice scored 55 points and had four triple-doubles.

Chong previously visited Louisville and Ohio State with UConn being her last scheduled official visit.

"She went through the whole process," Ossining coach Dan Ricci said. She visited all three schools but she really loved UConn from the beginning but she really wanted to go through the process and make sure it was right for her. She found out last night and told her mom and me that it was the place for her.

"Besides the basketball aspect, it is the camaraderie with the girls and how they all got along. She always liked the coaches from the beginning ad once she got to know the girls this weekend she decided (to commit) I think with the coaching staff here and players here she can get better and better."

Ossining opens the season on Dec. 7 against Archbishop Molloy and hosts Christ the King on Dec. 4.

Erica McCall is also on an official visit but since it is just her second official campus visit, I'd be surprised if a commitment is coming from her this weekend.

Here is Ossining's 2012-13 schedule courtesy of Dan Ricci. The matchups in the Nike Tournament of Championship in December should be announced as we get closer to the event



DAY DATE OPPONENT LOCATION TIME

Fri 12/ 7 Archbishop Molloy Home 4:30 PM
Fri 12/14 Newburgh Free Home 4:45 PM
Mon. 12/17 Horace Greeley- * Away 6:15 PM
Thur. 12/20 TBA Arizona TBA
Fri. 12/21 TBA Arizona TBA
Sat. 12/22 TBA Arizona TBA
Thu . 12/27 St Anthony’s County Center TBA
Fri. 12/28 LI Lutheran/Irvington County Center TBA
Sat. 1/4 Christ the King Home 12:30 PM
Fri. 1/11 Harrison - * Away 7:00 PM
Mon. 1/14 Ardsley Home 4:30 PM
Wed. 1/16 Alexander Hamilton - * Away 4:30 PM
Fri. 1/18 Norland Florida Bishop Ford 7:00 PM
Sun. 1/27 St John Vianney NJ Holmdel NJ 3:30 PM
Wed. 1/30 Rye - * Home 4:30 PM  
Sat. 2/2 Spring Ford PA Home 12:00 PM                                
Wed. 2/6 Blind Brook- * Home 4:30 PM
Fri.     2/8 Irvington Home 4:30 PM
*- Indicates League Game

Make no mistake that there are few people Geno Auriemma admires more or has more respect for than the Indiana Fever's Tamika Catchings, who helped the Auriemma coached U.S. teams win the 2010 World Championship and 2012 Olympic gold medals. But with five of his former UConn players on the Connecticut Sun, there's no questioning where his allegiances rest in tomorrow's decisive game in the Eastern Conference finals.


"It is always good when other people say it but I don't know any other school that has won more titles than ours," Auriemma said. "I don't know any other school that has had more people win WNBA titles than we have with Sue's two, Diana's two, Swin's three, Maya that is a lot. I like a lot of the kids that I coached this summer but selfishly I am rooting for a Connecticut/Minnesota final so I can hopefully get a chance to see them play."

Auriemma will be hosting recruiting Saniya Chong and Erica McCall, who are on their official visits, so he won't be able to make it to Mohegan Sun for tomorrow's game. But if the Sun win Auriemma would like to make it down there for game three and game four (if necessary) next weekend.

As previously reported in this blog, UConn Class of 2013 recruiting targets Saniya Chong and Erica McCall are planning to be at Gampel Pavilion on official visits next weekend so they can check out the First Night festivities on Oct. 12, the first official practice the next morning and likely the UConn/Temple football game as well.

I made a couple of calls today in order to try to see what the plans are for some of the Class of 2014 prospects being recruited by the Huskies.

Christ the King coach Bob Mackey said that Sierra Calhoun would be there at First Night. Of course there is another reason why the talented guard would want to be at UConn next week as her brother Omar is a freshman on the UConn men's basketball team.

"Will she be there for her brother's First Night, absolutely," Mackey said.

Then I reached out to Curtis Ekmark, the father and high school coach of UConn commit Courtney Ekmark who said it didn't appear likely that they would make the trip.

"I don't think we'll be going," Curtis Ekmark said. "We haven't bought any tickets yet.
"Courtney plays in the boys' league and I don't think she would want to leave them shorthanded plus she hates missing school, she is ranked No. 1 in her class."

Curtis Ekmark said Courtney "would love to be there but she is comfortable with UConn and already knows how great the fans are."

He also said that UConn associate head coach Chris Dailey was just out in Arizona last week on a recruiting visit and that went "extremely well."

Curtis Ekmark said that the defending national high school champion St. Mary's squad has been invited to play in the HoopHall Classic in Springfield, Mass. in 2014 and both he and his daughter would like to take part in that event. However, he is currently finalizing the 2012-13 schedule which is no easy feat considering how dominating a team St. Mary's figures to be in the upcoming season.

At the current time Curtis Ekmark said it's unlikely that Courtney will be at any UConn games in the upcoming season but she would like to visit the campus in June as she did this year as it allowed her to get acquainted with the players who will soon before her college teammates.

It's already been reported that UConn recruiting target Saniya Chong is planning to be at UConn on Oct. 12 when UConn hosts its annual First Night fan fest as well as taking in the Huskies first official practice the following day. I can report that fellow Class of 2012 recruiting target Erica McCall is also planning to make her official visit to UConn that weekend according to her father who I spoke to earlier today.

Greg McCall, the head women's basketball coach at Cal State Bakersfield, said that Erica is down to four schools (UConn, Duke, UCLA and Stanford). OK, so maybe we could make it five schools.

"The fifth is Cal State University Bakersfield, good old dad, I always put that in there," Greg McCall said with a laugh.

Greg McCall , who said he is planning to sit down with Erica tonight to go over some things, said that the UConn visit will be the final one Erica takes and that a college decision could come shortly after after.

"I think she will be ready," Greg McCall said. "I think we would know by then. I think tonight we are going to sit down and talk about some other things by that time she would definitely know. I don;t think she wants to drag it out long. We don't want other schools to have to continue to wait wherever she chooses to go just because. When she knows, she is going to go ahead and say it. It is not going to be one of those things where we are going to play games just to make people wait."

The Stanford visit is planned for the weekend of Sep. 14-15 but Greg McCall didn't remember the exact dates of the trips to Duke and UCLA. He also said that the paperwork for his daughter to be accepted into Stanford has been completed.

"She's done everything, they are supposed to be processing everything right now and letting us know what the word is going to be on that. All of those things are done."

Since he is a Division I head coach I was curious if there were any restrictions on him being able to take part in the official visits and if he was planning to accompany Erica on the visit to UConn. The answers are no and yes.

"I am treated like a parent. It just so happens that I am a Division I head coach but I am treated just like if I was a lawyer or a teacher or a plumber. I will be treated like any other parent. I am very excited about it (visit to UConn). I am looking forward to seeing what UConn is all about. It is an opportunity to watch a great coach coach."

When I reached out to him a couple of days ago to set up the best time to talk he came up with late morning (here in Connecticut) today. When I called him he was talking to somebody else - his older daughter DeWanna Bonner, a star forward with the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury. Naturally I understood that our interview started a few minutes later than originally planned.

Bonner is having an incredible season with Phoenix and when I spoke with Erica at the U-17 training camp in Florida in May she said it was invaluable having somebody like Bonner, who was a star at Auburn, to rely on for advice during the recruiting process. Greg McCall agrees that it is a major plus for Erica to have her sister to talk things through. So what are the main advantages of having a former Division I star and current WNBA player in her corner?

"Just talking to her giving her advice, things to look for, what to expect, how to carry herself which Erica has always done a really good job but how to carry herself, what to say to the media to coaches, to parents to fans and just how to do all of those things there and on the recruiting side what to expect on the recruiting trip. It is good to have that part of it because as a parent I can tell her and as a coach I can tell her what to look for but also hearing it from somebody that is close to your age is even better."

Speaking of Chong, UConn is going to be her final visit. The last time I spoke to her she was down to four schools but not having seen a date for a trip to Maryland I spoke with Ossining (N.Y.) coach Dan Ricci who confirmed that she would be visiting Louisville from Sep. 14-15, Ohio State from Oct. 5-6 and UConn from Oct. 13-14. Ricci said that there was no date for a trip to Maryland and it sounds unlikely that one will be scheduled. Much like McCall look for Chong to make her decision after she returns from her visit to UConn.

Lindsay Allen, Rebecca Greenwell and Diamond DeShields had 13 points each as the United States defeated Spain 75-62 to win the gold medal at the FIBA U-17 World Championships.

Three UConn recruiting targets were members of the undefeated U.S. team. Linnae Harper had six points, six rebounds and two steals, Brianna Turner finished with two points and two rebounds while Erica McCall had two rebounds and a steal.

Turner finished the tournament averaging 8.5 points per game, she was second on the team with a field-goal percentage of 56.9 and also averaged 4 rebounds per game. Harper averaged 7.9 points, 6 rebounds, 2.5 assists and led all players with 34 steals in eight games while McCall averaged 3.8 points and 4 rebounds a game.

Diamond DeShields (14.8 points) and Rebecca Greenwell (11.9) were the only U.S. players to average more than 10 points per game.

DeShields was named the tournamemtn's MVP and Harper was named to all-tournament team.

UConn recruiting target Linnae Harper had 11 points, eight rebounds, four assists and seven steals to lead the United States to an 84-59 win over Canada in the FIBA U-17 World Championship semifinals on Saturday.

UConn targets Brianna Turner (eight points, five rebounds) and Erica McCall (four points, four rebounds) also helped the U.S. pull away from a solid Canadian team.

The U.S. will play Spain for the gold medal tomorrow.

UConn Class of 2014 recruiting target Brianna Turner as well as Rebecca Greenwell and Diamond DeShields had 13 points each as the United States rolled to a 98-28 win over Mali to finish pool play undefeated.

UConn Class of 2013 recruiting target Erica McCall added nine points and nine rebounds for the U.S. which won Group A and will play Australia, the fourth-place team in Group B, in Friday's quarterfinals.

Former UConn recruiting target Diamond DeShields had 29 points as the United States rolled to an 86-47 win over Canada in the FIBA U17 World Championships. UConn targets Linnae Harper (four points, three rebounds, two steals), Erica McCall (five points, six rebounds, two steals) and Brianna Turner (four points, three rebounds) helped the U.S. improve to 2-0 in pool play. The U.S. will face fellow undefeated teams Italy on Sunday and Belgium on Tuesday before wrapping up play in Group A against Mali on Wednesday.

Becca Greenwell had 23 points, seven rebounds and seven assists and UConn Class of 2014 recruiting target  Brianna Turner added 20 points and 10 rebounds as the United States opened up the FIBA U17 World Championships with a 131-89 win over Korea.

UConn Class of 2013 recruiting targets Linnae Harper (9 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 5 steals) and Erica McCall (7 points and 4 rebounds) contributed to the victory and helped the U.S. shoot 65 percent from the field and outrebound Korea 64-25.

With the UConn-dominated United States squad successfully winning the Olympic title for the fifth straight time it's now time to take a look to the future.

We won't have to wait long. The U.S. Under-17 team, which includes UConn recruiting targets Linnae Harper, Erica McCall and Brianna Turner, recently won three international friendlies in preparation for the FIBA U-17 World Championships which kicks off with six games on Friday in Amsterdam.

UConn freshmen Moriah Jefferson, Breanna Stewart and Morgan Tuck headed to the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. over the weekend for a U-18 training camp. They are members of the U.S. team which will play in the FIBA Americas U18 Championships. The U.S. kicks off play in the tournament on Wednesday against the Dominican Republic in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

UConn rising junior guard Bria Hartley will head to Colorado Springs on Friday for final preparations before heading to Athens, Greece for the inaugural FIBA 3x3 World Championship which begins on Aug. 23.

Class of 2014 UConn recruiting target Brianna Turner had 16 points and five rebounds as the U.S. U-17 squad beat their Brazilian counterparts 80-34 in an international friendly on Friday in Caorle, Italy.

Notre Dame commit and former UConn recruiting target Taya Reimer led the U.S. with 17 points while UConn Class of 2013 targets Erica McCall (2 points, 2 rebounds, 4 blocked shots) and Linnae Harper (2 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals) helped the U.S. to the easy win.

It was the first of three exhibition games for the U.S. in preparation for the FIBA U17 World Championships as games against Australia and Italy are planned for Saturday and Sunday respectively.

The U.S. opens play in the World Championships against South Korea on Aug. 17.

UConn recruiting targets Erica McCall and Brianna Turner, former recruiting target Diamond DeShields and Allisha Gray were named to the U.S. team which will be competing in the FIBA U-18 3x3 World Championship in Seville, Spain from Sep. 27-30.

McCall, Turner and DeShields are also members of the U.S. U-17 team which will begin a training camp in Colorado Springs on Wednesday while Gray is a member of the U-18 which will be training in Colorado Springs beginning on Friday.

Even before top recruiting targets Diamond DeShields (North Carolina), Taya Reimer (Notre Dame) and Karlie Samuelson (Stanford) opted to commit elsewhere, the UConn brain trust was not doing cartwheels around the options in the high school Class of 2013 opting to focus on the talent-rich Class of 2014 pretty early on in the process.

A recruiting source told me that UConn's attitude towards the current group of available Class of 2013 commits is along the line of  "we'll get who we get." In other words, UConn is impressed by the three players it is currently recruiting in that class but don't look for any new names to emerge between now and the early signing period in November.

UConn is still involved with guards Linnae Harper and Saniya Chong and post Erica McCall in the Class of 2013. Chong was recently quoted as saying that she plans on taking visits to her final four schools (UConn, Louisville, Maryland and Ohio State) in the fall before making her choice.

Harper and McCall are both members of the U.S. team which will be competing in the  FIBA U17 World Championship for Women and the process of visiting campuses and weighing their college options will have to wait until they return from Amsterdam next month. The U-17 team will meet in Colorado Springs on Aug. 1 for training camp before leaving for Italy for three international friendlies. The U17 World Championship will run from Aug. 17-26 which means they will be tied up with their USA Basketball commitments for almost the entire month of August.

UConn coach Geno Auriemma saw each of those players earlier this month. He was on hand to see Chong score 53 points and Harper rip down 18 rebounds. UConn seems to have a different approach in the Class of 2014. The Huskies already have a commitment from sweet-shooting Arizona guard Courtney Ekmark and are EXTREMELY high on Brianna Turner, the only member of the Class of 2014 on the U.S. U-17 team.

I was able to speak to Turner, a versatile 6-foot-3 forward from Pearland, Tex., at the U-17 training camp in Kissimmee, Fla. in May. She talked about taking a trip to the UConn campus.


"I went to New York for spring break and took a train to Connecticut," Turner said. "We took a train to Hartford and then we drove to where UConn is. I toured the campus and it is nice. I got to meet the players and coaches. They were really nice and I liked what they had."

Unlike Ekmark, who was one of the earliest commits UConn has ever received, Turner seems willing to take her time.

"I want to take as many visits as I can," Turner said. "Probably next year when I am a junior to narrow it down to 10 schools."

In terms of committing she said "probably after high school season my junior year."

The final question I asked her is what she was looking for in her college of choice.

"I want a coach to take me out of my comfort zone and give me something I have never had before," Turner said.

Auriemma saw Turner in person earlier this month and I've heard that he came away extremely impressed with her.

Apparently Turner is not the only Texas player to catch the eyes of the UConn coaches. Recruiting analyst Keil Moore tweeted earlier this week that Recee Caldwell, a 5-8 guard from San Antonio, is planning on visiting UConn in the fall. Another player to keep an eye on is Christ the King star Sierra Calhoun. Calhoun's dad has been quoted as saying he'd prefer his kids to go to the same school and his son Omar Calhoun will be a freshman on UConn men's team in the fall. LaJahna Drummer, a 6-2 forward from Inglewood, Calif.,  listed UConn among eight schools she considers to be favorites on her bio at the U-17 national team trials.

In a perfect world UConn would not have unbalanced classes but pretty much from the time they locked up a sensational Class of 2012 with commitments from consensus national player of the year Breanna Stewart, No. 2 rated Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck, they knew it would not be easy to convince players in the next recruiting cycle to come to Storrs because of a concern over available playing time. If the Huskies get only one or even two commitments in the Class of 2013, it wouldn't be the first time they went down this road. In the Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi classes UConn signed just one player and rising senior Kelly Faris was the only player signed in her recruiting class.

The good news is that while many of their competitors have been going hard after Class of 2013 prospects, UConn seems to have a jump on identifying and pursuing the top players in the Class of 2014.

Figured I would pass on a link to a story the Journal News did on UConn recruiting target Saniya Chong since it gives some detail into the timeline Chong is using to make her college decision. It also mentioned that Chong averaged 40 points per game in the Blue Chip USA Invitational in York, Pa. including a 53-point game against a team from Pittsburgh when UConn coach Geno Auriemma was among those in attendance. The story said that Chong is planning to take her campus visits beginning in September before making a decision. UConn, Louisville, Maryland and Ohio State are the teams still in contention to land the high-scoring 5-9 guard. Also, fellow Class of 2013 UConn recruiting target Erica McCall said in her twitter account that she recently took an unofficial visit to Tennessee. Also on twitter, Class of 2013 recruiting target Linnae Harper and her mom reiterated that she will be visiting schools after she gets back from Europe. Harper and McCall are members of the U.S. team which will be playing in the FIBA U-17 Championship for Women in Amsterdam. The team will reconvene in Colorado Springs on Aug. 1 and after a week's worth of training will head to Europe. What all of this means is that don't be expecting UConn's first commitment from the Class of 2013 any time soon.

Erica McCall (No. 41) applies defensive pressure along with recent UConn commit Courtney
Ekmark at the U.S. U-17 national team trials. (Photo courtesy of USA Basketball)

A quick glance at the bios of the 24 players at the U.S. junior national team training sessions at ESPN's Wide World of Sports complex will show no lack of impressive athletic genes.

However, Erica McCall was the only one who can boast of having a current WNBA player in her family tree.

McCall's older sister is DeWanna Bonner of the Phoenix Mercury who was the 12th leading scorer in the WNBA heading into Friday's games. Despite being born eight years to the day after her sister McCall credits Bonner for being a positive role model and helped pave the way for her.

"Some people don't like to follow their sister's footsteps but I love it," McCall said. "I enjoy everything when I watch her play in the WNBA, it is helping me.

"I am happy that is my sister out there. Not a lot of people get to say their sister plays in the WNBA so I very happy and proud of her."

McCall has more of a power game than Bonner, an athletic and wiry forward who had 22 points in Thursday's loss to Atlanta.

"I love the way she can play every position," McCall said, "I am just trying to be like her and be a more versatile player. I watch her as she grows and I try to grow as well."

McCall doesn't have the range on her jumper as her sister but at the U-17 training camp nobody posted up harder and with more regularity that the UConn Class of 2013 recruiting target.

"I just think there is nobody who works harder than Erica McCall," U.S. U-17 head coach Jill Rankin Schneider said. "She has tremendous work habits and athleticism and to me she is so versatile. She can go inside and outside, her perimeter game has improved over last year maybe the 10-12 foot jump shot facing the basket has really improved."

McCall said she was four the first time she recalls seeing her sister play basketball. Before long McCall was hooked.

"I enjoyed watching her and that is how I got to enjoy basketball, my dad got me into basketball."
McCall's dad is Greg McCall who is the head women's basketball coach at Cal State Bakersfield

With her dad being a Division I head coach and her sister a former star at Auburn, McCall has no lack of qualified people in her inner circle to talk to if the process of selecting a college gets to be too much.

"Their advice in picking schools is it is your choice and don't let anybody influence you, it is all my choice," McCall said.

Here is a video I put together with interviews and action of McCall and other players on UConn's radar during the three days I was in Florida for the U-17 and U-18 training camp.

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Yesterday, just as I was about to put together an entry talking about Brianna Turner, Kendall Cooper, Jannah Tucker and some other tidbits I have gotten in my time in central Florida my phone rang and it was Curtis Ekmark returning my call. With most of my focus on putting together a story and blog on Courtney Ekmark's commitment, I have been a little delayed in talking about some potential recruits.

I'll start with Turner, who may be the best player in the Class of 2014 and she is the only member of her class to survive the U-17 team trials.

Turner, a 6-3 forward from Pearland, Tex., made an unofficial visit to UConn in the middle of March so of course I asked her about how the trip came about and her impressions of UConn.

"I went to New York for spring break and took a train to Connecticut," Turner said. "We took a train to Hartford and then we drove to where UConn is. I toured the campus and it is nice. I got to meet the players and coaches. They were really nice and I liked what they had (to say)."

Unlike Courtney Ekmark, another top Class of 2014 recruit who committed to UConn earlier this week, Turner is planning to take her time.

"I want to take as many visits as I can," Turner said. "Probably next year when I am a junior, I'll narrow it down to 10 schools."

Turner said she "didn't have a preference" in terms of where her ultimate school of choice is located and when I asked her what she would be looking for in selecting a college, Turner said "I want a coach to take me out of my comfort zone and give me something I have never had before."

Now switching gears from the U-17s to the U-18s, I spoke with Kendall Cooper and Jannah Tucker, the only two members of the U-18 squad yet to pick a college.

In her USA Basketball bio Cooper lists UCLA, Duke, Tennessee, Virginia, Louisville, Kentucky and Arizona State as her top schools but added "is still open and considering other schools as well."

Cooper, a 6-3 post from Carson, Calif., said something rather interesting to me when I asked her about having more teams from the East on her list than those in Pac-12 territory.

"I want to go more East Coast because it is more rough and tough basketball, the East Coast thing is what I want," Cooper said.

Of course my next question concerned whether UConn has expressed interest and Cooper said they have.

Let's be honest, there are varying levels of interest in the recruiting process. I have never heard her name associated with UConn and have no information that the UConn staff has any plans to see her play or even invite her to campus. However, I will say that I have been extremely impressed with Cooper. Obviously the UConn coaches know a heck a lot more about recruiting than I profess to but the prospects of a talent like Cooper expressing a desire to play on the East Coast and UConn's list of 2013 recruiting targets rather small, I think they'd be crazy not to take a run at Cooper.

I stayed away from talking recruiting when I spoke to Linnae Harper and Erica McCall, a pair of 2013 stars high on UConn's recruiting wish list since I addressed it with them when I spoke to them during the U-17 team trials. However, I was having a hard time hearing Tucker when I was on the phone with her last week so I revisted the recruiting topic with her.

Tucker said that she's heard from them but wouldn't commit to saying that she was planning to visit UConn. She did say that she wanted to make a list of colleges she wants to visit by late June or early July so she could set up visits.

The sense I am getting is that Tucker seems to be drawing the least amount of interest from UConn among the four Class of 2013 players on the Huskies radar (Harper, McCall and Saniya Chong are the others). I'm just thinking out liud her but I'd have to think it is more likely a case of them figuring they won't pull the Randallstown, Md. prospect out of ACC country. In my opinion she looks like a typical UConn kid, athletic, versatile, team orientated, articulate and very likeable.

Chong is the only one of the four not here in Orlando/Kissimmee but I did ask USA Basketball Women's National Team Director Carol Callan about Chong's performance at the U-18 trials when I spoke with her yesterday.

"Saniya I think clearly she knows how to get up and down the floor and knows how to score," Callan said. "When you throw her into this setting you are looking at somebody who is also going to have to distribute in the half court offense and those kinds of things. I think she is clearly going to be a talented player. Clearly she is going to do great things from the scoring stand point. When you look at body  thickness, she is going to develop as she gets older and she was a neat kid to have around because she was very eager and very active on the floor. Her possibilities and where do you play her? Is she a 2 or is she a 1 because she can clearly score."

Finally, I asked U-17 head coach Jill Rankin Schneider about what impresses her about McCall and Harper.

"I just think there is nobody who works harder than Erica McCall, she has tremendous work habits and
athleticism and to me she is so versatile. She can go inside and outside, her perimeter game has improved
over last year maybe the 10-12 foot jump shot facing thebasket has really improved."

"Linnae Harper is one of the best rebounding guards I have ever seen and physically her stature is so
impressive. She is so strong on the boards that she is not that little presence at the point guard spot.
Last year she did a great job in that role for us and I have already seen her emerge in this role this
year.

"Linnae is a very positive kid and I love her. She has a grest outlook and wants to get better. She is all about improving herself and she has done everything we have asked her."