Jordin Canada, who was on UConn's recruiting radar, committed to UCLA..

Canada is a lightning quick point guard who stars at the Windward School which won the CIF Southern Section Open Division title with a win over Mater Dei.

Although UConn has long been listed as one of her top schools, she never visited Connecticut and was considered to be a long shot to come to UConn.

"I was going to take a look at UConn, but I realized that I wanted to stay close to home where my friends and family can support me," Canada told the Full Court Press.

UConn already has commitments from a pair of perimeter players in the Class of 2014 - St. Mary's wing Courtney Ekmark and Blair Academy combo guard and Meriden native Sadie Edwards. What I've been hearing is that Gabby Williams, a 5-foot-11 guard at Reed High in Sparks, Nev. is a guard that the UConn coaches are extremely high on. Williams was among those in attendance at last night's win over Idaho.

Williams is a dynamic player who was averaging 30 points per game before suffering a season-ending knee injury. She is also one of the country's best high jumper who finished fifth in the event at the 2012 U.S. Olympic trials. Williams has been quoted as saying that she intends on competing in both basketball and track & field in college and will only consider programs which will allow her to do both. Obviously UConn is OK with that scenario.

UConn signee Saniya Chong had 34 points to set the New York girls' basketball single-scoring record to lead her Ossining (N.Y.) team to an 86-69 win over Gates Chili to win the New York Class AA championship.

Chong now has 902 points this season, breaking the mark of 892 set by Caryn Schoff of St. Johnsville during the 1994-95 season. She also 38 points shy of becoming the fourth girls' player in New York history to score 3,000 career points with just one game remaining as Ossining receives a bye into the New York Federation Class AA tournament. Murry Bergtraum and Bishop Ford play on Friday in Albany with the winner meeting Ossining for the Federation title.

Also, UConn Class of 2014 recruiting targets Kathryn Westbeld and Jordin Canada led their teams to titles.

Westbeld had 13 points and 12 rebounds (for her 16th double-double of the season) as her Fairmont squad defeated two-time defending champion Twinsburg 52-48 in the Ohio Division I final. Twinsburg had defeated Fairmont in the 2011 and 2012 Division I title games.

Canada had 17 points and 14 assists as Windward defeated Mater Dei 81-71 to win the CIF South Section Open Division title. UConn Class of 2015 recruiting target Katie Lou Samuelson led Mater Dei with 23 points.

Windward will play North Division champion Bishop O'Dowd for the CIF title on Mar. 23

While keeping tabs on how UConn signee Saniya Chong's Ossining team was faring during the postseason, a familiar name appeared in the bracket - none other than Cicero-North Syracuse.

With Breanna Stewart leading the way, the Northstars are the defending New York Class AA champions but when Stewart graduated and headed off the UConn, I'm sure there were more than a few people figuring that was the end of Cicero-North Syracuse's dominance.

Well, think again. The Northstars are in their third Class AA Final Four and will play Gates Chili in tomorrow's semifinal.

"I thought they were really good because we brought a lot back," Stewart said. "We lost some people, me and Brittany Paul and some other people, but I thought they were going to be able to make a pretty good run if they wanted to and if they figured everything out."

Obviously, things are being done a little different manner for Cicero-North Syracuse without Stewart putting up gaudy statistics.

Sarah Bowles is the Northstars leading scorer averaging 13.7 points per game which is nearly half as many as Stewart averaged during the 2011-12 season when she led the Northstars to its second consecutive Class AA state title. Abbey Timpano is the only other double-digit scorer but there are six other players who have scored between 104-140 points to lead Cicero-North Syracuse to a 19-3 record heading until tomorrow's semifinals.

So much for the prevailing notion that Cicero-North Syracuse was merely the Breanna Stewart show.

"It shows that it just wasn't just me on that team, there were other people who helped out,' Stewart said. "Coach (Eric) Smith is doing an unbelievable job running the program, going to the state semifinals for the third time in a now, what else can you ask for?"

Ossining meets Sachem East at 6:15 p.m. in tomorrow's first semifinal at Hudson Valley Community College followed by the Cicero-North Syracuse/Gates Chili game. The winners meet on Saturday at 8:45 p.m. in the Class AA championship game.

Another game this weekend that has caught my eye is the CIF Open Division Southern Section championship game as UConn Class of 2015 recruiting target Katie Lou Samuelson, who is averaging 19.6 points per game, leads Mater Dei against Class of 2014 recruiting target Jordin Canada's Windward squad on Saturday at 6 p.m. (9 p.m. here in Connecticut) at Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, Calif. with the winner advancing to play the North Champion on Mar. 23.

Also, UConn Class of 2014 recruiting target Kathryn Westbeld leads her Fairmont of Kettering squad into the Ohio Division I Final Four this weekend. Westbeld, a 6-foot-2 forward, is averaging 14.7 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.1 steals and 1.7 blocked shots. On Friday Fairmont plays Toledo's Notre Dame Academy. With a win Fairmont would play either Twinsburg or Olentangy out of Lewis Center in Saturday's state championship game.

BERUBE UP FOR NATIONAL AWARD
Carla Berube, a key member of UConn's first national championship squad, was named the WBCA's Division III Region 1 Coach of the Year making her one of 11 finalists for the Division III National Coach of the Year.

Berube just completed her 11th season at Tufts, leading the Jumbos to within two games of the Final Four. She has a career record of 212-75.

Tufts posted a 25-3 record with two of the losses coming to Amherst including a 47-42 defeat in the Division III

The latest name to emerge as a Class of 2014 recruiting target for UConn is a pretty familiar one.

Sadie Edwards, who grew up in Meriden, played at Mercy as a freshman and helped the Tigers reach the 2011 Class LL championship game where they lost to Career 39-37. She transferred to play for the legendary Apache Paschall at Nazareth in Brooklyn, N.Y.

"It’s a great opportunity,” Edwards said when news broke of her transfer. “It’s not something that comes around often. I’m thankful for that. I get to play with multiple Division I players. It’s an environment where I can get a lot better. It’s exciting.”

However, Edwards' time playing for Paschall was limited as he died in January of 2012. At season's end, in which she earned New York Class AA third-team All-State honors, she made the decision to leave Nazareth and landed at Blair Academy in Blairtown, N.J.

Could she be returning to play basketball in Connecticut?

It's too early to tell. I spoke her Sadie's mother Lisa before I headed up to Hartford for yesterday's UConn/Pittsburgh game and she confirmed what I have been hearing and that is that the 5-foot-10 rising senior does not have a scholarship offer yet. What my recruiting sources are telling me is that UConn likes Edwards, a player who had seven 20-point games and four contests with at least 10 assists during Blair's run to the New England Prep School "A" title but they want to see her play this spring on the AAU circuit.

"Right now she is right at the beginning, right now she has no idea," Lisa Edwards said. 

UConn visited with Sadie a week ago and then she took an unofficial visit to take in Saturday's game against Seton Hall. Lisa Edwards said it was an enjoyable trip for her daughter who got to meet the UConn coaches and players. Since I hadn't heard much about UConn being involved in the recruitment of Edwards, I asked her mom what the level of interest has been.

"Just casual stuff, a birthday card, have a good season," Lisa Edwards said. "With a visit (to UConn) and (UConn) coming in to meet her I would think the interest is there."

Lisa Edwards believes her daughter's experiences the last couple of seasons has helped her on and off the court.

"Everybody likes to say they have grown but she really has come into her own game now," Lisa Edwards said. "Her offense, when you are young offense is important but she is just as happy with 14 assists."

My recruiting sources have told me that UConn would like to sign three perimeter players and two frontcourt  ones in the next class. With Saniya Chong the only incoming freshman to sign with UConn, it's pretty obvious that this is a pivotal recruiting class for the Huskies. It is evident by the number of players the Huskies are linked with that they are going to be looking at more kids this year than they often do because they simply can't afford to just recruit four or five kids and land just one or two of them. As it is the Huskies could be playing with fire with just nine scholarship players on the roster for next season. A transfer here, an injury there and things could get a tad bit tricky.

I don't think it's earth-shattering news if I were to state the A'ja Wilson, a versatile 6-foot-5 forward at Heathwood Hall in Columbia, S.C. is at the top of UConn's recruiting wish list. The Huskies have also offered another forward, Kathryn Westbeld out of Fairmont High in Kettering, Ohio. Of course the Huskies already have a commitment from 6-foot wing Courtney Ekmark out of St. Mary's in Phoenix.

Christ the King guard Sierra Calhoun, whose brother Omar is a standout freshman on UConn's men's basketball team, is another top prospect UConn is involved with. While I previously reported that the interest in highly-touted Texas forward Brianna Turner and speedy Los Angeles guard Jordin Canada appears to have waned a bit, what I am hearing is the Huskies continue to consider them to be recruiting targets. Then there is one of most intriguing prospects in the class in Nevada guard Gabby Williams. Williams is one of the nation's top high jump prospects who finished fifth in the U.S. Olympic trials and UConn assistant coach Shea Ralph went out to Nevada to see her play in a game early this season. Unfortunately, Williams injured her knee the next next day. She had surgery to repair the torn ACL and meniscus earlier this month. Williams has gone on the record as saying that she wants to do both sports in college and her plan is to redshirt in 2016 so she can focus solely on making the Olympic team.

For those interested in such things, the list of players I mentioned feature the top three rated players and six of the top 10 in the Hoopgurlz ratings. Of course they also list Edwards (who comes in at No. 39) as playing at Nazareth so keep that in mind before viewing those ratings as gospel.

I wouldn't anticipate seeing any commitments coming soon especially considering that four of the seven uncommitted players I mentioned above have yet to visit UConn. It's also possible and even likely that more names could emerge in the coming weeks and months.

With a brief break between games this week, UConn coach Geno Auriemma was able to hit the road to check on a couple of big kids in the high school Class of 2014.

While NCAA rules preclude Auriemma from discussing uncommitted recruits, recruiting sources have indicated that he came away extremely impressed with A'ja Wilson, a 6-foot-5 wing out of Heathwood Hall Episcopal Academy in Columbia, S.C. and Kathryn Westbeld, a 6-foot-2 forward out of Fairmont High in Kettering, Ohio.

Wilson, considered by many as the nation's top high school junior, did not disappoint with Auriemma in the stands for Tuesday's 80-22 win over Orangeburg Prep. She had 33 points (on 14 of 22 shooting), 15 rebounds, three assists, three steals and four blocked shots in 80-22 win. It was Wilson ninth straight game shooting better than 60 percent, fell one rebound shy of having a double-double in every game this season. Averaging 29.6 points, 14.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 2.6 steals and 5.8 blocks per game, shooting 68.4 percent from the field (not including Friday's win over Augusta Christian).

Wilson is a tremendous athlete. As an eighth grader she was a sub 13 second time in the 100 meters and she led Heathwood Hall to its first state tournament in volleyball.

Westbeld, who is a new name on UConn's recruiting radar, had 24 points in Fairmont's 54-48 loss to Centerville on Wednesday. Westbeld is said to be the kind of well-rounded, blue-collar type of player that UConn loves to recruit and every indication is that she is very much in the mix with the Huskies.

This is a key year of recruiting for the Huskies. With Saniya Chong the only player signed this year UConn only has seven scholarship players in the fold once Stefanie Dolson and Bria Hartley graduate in 2014. The Huskies do have a commitment from talented Arizona wing Courtney Ekmark and what I am hearing is the Huskies would like to bring in two more perimeter players and two big kids.

Wilson is clearly the top priority for UConn and it remains to be seen whether she will opt to leave South Carolina. What I've been hearing is that she is not planning to make a college decision until after the summer AAU season is completed.

Another top player on the Huskies' radar is Sierra Calhoun, a guard at Christ the King who recently scored her 1,000th career point. UConn has been out to see her play a few times with Auriemma in the stands for a memorable showdown with Chong's Ossining squad. Sources have indicated that UConn loves her game and likes her as a person and every indication is that they will offer her a scholarship. She would be a natural to land at UConn since her father said he'd prefer that both of his kids went to the same college and his son Omar Calhoun Jr. is a freshman on the UConn men's basketball team.

Perhaps the most intriguing prospect on UConn's radar is Nevada guard Gabby Williams who was averaging more than 30 points per game before suffering a knee injury. UConn assistant coach Shea Ralph was out in Sparks, Nev. to watch Williams have 23 points, six rebounds, seven assists, six steals and three blocks in an 85-61 win over Spanish Springs eight days ago. Unfortunately, the 5-11 guard tore her ACL in a game the following day.

What is interesting about Williams' recruitment is that she is one of the nation's best high jumpers. As a 15-year-old she finished fifth in the high jump at the 2012 U.S. Olympic trials. Williams has been quoted as saying she plans on competing in both sports in college and intends on redshirting in 2016 to prepare for a run at making the Olympic team. I can't recall the last two-sport scholarship player during Auriemma's tenure so it would be something unique if UConn manages to land her. While my initial reaction is that a track phenom like Williams would be more likely to stay in a warm-weather setting for training purposes, it should be noted that UConn grad Trisha-Ann Hawthorne just ran the fastest 200 meter time in the world during the current indoor season earlier this week so world-class track and field stars can thrive in a New England environment,

You may have noticed that a couple of names have yet to be mentioned (Brianna Turner and Jordin Canada). There's a pretty good reason. All indications are that UConn's interest in them is waning a bit although I am not ready to proclaim that the Huskies are no longer involved with either one. Both players  have recently released a top five list of schools which includes UConn but I'd be very surprised if either of them will land at UConn.

This is where it gets interesting. If UConn wants to land five players and miss out on a couple kids I highlighted above, things could be a little dicey. Ideally Auriemma said he prefers to have a team with 11 or 12 players on it. Next season there are nine scholarship players to go with walk on Becca Pope, a former Nonnewaug star expected to be on the team next year as well. Pope earned All- New England and All-American honors at UConn-Avery Point where she set a program record with 116 3-pointers in her two seasons. A knee injury has sidelined her this season but she can be seen on the sidelines at UConn's practices. There's a chance she could be added to the roster this season especially if she is cleared to practice in February which is a realistic possibility. 

It seems like a safe assumption that Auriemma would prefer to get to 11 scholarship players for the 2014-15 season and with the departure of  Dolson and Hartley, that would mean signing four players during that recruiting cycle. There's not a heck of a lot of margin for error considering UConn's practice of targeting a small number of recruits each year. Of course Williams and Westbeld were not known UConn recruiting targets until recently so there is always a possibility that other players could emerge in the future.

Over the next three days more than a few eyes will be focused on a showdown in the low blocks as UConn's Stefanie Dolson squares off with two of the best centers in college basketball.

First comes the matchup with Syracuse senior Kayla Alexander who needs 20 points to become her program's all-time leading scorer.

I doubt there are too many players who have made bigger strides from their freshmen to senior seasons than Alexander who comes into the game second in the Big East in scoring, third in rebounding and first in blocked shots.

"She has gotten so much better from freshman year and it is not like she gets a little bit better from freshman year to sophomore year she got a lot better," UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. "Then from sophomore to junior year  she got a lot better from sophomore year, not from freshman year. I watch her play now and maybe some of that is she has so many good shooters around her now that they have so many players who can score points that it has given her more opportunities to play 1 on 1 in the post. I do know that between her shooting percentage, she is a good free-throw shooter, a good shot blocker, it allows them to play four guards like they do. That has been pretty impressive to watch them play especially with three of them being freshmen. They are a really good team."

Alexander has struggled against the Huskies in the past. In the last two games against the Huskies Alexander has a total of 14 points and two rebounds. In four career games against UConn she has scored in double figures just once and her 11-point, 7-rebound performance in the 2010 Big East tournament quarterfinals was overshadowed by Tina Charles' 34-point masterpiece.

"She knows how to get down low and score in the lane, she uses her left shoulder and right shoulder really well in the lane," Dolson said. "She will be a tough post to go against but I have to come out ready, Stewie (Breanna Stewart), Kiah (Stokes) have to be ready to play in the post."

One interesting note is that this is UConn's fifth Big East game but the third time the Huskies will have to deal with a talented prospect from Canada all standing at least 6-3.

Natalie Achonwa had 10 points and 11 rebounds in Notre Dame's 73-72 win on Jan. 5, Marquette's Katherine Plouffe was held without a point or rebound in UConn's 85-51 victory a week ago and now Dolson tries her luck against Alexander.

"Canada breeds good posts apparently," Dolson said.

Once the Huskies are finished with Syracuse, there isn't much time to shift gears and get ready for Duke and the Blue Devils' talented center Elizabeth Williams. Dolson is eager to step up to the challenge.

"I think any team we play we should all take pride in who we are guarding make it a point of making sure they don't score any points," Dolson said. "When we are going against a team that has a good post both (today) and Monday it is definitely something I take personally and take it as a challenge to make sure they don't score."

ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER MILESTONE FOR CHONG
UConn signee became the 14th girls' high school player from New York to score 2,500 points when she had 28 points in last night's win over Norland out of Miami.

Chong, who also had  four rebounds, five assists, five steals and three blocks in the 62-54 victory. She is averaging 35.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, 9.6 assists and 4.2 steals per game as a senior.

UConn Class of 2014 recruiting target Jordin Canada also had an impressive performance Friday night with 22 points, 11 assists and five steals to lead her Windward School to a 62-38 win over Sierra Canyon. Windward scored the game's first 17 points and led 33-10 at halftime in a first-place showdown in the Alpha League.

From the time that she practiced for the first time as a freshman it was pretty evident that Sugar Rodgers was going to impact the Georgetown women's basketball program in a significant way.

Rodgers has not disappointed as she has been the Hoyas' leading scorer in every season. With Georgetown beset by heavy graduation losses, Rodgers has stepped things up in her final season as she heads into tonight's game against UConn leading the nation in scoring.

Rodgers' average of 26.1 points per game have come from the perimeter, in half-court sets, in transition and at the foul line. Kelly Faris figures to get the call on Rodgers and considering how disappointed Faris was in her performance against Notre Dame's Kayla McBride on Saturday, I have a hunch it should be an entertaining matchup.

Although Rodgers is 13 of 50 with 14 turnovers in her last three games against the Huskies, UConn coach Geno Auriemma isn't expected to completely shut Rodgers down,

"The fact that she can get that many shots in every game that she has played means she is probably going to get a lot of them against us too," Auriemma said. "What you have to make sure of is they are more difficult shots than she is used to taking and that every time they miss there is a consequence down at the other end. I think any time you have a kid who can get off that many shots against a defense most of the think you have a natural-born scorer. Not only that but for her to score that many points and take that many shots and still lead the team in assists, that is a hell of a thing."

The game will be the first time the Hoyas will face UConn with Keith Brown as the head coach. Brown was a major AAU figure in the Washington D.C. area before a five-year stint as an assistant coach on Terri Williams-Flournoy's staff with the Hoyas. When Williams-Flournoy left to take over the Auburn program, Brown was promoted to the top spot at Georgetown.

Auriemma hasn't seen a major difference in the way the Hoyas go about their business with Brown calling the shots.

"It's different because of personnel, they lost four seniors from last year's team so they are different because those guys are all gone," Auriemma said. "Even though they are doing a lot of the same things it doesn't look like it is the same thing, it is not as successful but playing them in their place, you know what it is going to be like. You now it is going to be close quarters, it is going to be a difficult shooting environment for the  visiting team because there is nothing behind that one basket so it is not an easy environment to play in. You go from playing at Oregon or here and then you are what used to be called McDonough Gymnasium."

I spoke to Brown at Big East media day and asked him about who Georgetown might play differently than they did under Williams-Flournoy.


"Our style of defense will always be the same," Brown said. "We will pressure the basketball and we will get up and down the floor I think offensively we will probably be a little more free flowing. I believe in letting them go a little bit more."

MATER DEI REMAINS NO. 1
The latest USA Today poll came out and three of the top four spots are held down by teams with players being recruited by UConn.

Mater Dei from Santa Ana, Calif., featuring Class of 2015 UConn recruiting target Katie Lou Samuelson, remains in the top spot. The Windward School out of Los Angeles, which is led by junior point guard and UConn target Jordin Canada is ranked third while UConn commit Courtney Ekmark's St. Mary's of Phoenix squad comes in at the No. 4 spot. The No. 23 spot is held down by Incarnate Word out of St. Louis while features Class of 2015 UConn recruiting target Napheesa Collier.

Speaking of big-time high school girls' basketball, one of the top high school seniors in the country will be at Springfield, Mass. in nine days when Tennessee signee Mercedes Russell leads her Springfield (Ore.) squad against  Braintree in the HoopHall Classic on Jan. 18 at 6 p.m. Russell and Springfield will face undefeated Braintree (Mass.) in one of four girls' games in the event which features the top slate of boys' basketball games of any tournament in the country.

After scoring 46 points in her team's first game in the Slam Dunk tournament, UConn signee Saniya Chong went off for 51 points to lead her Ossining (N.Y.) team to a 90-84 win over Irvington in Sunday's championship game.

Chong broke her own tournament single-game record of 46 which was not only accomplished on Friday but also in a 2010 game.

Chong had nine 3-pointers and was 10 of 11 from the free-throw line meaning that in the two tournament games she had 15 3-pointers and was 28 of 29 from the foul line. She also had six rebounds, nine assists and four steals in the game. Her season totals are pretty staggering as she is averaging 34.7 points per game with 40 3-pointers in nine games. She is also averaging 4.6 rebounds, 9.6 assists, 4.4 steals and 1.8 blocks per game.

Next up for Chong and Ossining is a showdown with New York powerhouse Christ the King, which features Class of 2014 UConn recruiting target Sierra Calhoun. The game will be played at Ossining HS at 4:30 p.m. on Friday.

On Saturday a pair of UConn's Class of 2014 targets led their teams to tournament titles.

Brianna Turner had 22 points as Manvel (Tex.) rolled to a 73-31 win over Channelview in the championship game of the Alvin Lions Club Holiday Classic Basketball Tournament.

Jordin Canada had 25 points, including three on a half-court heave at the end of the first half, to lead the Windward School to a 58-43 win over Bishop O'Dowd in the championship game of the Oaks Christian Tournament.

Katie Lou Samuelson, who is at the top of the list of players in the high school Class of 2015 being recruited by UConn, had 30 points as Mater Dei of Santa Ana, Calif. won the Division E title at the Nike Tournament of Champions with 94-72 win over Riverdale Baptist.

Samuelson had 18 of her points in the third quarter as Mater Dei completed a run through a star-studded bracket which included a win over defending champion and No. 1 nationally-ranked St. Mary's of Phoenix.

St. Mary's, led by UConn commit Courtney Ekmark, defeated Bishop O'Dowd 63-60 in the third-place game. UConn signee Saniya Chong had 39 points in the seventh-place game but it wasn't enough as her Ossining (N.Y.) team lost to Las Vegas' Centennial 85-64. Chong had 91 points in Ossining's three games in the tournament.

Jordin Canada, a Class of 2014 guard on UConn's recruiting radar, led the Windward School to the Division  G title. Canada finished with 12 points as Windward finished off the title run with 68-43 win over Miramonte.

Sierra Calhoun's Christ the King team finished 1-2 and in sixth place in the Joe Smith Division after losing 85-68 to St. Mary's out of Stockton, Calif.

UConn assistant coach Marisa Moseley was out in the Phoenix area for a couple of days checking out the action and Samuelson's play only further cemented her place as the top prospect in the Class of 2015 in UConn's eyes. I don't have too much info on other Class of 2015 prospects the Huskies are eyeing but do know that Moseley recently was in St. Louis checking out Napheesa Collier, a 6-1 forward who is averaging 28.2 points, 12.2 rebounds, 3.8 steals and 2.5 blocks per game this season.

Back to the Class of 2014, one of the few players on UConn's recruiting radar not at the TOC is Heathwood Hall's A'ja Wilson who is back lighting it up after missing the first seven games of the season with a wrist injury. In her four games all Wilson has done is average 23.5 points, 18.8 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.5 steals and 6.5 blocks per game. With her back playing, expect to see UConn coach Geno Auriemma to make it to one of her games next month.

SUN HOPE TO NAME COACH BY MID JANUARY
While there's no drop dead date for the Connecticut Sun to name a new head coach, January 15 is the date the Sun is looking for to make a hire by. That would give the new coach a couple of weeks to be comfortable before the start of the WNBA's free-agent period.

UConn commits Courtney Ekmark and Saniya Chong each scored more than 20 points while Class of 2015 UConn recruiting target Katie Lou Samuelson surpassed the 30-point mark on day one of the Nike Tournament of Champions.

Ekmark had 24 points to lead defending champion St. Mary's out of Phoenix to a 63-52 win over Orlando's Dr. Phillips in the opening round of play in the Division E bracket.

Chong had 28 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists according to a report by MSG Varsity but her Ossining (N.Y.) squad fell to Mater Dei out of Santa Ana, Calif. 89-67. Ossining led the game in the first quarter and was within striking range before Mater Dei pulled away. Samuelson erupted for 34 points in the game.

Class of 2014 UConn recruiting targets Jordin Canada and Sierra Calhoun were also in action. Although I don't have any individual scoring totals for either player. Canada's Windward School out of Los Angeles defeated E.S. Saint-Laurent out of Quebec 59-30 in Division G while Calhoun and Christ the King from Middle Village, N.Y. lost to St. Mary's from Berkeley, Calif. in the Joe Smith Division.

Play will continue tomorrow. The highlight will be the game between St. Mary's and Mater Dei who are ranked first and third respectively in the latest USA Today national poll. The game is set to be played at 5:30 p.m. local time (7:30 here in Connecticut). The winner will meet either Bishop O'Dowd or Riverdale Baptist for the Division E title on Saturday. Ossining and Dr. Phillips play at 3 p.m. tomorrow, Windward meets Pinnacle at 4:15 p.m. while Christ the King faces La Jolla Country Day at 10 a.m.

The premier high school girls' basketball tournament in the country begins today in the Phoenix area.

Something tells me that more than a few eyes will be focused on bottom half of the Division E bracket which will feature UConn commits Saniya Chong's Ossining (N.Y.) and Courtney Ekmark's St. Mary's squads as well as California powerhouse Mater Dei which includes UConn Class of 2015 recruiting target Katie Lou Samuelson.

Mater Dei plays Ossining at 3 p.m. local time (5 p.m. here in Connecticut) followed by defending champion St. Mary's meeting up with Dr. Phillips out of Orlando, Fla. The winners meet in the semifinals tomorrow at 5:30 local time while the losers play at 3:15 p.m. Whoever emerges out of the bottom half of the bracket will meet up against the last team standing among the quartet of Bishop O'Dowd, Rock Bridge, Las Vegas Centennial and Riverdale Baptist. This brackets features four of the top eight teams in the latest USA Today national poll as St. Mary's is ranked first, Mater Dei is No. 3, Bishop O'Dowd is fourth while Riverdale Baptist comes in at No. 8. Dr Phillips (No. 19) and Ossining (No. 21) are also in the poll.

Christ the King, featuring UConn's Class of 2014 recruiting target Sierra Calhoun are set to tip off in about an hour against Berkeley St. Mary's in the first round of the Joe Smith Diviison. Jordin Canada, another Class of 2014 prospect on UConn's recruiting radar, and her Windward School team will play the Canadian team E.S. Saint-Laurent at 4:15 p.m. local time today.

UConn assistant coach Marisa Moseley wasn't at practice today so I assume she is out in Arizona checking out the games.

UConn commits Saniya Chong and Courtney Ekmark could be on a collision course in the prestigious Nike Tournament of Champions which is being held next week in the Phoenix area.

Chong, the only member of the current senior class to commit to the Huskies, will lead her Ossining (N.Y.) team against Mater Dei out of Santa Ana, Calif. which features UConn Class of 2015 recruiting target Katie Lou Samuelson at 3 p.m. local time on Dec. 20 at Hamilton High School. After that game, Ekmark leads No. 1 nationally-ranked St. Mary's out of Phoenix against Dr. Phillips from Orlando, Fla. The winners will meet at 5:30 p.m. (Arizona time) on the 21st with the losers playing at 3 p.m. on Friday.

A couple of other Class of 2014 UConn recruiting targets are also playing in the tournament. Jordin Canada and the Windward School out of Los Angeles meets E.S. Saint-Laurent out of Quebec on Thursday in a Division G first-round game. Sierra Calhoun and Christ the King plays St. Mary's from Berkeley, Calif. in the Joe Smith Division at 11:15 a.m. on the 20th.

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.