According to a tweet by her older sister, UConn recruiting target Karlie Samuelson has committed to Stanford.

Bonnie Samuelson, who like her younger sister was pursued by the Huskies before opting to remain in California and enroll at Stanford, tweeted that "Karlie just committed to Stanford !!!!!!!!. I'm super stoked and can't wait to play with my sister again!!! #sisteract"

Samuelson becomes the third member of the Class of 2013 who is being recruited by UConn to opt to pledge elsewhere. While UConn's track record of convincing West Coast and Southwestern players to pick the Huskies over Stanford isn't very good and Samuelson had the added bonus of playing alongside her sister, still this one surprises me even more than Diamond DeShields choosing North Carolina and Taya Reimer selecting Notre Dame. Everything I have heard about Samuelson was that she loved UConn and if I were asked to pick one player from the Class of 2013 to land at UConn I would have gone with Samuelson.

One thing that does not surprise me is that UConn appears destined to sign a very small class. History has a way of repeating itself. When the Huskies signed five top players including Olympians Sue Bird, Swin Cash and Asjha Jones, the following year Connecticut signed just one player. When Tiffany Hayes, Caroline Doty and Elena Delle Donne highlighted a glorious recruiting class more recently, the next year Kelly Faris was the only player to commit to UConn.

Now the Huskies' list of prospects in the next recruiting class is getting smaller by the day. Will the Huskies be able to convince another California prospect (Bakersfield's Erica McCall) to pick UConn over Stanford? Will Saniya Chong be the next hot shot from New York to come to UConn? Will Linnae Harper and Jannah Tucker go from being long shots to become part of the next UConn class of recruits? Will other soon to be high school seniors catch the eye of the UConn coaches?

The good news is that this isn't the first time Geno Auriemma and his staff has been down this road. When they missed out on players after the signing of "TAASK" in the late 1990s, they landed the dynamic Diana Taurasi the following year. The year after Faris committed the Huskies were able to secure commitments from Bria Hartley and Stefanie Dolson who have become key players on a pair of Final Four teams. The fact is that the players know the deal and it is extremely hard to follow up a class like the Breanna Stewart, Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck with another top notch group. A year from now something tells me that the Huskies will be having a lot more positive news on the recruiting front than they have been having in the last month or so.

UConn's entire incoming freshman class of Moriah Jefferson, Breanna Stewart and Morgan Tuck are among 26 players who will be vying for spots on the U.S. Under-18 national team.

UConn recruiting target Saniya Chong is also among the U-18 invitees while the list of players heading to try out for the U-17 team includes eight players known to be on UConn's recruiting radar in Sierra Calhoun, Diamond DeShields, Courtney Ekmark, Linnae Harper, Erica McCall, Karlie Samuelson, Jannah Tucker and Brianna Turner.

The trials will be held from May 18-21 at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. with the U17 team being announced on May 20 and the U18 squad being named on the 21st. Both teams will head to Lake Buena Vista, Fla. for a training camp from May 28-June 2 and then will head back to Colorado Springs for more training in early August. The U-18 team will play in the FIBA America U18 Championship in San Juan, Puerto Rico from Aug. 15-19 while the U17 squad will compete in the FIBA U17 World Championships from Aug. 17-26 in Amsterdam.

UConn fans are understandably fired up about the incoming recruiting class of consensus national high school player of the year Breanna Stewart, Moriah Jefferson (who is rated as the top guard in her class) and Morgan Tuck, who had as impressive a season as any incoming freshman. The three of them make up the nation's top-ranked class and there's plenty of reasons for UConn fans to be giddy.

However, I've been doing this long enough to know that this is going to be a challenging year of recruiting for the UConn coaches. Other coaches have already gone to the well with the "you'll never play there" card. Recent history would indicate that signing a large class, even with six available scholarships seems unlikely.

When UConn signed the class of Tiffany Hayes, Caroline Doty, Heather Buck and Elena Delle Donne what followed was a one-player class of Kelly Faris. The same thing happened the year after UConn inked the Sue Bird, Swin Cash, Asjha Jones, Tamika Williams, Keirsten Walters class in the late 1990s.

So between now and November's early signing period what can UConn fans expect?

Well, for one thing it appears as if the UConn coaches are keeping tabs on more prospects than they have during similar scenarios. The last thing the Huskies want is to have uneven classes so in a perfect world a class of two or three players would be ideal next year.

Among the players considered to be recruiting targets are Diamond DeShields, Taya Reimer, Karlie Samuelson, Erica McCall and Saniya Chong. Jannah Tucker's name has been mentioned in connection with UConn in the past and there have been some rumblings that UConn is keeping its eye on Linnae Harper as well. Although UConn has six available scholarships for next year I'd be surprised to see a class of more than three. Which of the players mentioned actually commit to UConn is still anybody's guess. I would not anticipate any commitments coming in the near future for the Huskies and with UConn coach Geno Auriemma spending much of his summer working with the U.S. national team it will be an interesting process to say the least.

When you add in UConn's pursuit of prized sophomores like Brianna Turner and Courtney Ekmark and this could be one of the more intriguing seven months for the UConn brain trust.

Thanks to the Texas Home Educators Sports Association (THESA) Riders coach Alan Burt, I have UConn signee Moriah Jefferson's up to date statstics.

Jefferson is averaging 18 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists. 5.6 steals and 0.9 blocks per game. Jefferson is shooting 57 percent from the field, 49 percent from 3-point range and 76 percent from the free-throw line and she has committed just 1.6 turnovers per contest. In 33 games, Jefferson has scored 20 points 13 times and 30 points three times.

The THESA Riders are 33-5 going into tonight's game against a 32-0 Pflugerville squad led by North Texas signee Itiana Taylor and American University commit Ari Booth.

MIXED BAG ON INJURY FRONT FOR UCONN TARGETS
While reports recently surfaced stating that UConn recruiting target Diamond DeShields could be sidelined for 2-3 weeks with a wrist injury, another high school junior being pursued by the Huskies has returned to action.

Karlie Samuelson, a wing out of Edison (Calif.) High, missed 10 games with a sprained ankle. In her first game she, Samuelson had 28 points and had four 3-pointers in a 75-59 win over The Bishop's School on Saturday.

If you haven't already checked out ESPN's story on yesterday's showdown between UConn commits Breanna Stewart and Morgan Tuck, I'd advise you to do it. There is a great photo of the two future teammates mixing it up taken by Chris Hansen which is worthy of taking a look at.

Stewart had 15 points to lead Cicero-North Syracuse (N.Y.) to a 43-40 win over Tuck's Bolingbrook (Ill.) squad at the Nike Tournament of Champions at Hamilton (Ariz.) High,

In other news out of the tournament, UConn recruiting target Karlie Samuelson suffered an ankle injury in Edison (Calif.) High's 67-51 win over Centennial out of Las Vegas.

Another player being looked at by the Huskies in the Class of 2013 is Diamond DeShields. With UConn in South Carolina to play Charleston, Geno Auriemma headed over to the Crescent Bank Holiday Invitational in Myrtle Beach (about a two hour ride from Charleston) to see DeShields' Norcross (Ga.) team beat St. James. DeShields had 24 points, half of them coming on four 3-pointers, in the 95-22 win.

Although it did not happen in the tournament, it is also worth noting that ESPN is reporting that Malayna Johnson, the sister of UConn forward Michala Johnson, has committed to Wisconsin.

I'm a day late on this but thought people might be interested to know that UConn recruiting target Diamond DeShields had 34 points and seven 3-pointers to lead Norcross (Ga.) High to a 75-46 win over Collins Hill (yes, the same Collins Hill where Maya Moore starred at) on Monday.

DeShields, a 6-1 junior, did her damage despite checking out of the game with 2 minutes left in the third quarter as Norcross improved to 3-2. It's kind of ironic that two of the three wins come against Moore's alma mater and also Fayette County where UConn freshman Brianna Banks played as a senior.

Next up for Norcross is a home game against Peachtree Ridge on Friday followed by a three-day tournament in Myrtle Beach, S.C. beginning on Monday. With UConn headed to South Carolina for a Dec. 21 game against the College of Charleston, I'd be shocked if at least one UConn coach wasn't in attendance for at least one of those games in the Crescent Bank Invitational.

Speaking of recruiting trips, something tells me that not all the UConn coaches will head directly from Waco, Texas to Charleston as a detour to Arizona to check out the Nike Tournament of Champions would seem a natural destination for at least one member of the UConn staff considering the incredible field put together by tournament organizers. As previously mentioned in this blog, UConn signees Morgan Tuck and Breanna Stewart will square off when Bolingbrook (Ill.) plays Cicero-North Syracuse (N.Y.) in the first game for both teams in the Joe Smith Division on Monday. At the same time, UConn recruiting target Karlie Samuelson will lead her Edison (Calif.) team against Centennial High out of Las Vegas.

Here are some details on the First Night festivities on Oct. 14.

First, the most important part - admission is free and open to the public and the event will begin at 7 p.m.

There will be FanFest located outside the North entrance of Gampel Pavilion and on Fairfield Way beginning at 5 p.m. for inflatable games, food, music and fun. Gampel Pavilion doors will open at 6 p.m. featuring an autograph session with both teams, followed by performances from the band, cheer and dance squads, introductions of the players and coaches, a dunk and three-point contest and ultimate prize giveaways.

The show will end at approximately at 8 p.m. with a performance by Simon Sez.

As for the recruits expected to be there, when I spoke to Morgan Tuck during the summer, she said she was planning to be there while Breanna Stewart will be taking a wait and see approach. I will try to get an update on Tuck, Stewart and fellow commit Moriah Jefferson.

I did reach out to the players UConn is recruiting in the Class of 2013 and the only concrete info I was able to get was that Karlie Samuelson was not planning to make the trip East for the event according to her AAU coach Russ Davis.

UConn not only has made the top four in the list of schools in contention for South Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year Xylina McDaniel, but her AAU coach Roger Wiley said that Connecticut and South Carolina are the schools she mentions as her top choices in the conversations he has had with the versatile 6-foot-1 forward.

McDaniel narrowed her list to UConn, South Carolina, North Carolina and Providence although Wiley said he was not sure of the exact dates she will be visiting those schools. But there is no mistaking where her heart lies.

"She mentions South Carolina and Connecticut pretty often," said Wiley, who coaches McDaniel on the South Carolina 76ers AAU program. "They would have to be considered her favorites.

"Connecticut is a pretty impressive school while South Carolina is close to home."

Wiley said Providence, the most surprising school on her list of finalists, has been involved with McDaniel for quite some time and she has developed a bond with the coaches at that school. He also said she doesn't plan to expand her list and she has communicated to other school that those are her four finalists. DePaul, Rutgers and Oklahoma are among those schools that Wiley said had aggressively been pursuing the daughter of former NBA star Xavier McDaniel.

Wiley said the intention is for McDaniel to take all four visits before making her college choice although he admitted he has seen players fall in love with a school and commit before taking all the scheduled visits.

I would imagine that if UConn had its way, McDaniel would come up to visit in mid-October so she could be on hand for the First Night festivities as well as UConn's first official practice. Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck were among the recruits who were in attendance for those activities last year and both have committed to UConn. If UConn were to get McDaniel, it would put the capper on what is already an impressive list of commitments as Breanna Stewart, Jefferson and Tuck are considered to be among the top prospects in the Class of 2012.

When I spoke to Tuck at the U-19 training camp, she said she plans on being at Gampel Pavilion the weekend of Oct. 15-17 and Stewart said if it fits into her school, she would be there as well. Considering that Tuck, Jefferson, Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Kiah Stokes and Brianna Banks were all up at UConn for First Night and the opening practice in 2010 and all committed to UConn (although Mosqueda-Lewis had already committed), obviously that is a key recruiting weekend for the Huskies. It could be even more of a big deal this year since I would imagine the UConn men's program will pay tribute to the national championship the Huskies won. Diamond DeShields, one of the top recruiting targets in the Class of 2013, was also on hand last year and it would not be a surprise to see her make the trip up from Georgia in mid-October as well nor would it be a stunner if fellow Class of 2013 recruiting targets Stephanie Mavunga, Taya Reimer, Karli Samuelson and Jannah Tucker are in the stands on Oct. 15 and 16.

Watching the final hour of Friday's UConn practice at Gampel Pavilion, I saw pretty much what I thought I would see. Bria Hartley, Tiffany Hayes and Stefanie Dolson were making plays all over the place as would be expected from three players expected to be the cornerstone players on the 2011-12 squad. Kelly Faris, while struggling to make shots, did a little bit of everything else. Highly-touted freshman Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis was hitting 3-pointer after 3-pointer while classmate Kiah Stokes showed that she will add some size and athleticism in the post. But the real revelation was the third freshman Brianna Banks.

Watching her hit 3-pointers with regularity, slashing to the basket and playing with such ease and style made me think I was watching Tiffany Hayes play as a freshman. I am not alone in that opinion. Hayes also sees the similarity between herself and Banks.

"Definitely, I saw it from the first day in pickup," Hayes said. "She is a lefty, she shoots, she drives, she is quick so I see some of the same things. I definitely want to try to help her to develop more quickly than I did. She is definitely going to have a big impact, a great impact on this team."

While UConn's freshman class looks like an impressive group and the next recruiting class already features impressive prospects Breanna Stewart, Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck.

With commitments from Stewart, Jefferson and Tuck, the UConn coaching staff spent much of the recently-completed open recruiting season identifying prospects in the Class of 2013.

UConn has already been very involved in Diamond DeShields and Taya Reimer. Now some other names of possible recruiting targets are starting to emerge including Stephanie Mavunga and Jannah Tucker, who were teammates of Reimer's on the U.S. Under-16 national team.

Mavunga, a 6-foot-3 forward out of Indianapolis, Ind., averaged 10.6 points and 6.4 rebounds while leading the U.S. squad with a 59.5 field-goal percentage. Perhaps the most impressive part of the numbers she put up was that she did in while averaging just 13.2 minutes per game.

As a sophomore at Brownsburg High, Mavunga had a game with 30 points, 22 rebounds and 11 blocks against Plainfield in December and she averaged 18.5 points, 10.1 rebounds, 2 steals and 4.3 blocks.

Tucker, a 6-foot guard from Randallstown, Md., averaged 26.2 points, 12 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 8 steals as a sophomore at New Town High School and had a school-record 39 points in a game against Southside Academy.

Tucker started all five games in the 2011 FIBA Americas U-16 Championship. She averaged 9.4 points, was second on the team in rebounding pulling down 7.2 a game and was second in assists and 3-pointers made, third in steals and blocked shots. Yes, those are UConn recruit type of numbers if I have ever seen them.

Reimer, a 6-foot-3 forward from Fishers, Ind. who is a versatile enough offensive player to shoot 45 percent from 3-point range as a sophomore at Hamilton Southeastern High School. Reimer, the daughter of former NBA player Ben Davis, averaged 4.8 and 5 rebounds for the U-16 squad.

Another name drawing UConn's interest is California guard Karlie Samuelson.

Samuelson, the sister of Stanford freshman and former UConn recruiting target Bonnie Samuelson, had four games with at least five 3-pointers and 10 20-point games as a sophomore at Edison High in Huntington Beach, Calif.

DeShields, the daughter of former Major League Baseball star Delino DeShields, was the youngest player on U.S. team which won the FIBA U-19 World Championships. The star at Norcross High is probably the most highly-touted high school player out of Georgia since Maya Moore.

DeShields, a 6-foot-1 forward, averaged 20.6 points and 6.2 rebounds as a sophomore at Norcross High playing for Angie Hembree, who also coached Moore for a couple of seasons at Collins Hill High School. DeShields averaged 4.7 points and 2.6 rebounds for the U.S. U-19 squad.

Bear in mind that it is very early in the recruiting process for the Class of 2013 since they haven't even started their junior year of high school so other prospects could catch the eyes of the UConn staff between now and the time letters of intent can be signed. But these are some of the rising high school juniors worth keeping an eye on.

As for the seniors to be, South Carolina forward Xylina McDaniel is the top uncommitted prospect on UConn's recruiting radar.

The 6-foot-1 McDaniel, who made an unofficial visit to UConn in February, is a talented wing who is the daughter of former NBA great Xavier McDaniel. McDaniel was named the Gatorade South Carolina Player of the Year after averaging 18.8 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.9 steals, 1.9 assists and 1.7 blocks per game while leading Spring Valley to an undefeated season and the South Carolina 4A title as a junior.