In a shocking twist, as the regular season nears expectations are high for the UConn women's basketball team. These are hard times for Husky fans, relatively speaking. Despite a Final Four streak that dates back to 2008, Connecticut hasn't won a national championship since (gasp!) 2016, the longest gap between titles since the end of the Diana Taurasi era (2004) and the start of Maya Moore and Tina Charles (2009).
The preseason number two team in the country, UConn returns every player from last year's team except Anna Makurat and walk-on Autumn Chaisson. And for the first time in a long time, this could be a deep Geno Auriemma team. In addition to the usual suspects (Paige Bueckers, Christyn Williams, Evina Westbrook, Aaliyah Edwards, Olivia Nelson-Ododa and Nika Muhl), a highly touted freshman class and a grad transfer brings in four new players, plus a new (but familiar) assistant coach is on the sidelines. Without further adieu, here are the newest members of the UConn program:
14 - Dorka Juhasz: A grad transfer from Ohio State, Juhasz will immediately provide the Huskies with a reliable big off the bench who can stretch a defense. The 6-5 Hungarian was a two-time All-Big Ten First Team selection with the Buckeyes, averaging a double-double last year and nearly doing so in the two years prior, while also proving to be a three-point threat. She won't be asked to carry such a load with this team, but she could be an X-factor against someone like South Carolina, who is so deep and talented in the post.
33 - Caroline Ducharme: The two-time Massachusetts Gatorade Player of the Year doesn't quite have the hype of Azzi Fudd, but the No. 5 overall recruit brings plenty to the table. Listed as a guard, but standing at 6-2, Ducharme might immediately step in and already be the second best slasher to the rim behind Williams, in addition to a plus-shot from distance. Given the depth in the backcourt it's unclear how many minutes she'll get in '21-22, but there will be a time in which her abilities change a game.
35 - Azzi Fudd: It might not be accurate to say that Fudd is receiving the same attention that Paige Bueckers did coming onto campus last year... but it's awfully close. The top recruit in the 2021 class (and, conveniently enough, Bueckers' best friend) is expected to become another UConn legend in four years. Alas, let's pump the brakes for now. She will come off the bench and should have the ability to provide instant offense with a three-point shot that "deadly" might undersell. And her defense might be underrated. She'd probably start for every team in America with few exceptions... but this is Storrs.
42 - Amari DeBerry: The "forgotten" recruit in the class, given she was *only* ranked 15th in the class. The Williamsville, New York (Buffalo area) native is a 6-5 forward who likely won't see the court a whole lot in meaningful minutes this year, mostly because of the depth in front of her. Auriemma has raved about her abilities, but like many freshman getting her into D1 shape could take a little time. Expect a big jump in '22-23.
Morgan Valley: Shea Ralph accepted her first head coaching job, moving to Nashville to take over at Vanderbilt. So Geno replaced one former player with another, turning to Valley to join the bench. As a role player, Valley won three straight titles in Storrs from 2002-04 before going into coaching. Most recently she was the head coach at Hartford for two years, with past experience as an assistant at Arizona (won the 2019 WNIT), Washington (2016 Final Four appearance) and five other D1 schools.
