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Jerzy to SC
- Thread starter Tonyc
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Yeah its all over her Instagram. Great pick up for Dawn. And it makes sense, she has a better chance getting good minutes at South Carolina, maybe even potentially start for them. Latson will leave along with Raven (i think) to the W, so there are big minutes that will be available for Jerzy.
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I agree. I saw and over saw a couple of Jovana's highlights. Although they are highlights and shouldn't be taken that serious in regards to evaluating a player (as if we're experts right?
), her motor to the basket is top notch. Playing for Uconn and understanding their system is an elite challenge in it of itself, but I think I see what Geno and his staff saw in Jovana, just a straight up hustler. Her game reminds me of Fiso from Oregon.
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Asking anyone: Does anyone know if we are still waiting for a verbal for next year, or are we done with with Olivia Vukosa being the the last recruit to commit?
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Pretty nice signing for South Carolina and good fit for Jerzy. I wish she would have picked UConn, but Coach Staley is a great coach, person, she has a great connection with her players, great role model, and she develops her players for life after college basketball. Great signing for South Carolina and I am wishing Jerzy all the best.
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I think we are done with respect to outstanding offers. However, the portal always lurks and we do have a scholarship remaining to give.
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I’m unconcerned. Jerzy is a solid, big guard. She’ll carry the backcourt load for Dawn well. I don’t see her as a game changer, never did. I admired her self confidence. She reminds me of Talia Von Oelhofen or Leger-Walker, a little taller, maybe a bit stronger, and also not nearly as quick as Raven, which is something Dawn will have to plan for. She’s used to having big quick athletic teams and her roster may end up being a bit slower for the next year or two.
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“The Huskies, Gamecocks and Tigers are still in the mix for several five-stars, including No. 3 Olivia Vukosa, No. 5 Jerzy Robinson and international sensation Sara Okeke.” ESPN
Thread '2026 Recruiting: Sara Okeke'
The part about Jerzy being down to two schools SC and LSU was fairly old news per Skim. We haven't been in the mix for a couple of weeks. It being SC was pretty much known by the two birdies for Dawn recently, which were heavily expected to be Tournebize and Jerzy.
As far as I know we are still in the hunt for Okeke, and our odds got better with Tournebize picking SC in my opinion. They were a major competitor for Okeke and presumably aren't now.
As far as I know we are still in the hunt for Okeke, and our odds got better with Tournebize picking SC in my opinion. They were a major competitor for Okeke and presumably aren't now.
I wanted her at UConn too- a tall, tough guard with aggressive offense especially around the basket
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oldude
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I know at UConn there is this feeling that we should get every top recruit. Unfortunately, this runs into the reality that the Huskies have only 15 scholarships to award. So early UConn named recruits like Robinson, Bjorn & Harpring have landed elsewhere.
At the same time, I am delighted with UConn’s recruiting haul so far. The Huskies have landed the Big O, the best Big in the class. Out of nowhere, UConn signed Jovana, another overseas sleeper, who may end up being the best guard in the class. Okeke, maybe the best forward in the class, is still on the radar for the Huskies last remaining scholarship. If that doesn’t work out, there will undoubtedly be talented players available in the transfer portal.
Geno can’t sign everyone. But he continues to bring in top recruits that fit UConn’s system and will compete for championships.
At the same time, I am delighted with UConn’s recruiting haul so far. The Huskies have landed the Big O, the best Big in the class. Out of nowhere, UConn signed Jovana, another overseas sleeper, who may end up being the best guard in the class. Okeke, maybe the best forward in the class, is still on the radar for the Huskies last remaining scholarship. If that doesn’t work out, there will undoubtedly be talented players available in the transfer portal.
Geno can’t sign everyone. But he continues to bring in top recruits that fit UConn’s system and will compete for championships.
I wanted Jerzy. We spent a lot of time, effort, and resources in general recruiting her. I think we were told no during her official visit or shortly after. And we pivoted and made a second choice signing a few days later when we realized the offer to jerzy would not be accepted.
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Your surmise makes some sense. Still, I wonder how many kids are able to tell teams ‘no’ that early. It would be really considerate of them to do so, if they had the presence of mind to think that clearly. But what you say would make sense of Geno’s subsequent announcement about Jovana.
oldude
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That’s one possibility. But I have an alternative take on Robinson. Remember, she was the only top recruit who did not sign during the “Early Signing Period.” Technically, she will not be able to sign a LOI with SC until the spring signing period. As of right now, she has only announced her intention to accept a scholarship at SC.
What I would suggest is that while Robinson was taking her time to decide, Jovanna, a better prospect IMO, appeared on UConn’s radar. She has a similar background to Blanca having developed a superior game in the European professional league. Geno offered, Jovanna accepted, and Robinson had to look elsewhere.
the big picture with recruiting really concerns me. I think we are missing some domestic kids that we used to get. To not land either bjorn or jerzy after winning the championship… it really disappoints me. I think maybe the issue is we can’t compete with the “up front” NIL packages that some of our competitors are able to offer.
We have wisely increased our recruiting overseas as a result. My concern about overseas though… will the kids continue to choose UConn when Geno is no longer here?
The next few years are good at least. And we seem like we are getting better at using the portal. But let’s continue to track recruiting and see how it goes. I don’t want to bury my head in the sand.
We have wisely increased our recruiting overseas as a result. My concern about overseas though… will the kids continue to choose UConn when Geno is no longer here?
The next few years are good at least. And we seem like we are getting better at using the portal. But let’s continue to track recruiting and see how it goes. I don’t want to bury my head in the sand.
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Glad for her! Now put this thread on the other board Non-UConn Recruiting.
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I believe there is one more possibility left, barring some as yet unknown surprise and that is Sara Okeke. I wish Jerzy well at SC. Truthfully though, I’m very happy with our two recruits. I actually think this is probably best as we are in on some very good 2027 players and it just seems like (to me) the timing is better to wait for 2027.
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If UConn is still stuck in the Big East when Geno retires it is highly likely UConn goes the way of Old Dominion and LaTech. There is no way UConn will be able to attract high end talent without Geno/CD if we are still playing in the Big East.
oldude
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There is one point that is relevant to this discussion. While social media, WBB bloggers and other sources keep us all well apprised of which schools and recruits are interested in each other, and the schools themselves announce commitments, we never truly know if a scholarship has actually been offered and/or rescinded to a specific recruit.
UConn had 3 scholarships available. Obviously, 1 was committed to the Big O. It appears likely that UConn was/is involved at some level with Okeke, Robinson, Bjorn, Harpring and perhaps others. UConn would not offer more scholarships than they had available.
Once Jovanna signed, UConn was down to one scholarship, which I maintain is available to Okeke and Okeke alone during the spring signing period.
UConn had 3 scholarships available. Obviously, 1 was committed to the Big O. It appears likely that UConn was/is involved at some level with Okeke, Robinson, Bjorn, Harpring and perhaps others. UConn would not offer more scholarships than they had available.
Once Jovanna signed, UConn was down to one scholarship, which I maintain is available to Okeke and Okeke alone during the spring signing period.
“will kids continue to choose Uconn when Geno is no longer
here”
it would be hard to imagine the next coach at Uconn
Having the recruiting success that GA has had
while there are lots of reasons to come to UConn for women’s basketball, let’s be honest, it’s all about Geno
in Nov GA was talking about recruiting and it was pretty clear that international players and the transfer portal will continue to be part of the equation going forward
also in recruiting it’s not about quantity of players
anymore it’s about getting an potentially “star “player
each year
BQ certainly is one and OV by all accounts has
that potential
oldude
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First off, I expect Geno to coach forever. 😎
Geno has always indicated that foreign players are better coached on fundamentals, particularly in comparison to AAU teams. As the overall level of talent in Europe continues to get better, any serious college coach needs to recruit overseas.
For Geno it started years ago with Sveta and continued through Nika and others. But Blanca is a revelation. Her physical strength, explosive quickness and well-developed skill level is a game changer for UConn. I have to believe that Jovanna will have a similar impact for the Huskies.
The other aspect of overseas recruiting is that players who don’t know a lot about US college basketball know a lot about Geno Auriemma and the UConn Huskies. Geno has a distinct recruiting advantage in Europe that he doesn’t necessarily have around the US.
CL82
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I'd actually say it's highly unlikely. The Connecticut brand is unique and even after Geno and CD leave, it will still be an immensely popular sport playing before crowds that most of women's college basketball never see, with resources that most of women's college basketball can only dream of.
Now, I'll fully admit that we will never have coaches as good as the two of them, but we still may pick up some very good coaches, possibly from Geno's coaching tree.
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The brand is Geno