MilfordHusky
Voice of Reason
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2011
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Remember back about 5 years ago? Our recruiting had hit a rough patch, as we had missed out on Ezi Magbegor, Aliyah Boston, Jordan Horston, Haley Jones, and more. Geno promised that they had several outstanding players lined up and were still on top of their game. In fact, I think he got about 10 players in the next 12 months, with Paige's verbal triggering a near avalanche of talent. Some of the players were well known, and a few were unfamiliar surprises. Eventually, Geno got a great class for 2020 and has continued to reap a major haul of talent.
We lost Mir McLean to Virginia and Piath Gabriel (who we suspected was a project), but the remaining 2020 class consisted of Paige Bueckers, Aaliyah Edwards, and Nika Muhl. In retrospect, this clearly was an historically great class.
Paige Bueckers was a known quantity. Geno claimed that Paige could have given us 10-15 good minutes when she was a 10th grader. She was clearly the #1 ranked recruit. Geno had planned on bringing her off the bench--until her saw in person for 2 weeks. Then it was clear that she would be a starter--and the team's best player. Since her arrival, despite playing only 2+ seasons, her accomplishments have literally been historic. Paige became the first freshman ever to win all of the NPOY awards for which she was eligible. She led the Huskies to the Final Four and hit memorable shots in the regular season games against arch-rival Tennessee and a powerhouse South Carolina team. The following year, she came back from surgery to lead us to wins against N.C. State in an unforgettable instant classic and against the reigning champion Stanford to get us to the championship game. After a 12-month absence, Paige largely played out of position on an undermanned squad in 2023-24 and led us to the Final Four for the third time. She was named a 1st Team All-American again. Paige is on pace to pass the great Maya Moore in career scoring average. Paige Buckets is looking like a member of Mount Rushmore.
Aaliyah Edwards was a player from Canada that we knew a little about. She arrived and played with a very high level of energy. As a freshman, she was one of the top players in the nation in FG%. She made 3rd Team All-American as a junior and followed that up as a 1st Team All-American as a senior, giving us our most recent pair of All-American players since Lou and Phee. Liya, whom I nicknamed "Thor" early in her career, will have her name and number on the Huskies Wall of Honor and finish her career in about the top 18 in scoring, top 8 in rebounding, and top 8 in field goal percentage. We will miss those purple and gold braids flying as she ran the floor.
Nika Muhl was definitely an unknown. She had been looking at other schools, but couldn't resist an offer from UConn. Ironically, she wound up rooming with Liya at an international event in Tampa just before she committed. Even though we had just gotten a verbal from the great and highly publicized Paige Bueckers, Nika wasn't intimidated. She said she could compete with Paige for playing time. Before the season ended, they became the Slime Sisters. Nika will be remembered for scoffing at how soft American players were, because they didn't believe in the "no autopsy, no foul" rule. Though Nika clashed with Coach because of her stubbornness, she stood out her last 3 seasons. She was a 2-time Big East DPOY and shut down some of the best offensive guards in the conference and even in the nation. Nika's legacy includes being an intense fan favorite. Statistically, she achieved the assist trifecta--passing Paige Bueckers for the single-game record, the incomparable Sue Bird for the single-season record (twice), and the great Moriah Jefferson for the career record.
This has been an unforgettable trio and recruiting class!
We lost Mir McLean to Virginia and Piath Gabriel (who we suspected was a project), but the remaining 2020 class consisted of Paige Bueckers, Aaliyah Edwards, and Nika Muhl. In retrospect, this clearly was an historically great class.
Paige Bueckers was a known quantity. Geno claimed that Paige could have given us 10-15 good minutes when she was a 10th grader. She was clearly the #1 ranked recruit. Geno had planned on bringing her off the bench--until her saw in person for 2 weeks. Then it was clear that she would be a starter--and the team's best player. Since her arrival, despite playing only 2+ seasons, her accomplishments have literally been historic. Paige became the first freshman ever to win all of the NPOY awards for which she was eligible. She led the Huskies to the Final Four and hit memorable shots in the regular season games against arch-rival Tennessee and a powerhouse South Carolina team. The following year, she came back from surgery to lead us to wins against N.C. State in an unforgettable instant classic and against the reigning champion Stanford to get us to the championship game. After a 12-month absence, Paige largely played out of position on an undermanned squad in 2023-24 and led us to the Final Four for the third time. She was named a 1st Team All-American again. Paige is on pace to pass the great Maya Moore in career scoring average. Paige Buckets is looking like a member of Mount Rushmore.
Aaliyah Edwards was a player from Canada that we knew a little about. She arrived and played with a very high level of energy. As a freshman, she was one of the top players in the nation in FG%. She made 3rd Team All-American as a junior and followed that up as a 1st Team All-American as a senior, giving us our most recent pair of All-American players since Lou and Phee. Liya, whom I nicknamed "Thor" early in her career, will have her name and number on the Huskies Wall of Honor and finish her career in about the top 18 in scoring, top 8 in rebounding, and top 8 in field goal percentage. We will miss those purple and gold braids flying as she ran the floor.
Nika Muhl was definitely an unknown. She had been looking at other schools, but couldn't resist an offer from UConn. Ironically, she wound up rooming with Liya at an international event in Tampa just before she committed. Even though we had just gotten a verbal from the great and highly publicized Paige Bueckers, Nika wasn't intimidated. She said she could compete with Paige for playing time. Before the season ended, they became the Slime Sisters. Nika will be remembered for scoffing at how soft American players were, because they didn't believe in the "no autopsy, no foul" rule. Though Nika clashed with Coach because of her stubbornness, she stood out her last 3 seasons. She was a 2-time Big East DPOY and shut down some of the best offensive guards in the conference and even in the nation. Nika's legacy includes being an intense fan favorite. Statistically, she achieved the assist trifecta--passing Paige Bueckers for the single-game record, the incomparable Sue Bird for the single-season record (twice), and the great Moriah Jefferson for the career record.
This has been an unforgettable trio and recruiting class!
