Late last month, Napheesa Collier, a 6-1 junior forward from St. Louis, Mo., gave an oral commitment to UConn and coach Geno Auriemma following her official visit to Storrs. Collier chose the Huskies over Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri and Notre Dame.
And as often happens with those headed to Storrs, Collier has accepted an invitation to participate in the 2014 Basketball Under-18 national team trials in Colorado Springs, Colo., May 24-26.
Twenty-eight players will take part in the trials, and the 12-man team will represent the United States in the FIBA Americas U-18 tournament, which will take place in Colorado Springs Aug. 6-10 and include Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, El Salvador, Mexico, Puerto Rico.
"Looking at the list of players who will be at the trials makes me so happy that I am not on the committee,” U-18 national team coach Dawn Staley of South Carolina said in a press release, via SNY.com. “To be able to get this group of talented players down to 12 and maybe three alternates is going to be a challenge in itself. I hope I can play a small role of putting all the players in a position to play their best basketball and to give the committee a hard challenge to get this group down to just 12.
“I’m looking forward to working with some of the best talent in our country. They’re young. They’re driven. They are talented. They are hopefully future Olympians who we can help grow in USA Basketball at the international level to where one day they can live out some dreams that I’ve lived out in becoming an Olympian. It all starts with these younger teams.”
In addition to Collier, who called UConn "the school for me," De’Janae Boykin (6-2, F, No. 8 in espnW's top 60) is also considering committing to Storrs.
The Huskies' 2014 class includes Gabby Williams (5-11, Nevada), Sadie Edwards (5-9, New Jersey), Courtney Ekmark (6-0, Arizona) and Kia Nurse (5-11, Canada). And last month, Napheesa Collier, a 6-1 junior forward from St. Louis, Mo., gave an oral commitment to UConn.
