Here's junior Breanna Stewart shortly after UConn beat Notre Dame Tuesday in the national title game.
"I think it's really surreal and I haven't had a chance to even think about that," she said, via the Associated Press. "I've won three national championships, but said I wanted to win four, you can't win four without winning three first."
So far, so good on that promise. And the thing is, not only will the Huskies be the nation's top team heading into the 2015-16 season, they're the hands-down favorite to win the whole thing again -- which would fulfill Stewart's prophecy. It would also mean that Geno Auriemma would surpass John Wooden's 10 national championships. Of course, any such talk begins with Stewart, the national player of the year.
"There just hasn't been a player like Stewie in the women's game in a long, long time," Auriemma said. "She might be two inches taller than Cheryl Miller and Cheryl Miller was one of best players I saw. ... Stewie's the kind of player that women's basketball probably hasn't seen."
Also helping: The Huskies are only losing Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis and Kiah Stokes, and returns everyone else -- not to mention the nation's best recruiting class. That group includes Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year Katie Lou Samuelson, Napheesa Collier and De’Janae Boykin, who are all top-10 players. There's also Georgetown transfer (and 2013-14 Big East freshman of the year) Natalie Butler.
