Ekmark Gets UConn Started On Class Of 2014

By On 2012/05/30 · 4 Comments · In Courtney Ekmark, Geno Auriemma, UConn women's basketball

During his discussion with reporters Tuesday at the Hartford Golf Club, Geno Auriemma said he wasn’t concerned about recent decisions that sent high school phenoms Diamond DeShields, Taya Reimer and Karlie Samuelson to North Carolina, Notre Dame and Stanford’s Class of 2013.

He promised UConn would fire back soon with verbal commitments of its own.

“Every year you recruit there are people you get, other you don’t,” Auriemma said. “But there are people we are going to get, this week, next week, the week after that hardly anyone knows about. Commitments are going to happen soon.”

And he was right.

Courtney Ekmark, a 6-foot sophomore guard from Phoenix, is coming to UConn, the first member of its Class of 2014. She had also made unofficial visits to Duke, North Carolina and Stanford.

Here is some information on Ekmark from espn.go.com

Here is more from Rebecca Gray of HoopGurlz.com

Courtney Ekmark, Phoenix, Ariz.: This 6-foot wing is a true student of the game. She was able to get shots from anywhere on the floor by simply reading her defender and making the necessary cut off a screen. Ekmark does not have blazing speed, but she makes up for it by using angles and thinking a step ahead. She was able score in a variety of ways, and it did not matter if the person guarding her was taller or faster because she knew how to work off the screen to get open. On defense, she was able to keep her opponent in front of her by giving a few steps and cutting off certain spots on the floor. The competition is never too big for Ekmark, and she proved that even when her challenger was faster, taller and sometimes even stronger.

Ekmark’s teammate, Shilpa Tummala, helped St. Mary’s go 30-0 and nab the Division I state crown and a national championship. St. Mary’s dominated at the Nike Tournament of Champions, winning the Joe Smith Division. They went 6-0 against out-of-state opponents and outside of a six-point win over Chandler in January, no team came close; St. Mary’s outscored Arizona opponents 1,617-762 in finishing with its second consecutive title.

UConn still has no players in the Class of 2013.

 
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4 Responses to Ekmark Gets UConn Started On Class Of 2014

  1. Failure Is Not An Option says:
    2012/05/30 at 9:42 pm

    UConn still needs Options to Develop from the 2013 class. UConn still needs bodies on the bench in case of injury in 2013-14.

    Faris, Doty, and Buck will be gone. Not much offense but a great defender and a somewhat decent PG.

    Engeln is stuck in the doghouse. Not convinced Banks will crack the rotation next season, if Bonn Bonn is as good a PG as Geno says she is.

    Tired legs might have caused UConn’s low point last season. Hartley, Dolson, KML, Stokes, Stewart, Tuck, and Bonn Bonn might end up with tired legs 2013-14, unless Geno and CD land a legitimate Top 25 player in 2013.

  2. hjorring,DK says:
    2012/05/31 at 5:10 am

    Failure …Option, perhaps you are right, but this kid is a good recruit for us. I was afraid that she would be another Stanford/ND/Duke steal. Being smart on the court will serve her and us well. Lets hope she can attract others on our radarto step forward. As for 2013-14 class… well we probably can survive with one– the McCall kid. If we don’t get her then I would be nervous. But having plenty of money in the bank can(not) be a good idea.

  3. Failure Is Not An Option says:
    2012/05/31 at 5:51 am

    One top 25 recruit in 2013 would definitely help the margin for error. You just never know when 1 player ends up with a season ending injury or transfers. Having 8 legitimate players on the 2013-14 roster that he trusts is probably all Geno needs. In recent years, he has seemed to prefer a 6 or 7 player rotation in March Madness.

  4. freddykool says:
    2012/05/31 at 10:25 am

    FREDDYKOOL: WHO DA THUNK IT?