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The UConn Huskies are celebrating a historic moment. Diana Taurasi and Breanna Stewart have been named to the Associated Press All-Time First Team.
The AP created this special list to honor the 50th anniversary of the women’s basketball poll. A panel of 13 former players and sportswriters selected the greatest players since 1976. The first team includes USC’s Cheryl Miller, Tennessee’s Candace Parker, Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, and the two UConn legends.
Taurasi played at UConn from 2000 to 2004. She led the Huskies to three consecutive national championships from 2002 to 2004. Her teams posted an incredible 139-8 record during her career.​
The California native finished with 2,156 points, 648 assists, and 628 rebounds. She was the first UConn player to reach 2,000 points, 600 assists, and 600 rebounds. Taurasi won the Naismith Player of the Year award twice, in 2003 and 2004.​
“What an accomplishment and what an honor,” Taurasi said, according to AP News. “To think about the history of the game and where it’s gone. You always have to look at the past to go into the future.”​
Stewart took UConn dominance to new heights from 2012 to 2016. She won four straight NCAA championships. Even more impressive, she earned Final Four Most Outstanding Player honors all four years.​
No other player has accomplished that feat. Stewart finished with 2,676 points, UConn’s second-highest total ever. She also grabbed 1,179 rebounds and blocked 414 shots, the most in program history. Her teams went 151-5 during her four seasons.​
Stewart won the AP Player of the Year award three consecutive times from 2014 to 2016. She was also the first unanimous AP Player of the Year.​
The first team selections show UConn’s incredible legacy. The Huskies also have Sue Bird and Maya Moore on the All-Time Second Team. That gives coach Geno Auriemma four former players among the top 10 greatest of all time.​
“I’d watch these two teams play and I’m not sure who would win,” Auriemma said about the first and second teams.​
With 12 national championships, UConn has become the gold standard in women’s college basketball. Having two players on the AP’s All-Time First Team confirms the program’s place among the sport’s elite.​
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