Mount Rushmore of UConn Women's Basketball

Wikipedia

The Presidents that are engraved on Mount Rushmore to me may not be the greatest, but they had the greatest impact on this nation.  As for sports, we always want to know who the greatest is.  We are constantly ranking teams or players or eras.  Nothing is truer than the comparison between Kevin Durant and Lebron James.  Or does Derek Jeter belong on the Yankee's Mount Rushmore.  But that is a topic for another time...

Yesterday we focused on the UConn men's basketball team and their impact players.   We took a look at their impact players.  Yes, a lot of great names were left off.  Picking the top three is very challenging - because Jim Calhoun had the greatest impact on UConn basketball.  Today, we look at the women's basketball team - that can even be more challenging, but maybe not.

NCAA

Let's start off with Geno Auriemma.  The head coach took Connecticut basketball from absolutely nothing and made it into an eight-time national champion.  It is simply the best program in all of college sports.   Auriemma is a Hall of Famer and his name will be mentioned in the same breathe as Wooden.  Auriemma has a chance to to win as many championships as John Wooden.

AP

Just like Ray Allen, Rebecca Lobo made people in Connecticut care about college basketball in the 1990s.  She went to four NCAA Tournaments, two Elite Eights and won the 1995 National Championship.  Lobo was the consensus national player of the year in 1995.  She led her team to a perfect 35-0 season.  She continues to do a lot for UConn as she is the face of women's basketball for ESPN.

AP

Diana Taurasi - the Southern California girl - led UConn to three National Championships.  Probably the greatest player to ever play the game.  She went to four Final Fours, won four Big East Regular Season titles and two Big East Tournament Championships.  She was apart of 70-game winning streak.  Played on the greatest team to every play the game which was a perfect 39-0 and was named the Final Four MVP two years in a row.   

AP

Maya Moore was a winner.  She went to four Final Fours, won two National Championships, and was a series of teams that won 90-games in a row.  Moore was the National Player of the Year three times.  Moore has the scoring record at UConn.  She had one of the most successful college careers in the history of women's basketball.  She continues to rewrite the history books at the pro level.