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Moriah Jefferson has no idea why she chose Thursday as the day to end the recruiting process. She has known for some time where she wanted to play college basketball. But now that the process is complete she is relieved.

Jefferson, a 5-foot-7 junior point guard from Glenn Heights, Texas, gave an oral commitment to play for UConn. She spoke directly with Huskies’ coach Geno Auriemma, choosing UConn over Baylor.

“I prayed about it a lot and today I hadn’t thought about it until the second that I decided to call him,’’ Jefferson said. “I guess it was God telling me to do what he was telling me to do. It’s a big relief. I have nothing on my mind now but school and basketball. So I’m not focusing on anything else but that.’’

Jefferson, who is rated No. 2 in the Class of 2012 by ESPN HoopGurlz, becomes the third player from the class to orally commit to UConn. She joins Breanna Stewart, a 6-4 forward from North Syracuse, N.Y. who is regarded as the top player in the class, and Morgan Tuck, a 6-2 forward from Bolingbrook, Ill.

Jefferson will join current UConn freshmen Bria Hartley and Stefanie Dolson, incoming freshmen Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis and Kiah Stokes, Stewart and Tuck at the USA Basketball U-19 World Championship Team Trials in Colorado Springs, Colo. May 22-25.

“UConn is getting a jewel,’’ DFW Elite AAU coach Daryl Horton said. “It doesn’t get too much better than Moriah. And she’s just as good of a kid as she is a ballplayer. She’s a special player. She’s going to do something every day that’s going to make you guys go, `My God, how did she do that?’’’

Jefferson twice traveled to Connecticut in the span of just over a month this fall. She attended the exhibition game between the U.S. Women’s National Team and Australia at the XL Center Sept. 10 before returning to attend First Night festivities at Gampel Pavilion Oct. 15.

By the time Jefferson left campus Oct. 16, she held a solid idea as to where she was going to play at the next level.

“I went there and it just clicked automatically,’’ Jefferson said. “I think that UConn really fits me well … the coaching staff and all the players. It was the attitude of everybody. UConn’s a great program and they’ve won a lot. But they didn’t have an attitude about it and they weren’t cocky. And I liked that a lot.’’

Jefferson, who is homeschooled, help lead the Texas Home Educators’ Sports Association to its fifth straight National Christian Homeschool Basketball Championships title this season. She was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.

“She is a complete player,’’ Horton said. “She can defend. She’s a good 3-point shooter. She’s just a playmaker. She’s a difference maker. She’s going to be an impact player from Day 1. From the time she steps on campus, she’s going to be an impact player because that’s how hard she works. And the best thing as a coach that I can say about Mo is that nobody will outwork her. As talented as she is nobody outworks her. Nobody.’’

Rich

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Moriah Jefferson, a 5-foot-7 junior point guard from Glenn Heights, Texas, gave an oral commitment to play for UConn today. She said Huskies’ coach Geno Auriemma’s response was “Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God.”

Jefferson is regarded as the No. 2 player in the Class of 2012.

Much more to follow …

Rich

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UConn guard Caroline Doty is at it again. Her second trick shot video – “Rise and Fire Part II’’ – is now on-line. It features shots made off the wall, off the bounce and from long distance at Gampel Pavilion, the UConn Rec Center and on the road at Rutgers, Providence, Georgetown and in Indianapolis during the Final Four.

Teammates Tiffany Hayes, Kelly Faris and Lauren Engeln, Huskies’ coach Geno Auriemma and Scooter and Dizzy from the Harlem Globetrotters are also featured.

The video was produced by team managers Justin Paluch and Greg Mihailides.

Rich

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Current UConn freshmen Bria Hartley and Stefanie Dolson and rising freshmen Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis and Kiah Stokes are among 35 players that have accepted invitations to participate in the USA Basketball U-19 World Championship Team Trials May 22-25 in Colorado Springs, Colo., USA Basketball announced today.

The U-19 World Championship team is coached by Hartford coach and former UConn All-American Jennifer Rizzotti. Under Rizzotti last summer, Hartley and Dolson helped the U.S. win the gold medal at the U-18 World Championships.

UConn Class of 2012 recruits Breanna Stewart, Morgan Tuck and Moriah Jefferson will also compete at the trials. Stewart and Tuck have already given an oral commitment to play for the Huskies. UConn Class of 2013 recruit Diamond DeShields will also be on hand.

DeShields, too, was a member of the U-18 team last year.

The U-19 team will be finalized during training camp at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Fla. June 1-4 and will meet the Brazil U-19 team in an exhibition game at the site June 5 (ESPNU). The team will then reconvene at the Olympic Training Center for its final training session July 11-15.

The U-19 World Championships will be held in Chile July 21-31.

Rich

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It had appeared that Peyton Little, a 5-foot-11 guard from Abilene, Texas, had been off the board in terms of the 2012 recruiting class. She made an oral commitment to play for Texas last June.

That is no longer the case, though, as Little decommitted from Texas and reopened the recruiting process last month. And it is UConn that could prove to be the beneficiary of her change of heart.

The Huskies are one of several elite programs who are now involved with Little. She recently made an unofficial visit to Oklahoma, according to Abilene Wylie High coach Tri Danley. Stanford, Baylor and Texas A&M have also expressed interest.

Danley said that Little could make a visit to UConn late this summer.

“She’s just basically opened up her recruiting right now,’’ Danley said. “She has visited Oklahoma and been in contact with everybody. Just about everybody from the top of the list has called her and she’s just kind of weighing her options. She’s going to schedule some visits. I don’t she’s scheduled to go to UConn until closer to school, when school will start up again (Aug. 29). They’re on a foreign tour (Aug. 16-26). And they’ve been in contact with me a few times and then, of course, (due to NCAA rules) you can only call her a certain amount of times. But they’re trying to set something up in August.’’

In 37 games this season, Little averaged 24.9 points, 4.3 assists and 3.1 steals in leading Abilene Wylie to the Class 3A state championship. She scored at least 30 points in eight games and three times eclipsed the 40-point mark.

“Peyton is one of the most talented and dedicated young ladies that I have ever coached,’’ Danley said. “She has rare gifted athletic ability that not many girls have. She has unlimited 3-point shooting range. She can shoot off the dribble, off the pass, and she can drive and finish with either hand.

“Peyton steps on the floor and makes everyone around her better just by her ability to create her own shots and for others. What makes Peyton a special player is that she is never satisfied with her work. She is one of the first in the gym and the last to leave. Peyton is just one of those `special’ players that come around only once in a coaching lifetime.’’

Little, who was named the Most Valuable Player of the state tournament, scored a state championship game record 43 points in a 66-58 victory over Lucas Lovejoy at the Frank Erwin Center at the University of Texas. She was also selected as the state Class 3A Player of the Year by the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches.

Little earned All-State honors for the first time as a sophomore when she led the Lady Bulldogs to a berth in the Class 3A state final.

“She’s pretty well open,’’ Danley said. “She wants to go somewhere where she can compete at the national level and then, of course, somewhere where she feels comfortable. So I just know she’s been to Oklahoma this past weekend and was really impressed with their staff and their facilities. And she’s going to kind of go from there.’’

The Huskies have already received oral commitments from Breanna Stewart, a versatile 6-4 forward from North Syracuse, N.Y. who is regarded as the top player in the Class of 2012, and Morgan Tuck, a 6-2 forward from Bolingbrook, Ill. UConn remains involved with Moriah Jefferson, a 5-6 point guard from Glenn Heights, Texas, Xylina McDaniel, a 6-1 forward from Blythewood, S.C., and Bria Holmes, a 6-1 wing from Hamden.

A recruiting source said that the Huskies are no longer involved with Malina Howard, a 6-5 post player from Twinsburg, Ohio. Howard visited UConn in February and attended UConn’s win over Notre Dame at Gampel Pavilion Feb. 19.

The Huskies could potentially sign four to five players from the current junior class.

Rich

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Again membership has its privileges. The Huskies will spend Aug. 16-26 in Europe, both playing games and doing plenty of sightseeing.

They will arrive in Rome Aug. 17 after taking a flight from Boston’s Logan Airport. They will then fly to Athens Aug. 20 for the second leg of their journey.

“It’s going to be fun and it’s going to be a great experience,’’ UConn associate head coach Chris Dailey said. “And the fact that we’re able to bring the freshmen will help. I think it’ll help Caroline (Doty) because it’ll give her a chance to get in a practice situation and a game situation before the season starts. Hopefully, she’ll be ready to do that in August. And just the whole camaraderie, the experiences outside of basketball are probably more important in some respects than the actual basketball.’’

Doty, Tiffany Hayes and Kelly Faris were invited to participate in the USA Basketball World University Games trials in Colorado Springs, Colo. May 22-25. But they had to respectfully decline because the 2011 World University Games will be held in Shenzhen, China Aug. 14-21.

Bria Hartley and Stefanie Dolson will be able to compete in U-19 trials, which are also in Colorado Springs May 22-25. The 2011 U-19 World Championships will be held in Chile July 21-31.

During their three-day stay in Rome the Huskies will play one game and will visit the Vatican, the Colosseum, the Forum, Circo Massimo, Piazza Venezia, the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, Via del Corso, Pantheon, Piazza Argentina, the Capitol, St. Peter’s Basilica and the Sistine Chapel.

UConn will play three games during its six-day stay in Athens. They will visit the Acropolis as well as the Olympic Stadium, the Temple of Zeus, Lykavittos Hill and will also take a cruise of the three Greek Islands.

Rich