When Tonya Cardoza and Jamelle Elliott were on Geno Auriemma's coaching staff at UConn they were responsible for recruiting and coaching some of the best players in women's college basketball history. So when Cardoza and Elliott, now the head coaches at Temple and Cincinnati, rave about the competitive fire in one of the current Husky stars, it is worthy of mention.

Just a few days after Cardoza, who while at UConn was the position coach of U.S. Olympic stalwarts Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi, spoke about the on-court intensity of senior All-American guard Moriah Jefferson, Elliott had a similar take on the Huskies' floor leader.

"I really appreciate the effort that she puts forward whenever she is on the floor," Elliott said after a recent loss to the Huskies. "She plays hard for 40 minutes. That is what I am all about and I enjoy watching that."

It's not only opposing coaches who appreciate Jefferson's work ethic but her teammates as well.

"She defines what the program has been made of and is constantly going hard, going as hard as she can no matter what the score is and who we are playing and that is why she is a huge part of the team," UConn senior forward Breanna Stewart said.

Both Stewart and Jefferson will have their numbers added to the prestigious Huskies of Honor, likely before the Feb. 27 home game at Tulane. They are also key components on three national championship teams with a chance to become the first Division I women's basketball class to win four titles in four years.

When UConn plays at East Carolina on Saturday (8 p.m., CBSSN), there is a chance for Jefferson to enter some select company. Jefferson needs 10 assists to join Jen Rizzotti as the only UConn players with at least 600 assists and 300 steals. The list of players in the 600-assist, 300-steal club also includes legendary players Suzie McConnell, Ticha Penicheiro and Dawn Staley. More recently, in the last 14 recruiting classes, Jefferson would not only be the 19th Division I player with 600 assists and 300 steals but the one with the best assist/turnover ratio.

So if given a choice would Jefferson rather hand out assists or come up with steals?

"I'd say assists just because it is something I am doing for my teammates, getting them the ball where they want it," said Jefferson, who is currently third in career steals and fourth in assists in UConn history. "The steals mean a lot to me too because I really like defense and I really like being disruptive."

Jefferson also needs 10 points to move into the top 25 on UConn's all-time scoring list and takes tremendous pride in not only running UConn's offense but also playing the game with a tremendous amount of energy.

"It is something I am focusing on every day," Jefferson said. "If I am not making shots, I am trying to be the energy guy, the guy that is making the hardest (push) so for people to notice that, it really means a lot to me."

• Lexi Gordon, a 6-foot junior guard from L.D. Bell High School in Hurst, Texas., announced via Twitter on Friday that she has committed to UConn.

"I love the culture of the program. I love the coaching interaction with the players and the players' interaction with the other players," Gordon said on Friday. "Going there will get me out of my comfort zone and I am all into getting out of my comfort zone because I know he (UConn coach Geno Auriemma) will make me into the best player I can be."

Gordon, who also considered Baylor and Texas, averaged 24.5 points and 9.4 rebounds per game this season and will Jefferson as the only Texas natives to play for Auriemma at UConn.

Gordon joins Andra Espinoza-Hunter of Blair Academy (N.J.) as players from the Class of 2017 committed to UConn. There's a chance she could team with Espinoza-Hunter this summer on the U.S. team competing in the FIBA Women's U17 World Championship which begins on June 22 in Spain. Espinoza-Hunter was a member of the U-16 team last summer while Gordon was one of the last players cut from that team.