A former UConn women’s basketball great is returning to Storrs, Connecticut.
Geno Auriemma announced Monday, August 3 that the program hired Nykesha Sales as an assistant coach. She fills the opening on Auriemma’s staff that was vacated in June when Jamelle Elliott left the program to launch a consulting business.
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Sales is one of the all-time great UConn players and was inducted into the program’s Huskies of Honor in 2006. She was a key player on Auriemma’s first national championship team in 1995 and graduated from the program as its leading scorer. She ranks seventh on the program’s all-time list with 2,178 points and still holds the UConn record for most career steals.
“Bringing Nykesha back to UConn is absolutely the best decision that we could make,” Auriemma said in a statement. “Having our current players work with one of college basketball’s best players and an all-time WNBA great is a dream come true. Kesha has become an accomplished coach, teacher and recruiter, and she will add a new dimension to our program.”
As a player, the Connecticut native was twice an All-American, a two-time Big East Defensive Player of the Year and the overall Big East Player of the Year in 1998. Sales was also twice named to the NCAA Tournament All-Region team. In the 1995 national championship game — a 70-64 win over Pat Summitt’s Tennessee — Sales had 10 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals in 33 minutes off the bench.
Sales went on to play nine seasons in the WNBA with the same franchise, spending the first four seasons of her pro career with the Orlando Miracle before they moved to Uncasville, Connecticut and became the Sun. She was an eight-time All-Star and in 2004, led the league in steals and made the All-WNBA Second Team. Sales twice finished inside the top 10 in MVP voting and is still the Sun’s all-time leading scorer.
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During her career, Sales also played professionally in Turkey, Latvia, Poland, Czech Republic and Bosnia. After working for the Sun as a community liaison, she pivoted to college coaching, joining Katie Abrahamson-Henderson’s staff at UCF in 2016. Sales then followed Abrahamson-Henderson to Georgia in 2022 and remained there until this past April, when the head coach and the Bulldogs mutually agreed to part ways.
In 10 seasons working under Abrahamson-Henderson, Sales helped guide five teams to the NCAA Tournament, including the Georgia Bulldogs this past season.
“Returning to UConn is a full-circle moment for me,” Sales said in a statement. “Connecticut is home and where it all started. UConn obviously had a huge impact on my life and was such a foundational part of my success as a person, player and a coach. Being a part of this legacy again is an incredible honor. I’m extremely grateful and excited.”
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While the Huskies’ full schedule hasn’t been released, they are set to open the 2026-27 season on Nov. 5 at Michigan. Other high-profile non-conference clashes for UConn this year include games against Iowa, Louisville, South Carolina, Duke and Maryland.
The Huskies are coming off winning their 31st conference championship and making their 25th Final Four appearance. UConn returns a team anchored by rising junior forward Sarah Strong, the reigning consensus National Player of the Year.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Geno Auriemma hires former UConn All-American Nykesha Sales to staff
