2026 No. 5 prospect Olivia Vukosa commits to UConn Women's Hoops
The UConn women’s basketball team’s 2025 class started forming when Kelis Fisher committed in January of 2023. While it began much later than the previous recruiting cycle, the 2026 class’ foundation has been established.
Four-star power forward Olivia Vukosa committed to the Huskies at New York City’s Christ the King Regional School Tuesday afternoon. Vukosa, the No. 5 recruit in Rivals’ 2026 class, picked UConn over South Carolina, Texas, LSU and Ohio State.
The 2025 New York Gatorade Player of the Year took her official visit to UConn earlier this month. During that visit, Vukosa met with Tina Charles, a fellow Christ the King alum, and Olivia Nelson-Ododa. Basketball Hall of Famer Sue Bird also hails from the school that the two-time SLAM Summer Classic alum currently attends.
“Many of these girls have followed the path of Christ the King and UConn, and now I want to follow that legacy,” Vukosa told ESPN’s Shane Laflin shortly after committing. “During my visit, the players welcomed me like I was already part of the family, and that sense of belonging made UConn truly feel like home.”
Even though she resides in New York City, Vukosa has Croatian heritage and has played for the Croatian national team. During the summer, the 6-foot-4 power forward averaged 15.6 points and 9.1 rebounds at the FIBA U20 Women’s EuroBasket Championships. She also represented Croatia in the U16 championships in 2023 and the 2024 U17 Women’s World Cup. Vukosa will be the first Husky with Croatian ties since Nika Mühl, the program’s all-time assists leader.
The 2024 U17 World Cup Best Defensive Player averaged 19.2 points, 17.9 rebounds, 5.5 blocks and 3.8 assists as a junior. Her contributions in the post guided Christ the King Regional to a CHSAA Tier 1 New York City Tournament championship last season.
The Huskies will possess a significant size advantage over most of their foes in the 2026-27 season. Depending on how this year goes, adding “Big O” could propel Connecticut to their second consecutive preseason No. 1 ranking.
Projecting Vukosa’s first year in Storrs
Although their 2025-26 campaign has not yet started, the Huskies will need to replace their starting center next season. Serah Williams, the former Wisconsin Badger, is exercising her final year of eligibility in Storrs. UConn has three options as to how they can address Williams’ impending departure.
The first approach would be to move Strong to center and run a four-guard lineup. Losing Azzi Fudd (who is also using her final year of eligibility) after this upcoming season complicates that plan, however. Secondly, El Alfy could start in the middle like she did for most of the Huskies’ 2024-25 campaign. Pulling that off means the reigning National Freshman of the Year would likely start at power forward.
Lastly, Vukosa could become the starter and complement Strong in the frontcourt. While that scenario might not happen, ESPNW’s No. 3 recruit sharing the court with a former No. 1 recruit is not entirely off the table.
Both forwards sport an offensive repertoire similar to former Husky Breanna Stewart. Containing one of them defensively would only be half of the battle down low. For comparison, Stewart averaged 17.6 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.7 blocks while shooting 35.5% from downtown as a UConn student.
Beyond Strong and El Alfy, the Huskies have Ice Brady, Ayanna Patterson, Blanca Quinonez and Gandy Malou-Mamel among their returning frontcourt players.
Even in a department flush with veterans, Vukosa could see significant minutes in her first collegiate campaign. The three-point prowess versatility she possesses for a forward really set her apart. If she does not start, the 2025 Ace Elite Classic MVP has the skillset to be a Big East Sixth Player of the Year candidate.
Regardless of her role, Olivia Vukosa will be the face of next season’s group of incoming Huskies.
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