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STORRS It didnt take Jovana Popovic long to impress her new teammates at UConn.
One of the first challenges when players report in the summer is the dreaded three-minute drill.
Popovic, the 5-foot-9 freshman from Serbia, aced it on her first try.
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Which is really like pretty hard, sophomore Kelis Fisher said.
To sum it up in one word, conditioning, which is the worst part of basketball, but the most important part of basketball.
Its like a mental thing, and seeing her push through, catch on to everything.
She really impressed me.
Its an intense, timed base-line full-court passing and lay-up drill to establish baseline conditioning, to get as many touches of the ball as possible, with 25 the number needed to pass the test.
When Popovic started off well, her teammates immediately began cheering her on.
If you saw us in that gym with her, everyone of us was supporting her, pushing her to want to get it, senior Ashlynn Shade said.
It was so special she was able to get it on the first try, because then if you get it, you dont have to do it again until the fall.
I know shes glad she got that out of he way.
UConns Geno Auriemma optimistic about finding assistant to replace departing Jamelle Elliott There is more than just speed and conditioning in play here.
Popovic, like several of her teammates, is making the transition from the more deliberate style of Euro basketball to the faster-paced, position-less American brand of ball.
So it was a good start in that direction.
We play a little different way of basketball, Popvic said, in here first talk with state reporters last week, so I need a little time to adjust to American basketball.
European basketball is so different, because here there is more running, more athletic.
The new group of guards, including Popovic, Yo to her teammates, and Marine Dursus from France, will be bringing different on-court, as well as off-the-court culture to the Huskies.
Popovic, a combo-guard type, a playmaker, coach Geno Auriemma calls her, starred for ZKK Art Basket in Belgrade, the First League of Serbia, leading her team to a championship in 2024, and was MVP.
Popovic earned a spot with the senior national team at the 2025 FIBA Womens EuroBasket championships, averaging 5.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.7 steals against older, top-level competition before committing to UConn in November.I was talking with a lot of people about (UConn) and all of them said this is great, this is the best place.
You will have everything you need.
So everyone told me this is the bets place for you, so I decided.
I am going there.' She arrived on campus in June, and immediately jumped into the fray.
Shes looked like all those kids that come over here (from overseas) look, Auriemma said.
Smart, fits in easily, good student, picks things up quickly on the court.
Shes a little taller than I thought.
For the first four, five days that shes been here, I think shes done what I hope she would do, exactly.
Junior Kayleigh Heckel said, Shes just not scared.
Shes not afraid, even as a freshman, so Im really excited to see what she does.
With an international roster, UConn women have seized the chance to bond over World Cup Popovic, from Vrbas, about 80 miles northeast of Belgrade, the nations capital, is the first Serbian native to play at UConn, though they have had others, including Nika Muhl (Croatia) and Dorka Juhasz (Hungary) from central Europe.
UConn president Radenka Maric, incidentally, comes from Derventa, Bosnia and Herzegovina, about 135 miles from Vrbas.
The food Popovic will miss most is sarma, pickled cabbage stuffed with ground meat, spices and rice.
Her new teammates could expect to get a taste of her familys recipe sooner than later.
Everyone has welcomed me and I feel accepted here, Popovic said, so I feel so excited to be here and play with them and work with them, theyre the best players and the best coaches, so Im so excited.
UConn is the best opportunity for a young play who wants to play basketball and at the same time finish school with college, the best place for everything.
We have everything here for recovery and everything.
Here, its the best place for a young player who wants to play basketball at a high level.
The conditioning test got Popovic off and running, but she expects it will take some time for her to adjust to the new style of play and the players around her.
Dom Amore: Perfect fit: Scouting UConn womens newest recruit, a French basketball star Basketball is basketball, so everyone can play the same way, here we need to play together, she said.
Its hard, but easy because I have good coaches and good players who help me with everything so if I dont understand something, I can ask and they are so good about that.
So always I have someone I can talk with them.
Im not alone.
There is more talking on the defensive end, an adjustment for European players, but one thing Popovic understands perfectly, as it is nearly universal: Defense is defense, she said.
If you dont play defense, you wont play.
So the mixing of cultures, cuisine and basketball has begun in earnest.
(Popovic and Dursus) pick up on things, they know hoop, senior KK Arnold said.
They know where their spots are.
Its fascinating to watch, and Im learning things form them as well.
Were all different, we bring different things to the table.
Were just learning how to play with each other, how we can we make everybody better on the court.
Thats going to be the most fun thing, having that.
They have fun personalities; once we get them giggling, its very comfortable.
Popovic is a long way from Serbia, and with a new country, a new style of play and a new, demanding, Hall of Fame coach, she will have a lot on her plate, other than sarma.
(Auriemma) is great, hes the best coach, Popovic said.
He wants us to be yourself, a higher level.
Im so excited.
I will give my all, the best version of me, so we will see.
The first time I came here, I saw it was big, beautifully, really.
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It feels like home.