Morgan Cheli never intended to miss the 2025-26 season.

After she underwent ankle surgery in February of 2025 that prematurely ended her freshman campaign, she always believed she’d be back on the court at some point the following year.

As expected, Cheli watched summer workouts from the sidelines. But then the preseason came and went without the sophomore suiting up. When the new season began, she still didn’t have a timetable to return.

On Dec. 27, Geno Auriemma reported Cheli was “making some progress, which is a good sign,” but a little more than two weeks later, the head coach reversed course and said he’d be “pleasantly surprised” if she made it back during the season. By the time the NCAA Tournament began, she had still yet to practice.

In the end, Cheli watched the entirety of UConn’s Final Four loss to South Carolina from the bench in street clothes, just as she had for the team’s other 38 games. But throughout the process, she never gave up hope.

“I fought the entire year trying to get back,” she said. “I think I held onto a little hope the entire time and ultimately, that just wasn't possible. But keeping that in my mind… actually helped to keep me more upbeat and stay focused on my goal, which was to ultimately be back on the court.”

“If there was any possibility that I could have done it (for just one game), I would have,” she added later. “But that was not an option, sadly.”

Cheli revealed that she dealt with a stress fracture in her right ankle. It wasn’t caused by a single incident but was instead “an accumulation” of wear and tear. Initially, she didn’t think it was anything serious and tried to play through the pain, but it continued to get worse.

“It got to the point where I couldn’t walk out of bed,” Cheli said. “I was like, ‘Something’s not right.’”

She eventually opted for surgery to repair the stress fracture. While the recovery took significantly longer than expected, Cheli has no regrets about her choice.

“Given the situation with my ankle, that was the best route to go,” she said. “I’m not looking back. I feel like that was the best decision. I trusted our trainers, our health providers. Everybody gave me great advice.”

Much like the initial injury, there wasn’t one specific issue that kept Cheli sidelined last season. She just needed time to heal.

“I still wasn’t feeling 100 percent, so we took time to reevaluate my situation and get back to where I was able to give everything,” she said. “It was a couple different things but it was more so just I wasn’t able to feel like myself or do what I needed to do, what was asked of me. You can’t really fight an injury. You have to listen to your body and listen to the people around me. That’s what I did.”

While Cheli is known for her upbeat, bubbly personality, the long journey back weighed on her. She tried to keep a facade up, but often wondered if she’d ever reach the light at the end of the tunnel.

Still, Cheli tried to make the most of her time away. Although she joked that “patience is really something I need to keep working on,” she also started to eat better and did much as she could in the weight room to build strength.

Cheli returned to practice during the regionals in Fort Worth but is finally back as a full participant for summer workouts. She couldn’t be any happier.

“Being out there with everybody and doing what I was doing prior to my injury, it feels really good,” Cheli said. “I just know that every day I'm on the court is a step in the right direction. I feel like I'm finally getting back to myself to help the team. It's exciting. This is what I've been working for for a long time.”

The Huskies are happy to have her back, too. During her freshman year, Cheli proved to be a valuable piece off the bench. Though the numbers don’t indicate it — she averaged 2.5 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.3 assists in just 13.3 minutes per game — she consistently made an impact when she stepped onto the floor.

That was most evident in the loss to USC, when Cheli helped spark UConn’s second-half comeback that ultimately came up short. When she was in the game, the Huskies outscored the visitors by 15.

Listed at 6-2, Cheli is the type of player that the Huskies covet. She’s positionless — she can play anywhere from point guard to stretch-four — and can do whatever the Huskies need. She’s capable of knocking down shots from the perimeter or grabbing rebounds inside. Cheli doesn’t have a standout attribute. Instead, her value lies in her versatility.

“Morgan does a little bit of everything,” Sarah Strong said. “She can play the post, play the guards, just do everything. I know she's going to be really important for us.”

Right now, Cheli is still trying to knock the rust off. She acknowledged that it’ll take some time to get back into basketball shape. Practices have been a challenge.

“I'm still figuring it out. It's definitely been an adjustment just because I have been out for a long time,” Cheli said. “Some of the drills we’re doing, I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, I don’t remember what this is like.’ But I’m still finding my way and it’s going well so far.”

Considering how much time Cheli missed, Auriemma has been encouraged by the early returns from the redshirt sophomore.

“Morgan, for not having played, has done a lot of really good things,” he said. “You can see why she was the player that she was.”

There’s still a long way for Cheli to go. Above all else, she has to prove she can stay healthy. Beyond the ankle surgery, she also missed time during the summer and preseason of her freshman year with leg injuries.

But if Cheli is available, she should have a big role with the Huskies.

“If she can stay healthy, that's a big, big addition,” Auriemma said. “We got Morgan out of the portal. We got her out of the injury portal.”