Elaine Elliott isn't a chef. She just kind of sounded like one at Utah basketball's Media Day on Tuesday.

The veteran coach talked about blending veterans Kalee Whipple and Halie Sawyer with a group of kids with little or no experience.

"The storyline on us is that mix," said Elliott, who is entering her 27th year at the helm of the Utah women's basketball program.

Though it's a challenge, it's one she's eager to tackle.

Elliott likes the talent on her team, which includes six freshmen, three sophomores and two juniors. Senior guard Sasha McKinnon, whose career has been plagued with injuries, is also still on the roster.

The lack of experience, though, puts leadership squarely on the shoulders of Whipple and Sawyer.

Elliott said they'll need "everything they've got and more" from those two as the Utes move on without graduated stars Morgan Warburton (the 2008-09 MWC Player of the Year) and Katie King (second-team All-MWC). They combined for 29.5 points and 13.3 rebounds last season.

"We have to answer that question," Elliott said. "We have to figure out how we're going to do this."

Replacing talent, she added, is just part of college basketball.

Sawyer agrees.

"We have a lot of players who are willing to step up and are going to step up and take those responsibilities — getting those extra points and those extra rebounds that we are going to need," she said. "We'll get them."

Taryn Wicijowski, a forward from Canada, headlines the list of newcomers and was tabbed as MWC preseason Freshman of the Year.

The youthful Utes face a challenging preseason schedule. They'll face Minnesota, UCLA, Stanford, Santa Clara, Louisville, Oregon and SMU along the way.

"It's not good for me," Elliott mused about the schedule. "But it's really good for the team."

In the end, she noted, the squad will be better off for it.

Utah hosts Chadron State in an exhibition game on Nov. 6. The season opener is a week later at home against Utah State.

e-mail: dirk@desnews.com