Here are the highlights from the UConn Huskies men’s basketball team’s 69-46 win over the Seton Hall Pirates in front of a sold-out crowd at the XL Center in Hartford, CT on Saturday afternoon.
{flvremote}http://cdn.ianbethune.com/shuuconnmbb2012.flv{/flvremote}
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
The UConn Huskies men’s basketball team came into Saturday afternoon’s game having lost four straight games and were without their leader in head coach Jim Calhoun. The Seton Hall Pirates were partially in the same boat having lost five straight games and were without one of their best players in Herb Pope.
So we knew when the final buzzer sounded that one team’s losing streak would come at the end.
Fortunately for the UConn men, the light bulbs finally went off and they were able to end their skid with a 69-46 win over the Pirates in front of a sold-out crowd at the XL Center in Hartford, CT.
With the win, the Huskies improve to 15-7 (5-5 Big East) and are now 3-1 (all in the conference) without Calhoun this season. The Pirates fall to 15-8 (4-7).
Ryan Boatright was the spark plug on both ends of the floor for UConn as he had 19 points, five assists and four steals. Jeremy Lamb had 17 points and eight rebound while Alex Oriakhi came off the bench to score 10 points and pull down eight boards.
Shabazz Napier’s struggles from the floor continued as he was 1-of-6 but finished with six points, eight rebounds and two assists. Andre Drummond spent most of the first half on the bench with foul trouble but had a great second half. He had seven points, six rebounds and a career-high seven blocked shots for the game.
Aaron Cosby and Jordan Theodore both led the Pirates with 10 points and each had three rebounds with Theodore adding three assists. Fuquan Edwin chipped in with nine points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
Just like they did in their loss to Georgetown on Wednesday night, the Huskies got out to a quick start and then fell behind. They got out to a 10-4 lead before Seton Hall responded with seven straight points to take the lead at 11-10. The Huskies retook the lead on an Oriakhi layup and then things got ugly offensively for both teams.
Despite the fact UConn would never trail again in the game, they couldn’t get things going in their offense and it looked as though they might not reach 50 points again. Fortunately, Seton Hall wasn’t much better on the offensive end and began to turn the ball over.
After Theodore hit two free throws to cut the lead to one at 14-13, someone flipped a switch and the Huskies woke up on both ends of the floor. They played great defense and that led to points on the offensive end. They would use a 10-0 to take control of the game. A Boatright steal at the end of the half gave the Huskies a 30-17 lead at the break.
UConn opened up the second half on a 9-2 run behind Boatright and it looked as though they were firmly going to win the game. But then it looked as though they became disinterested and put things in cruise control. Seton Hall responded with five straight points to get within 15 points.
UConn would wake up again and push the lead to 21 points before they put it back on cruise control and watched Seton Hall wittle the lead down to 14 points. A 7-0 run started by a Lamb three ensured the Pirates would get no closer the rest of the way.
While it wasn’t their best of efforts at times, it was great to see the Huskies smiling and playing basketball like we know they can. Now what they need to do is put together a complete game and hopefully this ship will continue to sail in the right direction.
They’ll need to be at their best this week as they have two big games against Louisville and Syracuse on the road. They’ll get it started on Monday night when they head to Louisville, KY for a matchup with the Cardinals at the KFC Yum! Center. Tip is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN as part of Big Monday.
To continue reading the Seton Hall Pirates @ UConn Huskies recap, please click on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.
Notes and musings:
Seton Hall Pirates @ UConn Huskies 2.4.12 box score
Here are the post game quotes from UConn associate head coach George Blaney and Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard.
UConn is now 3-1 without their head coach Jim Calhoun this season.
With Blaney at the helm on Saturday, the Huskies employed a three-guard lineup. The starters were Ryan Boatright, Shabazz Napier, Jeremy Lamb, Tyler Olander and Andre Drummond.
UConn shot 43.4% (23-53) from the floor while the Pirates shot 25.9% (15-58).
The Huskies had just seven assists on their 23 made baskets.
UConn was 2-of-13 (15.4%) from beyond the arc. Both threes were made by Lamb. The Pirates were 5-of-26 (19.2%).
The Huskies were 21-of-26 (80.8%) from the free throw line. Much better effort there!
UConn won the battle of the boards outrebounding the Pirates 43-35.
The Huskies outscored Seton Hall 30-18 in the paint and 9-8 on the fast break.
UConn had 14 points off of 15 Pirates turnovers. Seton Hall 14 points off of 16 Huskies turnovers.
Seton Hall had eight second chance points to four for the Huskies.
UConn’s bench had 14 points to seven for the Pirates.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
Photo credit: AP Photo
Paw Prints is our daily look at the happenings for the UConn Huskies football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball teams as well as some of the other sports. We will do our best to bring you the links from all of the media that covers the Huskies on a daily basis. As always, links can be found by clicking on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.
Thank you for stopping by and making SOX & Dawgs your home for UConn Huskies news.
It’s game day for the UConn Huskies men’s basketball team as they’ll host the Seton Hall Pirates at the XL Center in Hartford, CT. Tip is scheduled for high noon and the game will be televised locally on SNY.
It’s also game day for the UConn women’s basketball team as they’ll host the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, CT. Tip is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will be televised locally on CPTV.
To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click
UConn Men’s Basketball links
Time to Come Together; Huskies Have No One But Themselves [Dom Amore – Hartford Courant]
Calhoun to AP: ‘I’m Hurting, Going to Need Some Work Done’ [David Borges – New Haven Register]
Shabazz, Blaney Talk Calhoun [David Borges – New Haven Register]
Notes/Quotes from Feb. 3: “He’s the toughest guy I know…he doesn’t use Novocaine when he goes to the dentist.” [Kevin Duffy – CT Post]
Huskies react to news about Calhoun [Gavin Keefe – The Day]
Game preview: UConn men vs. Seton Hall (round 2) [Lee Lewis – The Republican-American]
Without Calhoun ‘The cuss words are down’ [Neill Ostrout – Journal Inquirer]
UConn’s Calhoun taking leave of absence [CT Post]
Blaney Hopes A Vocal UConn Team Will Turn It Around [Hartford Courant]
UConn’s Struggles, Times Four [Hartford Courant]
UConn men lose another one [Journal Inquirer]
Jim Calhoun to take indefinite medical leave of absence with back problem [New Haven Register]
UConn’s Calhoun takes medical leave of absence [The Day]
UConn Men’s Basketball Glance — Seton Hall at UConn [The Hour]
UConn at crossroads with Calhoun away [Dana O’Neil – ESPN.com]
Connecticut’s continuing offensive issues [Evan Kaplan – ESPN.com]
UConn Women’s Basketball links
Auriemma Not Taking Rutgers Lightly; Rushdan Unlikely To Play [Rich Elliott – CT Post]
Big test for Breanna Stewart, Cicero-North Syracuse [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]
Game preview: UConn women host Rutgers [Lee Lewis – The Republican-American]
Mosqueda-Lewis remains positive during slump [CT Post]
UConn’s Mosqueda-Lewis In Rare Shooting Slump [Hartford Courant]
Peer pressure pays off [Journal Inquirer]
Huskies take on Rutgers [New Haven Register]
UConn Football links
Big East mailblog [Andrea Adelson – ESPN.com]
Donald Thomas’ Trail: From walk-on to Super Bowl [New Haven Register]
Other UConn related links
W. Lacrosse. Norton and Kiersten Tupper Honored Nationally For Academics [UConnHuskies.com]
W. Track. Distance Medley Relay Shines at New Balance Invitational [UConnHuskies.com]
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
By Brian Ring
Hartford, CT, February 3, 2012 – The Connecticut Whale defeated the Albany Devils, 3-2, Friday night at the XL Center in Hartford to snap an eleven-game winless streak. Kris Newbury, Jonathan Audy-Marchessault and Wojtek Wolski all scored for the Whale, while Mats Zuccarello and Brendan Bell added two assists apiece.
“It’s a good feeling in here right now, the guys are happy,” said Newbury. “The good news is we get to get right back at it and try to have a good weekend.”
Albany staked themselves to an early 1-0 lead, as Eric Gelinas’ shot from the right point was ripped past Whale goaltender Chad Johnson (20 saves) just 1:39 into the opening period. Stephane Veilleux and Darcy Zajac each assisted on the goal.
The Whale would strike back just over a minute later, as Newbury tied the game in his return to the lineup after missing the last two games due to injury. The puck hit off the end boards to the left of Albany goaltender Keith Kinkaid (21 saves) and out to a streaking Zuccarello, who hit Newbury with a quick one-time pass. Bell would also assist on the equalizer.
Jonathan Audy-Marchessault would give the Whale a 2-1 lead that they would carry into the first intermission with a power-play goal, his 16th tally of the season, at 18:30. Audy-Marchessault managed to sneak a bad angle shot past Kinkaid, as the Whale All-Star had gathered the puck up and fired at the Devils’ goal line to the right of the cage. Bell recorded his second assist of the game on the score, with Andre Deveaux earning the secondary assist.
The Whale would extend their lead to 3-1 with 3:47 remaining in the second period, as Wolski tallied Connecticut’s second power-play score of the night for the eventual game-winner. Wolski fed Zuccarello for a quick give-and-go passing play, depositing the return pass in the top right corner of the Devils’ net. The goal came in Wolski’s first tilt with the Whale after he joined the team from the New York Rangers on a conditioning assignment, with fellow assignee Jeff Woywitka notching the secondary assist.
Joe Whitney would close the Albany deficit to 3-2 5:21 into the third period, as he stuffed a loose puck past Johnson. Zajac and Veilleux both collected their second assists of the night on the goal, Whitney’s team-leading 12th.
The Whale, however, would hang on in the third period to preserve their first win since Dec. 31.
“We need to build off of this win and keep it rolling in here for tomorrow,” said Newbury.
Connecticut now heads to Hershey to face the Bears Saturday night at the Giant Center (7:00 PM).
The Whale will return home on Tuesday, when they host the Syracuse Crunch in their only visit to the XL Center this season (7:00 PM).
Tickets to all 2011-12 Whale home games, are on sale now at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, as well as on-line at www.ctwhale.com and through TicketMaster Charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000.
The Whale and the CT Hockey Hall of Fame will partner to hold a CT Hockey Hall of Fame night at the Whale’s home game at the XL Center Saturday, March 10 vs. the Norfolk Admirals. That night will mark the enshrinement of a new class of 2012 inductees into the CT Hockey Hall of Fame, which has adopted eight members from the storied Hartford Whalers Hall of Fame. The new inductees are: Connecticut-bred Hockey Hall of Famer Brian Leetch, ex-Hartford Whalers 56-goal scorer Blaine Stoughton, former Whalers goaltender Mike Liut, former Whalers captain Pat Verbeek, Connecticut Whale/Hartford Wolf Pack franchise icon, long-time captain and current head coach Ken Gernander, three-time Olympic medalist for Team USA and all-time NCAA women’s leading scorer Julie Chu, and one of the founders of the New England Whalers, William E. Barnes. There will be an induction ceremony before the game, which faces off at 7:00 PM on March 10, and the new inductees will also be recognized on the ice during the first intermission. Fans can take home a special souvenir of the March 10 night, as 5,000 Hall of Fame posters will be given away, courtesy of SuperCuts. There will also be a special meet-and-greet event on March 10, details of which will be announced soon. This will be the first class of inductees since 1990, and further details are available at cthockeyHOF.org.
College students can get discounted tickets to Whale weekday games with the Whale’s “Ditch the Dorms” deal. For Monday through Friday home games, students who show a valid student ID at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center can get $2 off Upper Level tickets and $5 off Lower Level seats.
Save on your tickets, and get the best seats, with a ticket plan for the Whale’s 2011-12 AHL campaign, which are on sale now. For information on season seats, mini plans and great group discounts, visit www.ctwhale.com, or call the CT Whale ticket office at (860) 728-3366 to talk with an account executive today.
To continue reading, click on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.
Albany Devils 2 at Connecticut Whale 3
Friday, February 3, 2012 – XL Center Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Albany 1 0 1 – 2
Connecticut 2 1 0 – 3
1st Period-1, Albany, Gelinas 8 (Veilleux, Zajac), 1:39. 2, Connecticut, Newbury 16 (Zuccarello, Bell), 2:57. 3, Connecticut, Audy-Marchessault 16 (Bell, Deveaux), 18:30 (PP). Penalties-Tedenby Alb (interference), 9:46; Erixon Ct (hooking), 15:03; Palmieri Alb (interference), 17:24.
2nd Period-4, Connecticut, Wolski 1 (Zuccarello, Woywitka), 16:13 (PP). Penalties-Bell Ct (holding), 1:24; Zalewski Alb (high-sticking), 14:29; Parlett Ct (cross-checking), 16:37.
3rd Period-5, Albany, Whitney 12 (Zajac, Veilleux), 5:21. Penalties-Bouchard Ct (high-sticking), 17:40.
Shots on Goal-Albany 5-6-11-22. Connecticut 9-11-4-24.
Power Play Opportunities-Albany 0 / 4; Connecticut 2 / 3.
Goalies-Albany, Kinkaid 11-12-1 (24 shots-21 saves). Connecticut, Johnson 11-9-5 (22 shots-20 saves).
A-4,028
Referees-Ryan Hersey (46).
Linesmen-Luke Galvin (2), Jim Briggs (83).
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
Jim Calhoun’s UConn Huskies men’s basketball team has been struggling as of late and now it turns out that Calhoun is battling through a medical condition called spinal stenosis.
According to the release below, Calhoun will be taking a indefinite medical leave of absence to deal with the problem and will definitely not be on the sidelines when they take on Seton Hall on Saturday and Louisville on Monday.
STORRS (February 3, 2010) — University of Connecticut men’s basketball coach Jim Calhoun will take an indefinite medical leave of absence, effective immediately, to deal with worsening spinal stenosis, a lower back condition that causes him severe pain and hampers mobility.
Calhoun will not coach Saturday’s game against Seton Hall nor Monday’s game at Louisville and his condition will be evaluated on a daily basis as options for treatment are explored. Associate head coach George Blaney will be in charge of the team in Calhoun’s absence.
According to Dr. Peter Schulman of the UConn Health Center, Calhoun’s primary health care physician, stenosis is a condition that the UConn coach has been coping with for the last few months.
“Last summer, Jim had some significant back pain and has seen two excellent back specialists,” Schulman said. “The initial approach recommended to him was stretching, physical therapy and exercise, and that was successful for several months. It turns out that there is some degenerative problem in the lumbar vertebrae and it’s impinging on the nerves. It has led to significant back pain and some symptoms in his lower extremities.
“Jim has been able to manage it with the physical therapy and stretching, but over the last several days, things have become worse and he is not able to deal with this on a day to day basis, so other options need to be considered. Right now, he is physically unable to coach.”
Calhoun told the Associated Press that he was going to try to get through the season with the condition but the pain has become too much for him.
The Huskies went 2-1 without him earlier this season when he served his NCAA suspension from the recruiting scandal from last year that involved Nate Miles.
Best of luck to Calhoun. We wish him a speedy recovery and hope to see him back roaming the sidelines sooner rather later.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
Photo credit: Bettina Hansen – Hartford Courant
Paw Prints is our daily look at the happenings for the UConn Huskies football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball teams as well as some of the other sports. We will do our best to bring you the links from all of the media that covers the Huskies on a daily basis. As always, links can be found by clicking on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.
Thank you for stopping by and making SOX & Dawgs your home for UConn Huskies news.
To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click
UConn Men’s Basketball links
Dom answered a question in his mailbag [Dom Amore – Hartford Courant]
Calhoun Takes Day Off [David Borges – New Haven Register]
Blaney addresses leadership issue, other UConn problems [Gavin Keefe – The Day]
Calhoun not feeling well [Neill Ostrout – CT Post]
Big East Power Rankings [UConn Huskies Basketball]
What UConn men need to snap out of slump [CT Post]
UConn Looking For Leadership [Hartford Courant]
Leadership void [Journal Inquirer]
NBA Draft Toolbox: Andre Drummond Is The 0.1% [SB Nation]
Even with the NCAA on their backs, UConn shouldn’t be this awful [Capital NY]
Perplexing Huskies going wrong way [Dick Vitale – ESPN.com]
UConn Women’s Basketball links
Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis Still A Hot Shot [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]
Delle Donne To Stay At Delaware [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]
Huskies Play Pickup With Kevin Hart And His Crew At Gampel [Rich Elliott – CT Post]
Report: Rutgers’ Rushdan “highly unlikely” to play against UConn [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]
UConn expecting Rutgers’ best shot [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]
UConn Icon Rebecca Lobo Back On The Court As Coach Of Second-Graders [Hartford Courant]
UConn Football links
Day after roster thoughts [John Silver – Journal Inquirer]
Other UConn related links
M. Track. Huskies Gear Up For Sykes-Sabock Challenge Cup [UConnHuskies.com]
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
With Super Bowl XLVI between the New England Patriots and New York Giants approaching quickly, it’s time for us to hear from our pal and yours, Fitzy, about the Big Game. As usual, Fitzy’s video’s are NSFW.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=rgoxPshqMTo?rel=0
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
Given everything that happened at the end of the 2011 season for the Boston Red Sox, it shouldn’t be really that much of a surprise that Josh Beckett didn’t say anything. We all know his disdain for the media from the countless interviews he’s given.
But the reason Beckett didn’t talk after the season isn’t what everyone thinks, it turns out he was busy with his wife and new daughter.
Beckett’s silence ended on Thursday afternoon when he appeared on MLB Network’s Intentional Talk with his good buddy Kevin Millar and Chris Rose. In the interview, he talks about new skipper Bobby Valentine’s visit among many other topics.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
HARTFORD, February 2, 2012: Connecticut Whale general manager Jim Schoenfeld announced today that the Whale has loaned forward Randy McNaught to its ECHL affiliate, the Greenville Road Warriors.
McNaught, who signed an AHL contract with the Whale January 23, dressed for one game with the Whale, this past Saturday’s 2-1 home loss to Springfield, after going scoreless with 24 penalty minutes in 12 games with the University of Calgary. McNaught was a seventh-round selection (190th overall) by the parent New York Rangers in the 2010 NHL Draft, out of the Western Hockey League.
The Whale finish off a five-game homestand tomorrow night, Friday, February 3, when they take on the divisional-rival Albany Devils at the XL Center in a 7:00 PM game.
Tickets to that contest, and all 2011-12 Whale home games, are on sale now at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, as well as on-line at www.ctwhale.com and through TicketMaster Charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000.
Save on your tickets, and get the best seats, with a ticket plan for the Whale’s 2011-12 AHL campaign, which are on sale now. For information on season seats and mini plans, visit www.ctwhale.com, or call the CT Whale ticket office at (860) 728-3366 to talk with an account executive today.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
HARTFORD, February 2, 2012: Connecticut Whale general manager Jim Schoenfeld announced today that the Whale has released forward Aaron Voros from his Professional Tryout (PTO) agreement.
Signed November 15, Voros skated in 23 games with the Whale, notching four goals and three assists for seven points while serving 23 minutes in penalties.
The Whale finish off a five-game homestand tomorrow night, Friday, February 3, when they take on the divisional-rival Albany Devils at the XL Center in a 7:00 PM game.
Tickets to that contest, and all 2011-12 Whale home games, are on sale now at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, as well as on-line at www.ctwhale.com and through TicketMaster Charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000.
Save on your tickets, and get the best seats, with a ticket plan for the Whale’s 2011-12 AHL campaign, which are on sale now. For information on season seats and mini plans, visit www.ctwhale.com, or call the CT Whale ticket office at (860) 728-3366 to talk with an account executive today.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.