For the first time this season, UConn Huskies freshman forward/center Alex Oriakhi has been honored as the Big East Rookie of the Week.

Oriakhi averaged 11.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks in a week that saw the Huskies beat Seton Hall and lose to Georgetown.

In the 71-63 win over Seton Hall, Oriakhi had 12 points, seven rebounds and five blocked shots. In the three point loss to Georgetown on Saturday, Oriahki had his first double-double with 11 points and ten rebounds.

The Huskies are back in action on Wednesday night at the XL Center when the Pittsburgh Panthers come to town for a Big East matchup.

The game is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2. If you can’t catch the television broadcast, you can listen to the game on the WTIC/UConn Radio Network.

UConn Football links

UConn Football Commitment No.19: Josh Alexander [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

UConn Players On NFL Rosters in 2010? [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Do You See UConn-Michigan On ABC? [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Recruiting Trending Upward [UCHuskies]

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UConn Football links

Looking ahead: An early 2010 preseason top 25 [Rivals.com]

Success of Huskies in NFL boon to recruiting [New Haven Register]

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Well this explains why Daisuke Matszuaka sucked balls for the Boston Red Sox in 2009.

Sometime during the devastating loss for the UConn Huskies men’s basketball team to Georgetown on Saturday afternoon, I came across a tweet from Daigo Fujiwara, who works at the Boston Globe, about Dice-K. I then retweeted it and clicked on the link but unfortunately it was in Japanese.

So I didn’t think anything of it after that until I saw the Daigo had translated it for Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. It’s definitely interesting to hear what Dice-K had to say and why he did it.

“Early on in January 2009, I hurt my right inner thigh. I consider movement around my hip joint a crucial part of my pitching motion. It happened during my exercise to strengthen my hip joint that I incorporated into training since 2008. I may have pushed myself just a little too hard. It wasn’t the pain that killed me, but it was the regrets and guilt that filled my mind. It was the time to start building up for the season, but I hurt myself because of my own doing.”

“I didn’t want to show my weaknesses. I didn’t want them to think I was making excuses. I would rather be criticized than ridiculed for making excuses. I repeat, I really didn’t want to be the center of concern for people. I believe when you say you are sick, you become sick. Sure I appreciate that you are concerned about me, but I don’t even like to be wished good luck about my health.”

That folks is just a sampling of what he had to say. I’d definitely head over to the Globe and check it out.

You have to wonder that since he’s an icon in Japan if he didn’t want to disappoint his country. He pitched well enough in the WBC to lead Japan to another title and his second consecutive MVP Trophy. But in the end hiding the injury from the Red Sox hurt him the most.

As he said, he pitched hurt and we all know what happens when a pitcher does this. But isn’t his obligation to the Red Sox and not his country? Given his status in Japan, it’s a fine line to walk. But the Red Sox are his employers and he should have told them.

Had he done this, he may have been able to heal the injury properly and contribute a little more to the Red Sox than he did. Now we have to hope he bounces back in 2010 and shows us the form of 2008.

Can you imagine what could have been if Tina Charles applied herself on the basketball court her first two years like she’s been doing this year? No, I can’t either.

Charles totally dominated the first half as she put a double-double, including 25 points, to help the No.1 Huskies to a resounding 88-47 win over the No. 7 North Carolina Tar Heels in front of 10,167 at Gampel Pavilion on Saturday.

It’s the 54th straight win for the Huskies (14-0) and that now ties the Louisiana Tech teams from 1980-82 for the second longest in NCAA Division 1 history. The Huskies teams from 2001-03 hold the longest streak at 70 games. It’s just the second loss for the Tar Heels who fall to 13-2.

Charles also had 13 rebounds, 11 of which came in the first half. Tiffany Hayes bounced back from the ankle injury suffered on Thursday night to finish with 15 points and two assists. All-American Maya Moore had a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds and led UConn with four assists. Kalana Greene also added a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds and led the Huskies with three blocked shots.

The energizer bunny, Lorin Dixon, even got in on the action of blocking shots as she had two of her own.  Dixon is listed at just 5’4″.

North Carolina stayed with the Huskies early on as they got out to a 10-7 lead. But then the wheels fell off the bus for Sylvia Hatchell’s squad and we saw that total domination by UConn we’ve grown accustomed too.

The Huskies put up their second biggest run of the season, 23-0, to take a 30-13 lead. UConn went into the locker room up by 32 points and never looked back during the second half.

It’s just another win by the Huskies that shows the country they are in a class all of their own. The question remains can anyone stop the Huskies this season? By the looks of what the Huskies have been doing teams, that answer is no.

It’s going to take a perfect game from someone and the Huskies will have to be totally flat for that happen. Can it take place? Sure it can but I highly doubt it will, especially with Geno Auriemma at the helm.

The Huskies get back into Big East action on Wednesday night as they are off to Milwaukee, WI to take on the Marquette Golden Eagles. Tip is scheduled for 8 p.m. and the game will be broadcast locally in Connecticut on CPTV.

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In the first half, it was total domination by the UConn Huskies for the latter part of the half. In the second half, it was all Austin Freeman.

Freeman scored 28 of his 33 points in the second half to help the Georgetown Hoyas come back for a 72-69 win over the Huskies in front of 15,654 at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. on Saturday afternoon.

With the loss, the Huskies fall to 11-4 (2-2 in the Big East). The Hoyas to 12-2  (3-1).

The Huskies held a 15 point lead heading into the second half but they came out flat and couldn’t make a shot. Meanwhile Freeman decided he was going to be a one man wrecking crew for the Hoyas. The Huskies left him wide open and the Hoyas got Freeman and the ball and he took advantage as he scored eight points during a 10-0 run to get his team back in the game.

During the first half, it looked the Hoyas were defeated.

Both teams were going up and down the floor in a style that more suits UConn. Eventually Georgetown looked lost as they were having trouble executing their plays and went cold. The Huskies took advantage of this as they went on a 16-0 run to open up a 19 point lead at 40-21.

The Hoyas would score the last four points of the half to cut UConn’s lead to 15.

After a strong first half that saw him score 12 points including three dunks, Stanley Robinson went ice cold and finished with 16 points. He also had eight rebounds, three assists and three blocks.  Jerome Dyson, playing in front of friends and family, had 12 points while his backcourt mate Kemba Walker added 9 points, six assists but had five turnovers.

Alex Oriakhi had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds while Jamal Coombs-McDaniel came off the bench to spark the Huskies with 11 points. Ater Majok was a non-factor again as he played just eight minutes, picking up two fouls in the process.

Greg Monroe added a double-double of his own for the Hoyas with 15 points and 10 rebounds.  Chris Wright had 14 points and four assists.

This was a very disheartening loss for the Huskies who should have seemingly cruised to a victory after a great first half. Instead they now find themselves at 2-2 in the Big East with an improving Pittsburgh squad coming to the XL Center on Wednesday night. That game is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2.

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It’s game day for the UConn Huskies men’s basketball team as they are in Washington, D.C. to take on the Georgetown Hoyas. The game is scheduled to start at 12 p.m. and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN. If you can’t catch the television broadcast, you can listen to the game on the WTIC/UConn Radio Network.

The UConn Huskies women’s basketball team is also in action on Saturday afternoon as the North Carolina Tar Heels come to Gampel Pavilion. The game is scheduled to start at 4 p.m. and will be broadcast nationally on CBS. If you can’t catch the television broadcast, you can listen to the game on the WTIC/UConn Radio Network.

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UConn Football links

Huskies Land Two More For 2010 [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Who brings back what in the Big East [Big East Blog – ESPN.com]

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Jamelle Elliott had spent the past 17 years in Storrs, CT as player and as a coach. When she had an opportunity to take a head coaching job, she took it with the Cincinnati Bearcats. And when the schedule came out, she knew it was going to be an emotional game since it was on UConn’s home floor.

In the past, Cincinnati knew it was probably going to get spanked when it played UConn. But this wasn’t going to happen under Elliott’s watch. And it showed on Thursday night at Gampel Pavilion.

The Bearcats started strong then faded then was strong again but ultimately tired out as the Huskies spoiled her return home on Thursday night 83-51 behind 25 points by Maya Moore.

It’s the 53rd straight win for the Huskies who improve to 14-0 (3-0 in the Big East).  Elliott’s Bearcats fall to 7-7 (0-2).

The big blow for the Huskies came early in the first half when sophomore point guard Tiffany Hayes sprained her left ankle and left the game with just two points in two minutes of action. She’s listed as questionable for UConn’s next game on Saturday.

All eleven Huskies scored as Moore also had eight rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks.  Tina Charles added 17 points, five rebounds, four assists and six blocks. Caroline Doty rounded out the Huskies in double digits with 11 points.

Shareese Ulis led the Bearcats with 19 points. Cincinnati’s leading scorer Kahla Roudebush finished with 11 points. She came in averaging 16.3 points.

Probably to the shock of the 7,530 fans at Gampel Pavilion who may have been expecting a blowout despite Elliott’s presence, the Bearcats kept it close for the six minutes of the game as they trailed just 16-10. Then the Huskies turned it on as they went on a 13-2 run to up by 17 at 29-12.

The lead swelled to 26 when the Huskies went on a 13-4 run on their way to a 52-26 lead at the break.

The second half saw Geno Auriemma take it easy on his protege as he pulled the starters early in the second half. But when they allowed the Bearcats to cut a 29 point lead into a 16 point lead, he put the starters back in for a few minutes.

A 10-0 run made sure the Bearcats would get no closer the rest of the way.

With just one day off before the North Carolina Tar Heels come to Gampel Pavilion on Saturday, I highly doubt we’ll see Hayes play in that one. Hopefully what we’ll see is Lorin Dixon have a career game like she did last year against the Heels.

The game on Saturday will start at 4 p.m. and will be nationally televised on CBS.

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Here’s the press release from the Boston Red Sox concerning the signing of free agent third baseman Adrian Beltre.

The Boston Red Sox today signed third baseman Adrian Beltre to a one-year contract through the 2010 season with a player option for 2011. No further terms were disclosed.

The Red Sox 40-man roster is now at 40.

The announcement was made by Executive Vice President/General Manager Theo Epstein.

Beltre, 30, hit .265 (119-for-449) with 27 doubles, eight home runs, 44 RBI and 54 runs in 111 games for the Seattle Mariners in 2009. He appeared at third base in all 111 contests, making 110 starts at the position. Beltre finished sixth among American League third basemen with a .959 fielding percentage, committing 14 errors in 341 total chances. He missed time during the 2009 campaign due to a pair of trips to the disabled list, including surgery on his left shoulder to remove bone spurs on June 30.

Originally signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers as an international free agent on July 7, 1994, Beltre made his Major League debut in 1998 at the age of 19. He has hit .270 (1,700-for-6,285) with 348 doubles, 26 triples, 250 home runs, 906 RBI, 828 runs, 478 walks and 111 stolen bases in 1,681 Major League games over parts of 12 seasons with the Dodgers (1998-2004) and Mariners (2005-09).

A right-handed batter, he has hit 25 or more home runs in a season four times, including three straight years from 2006-08. Beltre hit for the cycle with the Mariners on September 1, 2008 in Texas and earned a 2004 Silver Slugger Award when he led the Majors with a career-high 48 home runs. That year, he also became just the 11th player in Major League history with at least 45 home runs and 200 hits in a single season.

The 2007 and 2008 American League Gold Glove Award winner at third base, Beltre has posted a .957 fielding percentage (205 errors/4,718 total chances) in 1,664 games (1,621 starts) at the position. He leads all active third basemen with 1,319 putouts, is second with 3,194 assists and third with 297 double plays.

A native of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Beltre played in four Division Series games with the Dodgers in 2004. He hit safely in three of the four contests, going 4-for-15 with an RBI and run scored.

Note: Beltre will be introduced to the Boston media on Friday morning at 10 a.m. at press conference at Fenway Park.