Tina Charles led five UConn Huskies in double figures with 17 points as they overcame their slow start to beat the Georgetown Hoyas 80-61 in front of 2,500 at McDonough Arena in Washington, D.C.

The No. 1 Huskies improve to 21-0 (7-0 Big East) while the Hoyas fall to 13-8 (3-5). It’s the second straight season and 5th time in their history that they’ve started a season 21-0.

Hayes continues to impress as she had 14 points off the bench to go with 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Renee Montgomery had 14 points, 6 rebounds and 9 assists but had 6 turnovers while Maya Moore had an off day with 14 points. Moore also had 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocked shots. Kalana Greene rounded out the Huskies in double digits with 10 points while Kaili McLaren, who sparked the Huskies in the first half, finished with 5 points and 5 rebounds in front of her hometown crowd.

Georgetown’s Karee Houlette led all scorers in the game with 20 points, hitting 6-of-12 three pointers. Adria Crawford had a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds while Monica McNutt chipped in with 10 points and Latia Magee had 8.

Both teams started out slowly as it was just 11-9 UConn at the 11:52 mark of the first half. A Haye’s three pointer gave the Huskies a 5 point lead at 14-9 and Georgetown stayed close though. With UConn leading 21-17, the Hoyas went on a quick 5-0 spurt to take a point lead. The teams continued to exchange baskets and with UConn leading 29-26, the Huskies closed out the half on a 16-4 run to take a 45-30 lead at the break.

It was all UConn to start the second half as a 25-6 run in the first 10 minutes pushed their lead to 72-36. The lead got as high as 30 points before the Hoyas whittled the lead down to the final margin during garbage time.

Since Caroline Doty went out with her knee injury, the Huskies depth has been tested and it was again today when Moore got into foul trouble. But they were able to persevere as McLaren came off the bench to help the Huskies close out the half on the 16-4 run. Plus what can you say about Hayes who finally seems to be shaking off the injury to her roommate and playing some great Connecticut basketball.

Next up for the Huskies is a matchup with their archrival the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Tuesday night at the XL Center in Hartford, CT. Tip is scheduled for 8 PM and the game will be broadcast on CBS College Sports.

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Declared Academically Ineligible: The UConn Huskies men’s basketball team will be down one player for the rest of the season as Charles Okwandu has been declared academically ineligible. He can practice with the Huskies but can’t suit up for games nor travel with the team. “I am grateful for the opportunity to continue to be a part of the team while I re-focus on my academics,” Okwandu said in a statement. “I know with hard work and the support of my coaches and teammates that I will be successful in the classroom and be able to rejoin the team next season.” [Matt’s UConn men’s basketball blog]

Now that Jason Varitek has been re-signed by the Boston Red Sox, what’s next for them. Well the first thing that comes to mind is truck day on February 6th. There are other questions that need to be answered.

Now that Tek will be around for probably the next two years, what will the Red Sox do at catcher after that? Why is that significant right now? Well they don’t really have the catcher of the future hanging around. The talk all around baseball is that the Red Sox will still pursue a trade for either Miguel Montero of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Jarrod Saltalamacchia of Texas Rangers or Taylor Teagarden, also of the Rangers.

There are conflicting reports though.

From Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe:

According to a baseball source, the Sox still could make a deal for a young, developing catcher before the start of the season, though Varitek’s presence now gives them the luxury of extending that search into midyear (just before or at the annual July 31 trading deadline) and even beyond the 2009 season.

From Jeff Wilson of the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram:

That should end any more talk of Jarrod Saltalamacchia or Taylor Teagarden being traded to Boston, and allow them to go into camp to compete for the starting job. Expect Saltalamacchia to go into Surprise, Ariz., atop the depth chart.

Personally I think the Red Sox still need to pursue a trade to get a younger catcher who is capable of handling the pitching staff sooner rather than later to allow that person to get some tutelage under Varitek. The man is a human computer behind the plate plus the presence of Gary Tuck doesn’t hurt either.

Massarotti also notes that Varitek spoke with GM Theo Epstein on Thursday night:

According to a team source, Varitek and general manager Theo Epstein spoke directly via telephone late Thursday night to help bridge the gap between the player and team. Sox officials then finalized the deal with agent Scott Boras this morning and early afternoon, just beyond an 8:30 a.m. deadline the team had established before Varitek and Epstein spoke.

Tek had always wanted to stay a member of the Red Sox especially given the fact that he directed his agent Scott Borahole not to talk money with other teams. That didn’t really matter though as there weren’t offers pouring in for his services.

It’s over now and both sides can move forward to hopefully what is another World Series trophy for the Red Sox.

The newest member of the MLB Network Sean Casey called into NESN SportsDesk last night to give his thoughts on Varitek coming back.

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Gary Marbry has some nuggets on Jason Varitek [WEEI]

Bob Ryan says Jason Varitek was lucky not to drown testing the free agent waters [Boston Globe]

Jason Varitek – A Nation Rejoices [SOX & Dawgs]

The Red Sox were in the winner in this tussle [Boston Herald]

Can Jason Varitek still handle the Red Sox pitching staff? [Hartford Courant]

Red Sox owner John Henry is engaged [Inside Track]

Red Sox prospect Nick Hagadone is back on track after Tommy John surgery [Providence Journal]

Lost in all the hoopla of the Varitek saga yesterday was the fact that the Red Sox celebrated the life of Jackie Robinson at Fenway Park [redsox.com]

It’s game day for the UConn Huskies men’s basketball and women’s basketball teams. The UConn women kick off the action in our nation’s capital against the Georgetown Hoyas at 3 PM on CPTV. The UConn men will host the Providence  Friars at Gampel Pavilion at 4 PM on MyTV9. Good job of scheduling by someone (note the sarcasm).

Matt Stout of the Norwich Bulletin, Neill Ostrout of the Connecticut Post and David Borges of the New Haven Register all have some notes on the UConn men’s basketball team.

The UConn men and Providence have enjoyed a great rivalry over the years [Norwich Bulletin]

Providence could be the roadblock to the number 1 ranking for UConn [Hartford Courant]

Here’s a scouting report on the UConn men’s game against Providence [Norwich Bulletin]

The UConn men are ready for the Friars this afternoon [The News-Times]

Knocking off Providence is the No. 1 goal for the Huskies this afternoon [New Haven Register]

The UConn men are in line to take over the No. 1 spot with a win this afternoon [USA Today]

The Huskies are wary of a red-hot Providence team [Waterbury Republican-American]

Will UConn survive Providence to be No. 1 [Charlotte Observer]

A.J. Price isn’t making predictions this time around [New London Day]

If you’re looking for a big game to watch today, turn on the UConn-Providence game at 4 PM [Providence Journal]

Rich Elliot of the Connecticut Post and John Altavilla of the Hartford Courant have some notes on the UConn women’s basketball team.

Jim Fuller has some news on two UConn women’s recruits [Elm City to Eagleville]

This afternoon’s game with Georgetown marks the 800th game that Geno Auriemma has coached [Hartford Courant]

Jim Fuller also has a look at what the former Huskies did in the Euroleague Playoffs yesterday [Elm City to Eagleville]

Here’s a look at the other milestone games Geno Auriemma has coached in his career [Hartford Courant]

Kaili McLaren is hoping to get back on track this afternoon [Norwich Bulletin]

Tiffany Hayes has improved herself on the defensive end since the start of practice this season [The News-Times]

Kaili McLaren is happy to be heading home [New Haven Register]

Geno Auriemma still gets butterflies on game days [New London Day]

Here’s a scouting report for the UConn women’s game against Georgetown [Connecticut Post]

Tiffany Hayes has grown into a better defensive player [Waterbury Republican-American]

Here’s a look at the 4 star recruit the UConn football team will be hosting this weekend [Rivals.com]

If you’re fortunate enough to have the CBS College Sports channel, you can check out Dahna Deleston and Julius Williams in the Texas vs The Nation Game this afternoon at 3 PM (I’ll have a post after the game as to how they performed) [UConnHuskies.com]

The UConn men’s hockey team fell 5-3 to Holy Cross [UConnHuskies.com]

The UConn Huskies women’s basketball Big 3 of Renee Montgomery, Tina Charles and Maya Moore are among the 20 players that have been selected for Women’s Wooden Award Midseason Watch List.

The award is presented annually to the top women’s college basketball player by the Los Angeles Athletic Club.

The Huskies are the only school with more than one player selected. The Big East leads the way with 6 selections as well.

There are three new candidates on the list in Jessica Breland of North Carolina, Kristi Cirone of Illinois State and Alysha Clark of Middle Tennessee State.

Here’s the complete of players: