Someone forgot to tell the LSU Lady Tigers that they were big underdogs this afternoon against the No. 1 UConn Huskies.

The Lady Tigers gave UConn all they could handle before the Huskies were able to pull away in the second half to a 76-63 win in front of 13,922 at the XL Center in Hartford, CT.

The win for the Huskies improves their record to 12-0 while the Lady Tigers drop to 6-5.

Renee Montgomery led 5 Huskies in double figures with 21 points and 6 assists. Maya Moore added a double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds to go along with 4 assists and 3 blocks while Tina Charles continued her good play with 16 points and 6 rebounds. Kaili McLaren came off the bench to scored 10 points and Kalana Greene added 10 points as well. The only other Husky to score was Tiffany Hayes who had just 2 points.

LSU was led by Allison Hightower who had 14 points before fouling out. Lasondra Barrett chipped in with 13 points and 6 rebounds before fouling out as well. Ayana Dunning added 12 points and 9 rebounds while Katherine Graham had 10 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals.

The Lady Tigers came out strong as they battled with UConn through 7 ties and 8 lead changes. LSU’s biggest lead though was only 3 points as the Huskies were able to stay close and eventually take the lead on a Moore jumper. Moore’s jumper started a 15-7 run to close out the first half as UConn enjoyed an 8 point lead at the half at 41-33.

LSU came out strong to start the second half as well using an 8-2 run to cut UConn’s lead to points at 43-41.  The Huskies then used a 20-5 run behind Montgomery to open up a 17 point lead. LSU battled back though to get the lead down to 9 but that’s as close as they would get to UConn because of Hightower and Barrett, LSU’s leading scorers, fouling out in the game.

The UConn women will now open Big East play on Tuesday night when they head to the Sun Dome in Tampa to take on the South Florida Bulls. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 PM and the game will be broadcast locally on CPTV.

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Things have still been relatively quiet for the Boston  Red Sox as of late although they did make the signing of Josh Bard official yesterday. After announcing the signing, Bard held a teleconference with the local media and here’s a sampling of what he had to say.

What’s it like to be back?

I am extremely excited. Obviously, last time I didn’t leave on the terms I necessarily would have liked. To get a second chance to play for what I consider the best organization in baseball from top to bottom is a privilege. I’m grateful for it. I know that this time, it’s going to be different for a lot of different reasons. Mostly, I think that I’m a different player and a different person than I was the last time that I was here. Initially, I think that coming to the Red Sox, I was hoping that I was going to be a good player. Falling flat on your face and going to San Diego, getting kind of throwing into the fire there and succeeding and playing well, now I know that I belong in this league. I think going into the situation with Tim, I think initially I felt like I had the weight of the world on my shoulders with every pitch that he threw, and if I missed one, the world was going to be over. I thin that with maturity comes an understanding that everyone misses a knuckleball every once in a while. That’s part of it. Understanding that this time around will give me a lot better insight on how to do this thing.

I think we are all still hoping the Red Sox go out and sign Jason Varitek because Josh Bard is probably not going to be the every day catcher. It’s also quite possible that the Red Sox could still try and trade for a younger catcher that’s capable of handling the every day duties as well.

Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe checks in with her first mailbag of the new year.

Pitching coach John Farrell will be appearing at a pitching clinic in Mansfield, MA on January 17th and 18.

Chad Finn from Touching All The Bases is a big fan of Hanley Ramirez.

Busy day of action for the three major UConn Huskies sports. The UConn football team will take on the Buffalo Bulls in the International Bowl in Toronto at Noon on ESPN2. The UConn women’s basketball team will play at the XL Center at noon today against the LSU Tigers on CBS. And finally, the UConn men’s basketball team will play Rutgers at 7 PM at Gampel Pavilion. The game will be broadcast locally on My-TV9.

If you missed the official SOX & Dawgs preview of the International Bowl, don’t forget to check that out.

Also if you missed Keith Gray’s chat over at UConnBowl.com, don’t forget to check that out.

The UConn football team had a busy day in Toronto yesterday.

UConn is looking for atonement in today’s game versus Buffalo.

Rob Lunn made sure to get a picture with Jesse Jackson at the International Bowl Luncheon.

Rob Lunn checks in with a post ragging on Scott Lutrus over at Thoughts From a Fat White Guy.

And apparently Lunn also has some super fans. He also checks in over at his blog on NESN.com.

John Silver of Journal Inquirer and Desmond Conner of the Hartford Courant check in with some notes from the luncheon.

A lot of the UConn football player’s families have made the trip to Toronto.

It’s a clash of rising football programs this afternoon in Toronto.

The Huskies need Tyler Lorenzen to be on target this afternoon.

Buffalo and UConn both look to end the season on a high note.

Donald Brown is focused on the task at hand this afternoon.

The Buffalo Bulls are ready for this afternoon’s game against UConn.

The Huskies will have the final say for the Big East in bowl games.

Here are the keys to success for both the Huskies and Bulls this afternoon.

Speaking at yesterday’s International Bowl Luncheon,  Jesse Jackson credited athletics with social change.

The motto for both teams in today’s International Bowl is just win.

While Buffalo is making it’s first bowl appearance today, this is not their first bowl  bid.

Jim Fuller of the New Haven Register has a look ahead at the UConn women’s recruiting plans.

John Altavilla of the Hartford Courant, Rich Elliott of the Connecticut Post and Joe Perez of the Norwich Bulletin all have notes from yesterday’s UConn women’s basketball practice.

A rebuilding LSU women’s basketball team hopes they are ready for the Huskies this afternoon.

Fortunately for Geno Auriemma he doesn’t have to rebuild his team, he just reloads instead.

Geno Auriemma has been hard on Maya Moore as of late.

LSU head coach Van Chancellor has some high praise for the UConn women.

Kaili McLaren hopes to have a repeat performance of the game she played last year against LSU.

UConn/LSU lacks the drama of the past of years.

Matt Stout of the Norwich Bulletin, Mike Anthony of the Hartford Courant, Neill Ostrout of the Connecticut Post, and David Borges of the New Haven Register all have notes from yesterday’s men’s basketball practice.

Stanley Robinson will start for the Huskies tonight at small forward because of Rutgers size up front.

The UConn men look to rebound from Monday’s loss against Georgetown tonight against Rutgers.

Jeff Adrien is the muscle of the UConn’s men team.

Mike Rosario has brought respectability to tonight’s opponent in Rutgers.

The UConn men are already feeling the pressure of the Big East.

The UConn women’s hockey team also returns to action as they will take on the Vermont Catamounts at 1 PM today and tomorrow at home.

UConn Huskies center Keith Gray will be holding a chat over at UConnBowl.com this morning at 10 AM.

If you missed yesterday’s chat with tight end/long snapper Martin Bedard, don’t forget to check it out.

Rob Lunn checked in with another entry in a diary for ESPN.com.

Apparently FWG is afraid of heights as he chronicles over at Thoughts From A Fat White Guy.

The Huskies held their final practice of the season and visited the CN Tower yesterday.

John Silver of the Journal Inquirer and Desmond Conner of the Hartford Courant have some notes from yesterday’s final practice.

UConn will be facing a dangerous Buffalo offense.

Buffalo running back James Starks is a big fan of UConn running back Donald Brown.

It was an emotional final practice for Randy Edsall’s Huskies.

The Huskies offensive line is one reason why Donald Brown had a great season.

Rob Lunn has parlayed his blog, Thoughts From A Fat White Guy, into part of his immediate future.

Buffalo’s defense should thrive against UConn’s one-dimensional offense.

Jim Fuller of the New Haven Register takes a look at the UConn women’s next opponent in LSU.

With Heather Buck out for the season, Kaili McLaren needs to provide valuable minutes off of the bench.

Renee Montgomery and Jen Rizzotti share the same winning attitude.

Dikembe Mutombo may have been the reason why Hasheem Thabeet didn’t jump to the NBA last year.

UConn’s student athletes balance the books, sports better than most schools.