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 the other sports the student-athletes engage in. 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.

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UConn Women's Basketball links

Hartley plans to keep positive approach [carl adamec – snyuconn.com]

UConn Braving The Storm – Like Everyone Else [john altavilla – hartford courant]

No Date Set (Yet) For Banks’ Surgery [john altavilla – hartford courant]

Rehab Underway For Banks; No Surgery Date Set [rich elliott – ct post]

Huskies Slightly Change Practice Schedule Due To Nemo [rich elliott – ct post]

Tuck Back At Practice, Expected To Play Sunday Vs. DePaul [rich elliott – ct post]

Huskies Opened The Offense Vs. Marquette — Big Time [rich elliott – ct post]

No date for Brianna Banks' surgery; Morgan Tuck practicing [jim fuller – new haven register]

Women's Hoops Welcomes DePaul to Gampel on Sunday [uconnhuskies.com]

Coach Says Weather Never Stopped UConn Women [uconnhuskies.com]

Who’s on UConn’s all-time greatest team? [snyuconn.com]

UConn Men's Basketball links

Kevin Ollie: Huskies Need To Attack With More Confidence Vs. Seton Hall [dom amore – hartford courant]

Andre Drummond Injured; Huskies Look to Bounce Back vs. Seton Hall [david borges – new haven register]

Notes/Quotes from Feb. 8: “What we’ve been doing hasn’t been working. That’s up to me to try to change that.” [kevin duffy – ct post]

Report: Drummond out at least a month [kevin duffy – ct post]

Huskies hunkered down [neill ostrout – journal inquirer]

Men's Basketball Heads To Seton Hall For Sunday Matinee [uconnhuskies.com]

Kevin Ollie Continues To Stress 'Mind-Set Change' With Seton Hall Next [hartford courant]

Vandal's living out his dream [the day]

UConn Football links

UConn’s 2013 Recruiting Class: What They’re Saying [desmond conner – hartford courant]

DC answered a question in his mailbag [desmond conner – hartford courant]

UConn Coach Pasqualoni On New Assistants On Recruiting Trail: “Gave Us Energy Coming Down The Stretch” [desmond conner – hartford courant]

Update on UConn commit Jamar Summers [jim fuller – new haven register]

Other UConn related links

Baseball. UConn Baseball Building Toward Return Trip to NCAAs [uconnhuskies.com]

M. Track. BIG EAST Championship Up Next for Men's Track & Field [uconnhuskies.com]

M. Ice Hockey. Bruce Marshall At Peace With Decision To Step Away From UConn Hockey [hartford courant]

Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.

Just like his adversary over at ESPN Insider, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com has ranked his top 100 MLB Prospects for 2013. In there, he has included three former members of the UConn Huskies Baseball team.

They are Mike Olt of the Texas Rangers (No. 21), Matt Barnes of the Boston Red Sox (No. 38) and George Springer of the Houston Astros (No. 57).

Here's what he has to say about Olt who comes in as the No. 2 prospect in the Rangers organization:

Scouting Grades (present/future): Hit: 4/5 | Power: 5/6 | Run: 3/3 | Arm: 6/6 | Field: 5/5 | Overall: 5/6

There are those who feel Olt is ready to play every day at third base in the big leagues, and could do so for a number of teams. The issue for Olt is that the Rangers aren't one of them, with Adrian Beltre standing in his way at the hot corner. When he was up briefly in 2012, he played some first base and some corner outfield, but that's not a condemnation of his skills at third. His hands, range and arm, the last of which being his best defensive tool, all play very well at that position, leaving little doubt about his ability to stay there long-term. Olt may not hit for a really high average, and fans should be prepared for a good amount of strikeouts, but he'll also draw a ton of walks and is a better all-around hitter than many anticipated. The power is legit, too, and it's not a projection. Olt's ready to hit the ball out to any field at any time. All he needs is a regular opportunity to do so.

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Here's what he has to say about Barnes who comes in as the No. 3 prospect for the Red Sox:

Scouting Grades* (present/future): Fastball: 6/7 | Curveball: 5/6 | Changeup: 4/5 | Control: 5/6 | Overall: 5/6

This University of Connecticut product had a solid first full season of pro ball in 2012, including a visit to the Futures Game, though he clearly ran out of gas and struggled a bit in the second half of the season. Barnes has everything a team is looking for in a future frontline starter: arm strength, good overall stuff and even a feel for pitching. He isn’t afraid to go right after hitters or go inside, especially with his plus fastball that touches 96 mph. His tight downer curve has the chance to be an out pitch as well and while his changeup is clearly his third pitch, it’s improving and should be an average offering in the future. With good overall command, it shouldn’t take him too long to be ready for Boston.

Here's what he has to say about Springer who comes in as the No. 2 prospect in the Astros organization:

Scouting Grades* (present/future): Hit: 4/5 | Power: 5/6 | Run: 6/6 | Arm: 6/6 | Field: 5/6 | Overall: 5/6

Power and speed. It’s a combination always in high demand in a player, but often difficult to find. But there’s no question Springer has plenty of both, and not the raw kind of tools that never show up. His outstanding bat speed allows the University of Connecticut product to drive the ball to all fields, with plenty of power to leave the yard regularly. While he does tend to strike out a good amount, most feel he’ll hit enough to tap into that power and hit for a little average. His speed is legit and he should continue to be a threat on the basepaths and a well above-average defensive center fielder, though he has the arm for right field should that be the spot the Astros need him to play. He gets very high marks for his makeup and energy. Springer went 20-20 in his first full season of pro ball and there’s no reason to think that won’t be a regular occurrence for him in the future.

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Just like his adversary over at ESPN Insider, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com has ranked his top 100 MLB Prospects for 2013. In there, he has included six members of the Boston Red Sox farm system in his top 100.

They are Xander Bogaerts (No. 20), Jackie Bradley, Jr (No. 32), Matt Barnes (No. 38), Allen Webster (No. 71), Henry Owens (No. 91) and Jose Iglesias (No. 96).

Here's what he says about Bogaerts:

Scouting Grades (present/future): Hit: 4/6 | Power: 4/5 | Run: 5/5 | Arm: 6/6 | Field: 4/6 | Overall: 5/6

The Aruba native and 2012 Futures Game participant has some serious tools and he's used them to rush up the Red Sox's organizational ladder, reaching Double-A in 2012 at age 19. He has the ability to make hard contact and can shoot the ball to all fields with excellent bat speed and a smooth swing. He has significant raw power he's still learning to tap into and he will be a better overall hitter as his plate discipline continues to improve, something that happened in the Carolina League in 2012, but not as much once he moved up a level. His plus arm works just fine from shortstop and while he's an average runner, he has better range than one would expect for a player his size. If he has to move over to third, his bat looks like it will play just fine there, though Will Middlebrooks is standing in the way there.

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Here's what he says about Bradley:

Scouting Grades (present/future): Hit: 5/6 | Power: 4/5 | Run: 5/5 | Arm: 5/5 | Field: 6/7 | Overall: 5/6

A subpar junior season at South Carolina, which ended in injury, may have been the biggest blessing for the Boston Red Sox. Otherwise, the talented outfielder would not have been around in the supplemental first round of the 2011 Draft. Bradley put that rough final college campaign in his rear view mirror quickly by reaching Double-A in his first full season and finishing second in the system in batting average while topping the organization in on-base percentage. He can really hit and can square up to the ball consistently to go along with his superb on-base skills. He's not a burner, but his plus instincts make him a threat on the bases as well as a plus defender in center field. He doesn't need that much more time before he'll be ready to contribute and most see Jacoby Ellsbury's impending free agency as the opening for Bradley to step through full-time.

Here's what he has to say about Barnes:

Scouting Grades* (present/future): Fastball: 6/7 | Curveball: 5/6 | Changeup: 4/5 | Control: 5/6 | Overall: 5/6

This University of Connecticut product had a solid first full season of pro ball in 2012, including a visit to the Futures Game, though he clearly ran out of gas and struggled a bit in the second half of the season. Barnes has everything a team is looking for in a future frontline starter: arm strength, good overall stuff and even a feel for pitching. He isn’t afraid to go right after hitters or go inside, especially with his plus fastball that touches 96 mph. His tight downer curve has the chance to be an out pitch as well and while his changeup is clearly his third pitch, it’s improving and should be an average offering in the future. With good overall command, it shouldn’t take him too long to be ready for Boston.

Here's what he has to say about Webster:

Scouting Grades* (present/future): FB: 6/7 | Curve: 4/5 | Slider: 4/5 | Changeup: 4/5 | Control: 4/6 | Overall: 4/5

Having to trade someone like Adrian Gonzalez is never a good thing, especially for an organization like the Red Sox, but one of the silver linings of that cloud was the acquisition of Webster from the Dodgers in the deal. A bit of a project as a later-round selection, he has really developed into a right-hander who will be ready to help a big league staff very soon. Webster's best pitch is his fastball, but it's not just because he throws it up into the mid-90s. His heater has plus life with a ton of sink, which has enabled him to get a ton of groundball outs along with swings and misses. His changeup also has sink to it and he has a pretty good feel for it. When he's in sync, his slider is sharp with late break and has glimpses of being an out pitch as well. While Webster rarely gives up the long ball, his command wasn't as sharp in 2012. If he can find better consistency with his outstanding stuff, he can start. If not, a bullpen role could ultimately be his future.

Here's what he has to say about Owens:

Scouting Grades (present/future): FB: 5/6 | Curve: 5/5 | Slider: 5/5 | Changeup: 5/6 | Control: 4/5 | Overall: 5/5

The Southern California high school standout had a very successful first full season, spending the year in the South Atlantic League and finishing fourth in strikeouts despite being on an innings count. Tall and lanky, the ball comes out of Owens’ hand free and easy, allowing his lively fastball to play up. Despite his walk rate, he actually can locate his fastball in and out of the strike zone fairly well. Owens has two breaking balls, with both the curve and the slider looking like average offerings at least. He has a very good changeup which he uses as an out pitch effectively. His ceiling might be that of a No. 3 starter, but that’s nothing to sneeze at, and the gloves could come off a bit in 2013.

And here's what he has to say about Iglesias:

Scouting Grades* (present/future): Hit: 3/4 | Power: 2/2 | Run: 5/5 | Arm: 6/6 | Field: 7/7 | Overall: 4/5

Since the Red Sox signed Iglesias back in 2009, everyone knew the glove would be ready and the bat would take time. The Cuban defector is a plus defensive shortstop, the kind worth the price of admission to watch play the position. His offensive game, however, still raises concerns over his ability to be an everyday big leaguer. Some of the problem has been injury-related. He’s missed a good amount of development time and repetitions to allow that part of his game to catch up. He still has some ability, with good bat speed and the ability to make consistent contact. He also has solid speed, but there’s not much power to speak of and while he doesn’t strike out, he doesn’t walk much, either. Iglesias will still be just 23 for all of the 2013 season, but he needs to stay healthy and get the chance to show if he can hit enough to be in a big league lineup as a regular at shortstop.

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In perusing Keith Law's 2013 Top 100 Prospects for 2013 article on ESPN Insider yesterday for the players from the Boston Red Sox, I also had to take into consideration one of the other subjects of the site, the UConn Huskies.

So when you go through the list of the top 100, you'll notice that there are three former UConn Huskies baseball players in it.

They are George Springer of the Houston Astros (No. 43), Mike Olt of the Texas Rangers (No. 71) and Matt Barnes of the Red Sox (No. 79).

Here's what Law had to say about Springer who he ranked as the No. 3 prospect in the Astros organization:

Springer is a true five-tool player who is, as scouts say, what prospects are supposed to look like, but the lack of adjustments in his approach in the last two years is becoming more and more of a concern.

On the plus side, Springer can run, throw, hit for power (including to the opposite field), and cover ground in center; if he has to move to a corner, he'll easily be plus in right, similar to Jason Heyward, a center fielder in high school who's become one of the game's best right fielders.

At the plate, Springer is fine when he's ahead in the count, with superlative hand acceleration, letting him load a little deeply and wait on the ball, then exploding to it with the bat speed and rotation to produce plus power. When he falls behind, however, he struggles to adjust, with no real two-strike approach — he doesn't shorten up, he doesn't look for different pitch types, and he doesn't use the whole field.

These are all changes he is able to make, but hasn't yet. If he does, he's an All-Star and would give the Astros a second impact bat with Jonathan Singleton. If not, Springer might not make enough contact to be a big league regular.

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Here's what Law had to say about Olt who he ranks as the No. 2 prospect in the Rangers organization:

Olt's big league debut could have gone better, as he swung and missed a lot (13 K's in 33 at-bats) when he was able to get into the Rangers' lineup, but he's also the team's main trading chip and might have to wait for a deal to get his chance to play third base every day.

A poor defensive shortstop in college at UConn, Olt has remade himself into a plus defender at third, and he has big raw power that could produce 30-plus bombs a year if he makes enough contact. That's the main question on Olt at this point. Contact rates were an issue for him in college, and between Double-A and the majors last year, it's resurfaced to the point where he's probably going to be a low-to-moderate batting average guy who draws 60-70 walks a year and hits 20-25 homers.

The swing-and-miss problem isn't from his swing, though, which has gotten more direct since college, so perhaps he just needs more reps — he had just over 600 pro plate appearances coming into 2012 — to get past it.

And here's what he has to say about Barnes who he ranks as the fourth best Red Sox prospect.

Barnes shocked a lot of scouts this year with the leap forward in his fastball command, working with it up and down, side to side, so even though he wasn't consistently 93-97 as he was in college he could still get outs and set up his off-speed stuff.

He's ditched the below-average slider that screwed him up in his junior year at UConn and pitched most of the season with an above-average downer curveball that he could throw for strikes. His changeup gradually improved over the year as the Red Sox forced him to throw it a number of times each game, but even in Salem he was still getting hitters on both sides of the plate out with the fastball.

Barnes was a little experienced to spend the whole year in A-ball, so his stat line overstates how advanced he is, but he looks like a solid mid-rotation guy who'll be at least league-average, with a chance to profile better than that because of how well he locates the fastball.

Law's complete top 100: Index  | 1-25  | 26-50 | 51-75  | 76-100

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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 the other sports the student-athletes engage in. 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 Women's Basketball links

Tina Charles has dominant EuroLeague season [jim fuller – new haven register]

Moriah Jefferson and UConn Have Been a Great Match [uconnhuskies.com]

UConn TV Timeout: Breanna Stewart [snyuconn.com]

UConn Men's Basketball links

Thoughts from St. John’s… [kevin duffy – ct post]

UConn's Slow Starts Frustrate Ollie [hartford courant]

Three points from Wednesday's loss to St. John's [new haven register]

UConn Football links

Closer look at UConn's recruiting class [jim fuller – new haven register]

Second impression: Signing Day 24 hours later [jim fuller – new haven register]

Report: UConn-Michigan tickets will only be sold to season ticket holders [the uconn blog]

State Farm: UConn Harvesting Home-Grown Talent [hartford courant]

Paul Pasqualoni turns six Connecticut kids into Huskies [new haven register]

Other UConn related links

W. Track. Valentine Invite Cancelled Due to Inclement Weather [uconnhuskies.com]

W. Ice Hockey. Saturday Hockey vs. Northeastern Postponed to Tuesday Night [uconnhuskies.com]

CPIA. UConn Honors 3.0 GPA Student-Athletes [uconnhuskies.com]

W & M. Tennis. Men's and Women's Tennis Matches Cancelled Due To Storm [uconnhuskies.com]

M. Ice Hockey. Men's Hockey Games Postponed To Sunday-Monday [uconnhuskies.com]

A Good First Step In Improving The XL Center [hartford courant]

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Feb. 7, 2013 — NESN, New England’s most-watched sports network, will deliver 49 consecutive days of live Boston Red Sox Spring Training coverage. For the first time, the network will co-anchor NESN Daily, the network’s nightly sports news and highlights program, live from the Red Sox spring training facility. In addition to NESN Daily from JetBlue Park at Fenway South, NESN will also originate an additional 72 hours of live programming that includes:

• 11 days of Red Sox LIVE from Fort Myers presented by Jordan’s Furniture
• 6 days of WEEI’s The Dennis and Callahan Morning Show
• 14 spring training games beginning Saturday, Feb. 23

NESN.com will also feature up-to-the-minute news and exclusive video in a special spring training section at NESN.com/springtraining.

11 Days of Red Sox LIVE from Fort Myers presented by Jordan’s Furniture

NESN’s live spring training coverage begins the day pitchers and catchers report, on Sunday, Feb. 10, at 6 p.m. with Red Sox LIVE from Fort Myers presented by Jordan’s Furniture. NESN studio host Tom Caron will be joined by Peter Gammons and Red Sox players, coaches and executives to deliver 11 consecutive days of live programming from JetBlue Park at Fenway South.

6 Days of WEEI’s Dennis and Callahan Morning Show

NESN’s live coverage from Fort Myers will also include six days of WEEI’s The Dennis & Callahan Morning Show beginning Wednesday, Feb. 13. John Dennis and Gerry Callahan will be at JetBlue Park at Fenway South to deliver exclusive interviews with players, coaches and other experts.

14 spring training games

NESN’s coverage of 14 Grapefruit League games will begin Saturday, Feb. 23, at 1:30 p.m., when the Red Sox play the Tampa Bay Rays at JetBlue Park at Fenway South. Don Orsillo and Jerry Remy will team up for their 13th season together in the NESN broadcast booth to deliver all the action, with Jenny Dell returning for her second season as NESN’s Red Sox reporter.

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BURLINGTON, MA, February 7, 2013 – Comcast SportsNet will provide viewers with more than 50 hours of Red Sox Spring Training coverage beginning Sunday, February 10^th and continuing through Monday, February 25^th. Special coverage will include reports from the state-of-the-art Red Sox Spring Training facility in Fort Myers with additional programming coming out of the studios in Burlington.

Spring Training coverage will tip off with Chevrolet SportsNet Central on Sunday at 9PM. The show will provide daily reports including news, key storylines developing both on and off the field, player analysis, team review, and one-on-one interviews with players and Red Sox personnel. Sports Sunday will immediately follow at 9:30PM taking a look at Spring Training happenings, and UNO’s Sports Tonight will include daily guests from on-site breaking down the Red Sox storylines. Additionally, there will be Spring Training content from Fort Myers featured in the Felger & Mazz show each day.

Comcast SportsNet’s coverage will be highlighted by six live special episodes of The Baseball Show Presented by Twin River Casino beginning Tuesday at 7PM. Each show will include frequent player appearances and a live call-in and onlineinteractive component giving fans an opportunity to pose questions to the on-air talent and provide their own insight on the Red Sox and Spring Training.

Special episodes of “The Baseball Show” are scheduled as follows:

• Tue, Feb 12, 7-8pm
• Wed, Feb 13, 11:30pm -12:30am
• Thu, Feb 14, 7-8pm
• Fri, Feb 15, 7-8pm
• Mon, Feb 18, 7-8pm
• Tue, Feb 19, 7-8pm

On-air talent covering the events from Fort Myers includes CSNNE Red Sox Insider Sean McAdam, Jessica Moran, Lou Merloni, Mike Giardi and Trenni Kusnierek with Bob Neumeier anchoring coverage from the Comcast SportsNet studios in Burlington, MA. Tony Massarotti will also be part of Comcast SportsNet’s Spring Training coverage from Burlington, including being part of three of the special episodes of The Baseball Show.

CSNNE.com will be the online place to go for sports fans to get all that and more.  In addition to features from all of the on-air coverage listed above, CSNNE.com will also provide breaking news, updates and unique features throughout Spring Training with daily insight and analysis from McAdam.

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