Here are the highlights from the UConn Huskies women’s basketball team’s 80-38 win over the Georgetown Hoyas in front of a sold-out crowd at Gampel Pavilion on campus in Storrs, CT on Saturday afternoon.
{flvremote}http://cdn.ianbethune.com/gtownuconnwbb2012.flv{/flvremote}
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
By Brian Ring
Manchester, NH, February 11, 2012 – The Connecticut Whale defeated the Manchester Monarchs, 4-1, Saturday night at the Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester. Jonathan Audy-Marchessault and Casey Wellman both scored and added an assist for the Whale, who won their fifth straight game.
The Whale scored three times in a key second period burst to power their victory over the Monarchs, improving to 2-0-0-0 against Manchester this season. The five straight wins matches a season high for Connecticut.
“We had a good start again tonight, we did a lot of things right,” said Whale head coach Ken Gernander. “I thought it was a solid effort throughout, five-on-five, special teams, goaltending. I thought there were a lot of good things.”
Neither team would score in the first period, but the Whale heavily outshot their opponents in the opening frame for the second straight night, totaling 17 shots to Manchester’s eight. Chad Johnson (26 saves) was especially good early on for the Whale, making a number of point-blank saves on Monarchs opportunities.
The Whale, however, would explode for three goals in the second period in the span of just 1:31.
Wellman would strike first as the beneficiary of hard corner work by Audy-Marchessault, as Audy-Marchessault dug the puck out and passed to Wellman as he sprinted into the slot. Wellman’s shot beat Manchester goaltender Martin Jones (36 saves) for his 15th goal of the season, his first as a member of the Whale, and a 1-0 Connecticut lead at 12:01. Tim Erixon picked up the secondary assist on Audy-Marchessault’s 18th goal.
Wellman would return the favor with a great pass to Audy-Marchessault just nine seconds later, as Audy-Marchessault put the Whale up 2-0. Audy-Marchessault sent a rocket of a one-timer past Jones from the left faceoff circle, the two goals coming just one second shy of the franchise record for fastest consecutive goals. Andre Deveaux would also assist on the score.
The Whale would increase their lead to 3-0 on the power-play, as Wojtek Wolski set up Kris Newbury’s 18th goal of the season with a backhand pass. Newbury found just enough room to stuff the puck between the pad of Jones and the post at 13:32. Mats Zuccarello recorded the secondary assist.
Robert Czarnik would cut the Whale lead to 3-1 with Manchester’s first and only tally of the night at the 1:45 mark of the third period, as his shot managed to sneak past a screened Johnson, with the assists going to Thomas Hickey and Nick Deslauriers.
Andreas Thuresson would regain the Whale’s three-goal advantage just 31 seconds later, as he tipped an Erixon shot past Jones for a 4-1 lead and the final score of the night. Kelsey Tessier also notched a helper on the goal.
The Whale will finish their three-game road trip Sunday afternoon in Bridgeport, as they take on the Sound Tigers in GEICO Connecticut Cup action (3:00). The next home game for the Whale will be Friday, Jan. 17, when they host the Springfield Falcons at the XL Center (7:00).
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, please click on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.
Connecticut Whale 4 at Manchester Monarchs 1
Saturday, February 11, 2012 – Verizon Wireless Arena
Connecticut 0 3 1 – 4
Manchester 0 0 1 – 1
1st Period- No Scoring. Penalties-No Penalties
2nd Period-1, Connecticut, Wellman 15 (Audy-Marchessault, Erixon), 12:01. 2, Connecticut, Audy-Marchessault 18 (Wellman, Deveaux), 12:10. 3, Connecticut, Newbury 18 (Wolski, Zuccarello), 13:32 (PP). Penalties-Zuccarello Ct (interference), 3:09; Woywitka Ct (hooking), 9:25; Azevedo Mch (holding), 12:42.
3rd Period-4, Manchester, Czarnik 6 (Hickey, Deslauriers), 1:45. 5, Connecticut, Thuresson 10 (Erixon, Tessier), 2:16. Penalties-Clune Mch (unsportsmanlike conduct), 6:08; Woywitka Ct (roughing), 8:32; Clune Mch (fighting, misconduct – unsportsmanlike conduct), 8:32; Bell Ct (tripping), 16:08; Deveaux Ct (holding), 19:35.
Shots on Goal-Connecticut 17-10-13-40. Manchester 8-12-7-27.
Power Play Opportunities-Connecticut 1 / 3; Manchester 0 / 4.
Goalies-Connecticut, Johnson 15-9-5 (27 shots-26 saves). Manchester, Jones 13-13-1 (40 shots-36 saves).
A-9,852
Referees-Marcus Vinnerborg (45).
Linesmen-Joe Ross (92), Brian MacDonald (72).
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
When the UConn Huskies women’s basketball team clamps down on its defense, it usually spells doom for the opponent. The Georgetown Hoyas found that out on Saturday afternoon.
Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis broke out of her slump with 23 points to lead the Huskies to an 80-38 win over the Hoyas in front of a sold-out crowd at Gampel Pavilion.
It’s the 27th straight win over the Hoyas for the Huskies who improve to 23-2 (11-1 Big East). Georgetown falls to 19-6 (8-4). It was also the 99th straight home win for Huskies.
Besides her 23 points, KML had six rebounds, four assists and two steals. Bria Hartley had a nice game with 18 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals while Tiffany Hayes had 12 points, three rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Kelly Faris, who was outstanding on the defensive end, had her typical nice all around game with five points, six rebounds and five assists.
Sugar Rodgers was shadowed by Faris most of the game and had 10 points, four rebounds and three assists. Rubylee Wright also had 10 points for the Hoyas. Adria Crawford led Georgetown with six rebounds to go along with her two points.
Believe it or not, Georgetown kept this one close early on.
Trailing 4-2, the Hoyas went on a 5-0 run behind a Wright basket and Rodgers three pointer. Hayes tied it back up for the Huskies with a three. After exchanging baskets, KML put the Huskies in the lead with a jumper only to see Wright hit a three to give the Hoyas back the lead.
But that would be the last time Georgetown saw the lead in the game.
KML kicked off the start of a 15-1 run with a jumper to give UConn the lead for good. During that run, the Huskies turned up the defensive intensity and held the Hoyas without a field goal just under eight minutes. UConn would head into the locker room with a 31-18 lead and wouldn’t take long for them to grow that.
Faris and Caroline Doty would hit threes to start the second half and UConn would just continue to build their lead behind some solid offense and great defense.
When UConn is on, they are on. And when they are on offensively, it usually means that they are at their best on the defensive side of the ball too. That was certainly the case for the run in the first half and in the second half when they would build up their lead.
And while they had 14 turnovers in the game, it was certainly better than their previous efforts. While I’m sure that number won’t please head coach Geno Auriemma, he does have to a little happier that the number wasn’t higher.
UConn won’t have too much time to enjoy this one though as it’ll be back to practice and then on a plane tomorrow. That plane will take them to Norman, Oklahoma for a matchup with the Oklahoma Sooners on Monday night. Tip is scheduled for 9 p.m. and the game will be televised nationally on ESPN2.
To continue reading the Georgetown Hoyas @ UConn Huskies recap, please click on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.
Notes and musings:
Georgetown Hoyas @ UConn Huskies 2.11.12 box score
Here are the postgame quotes from UConn head coach Geno Auriemma and Georgetown head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy. There are also some quotes from UConn players in the link.
The only team in the Big East that Williams-Flournoy hasn’t beaten is the Huskies.
Stefanie Dolson, Caroline Doty, Heather Buck, Kiah Stokes and Kelly Faris were honored at halftime for achieving a 3.0 GPA in the fall semester. In total, 346 UConn student-athletes were honored.
The starters for UConn were Bria Hartley, Caroline Doty, Tiffany Hayes, Kelly Faris and Stefanie Dolson.
The Huskies shot 50% (27-54) from the floor for the game. The Hoyas shot 25% (14-56).
UConn had 20 assists on their 27 made baskets.
The Huskies were 8-of-24 (33.3%) on three-pointers while Georgetown was 4-of-19 (21.1%).
UConn went 18-of-26 (69.2%) from the free throw line. The Hoyas were 6-of-11 (54.5%).
The Huskies won the battle of the boards, outrebounding Georgetown 41-34.
UConn outscored the Hoyas 34-18 in the paint and 21-7 on the fast break.
The Huskies had 14 second chance points to 13 for Georgetown.
UConn had 28 points off of 21 Hoyas turnovers. Georgetown had six points off of 14 Huskies turnovers.
Behind Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis’ 23 points, the Huskies bench outscored the Hoyas bench 34-13.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
Photo credit: Brad Horrigan – Hartford Courant (No. 21 in gallery)
The calendar may say that spring starts on March 23rd this year but in New England, spring actually starts on Truck Day for the Boston Red Sox. And guess what folks, that day was today.
The Red Sox equipment managers spent the morning loading up the truck with equipment for spring training that culminates on February 17th when pitchers and catchers report to camp. The position players are scheduled to report six days later on February 23rd.
So with the truck on it’s way to Ft. Myers, spring fever can start here in New England. Who cares if it was snowing in parts of New England and cold everywhere, Red Sox baseball is right around the corner.
And after what transpired at the end of last season, I’m actually looking forward to spring training.
From what the local Boston media has been reporting, there is already a slew of Red Sox big leaguers and minor leaguers doing informal workouts at their new spring training complex in Ft. Myers. This will be the first time that the Red Sox will have all of their players in the same complex.
In the past, the Red Sox held their spring training at their minor league complex before moving to City of Palms Park for their spring training games. Now they’ll be able to do everything in the same complex, playing their games at their new stadium, JetBlue Park.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
Photo credit: Red Sox Twitter page
Given how the UConn Huskies men’s basketball played in Louisville on Monday, you weren’t really sure how they were going to respond against the No. 2 team in the country in the Syracuse Orange. Unfortunately for the Huskies, Syracuse is at whole nother level above them.
Despite UConn keeping it close for most of the game, the Orange put this one away with a 19-3 run to secure an 85-67 win over the Huskies in front of 33,430 and a nationally-televised audience on CBS at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, NY on Saturday afternoon. The crowd of 33,430 was the fourth largest in Carrier Dome history.
It’s the sixth loss in the last seven games for the Huskies as they fall to 15-9 (5-7 Big East). The Orange improve to 25-1 (12-1).
Jeremy Lamb paced the Huskies with 18 points and had three rebounds and three steals. Since coming back from his second “suspension” of the season, Ryan Boatright has been playing well. He finished the afternoon with 14 points, five rebounds and five assists.
Andre Drummond was probably on his way to a monster second half before injuring his ankle and ended up with 13 points, a team-high seven rebounds and two blocked shots. Shabazz Napier broke out of his mini-slump with 11 points, one rebound and a game-high seven assists.
Scoop Jardine, who keyed that 19-3 run at the end, led the Orange with 21 points and had two rebounds and six assists. Dion Waiters added 18 points, four rebounds and four assists while Kris Joseph had 15 points. C.J. Fair chipped in with a double-double of 14 points and a career-high 12 rebounds.
Since my browser crashed before I could save what I had written again, we’ll just go with the highlights.
{flvremote}http://cdn.ianbethune.com/uconncusembb2012.flv{/flvremote}
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
Photo credit: John Woike – Hartford Courant (No. 21 in gallery)
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 men’s basketball team as they will be at the Carrier Dome this afternoon for a matchup with the Syracuse Orange. Tip is scheduled for 1 p.m. and the game will broadcast nationally on CBS.
It’s also game day for the UConn women’s basketball team as they will host the Georgetown Hoyas at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, CT. Tip is scheduled for 4 p.m. and the game will be broadcast locally in Connecticut on CPTV.
To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click
UConn Men’s Basketball links
Huskies At Syracuse: Once More, With Feeling [Dom Amore – Hartford Courant]
Blaney: Drama ‘Possibly’ Affecting Players Right Now [David Borges – New Haven Register]
Omar Calhoun Not Thinking About UConn Situation Right Now [David Borges – New Haven Register]
UConn’s waiver denied — now what? [Kevin Duffy – CT Post]
Notes/Quotes from Feb. 10: “It is a must-win, but every game is a must-win.” [Kevin Duffy – CT Post]
Game preview: UConn men at Syracuse [Lee Lewis – The Republican-American]
As for the basketball game…. [Neill Ostrout – Journal Inquirer]
UConn vs. Syracuse Preview [UConn Huskies Basketball]
Huskies To Face Rival and No. 2 Syracuse At Carrier Dome Saturday [UConnHuskies.com]
BIG EAST Announces Advance Sellout of 2012 Men’s Basketball Championship [BigEast.org]
Huskies need bounce-back at Syracuse [CT Post]
UConn has itself to blame for NCAA mess [CT Post]
Orange Pose UConn Men’s Most Serious Challenge So Far [Hartford Courant]
UConn men look to regroup against Syracuse [Journal Inquirer]
Are things getting better? Nope, Syracuse is waiting [New Haven Register]
Struggling Huskies now face best team on their schedule [The Day]
UConn Men’s Basketball Glance — At Syracuse [The Hour]
UConn’s 2013 future uncertain [Andy Katz – ESPN.com]
UConn Women’s Basketball links
Georgetown May Muscle UConn [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]
The Grades Are In: UConn Women Excel [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]
Turnovers An Issue For The Huskies Right Now [Rich Elliott – CT Post]
Huskies Find Success On And Off the Court [Rich Elliott – CT Post]
Turnovers irking Auriemma [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]
Game preview: UConn women vs. Georgetown [Lee Lewis – The Republican-American]
UConn Expects Rugged Play From Georgetown [Hartford Courant]
Doty: ‘Violence is not the answer’ [Journal Inquirer]
Faris getting focused, Auriemma getting sarcastic [New Haven Register]
No. 3 UConn women take on their fourth straight ranked opponent [The Day]
UConn Women’s Basketball Glance — Vs. Georgetown [The Hour]
UConn Football links
Three Former UConn Players Headed To NFL Combine [Hartford Courant]
West Virginia, Big East Reach Agreement [Hartford Courant]
Other UConn related links
W. Track. Huskies Dot UConn Record Book At Valentine Invite [UConnHuskies.com]
M. Ice Hockey. Schneider’s Hat Trick Not Enough As Huskies Tie Sacred Heart, 5-5 [UConnHuskies.com]
W. Swimming. Cecco Wins BIG EAST One-Meter Diving Title [UConnHuskies.com]
M. Track. Huskies Claim Four First Place Titles At Ryder-Lafayette Invite [UConnHuskies.com]
M. Tennis. Huskies Drop Spring Opener To Stony Brook [UConnHuskies.com]
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
By Brian Ring
Springfield, MA, February 10, 2012 – The Whale defeated the Springfield Falcons, 3-2 in overtime, Friday night at the MassMutual Center. Wojtek Wolski had two goals, including the overtime game-winner, as the Whale won their fourth straight game in the month of February.
Jonathan Audy-Marchessault also scored for the Whale to force overtime late in the third, with goaltender Chad Johnson making 33 saves for his fourth straight personal win in net.
“That was a great goal by [Audy-Marchessault],” said Whale head coach Ken Gernander of the winger’s late tying goal. “A great shot, that was a huge goal.”
Cam Atkinson scored twice for Springfield, notching his league-leading 26th of the season in the third period.
The game started off quickly, as the Whale took advantage of an early power-play to give themselves a 1-0 lead just 1:04 into the contest. Wolski converted his second goal of the season for the Whale with the man-advantage, burying a pass from Mats Zuccarello behind Springfield goaltender Manny Legace (37 saves). Brendan Bell received the secondary assist on the goal.
The lead would not last long, as Atkinson would tie the game just 16 seconds later. Alexandre Giroux’s pass from behind the Whale goal line found the stick of the open Atkinson in the slot. Johnson appeared to get a big piece of the shot, but it still snuck in for Atkinson’s 25th goal of the campaign, assisted by Giroux and Patrick Cullity.
Legace did his part to keep the game tied for the Falcons, as the Whale fired a team season-high 23 shots on goal in the first period.
Neither team would manage to score in the second period, with the Falcons outshooting the Whale in the middle stanza, 11-8. Both power-plays were held off the board despite another pair of chances for the Whale in the second, and one extra-man opportunity for the Falcons.
The Falcons would take a 2-1 lead 6:50 into the third period on the power-play, as Atkinson was able to score his second goal of the night. A shot from Giroux rebounded off of Johnson and to Atkinson, who was able to one-time it home from the left-wing side.
Audy-Marchessault would tie the game for Connecticut with just 3:06 left to play in the third period, as he took the puck up the ice nearly end-to-end and scored on Legace with a quick snap-shot. The goal was Audy-Marchessault’s 17th of the season and came unassisted, as he intercepted a Ryan Garlock pass in the Whale zone before turning and sprinting up ice.
The Whale would need just 1:04 to win the game once it was sent to the extra session, as Wolski backhanded the game-winner past Legace to send Connecticut to their fourth straight victory. Legace dove to poke the puck away from Wolski, whose long reach enabled him to corral the puck and net the winner.
“[Wolski] was able to pressure Legace and he gave it right back to him,” said Gernander.
Connecticut will be back in action with a pair of road games this weekend, as they take on the Manchester Monarchs Saturday (7:00) and the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Sunday (3:00). The Whale will return home next Friday, when they host Falcons at the XL Center (7:00).
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.
Connecticut Whale 3 (OT) at Springfield Falcons 2
Friday, February 10, 2012 – MassMutual Center
Connecticut 1 0 1 1 – 3
Springfield 1 0 1 0 – 2
1st Period-1, Connecticut, Wolski 2 (Zuccarello, Bell), 1:04 (PP). 2, Springfield, Atkinson 25 (Giroux, Cullity), 1:20. Penalties-Amadio Spr (holding), 0:49; MacLeod Spr (slashing), 3:42; Audy-Marchessault Ct (hooking), 10:24; St. Pierre Spr (slashing), 15:16.
2nd Period- No Scoring.Penalties-Motherwell Spr (cross-checking), 7:12; Bogosian Spr (hooking), 11:09; Tanski Ct (hooking), 15:14.
3rd Period-3, Springfield, Atkinson 26 (Giroux, Regner), 6:50 (PP). 4, Connecticut, Audy-Marchessault 17 16:54. Penalties-Newbury Ct (hooking), 5:11; Erixon Ct (hooking), 9:50.
OT Period-5, Connecticut, Wolski 3 (Nightingale, Erixon), 1:04. Penalties-No Penalties
Shots on Goal-Connecticut 23-8-8-1-40. Springfield 12-11-12-0-35.
Power Play Opportunities-Connecticut 1 / 5; Springfield 1 / 4.
Goalies-Connecticut, Johnson 14-9-5 (35 shots-33 saves). Springfield, Legace 10-15-1 (40 shots-37 saves).
A-3,863
Referees-Marcus Vinnerborg (45).
Linesmen-Kevin Redding (16), Chris Low (88).
Unless something changes with an appeal or the NCAA changes the way it computes the APR for 2013, the UConn Huskies men’s basketball team will find itself ineligible for postseason play after having their waiver denied.
Here’s the release from UConn:
STORRS, Conn. – The University of Connecticut was informed on Friday by the NCAA that its waiver request to participate in men’s basketball postseason competition for the 2012-13 season, including the 2013 NCAA Tournament, has been denied.
Connecticut will now appeal the decision to the NCAA Division I Committee on Academic Performance Subcommittee on Appeals.
The waiver was submitted to the NCAA as a result of the UConn men’s basketball team’s performance in the Academic Progress Rate (APR).
“We are deeply disappointed that our request for a waiver was denied, but we look forward to continuing in the process,” said UConn President Susan Herbst. “We continue to believe that we have made a very compelling case in our waiver to the NCAA and we are pleased with the recent outstanding academic success of our men’s basketball student-athletes.
“I want to be clear that during my entire career as a scholar and a teacher, I have been in full support of high academic standards in collegiate athletics. However, in this case, there are good students who could be penalized for the problematic behavior of students who have not been enrolled for years.
“Educators and parents need to do what is right for their students, and not allow them to be caught in the dynamics of public relations.”
This decision is huge right now because it will affect a few of the student-athletes on the team now and their decision to go pro.
If there is no NCAA Tournament next year, what reasons would say, Andre Drummond and Jeremy Lamb, have to stay in Storrs when they could be making millions. Then by them leaving early, they are affecting the future APR and the cycle repeats itself.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
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
From Best To Worst: Updated Rankings of UConn’s 23 games [Kevin Duffy – CT Post]
UConn and the APR: What Should Happen? What Will Happen? [Kevin Duffy – CT Post]
NCAA should deny UConn proposal [Dana O’Neil – ESPN.com]
UConn’s Self-Imposed Penalties Too Soft On Calhoun [Hartford Courant]
UConn’s attempt to sidestep academic penalties is shameless [Sporting News]
UConn Women’s Basketball links
Caroline Doty Does Not Practice [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]
Stewart, Jefferson, Tuck Named McDonald’s All-Americans [Rich Elliott – CT Post]
Doty Given The Day Off Today; Expected To Play Vs. Georgetown [Rich Elliott – CT Post]
Upcoming Senior Night game to be strange for Doty, Buck [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]
Less Than 500 Tickets Left For Saturday’s WBB Game [UConnHuskies.com]
Doty Starting To Heat Up For UConn Women [Hartford Courant]
Sue Bird agrees to multi-year deal with Storm [New Haven Register]
Doty on UConn win over Louisville [CBSSports.com]
UConn Football links
Big East postseason rankings: WR/TE [Andrea Adelson – ESPN.com]
DC answered a question in his mailbag [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]
22 players named to All-Big East Academic team [New Haven Register]
Other UConn related links
Former UConn Baseball Players Among Top 100 Best MLB Prospects [SOX & Dawgs]
W. Ice Hockey. Women’s Hockey Welcomes Back Alumni as Huskies Face BC [UConnHuskies.com]
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
Sure our primary focus here is on the UConn Huskies men’s basketball, women’s basketball and football teams but that doesn’t mean we don’t keep an eye on the other sports that UConn has to offer.
While going through Keith Law’s Top 100 MLB Prospects earlier in the day, I noticed a few names that are familiar to the UConn baseball team.
Those names are George Springer and Mike Olt. Law ranks Springer, a member of the Houston Astros organization, as his 60th best prospect. Olt, a member of the Texas Rangers organization, comes in at No. 75.
Here’s what Law has to say about Springer:
Springer — whom the Astros took with the 11th pick last June — was one of the toolsiest college position players I’ve ever come across, with a solid idea of what he was doing at the plate, sliding out of the top 10 only because of questions about his swing mechanics.
The UConn product is an outstanding athlete, an above-average runner with a plus arm and plus raw power. He has tremendous bat speed and can turn on good velocity, with a history of running deep counts although without much of a two-strike approach. For some reason, he started swinging uphill this spring, collapsing his back side in the process and reducing the quality of his contact and leading to concerns that he’ll swing and miss too much in pro ball. Perhaps it was “draftitis,” trying to hit more home runs to improve his stock, but it’s a bad habit and not an easy one to break.
If he gets back to where he was a year ago, Houston got a steal, an impact hitter who hits for power, gets on base, and adds value through right-field defense.
And here’s what Law had to say about Olt:
A potentially plus defender at third with plus raw power, Olt has seen the ball much better as a pro than he did as an amateur, resulting in better-than-expected plate discipline that gives him a chance to be at least an average regular at third. Olt can launch balls in BP, but his approach is now less pull-happy than it was in college, with very good bat speed and great extension on his follow-through for power to left and the ability to use the middle of the field.
He missed two months this summer with a broken collarbone, but was 100 percent again for fall league and led the AFL in home runs (helped by a very homer-friendly ballpark). His contact rates probably won’t ever be great, but even an average hit tool with plus power and defense at third makes for a fringe star.
In going back to MLB.com’s Top 100 MLB Prospects, Olt and Springer are ranked there as well. Olt comes in at No. 43 and Springer comes in at No. 84.
Another former Husky, Matt Barnes, is in the Boston Red Sox organization and is among their Top 10 Prospects among different publications. Baseball America has Barnes at No. 8 in the Red Sox organization, MLB.com has Barnes at No. 12 and Keith Law has Barnes at No. 5.