2012 NCAA Women’s Basketball Rankings – Week 12 (Jan. 31)

AP & ESPN/USA Today Coaches Polls

The NCAA women’s basketball rankings are out for the week and the UConn Huskies remain as the No. 3 team in the land. In fact, their only two losses of the season are to the two teams above them.

The Baylor Lady Bears are still No. 1 and they are followed by Notre Dame, UConn and Stanford. The fifth team in the AP Poll is Duke while the fifth ranked team in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll is the Kentucky Wildcats.

Joining the Irish and Huskies in the top 25 from the Big East are the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (13/14), Louisville Cardinals (14/12) and Georgetown Hoyas (17/15). The DePaul Blue Demons are ranked No. 23 in the coaches poll but are among the others receiving votes in the AP Poll.

The St. John’s Red Storm are the only team from the Big East among the others receiving votes in both polls. The South Florida Bulls are among the others receiving votes in the coaches poll.

For a complete look at the 2012 NCAA Women’s Basketball Rankings – Week 12 (Jan. 31), click on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.

AP Top 25 ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll
RK TEAM REC PTS PVS RK TEAM REC PTS PVS
1 Baylor (40) 21-0 1,000 1 1 Baylor (31) 21-0 775 1
2 Notre Dame 21-1 960 2 2 Notre Dame 21-1 742 2
3 Connecticut 20-2 916 3 3 Connecticut 20-2 712 3
4 Stanford 18-1 882 4 4 Stanford 18-1 684 4
5 Duke 17-3 834 5 5 Kentucky 20-2 642 6
6 Kentucky 20-2 808 6 6 Duke 17-3 621 5
7 Miami (FL) 19-3 738 10 7 Miami (FL) 19-3 588 8
8 Tennessee 16-5 693 7 8 Tennessee 16-5 528 9
9 Maryland 18-3 635 8 9 Green Bay 19-0 501 9
10 Green Bay 19-0 615 12 10 Maryland 18-3 493 7
11 Ohio State 20-2 614 9 11 Ohio State 20-2 454 9
12 Delaware 18-1 520 15 12 Louisville 17-4 441 14
13 Rutgers 17-4 516 11 13 Delaware 18-1 382 16
14 Louisville 17-4 501 16 14 Rutgers 17-4 372 12
15 Purdue 18-4 407 13 15 Georgetown 17-5 338 18
16 Nebraska 18-3 400 19 16 Texas A&M 14-5 333 13
17 Georgetown 17-5 378 20 17 Purdue 18-4 244 17
18 Texas A&M 14-5 352 14 18 Nebraska 18-3 226 21
19 Penn State 16-5 221 18 19 Gonzaga 19-3 219 20
20 Gonzaga 19-3 217 22 20 Georgia 16-6 182 15
21 Georgia 16-6 154 17 21 Penn State 16-5 154 19
22 Brigham Young 20-3 136 23 22 Georgia Tech 16-6 104 24
23 North Carolina 16-5 94 25 23 DePaul 16-6 86 22
24 Georgia Tech 16-6 79 NR 24 North Carolina 16-5 53 25
25 Texas Tech 15-5 70 21 25 Kansas 16-4 45 NR
Dropped from rankings: Dropped from rankings:
DePaul 23 Texas Tech 23
Others receiving votes: Others receiving votes:
St. Bonaventure 61, DePaul 53, South Carolina 48, California 18, Kansas State 13, Arkansas 12, Princeton 11, St. John’s 9, FGCU 8, Oklahoma 6, Kansas 5, San Diego State 5, UTEP 4, Fresno State 4, Vanderbilt 2, Michigan State 1 Texas Tech 30, Vanderbilt 23, St. Bonaventure 19, Middle Tennessee 15, FGCU 14, South Carolina 13, California 12, Brigham Young 8, Michigan State 6, UNLV 3, UTEP 3, Princeton 3, Fresno State 2, Kansas State 2, St. John’s 2, South Florida 1

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Comments and Insights from Super Bowl XLVI Media Day

NY Giants vs New England Patriots Super Bowl XLVI

Tuesday was media day at the Super Bowl as both the Patriots and Giants met with the media, legit and otherwise.  There were 18 podium stations set up for the major players and coaches while others milled about being interviewed.

As with any media day there are always some nuggets that come from it.

Giants safety Antrel Rolle said that the Giants team has come to Indianapolis expecting to win the game. “We are not going to be denied.”

New England TE Rob Gronkowski came out of his walking boot on Monday night and it won’t go back on the rest of the week.  As Gronk continually put it he and his injury are “day-to-day”.

Extra’s Maria Menounos, who was wearing a Patriots jersey, told Gronk that she has a wager that if the Giants win she has to wear a Giants bikini. Gronk said it was nice to know there could be a positive if the Patriots lose.

Giants LB Matthias Kiwanuka is an Indianapolis native and gets to play the biggest game of his career in front of his family and friends.  He missed out on Super Bowl XLII due to a fractured left fibula that put him on the IR.

Patriots T Matt Light and G Sebastian Vollmer did not partake in the media day due to illnesses and offensive assistant Josh McDaniels was not made available.

New York DE Osi Umenyiora said “Matt Light please get well soon, I hope to see you on Sunday.  You are one of my greatest friends.”  Umenyiora and Light go at each other pretty good on the field.

New England offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia loves rookie T Nate Solder. “How could you want anything more out of a young kid than we have this year?”

Scarnecchia added in his comments that T Sebastian Vollmer who has been hurt is expected to play on Sunday.  “Sea Bass” and Pro-Bowl G Brian Waters make a formidable right side of the offensive line.  Vollmer has played in just 6 games this season.

New York RB Brandon Jacobs said during media day that WR Plaxico Burress wanted to sign with Giants, not the Jets, when he was a free agent last summer.  He added he doesn’t see Burress returning to the Jets next season due to all the locker room turmoil.

He didn’t have a podium but Patriots WR Chad Ochocinco drew a crowd of nearly 50 reporters on the field after he slinked in a little late for media day.  Taking up some space between the podiums for WR Matthew Slater and TE Aaron Hernandez he answered questions.

Asked several times if he was disappointed to finally reach a Super Bowl in a season when his production was down, Ochocinco replied, “if I had 100 catches and 1,000 yards I’d probably be home in January.  After a ten-year span I finally had a year where it didn’t go well.  I did everything I was supposed to do.  I bought in…But I didn’t write the script.”

Follow Steve on Twitter @SteveMichaelsII

Paw Prints – The Daily UConn Roundup – 1/31

Paw Prints The Daily Roundup

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: Ranking UConn’s First 20 Games [Kevin Duffy – CT Post]

Who is Afraid of Enosch Wolf? [UConn Huskies Basketball]

Struggling Huskies Need To Turn It Around Now [Hartford Courant]

Bobcats encouraged by Kemba Walker’s progress [Norwich Bulletin]

The Sibling Superstars of Park Slope [NY Magazine]

Saving Freshman Ryan [NY Times]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

A true team effort for Huskies [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]

Doty delivers in Duke win [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]

Auriemma Gave Hayes A “Technical” Knockout [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]

Time For A Short Rest [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]

Emptying Out The Mental Notebook [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]

Hayes Shakes Off Collision, Passes Tests And Returns To Game [Rich Elliott – CT Post]

Stokes Comes Up Big In Reserve For The Huskies [Rich Elliott – CT Post]

No. 3 UConn women seize win over No. 5 Duke [CT Post]

Stokes Steps Up In 61-45 Victory Over Duke [Hartford Courant]

Hayes Named Big East Player Of Week [Hartford Courant]

Hartley, Huskies handle Duke on road [New Haven Register]

Former Bridgeport Central star Nadine Domond a mentor to Duke’s Elizabeth Williams [New Haven Register]

The Sibling Superstars of Park Slope [NY Magazine]

UConn win provides few answers [Mechelle Voepel – ESPN.com]

UConn Football links

Big East vs. BCS in 2011 [Andrea Adelson – ESPN.com]

How 2011 All-Big East team fared as recruits [Andrea Adelson – ESPN.com]

UConn Football Roster Moves [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

UConn Hopes More Competition Will Create Better Offense [Hartford Courant]

Other UConn related links

M. Ice Hockey. Garrett Bartus Named AHA Goaltender of the Week [UConnHuskies.com]

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Strong Defensive Effort Helps UConn Women to 61-45 over Duke

Tiffany Hayes had been on a roll as of late for the UConn Huskies women’s basketball team. Stefanie Dolson hadn’t been playing so bad lately herself.

But with Hayes missing a part of the game with a head injury and Dolson spending a quality amount of time on the bench in foul trouble, Geno Auriemma needed others to step up to help out.

He got exactly that as his Huskies played another dominant defensive game in a 61-45 win over the Duke Blue Devils in front of 8.033 at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, NC and nationally televised audience on ESPN2 Monday night.

The No. 3 Huskies improve to 20-2 while the No. 5 Blue Devils fall to 17-3. It’s the fourth straight win for UConn over Duke and it also ended their 34-game winning streak. Ironically enough, the last time Duke lost at home was to the Huskies two years ago.

UConn's Bria Hartley shoots under pressure from Duke's Elizabeth Williams.Bria Hartley led the Huskies with 15 points and seven assists while pulling down five rebounds. Caroline Doty chipped in with 11 points while Dolson had 10 points in just 13 minutes of action. Kiah Stokes continues to impress as of late and it was her play in the post that helped UConn to the win. She finished with just four points but had 12 rebounds and tied her career-high with five blocked shots.

Despite shooting 5-of-17 from the floor, Chelsea Gray paced the Blue Devils with 13 points, six assists, six steals and had seven rebounds. Richa Jackson added 11 points and nine rebounds while Elizabeth Williams had 10 points. Haley Peters had also had nine rebounds to go along with nine points.

This one was close early on before UConn opened up a five point lead at 13-8 with 5-0 run. Two free throws by Hartley pushed UConn’s lead to seven at 17-10. A few minutes later, a Gray three cut the Huskies lead to four at 19-15 with 8:44 to go.

But the Huskies would quickly push the lead to ten points with a 6-0 before a Peters jumper ended that. UConn followed that up though with another 6-0 run to increase their lead to 14 at 31-17. UConn would go cold though for the rest of the half as the Blue Devils ended the half with a 6-0 run to trail 31-23 at the half.

Duke would get the lead down to five early on in the second half before Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis would hit a three that was part of a 8-0 run that gave UConn control of the game. After cutting UConn’s lead to 11 on two Williams free throws with 11:54 to go in the game, Kelly Faris nailed a three and from there, Duke would get no closer than 12 points the rest of the way.

It’s been great to see Stokes continue to get better with each game she played. What she was lacking offensively, she made up for on the defensive end. She gave fellow freshman Williams a hard time under the basket, making it difficult for her to score. And this was definitely needed with Dolson in foul trouble.

The Huskies will have another tough game on their hands on Saturday night when the Rutgers Scarlet Knights come to Gampel Pavilion. Tip is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will be broadcast locally in Connecticut on CPTV.

To continue reading the UConn Huskies @ Duke Blue Devils recap, click on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.

Notes and musings:

UConn Huskies @ Duke Blue Devils 1.30.12 box score

The starters for the Huskies were Bria Hartley, Caroline Doty, Tiffany Hayes, Kelly Faris and Stefanie Dolson.

UConn shot 45.1% (23-51) from the floor. They held Duke to their lowest field goal percentage of the year at 24.6% (17-69).

The Huskies had 17 assists on their 23 made baskets.

UConn was 7-of-18 (38.9%) beyond the arc. The Blue Devils were 5-of-15 (33.3%).

The Huskies were 8-of-11 (72.7%) from the free throw line.

UConn won the battle of the boards 44-38. Duke did have 15 offensive rebounds to just seven for the Huskies.

The Huskies outscored the Blue Devils 24-14 in the paint and 9-4 on the fast break.

Even with their 15 offensive rebounds, the Blue Devils only had two second chance points. UConn had three.

The Huskies had 13 points off of 15 Duke turnovers. The Blue Devils had 12 points off of 21 UConn turnovers.

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Photo credit: Cloe Poisson – Hartford Courant (No. 13 in gallery)

NESN Adds Jenny Dell, Matt Stairs To Red Sox Broadcast Team

NESN

As we learned from Chad Finn last week, NESN has added Jenny Dell to their Boston Red Sox broadcast team. NESN has also added Matt Stairs as a studio analyst.

Here’s the press release from NESN announcing the moves:

January 30, 2012 — NESN, New England’s most watched sports network, announced Monday that Jenny Dell will join the network as its Red Sox field reporter and Matt Stairs will join as a Red Sox studio analyst. Dell and Stairs will join NESN’s popular and talented Red Sox broadcast team that includes play-by-play voice Don Orsillo , color commentator Jerry Remy , studio host Tom Caron , and the network’s trio of Hall of Famers Dennis Eckersley, Jim Rice and Peter Gammons , who all serve as studio analysts.

Jenny Dell
Dell comes to NESN from ESPN where she served in several different roles, including on-air reporter. The University of Massachusetts graduate has reported from the last two Super Bowls and delivered AccuScore reports for ESPN.com. She also has experience behind the camera, working since 2008 at several different high profile events and programs for ESPN, including Major League Baseball (MLB), Monday Night Football , National Basketball Association (NBA) and NASCAR coverage. Dell, a Connecticut native, will begin working for NESN in February.

“Jenny is smart, resourceful and displays a professional approach to reporting,” said Sean McGrail , NESN’s President and CEO. “Her ability to connect with viewers makes her the ideal choice to join Don and Jerry as part of our Red Sox coverage this season.”

Matt Stairs
Stairs retired in 2011 after a 19-year MLB career with a record 12 teams, including one year with the Red Sox (1995). He finished with a .262 career batting average while slugging 265 home runs and 899 RBIs. He holds the major league record for pinch-hit home runs in a career with 23. A native of Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, Stairs played for Canada in the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. He currently resides in Bangor, Maine, where he serves as an assistant coach for the local high school hockey team.

“Matt brings incredible passion for the game of baseball and a great sense of humor,” said McGrail. “He adds a unique perspective since he has played with or against most of the current major league players, including one year with Adrian Gonzalez in San Diego.”

Red Sox on NESN
On Feb. 19, NESN begins 46 days of live coverage from the Red Sox new Spring Training home JetBlue Park in Ft. Myers, Florida. In addition, this Thursday, Feb. 2, at 10 p.m., NESN will broadcast the Red Sox Town Hall, which is being held on Feb. 1 in Worcester, Mass. NESN’s Tom Caron will host new Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine and Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington for an interactive conversation in front of approximately 800 fans at Worcester Technical High School.  Fans not at the event can submit questions in advance at NESN.com/TownHall or via Twitter by sending a tweet to @NESN and including the hashtag #TownHall.

2012 NCAA Men’s Basketball Rankings – Week 13 (Jan. 30)

AP & ESPN/USA Today Coaches Polls

The NCAA men’s basketball rankings are out for the week and after losing three straight games, the UConn Huskies have dropped out of both polls. They are now among the others receiving votes in both polls.

The Kentucky Wildcats remain as the No. 1 team and are followed by Syracuse, Ohio State, Missouri and North Carolina in the AP Poll. In the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, the Wildcats are followed by Syracuse, Ohio State, Missouri and Duke.

Joining the Orange in the top 25 from the Big East are the Georgetown Hoyas (14/14) and Marquette Golden Eagles (15/15). The Louisville Cardinals are ranked No. 25 in the coaches poll but are among the others receiving votes in the AP Poll.

Joining UConn in the others among receiving votes in both polls are the West Virginia Mountaineers and Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

For a complete look at the 2012 NCAA Men’s Basketball Rankings – Week 13 (Jan. 30), click on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.

AP Top 25 ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll
RK TEAM REC PTS PVS RK TEAM REC PTS PVS
1 Kentucky (63) 21-1 1,623 1 1 Kentucky (31) 21-1 775 1
2 Syracuse (2) 22-1 1,550 3 2 Syracuse 22-1 730 4
3 Ohio State 19-3 1,498 4 3 Ohio State 19-3 726 3
4 Missouri 19-2 1,363 2 4 Missouri 19-2 635 2
5 North Carolina 18-3 1,331 7 5 Duke 18-3 631 6
6 Baylor 19-2 1,310 6 6 Baylor 19-2 622 7
7 Duke 18-3 1,250 8 6 North Carolina 18-3 622 8
8 Kansas 17-4 1,178 5 8 Kansas 17-4 548 5
9 Michigan State 17-4 1,098 10 9 Murray State 21-0 511 9
10 Murray State 21-0 979 11 10 Michigan State 17-4 456 11
11 UNLV 20-3 936 12 11 Florida 17-4 445 13
12 Florida 17-4 861 14 12 Creighton 20-2 426 14
13 Creighton 20-2 803 15 13 UNLV 20-3 399 15
14 Georgetown 16-4 762 9 14 Georgetown 16-4 355 10
15 Marquette 18-4 682 17 15 Marquette 18-4 323 18
16 Virginia 17-3 578 19 16 Saint Mary’s 21-2 284 20
17 San Diego State 18-3 566 13 17 San Diego State 18-3 264 12
18 Saint Mary’s 21-2 472 21 18 Virginia 17-3 253 21
19 Wisconsin 17-5 415 25 19 Mississippi State 17-5 193 16
20 Indiana 17-5 395 16 20 Indiana 17-5 142 17
21 Florida State 14-6 375 23 20 Wisconsin 17-5 142 25
22 Mississippi State 17-5 329 18 22 Michigan 16-6 120 22
23 Michigan 16-6 305 20 23 Harvard 18-2 116 23
24 Gonzaga 17-3 141 NR 24 Florida State 14-6 85 NR
25 Vanderbilt 16-5 102 NR 25 Louisville 17-5 68 25
Dropped from rankings: Dropped from rankings:
Kansas State 22, Connecticut 24 Connecticut 19, Kansas State 24
Others receiving votes: Others receiving votes:
Harvard 69, Louisville 65, Kansas State 40, West Virginia 12, Wichita State 9, Nevada 6, Notre Dame 6, Southern Miss 5, Long Beach State 3, Iowa State 3, Connecticut 2, Iona 2, Illinois 1 Gonzaga 65, Vanderbilt 36, Connecticut 21, Nevada 18, Kansas State 15, Iowa State 9, Middle Tennessee 9, Wichita State 7, West Virginia 6, New Mexico 6, Southern Miss 4, Long Beach State 3, California 2, Temple 2, Notre Dame 1

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Tiffany Hayes Named Big East Player of the Week

It should come as no surprise after her performance last week that UConn Huskies women’s basketball senior guard Tiffany Hayes was named Big East Player of the Week.

Here’s the release:

STORRS, Conn. – Senior guard Tiffany Hayes earned her first BIG EAST weekly accolade of her senior season as she was tabbed the BIG EAST Player of the Week as announced by the conference office on Monday. This marks the senior’s first Player of the Week nod of her career after bringing home three Freshman of the Week accolades in 2009.

Tiffany Hayes comes down with one of her ten rebounds over South Florida forward Tiffany Conner. Hayes receives the award after a superb week where she tallied back-to-back 30-plus performances in wins over Syracuse and South Florida in a 2-0 week for the Huskies. Hayes has scored 68 points over UConn’s last two games, marking the most points a Husky has scored in back-to-back contests all-time. The record for most points in consecutive games had been held by former All-American Kerry Bascom who scored 65 points in back-to-back contests during the 1990-91 campaign.

Hayes averaged 34.0 points per game but she also averaged 8.5 rebounds per game, and shot 70 percent from the field in a dynamic week.

The Winter Haven, Fla. native scored a career-high 35 points on 11-of-15 shooting, including 6-of-8 from long-range, and grabbed seven rebounds while dishing-out three assists in the victory at Syracuse. Hayes also buried all seven of her attempts from the charity stripe in 31-minutes of action against the Orange. She followed that up with a 33-point, 10-rebound effort in the victory over USF on Saturday. The 33 came on 10-of-15 shooting and the double-double was her second this season. Hayes also made 11 of her 13 attempts from the free throw line, dished-out three assists and posted three steals against the Bulls.

The Huskies return to the court on Monday, Jan. 30, to take on No. 5 Duke at 7 p.m. in Durham, N.C. The game will be televised on ESPN2.

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Photo credit: David Butler II – US Presswire (No. 20 in gallery)