Jim Calhoun's Future

Is Calhoun coming back for at least one more year as head coach of the UConn Huskies basketball team? As a Husky fan and UConn student I hope so. At 68, Calhoun became the oldest coach to win a national championship in his 25th season at Connecticut. He's under contract until 2014, but the topic of retirement has come up after winning his third title. When asked about retirement, Calhoun has stated he's going to take his time and enjoy his offseason, but continue to prepare the team for next year and recruit. The only thing that bothers me is that if he comes back it'll be because of his love of the game since he doesn't need to prove anything else. He's already a hall of famer, won over 800 games, won the NIT in 1998, and has 3 national championships, as well as sent 26 players to the NBA with Kemba Walker about to be added to that list. I just hope he's not ready to stop yet. Only time will tell.

Manny Ramirez Tests Positive for PED Use, then Retires

Manny Ramirez is officially retired. He informed MLB of his retirement after being cited for using performance enhancing drugs for the second time. Technically it was his third time because his name was mentioned in the infamous Mitchell Report. Had Ramirez not retired he would have been facing a 100-game suspension. Manny had previously served a 50-game suspension when playing with the Dodgers in 2009. What's next for Manny? He says he's going to Spain with his "old man." If Ramirez decides to come out of retirement he'll have to serve the 100 game suspension before he can start playing.

Manny is regarded as of the best right handed hitters in the game, but is he a hall of famer? Manny is one of three players ever to have 2,574 hits, 555 homers, a .585 career slugging percentage, and a .996 OPS. However, when looking how hall of fame voters have shut out names like Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire, who despite having hall of fame numbers have been associated with PED use. Unless voters change their minds regarding players associated with PEDs, I don't think we'll see Manny Ramirez's name in the hall of fame once he becomes eligible.

Kemba Walker Inducted into Husky Ring of Honor

During the pep rally celebrating the UConn Huskies' 2011 National Championship, Kemba Walker was inducted into the Husky Ring of Honor.



Walker is the 14th mens player to be honored and joins the likes of Ray Allen and Rip Hamilton, but he is the first active player to be honored in the school's history.

Response to UConn and Jim Calhoun Haters

Recently after UConn's victory over Butler in the 2011 National Championship, I've had the misfortune to read some of the comments on some ESPN articles that bash head coach, Jim Calhoun and talk about how he cheated, doesn't deserve this title, about how this title will get vacated later, etc.

I just want to point out why Calhoun is not a cheater and why you won't see this title vacated. First off, until this year, Calhoun has never been reprimanded for NCAA violations and the violations UConn was cited for this year had nothing to do with Calhoun actually doing anything. It was someone on his staff who no longer works for the university giving illegal benefits to recruit, Nate Miles, which Calhoun did not know anything about. Calhoun has never given any reason to doubt his integrity, so there's no valid reason to believe he's lying about that. Secondly, Nate Miles never actually played in a single game for UConn, so there's no reason to think the 2011 title will get vacated. Calhoun is no John Calipari, who has had his 2 Final 4 appearances vacated at both UMass and Memphis. Nate Miles is no Derrick Rose, who played ineligibly for Memphis under Calipari by having someone else take his SATs for him. So, how did Calhoun cheat? I think his 3rd title is here to stay.

Kemba Walker's Future

After winning the national championship, what is there left to do for UConn's Kemba Walker? He's graduating after only 3 years and is projected to be at best a potential top-5 pick in the NBA Draft. There's nothing left for him by staying at school other than the opportunity to repeat as national champions. And it's a weak draft class this year, which allows him a better opportunity in the NBA

All indicators point to Walker leaving for the NBA Draft, but hold on just one minute. After this NBA season is over, like the NFL, the NBA's CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) is up, which could potentially lead to a lockout. ESPN's SportsCenter has recently had coverage of the potential future of the NBA and all signs right now point to a lockout that will continue into the regular season and is expected to take away a significant amount of games played next season. Like the NFL, the NBA's team owners are looking for as one ESPN NBA analyst described it as "draconian" amounts of money from the players. If it's anything like the NFL lockout right now, expect a major struggle between the owners and the players.

Given the current outlook on the situation of the NBA's CBA I believe that if Kemba were to shock everyone and stay one more year at school, he would be given a pass because of the possibility of missing professional basketball next year, which would give Calhoun another year to develop Walker and prepare him even more for the NBA. Personally, I'm going to be selfish and hope he comes back for one last year to give UConn another championship, but that's just me and every other UConn basketball fan.

Pep Rally and Parade to be Held in Honor of UConn Huskies Championship

On April 6th, there will be a pep rally to welcome the 2011 NCAA Champion Huskies back to Storrs, CT in Gampel Pavilion. The doors will open at 5pm and the rally will start at 5:30pm. It is a free event and will be open to the public. The team is expected to land at Bradley International Airport around 3:45pm and there will also be a gathering there as well.

Governor, Dannel P. Malloy has also announced that there will be a parade in Hartford on April 17th. The parade will start at 3pm and will begin and end at the State Capitol. Following the parade there will be a rally with the coaches and the team will take place on the north steps of the Capitol building.

UConn Huskies Win the National Championship 53-41

The UConn Men have defeated the Butler Bulldogs won their third national championship in school history. All three have been since 1999 when coach, Jim Calhoun won the Huskies' first title. Connecticut has more titles since 1999 than any other school. Not Duke, not Kansas, nobody. At 68, Calhoun is the oldest coach to win a championship and is the fifth coach ever to win 3 titles or more. With this championship, Calhoun enters a very select group of coaches that includes, John Wooden, Adolph Rupp, Mike Krzyzewski and Bob Knight.

This UConn team finishes the season on an 11 game win streak and 14-0 overall in tournament games this season. From Maui to New York to Houston, no one could beat the Kemba Walker and the kids.

This game will be remembered most by the great defensive play by both teams and by Butler's notoriously horrific shooting. UConn saved themselves from matching Butler's shooting performance by playing a great second half that won them the game. Overall, Butler shot 18.8 percent, the worst ever in a title game. They made just 12 shots of their 64 attempted. Thirty-three of those attempts were three pointers of which they made 9. The Huskies shot terribly as well, but were able to have a 34 point second half to finish the game with a 34.5 field goal percentage.

Another aspect of this game that made it memorable was how uncharacteristic it was of a game. Usually when a team outrebounds and scores more points in the paint than the other team, you can expect them to win. Until the second half, Butler defied all logic by winning 22-19 at the end of the first half, despite having 0 points in the paint and getting dominated on the glass. What made the game more bizarre was how Shelvin Mack went off in the first half making threes well beyond the arc, yet they couldn't score a single point in the paint or make any other jumpers. While watching in Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, CT I was thinking, what did Butler do, practice half court shots after last year's title game? I bet the other 8,000 plus students there were thinking along the same line. It certainly seemed like it. Mack's three pointer to finish the first half and send the Bulldogs up 22-19 was such a buzzkill in Storrs. It seemed they had momentum going into the 2nd half. However, in the end, the Huskies were able to prevail after dominating the paint scoring 26 points to 2 and outrebounding Butler 51-40.

Kemba Walker finished what he started. He led his team with 16 points and 9 rebounds. It wasn't his prettiest game as he shot 5-19 and missed all 4 of his three point attempts, but he made 6 of his 7 free throws and his leadership on the court is unparalleled, especially with such a young UConn team. Jeremy Lamb was ice cold to start the game, but came out of halftime on fire as he would score all 12 of his points in the second half. His second half play is what we expected all game and it just came 20 minutes too late. Better late than never for UConn. Sophomore, Alex Oriakhi was a monster. He had the paint on lockdown with 11 rebounds and 4 blocks. On top of that he scored 11 points. There couldn't have been a better time for him to play his best. It only sets him up for next year to play even better.

It was a fairy tale ending to a fairy tale season. Coming in, no one gave the Huskies a shot at anything. They were projected to have a mediocre finish towards the cellar of the big east, no NCAA Tournament bid and they were supposed to have an early exit in the Maui Invitational that they were invited to for some reason. Right off the bat, Kemba Walker told UConn Country this season was going to be different. All the more reason for Storrs, CT to celebrate. Storrs went wild and after storming the floor after the big win went outside to celebrate. A perfect ending to a shocker of a year. As a freshman, I've been very spoiled this year with such great sports success for the Huskies. Hopefully next year the UConn women can get in on the championship. Whether Kemba comes back next year or not, look for the Huskies to be a contender next season. As the academic year wraps up, there is no better way to end it.

Here's some videos to get the sense of how it was in Storrs:

UConn Women Fall to Notre Dame 72-63

Connecticut is no longer looking for a three-peat as they were defeated by Notre Dame in their fourth meeting of the year. Notre Dame will be heading to National Championship game against Texas A&M after their upset victory over Stanford.

UConn's Maya Moore played spectacularly, scoring 36 and grabbing 8 rebounds. Unfortunately for her, the rest of the Huskies wouldn't provide much support. Freshman, Bria Hartley was the only other UConn player to score in double digits with 10 points. In addition to no support from the rest of the team, the Huskies didn't get many fouls called their way in the second half which severely limited them. Had Notre Dame not been given so many easy points in the second half, I believe UConn would have either won or made the game even closer. I admit that Connecticut was not playing their best basketball. Notre Dame did a great job shutting down everyone but Maya Moore. They did exactly what they had to do to win. Moore is going to score her points and you're not going to outplay her, so the best way for a team to win is shut down the rest of the team. Unlike in previous years, UConn didn't have a second star player to help carry the team. It was somewhat of a rebuilding year with such a young cast of players and veteran, Caroline Doty out all season.

This game marks Connecticut's second loss on the season to a team that has played them tough all season. It's very tough for a team to beat another four times in the same season, especially a very good Notre Dame team. The familiarity between the two teams is very tough to overcome, especially when everyone knows Maya Moore is going to be leading her team. Now Connecticut has to move on from Maya Moore as she will graduate this year and is expected to be selected no. 1 overall in the WNBA Draft.

As a bitter UConn fan, I must say go Texas A&M. Please beat Notre Dame and win your first national title, but I'm also torn to say go Notre Dame to keep the national title in the Big East family. The title game is April 5th at 8:30pm on ESPN. It should be a good game regardless.

Former UConn Recruit Nate Miles Willing to Talk to the NCAA

So now former UConn basketball recruit, Nate Miles will talk to the NCAA while previously refusing to be involved in the investigation of recruiting violations against Connecticut that resulted in coach, Jim Calhoun being suspended for 3 Big East games next season for not promoting an environment of compliance.

Miles refutes the idea that Calhoun didn't know he was receiving improper benefits from a former team manager. Nate was expelled from UConn in October of 2008 without ever playing for the Huskies. He says he wants to set the story straight and get some details right.

"During these efforts, it was made clear Nate was not going to talk to us," NCAA Spokeswoman, Stacey Osburn said. "If new information comes to light, the next step is to assess its credibility and determine if further steps are needed."

Calhoun's lawyer, Scott Tompsett released a statement in which Calhoun reaffirms his story that he was unaware of Miles receiving any improper benefits. In addition to Calhoun's new statement, Tompsett reminded us that Nate Miles signed a statement last year, which contradicts the story he has come out with now. It sounds to me like Miles needs to keep quiet before he gets himself into any trouble. You can't go around changing your story to try and get Calhoun in more trouble. I think that Miles holds a grudge over Calhoun and was unhappy with the suspension the NCAA gave Calhoun, so he has come out with this new story. He had months to come out and say something to the NCAA during their investigation, but refused to do so and ignored the NCAA's attempts to contact him. His timing here appears awfully suspicious to me. Until shown otherwise, I'm not putting any stock into what Miles says.

NBC's Today Show at Storrs

Due to UConn's appearance in the national championship game, NBC's Today Show will be making an appearance in Storrs, CT to do a live TV shoot on Monday morning inside of Gampel Pavilion. The doors open at 6:30am and live shots will be shown on the air between 6:45am to 7:30am. The first 500 students get a free t-shirt, so make sure you show up.

I am currently  awake right now waiting for around 6am to head over to Gampel for a once in a lifetime experience. I'm proud to say I go to the University of Connecticut and I've been fortunate enough to go at the right time. I couldn't have asked more of the Huskies to make my college experience special and they've done so already in my freshman year. Hopefully this kind of tradition continues for the rest of my 3 years here.

Here's some footage from Gampel this morning.

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