Calhoun’s Comments: Say What?

Um, can we please get an interpreter for the Connecticut coach?

Connecticut’s victory over Ohio State did not go over well with court stenographers who are transcribing player and coaches’ quotes for the reporters covering the Final Four.

Jim Calhoun’s unique New England accent and speech patterns have been driving the stenographers nuts.

Let’s just say final quote sheets for Calhoun have lagged far behind the others.

“I want to apologize to the people who have to copy down my notes,” Calhoun said after Saturday’s win. “By the way, I have spoken to them about it, so my condolences to them. You’re going to have to put up with this.”

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Finally, the inside story on how Connecticut forward Richard Hamilton got his nickname, “Rip.”

Richard’s father, Edward, the story goes, used to rip his diapers off as an infant. When Richard was born on Valentine’s Day, 1978, Edward passed the name on to his son.

Thanks, Dad.

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More Hamilton: On a basket with 1:56 left in the first half, Hamilton become the second player in Connecticut history to score more than 2,000 points in a career. Chris Smith, who scored 2,145 points from 1989-92, is the school’s all-time leader.

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Hey, give those tournament selection folk enough tries and they’ll get it right eventually.

For the first time since 1993 (Michigan vs. North Carolina), two top-seeded schools will meet for the national championship.

And, for the first time since Duke did it in 1992, the school that wins the national title Monday night also will have won its conference tournament

Connecticut won the Big East tournament this year, Duke the Atlantic Coast.