Rotoworld: Oregon RB LaMichael James and Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon among top 10 players who are being overhyped for the 2012 draft.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
The Detroit Red Wings equaled an NHL record with their 20th straight win at home, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 Sunday night on the strength of Johan Franzen's tiebreaking goal early in the third period.
PBT: Boston's Rajon Rondo continues to be named in trade talks, which is madness. The Celtics guard creates offense and makes everyone around him better, which was evident in Sunday's win over the Bulls.
Arc: Syracuse is among a solid group of No. 1 seeds in our latest tournament projections, but the middle of the pack is much more murky.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods greeted their Sunday pairing at Pebble Beach with optimism. But the day would end happily only for one.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
Reuters file
|
On to the questions:
Q: How long will it take Roy Williams to get Carolina back into the sweet 16?
Marty, Charlotte, N.C.
A: Considering what I saw Tuesday night against Illinois and Saturday against Kentucky, I would say the Sweet 16 will be in reach by March. After all, it’s North Carolina and it's Roy Williams. The program should always — always — be expected to make the Sweet 16.
There are some causes for concerns with this team, but some answers came Saturday.
After the Heels played No. 12 Illinois close at home, I wondered if they could get it done on the road. Well, a Heels squad that starts three freshmen looked mighty impressive with an 83-79 win over Kentucky.
Of course, these freshmen, Tyler Hansbrough, Bobby Frasor and Danny Green, have been playing basketball for years. They have been in some tiny gyms getting abused by opposing crowds. Freshmen nowadays are much more mature for road games than freshmen 20 years ago.
The lack of seniors means little. What good, Top 25 program, has an abundance of seniors anyway?
But back to issues with Carolina. Who is going to shoot the 3?
The Tar Heels will score inside with David Noel and Hansbrough, who already looks like the surprise player of the season. I didn’t know he was that good, did you?
But the defense is going to clamp down on Carolina's bigs and force the kick out. Someone needs to step into the 3s and stripped the net. Carolina made 2 of 13 vs. Illinois from the 3-point line. They improved upon that for 10-of-27 vs. Kentucky.
If that keeps up, Roy's boys will be fine in March.
|
As the experienced scoring threat on the team, he's crucial.
Q: Do you think Bruce Weber will ever be able to recruit 5 star players to Illinois? If yes, when will it happen?
Phil Vogel, Washington, N.C.
A: It's happened already.
Eric Gordon, who is rated among the top players in the class of 2007, committed to Illinois this week. Not only did he pick Illinois, he picked Illinois over Duke.
I’d say that's a get.
Recruiting analyst Bob Gibbons said Gordon is the fourth best high school player in his class. He's a 6-foot-1 guard who can drive the ball or shoot it from outside. Gibbons said Gordon is a better player coming out of high school than former Illini guard Deron Williams, who was only the best player in the Big Ten last season.
Illinois is in fertile territory to get even more good players. Chicago is close, so is St. Louis. If Indiana doesn’t get itself together, Bruce Weber can dive into Indianapolis to get players like Gordon.
Gordon's commitment eases the pain of losing senior guard Sherron Williams, who was leaning to Illinois, but signed early with Kansas.
Illinois has also signed Brian Carlwell, a 6-11 post from Proviso East in Maywood, Ill. Gibbons has him listed as a top 60 senior. Illinois also has Richard Semrau, a 6-9 forward from Cleveland, who is rated in the Top 100.
"Anybody who tells you Bruce Weber can't recruit doesn't know what they are talking about," Gibbons said. "He’s straight forward, he’s honest, a no-nonsense guy. He’ll get his share of good players."
Arc: Syracuse is among a solid group of No. 1 seeds in our latest tournament projections, but the middle of the pack is much more murky.
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
 | Slideshow |
 | College hoops power rankings A look at the top teams in college basketball based on performance and potential. NBCSports.com |
Latest from Beyond the Arc |
Latest NCAA tourney projections a seeding mess in middle3 hr 25 min ago Would Rick Pitino’s white suit work its magic vs. Syracuse?8 hr 19 min ago Here’s a shot you just can’t defend11 hr 26 min ago Five up, five down from college hoops’ huge day1 day 3 hr ago |
 | College basketball videos |
 Getty Images Highlights: No. 14 UNLV 65, No. 13 SDSU 63 Mike Moser scored 19 points, and UNLV forced three turnovers in the final 42 seconds to win. |
| Slideshow |
 | NBCSports.com |
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
