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.
ReutersWhat the Italians have faced off the field could easily have sapped them of their resolve. Their domestic league match-fixing scandal reached new heights Tuesday when a prosecutor urged the demotion of four Serie A teams for which many of Italy’s players star. Every Italian team member plays club ball at home — and 13 of the 23 play for the topflight teams under investigation.
While the Italians celebrated, the Germans collapsed in dismay.
“It’s bitter to lose like that,” Germany defender Philipp Lahm said. “We had set ourselves the target of reaching the semifinals, but once you’ve reached that, you want to go all the way.”
The home crowd lingered to cheer their heroes, singing and chanting their names and “Deutschland, Deutschland” after the match. Ballack and several others cried as they left the field after circling it to recognize their flag-waving fans. They were defeated, but unashamed.
“I already told my team in the dressing room that the team has every reason to be proud of themselves,” said Germany coach Juergen Klinsmann, who won the 1990 World Cup played in Italy. “They really achieved amazing things at this World Cup.”
They just couldn’t finish the heady Italians, whose technical mastery, particularly on defense, was surpassing.
The Azzurri heads to its first World Cup title game since losing to Brazil in 1994.
“These guys battled from the start and continued throughout,” Lippi said, referring as much to the scandal as the win. “It’s a great satisfaction. We look forward to next Sunday, whoever we play.”
Germany will play in the third-place game Saturday in Stuttgart, hardly where it planned to be.
“The boys are sitting there and have a bitter pill to swallow,” Klinsmann said. “It hurts terribly.”
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.
Alex Morgan's 2 goals, including the winner in stoppage time, lift the U.S. past New Zealand 2-1.
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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.