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.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
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.
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.
Golf's dream pairing - Woods and Mickelson - is on the course in the final round at Pebble Beach. Jason Sobel has hole-by-hole reports.
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.
Euro Roundup: First-place Manchester City won 1-0 at Aston Villa on Sunday on Joleon Lescott's goal in the 63rd minute, maintaining its two-point lead over Manchester United in the Premier League.
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.
APRick Pitino need a rest stop. But he may be wishing he rested a bit longer.
His team was on a roll, trouncing previously unbeaten Cincinnati on Jan. 21. You look for a hospital bed after the melee with Cincy, not before it. Then came a tough road game against a decent Tennessee team. No time to stop. Grin and bear it, Pitino must have been thinking.
So he waited for Houston to hit town before announcing that was taking a leave of absence from the Cardinals. When he returned to the bench on Saturday after missing one game, Louisville wasn't the same team he left, evidenced by a 77-70 loss to Marquette.
But it's not that bad. Pitino's return means good things for college basketball.
Pitino didn't disclose his “urological-related” problem at his news conference Friday, but did say it wasn't cancer. It had been bothering him for weeks, but he was willing to push through the pain for his team.
The Cardinals, who were bounced out of the NCAA Tournament in the second round last season, had the look of a No. 1 seed before Pitino left. Cincinnati looked like a dangerous club and Louisville blew the Bearcats away in the second half for a 93-66 victory.
Fifteen wins followed after a season-opening loss to Iowa, including a victory at Rupp Arena over Kentucky. Louisville, a.k.a. Team Chemistry, was beginning to look dangerous itself.
Indeed, the projected brackets for March about to flood the web and Louisville had the look of a top seed along with Duke, Pitt, and Stanford.
College basketball needs its marquee programs to resurface. Louisville, North Carolina, UCLA, foremost among them. Pitino is good for the game because he brings an aura to the spectacle of March.
The program was about to hit a new level once Louisville becomes a Top 10 fixture. Pitino had crafted a Final Four team with one NBA player (guard Francisco Garcia) and some other, decent, but not great talent. Recruits were already starting to flock to learn the one-on-one skills.
The stain of Pitino’s 3 ½ disappointing seasons with the Boston Celtics was being wiped away. U of L looked like it was about to become what Kentucky became in the mid-90s under Pitino: a beast.
It’s simple. Pitino gives this team the gas it needs on offense by pushing them to play defense. Louisville has to force turnovers to get easy buckets, which it does with a relentless style. The Cards do not have a post presence for an easy two points; the easy two points come off fast-breaks following turnovers.
Pitino can talk all he wants about his confidence in 28-year old interim coach Kevin Willard, but it is a stretch to expect this kid, no matter how well he has been groomed by his father and Pitino, to step in and win with just the right adjustments.
Even veteran assistant coaches have trouble filling in for the boss. The most excruciating example was with Duke in 1994-95 when Mike Krzyzewski had back surgery 12 games into the season. Assistant coach Pete Gaudet, regarded as a capable basketball man, took over the program and Duke collapsed.
That may explain why Pitino returned so quickly.
Louisville will probably rebound after losing to Marquette. The Cardinals will adjust, and Pitino will no doubt keep working despite any physical ailments.
But don't work too hard — college basketball needs you.
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.
Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 15 points and Evan Smotrycz added 13, helping No. 22 Michigan remain unbeaten at home with a 70-61 win over Illinois on Sunday.
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 | College hoops power rankings A look at the top teams in college basketball based on performance and potential. NBCSports.com |
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Five up, five down from college hoops’ huge day16 hr 31 min ago Michigan State sure shook up Big Ten by beating Buckeyes17 hr 16 min ago UNLV’s thrilling win vs. SDSU adds spice to MWC race21 hr 43 min ago |
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 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. |
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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.
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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.