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 three goals as the New York Rangers beat Philadelphia 5-2 on Saturday for their seventh straight win over the Flyers.
Jeremy Lin hit a free throw with 4.9 seconds left to overcome a dreadful second half and lift the New York Knicks to their fifth straight victory, 100-98, over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
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.
CFT: Jordan Jefferson makes it clear he wasn't happy with LSU's game plan in the Tigers' BCS Championship Game loss to Alabama.
Move over, Hollywood and NFL types, golf's two real A-listers take center stage Sunday at Pebble Beach, both in need of a win.
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.
Luis Suarez's refusal to shake hands with Patrice Evra overshadowed Manchester United's 2-1 win over rival Liverpool that lifted the defending champions to first place in the Premier League on Saturday.
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.
APThere’s a series of rivalries that flared recently like Duke-Maryland, Florida-Kentucky and UCLA-Arizona.
And geography and burning desire makes up for the up-and-down fortunes of these schools’ rivalries: Iowa-Iowa State, Michigan-Michigan State, Stanford-California, Penn-Princeton and Oklahoma-Oklahoma State.
Philadelphia’s Big 5 — first formed in 1954 — is a rivalry unto itself and one of the most entertaining. It has renewed its round-robin series that was halted for several years because of conference affiliations and NCAA rules that caused scheduling gridlock, so recognition should be given to Villanova, Temple, St. Joseph’s, Penn and LaSalle.
Fans and players don’t really hate each other, but the level of play in their games has thrusted this to the forefront. Last year’s Big East title game, which the Huskies won, 61-58 after the Panthers took the regular-season title, is a great example.
With star Emeka Okafor hobbled by back spasms, guard Ben Gordon hit the game-winner and set the Big East Tournament scoring record in the process. Oh yeah, it was the third straight time they’d played for the title. It was the fourth straight final for the Panthers and the eighth in 10 years for Connecticut.
More impressive?
Pitt joined Connecticut (1994-96) as the only team to win or share a Big East regular-season title in three straight seasons. The Big East played in divisions from 1995-98 and 2001-03 and thus didn’t have a single champion those seasons.
Add in this season's 76-66 win by Pittsburgh, which featured 29 points from Chevon Troutman and a 17-point comeback by the Panthers, and you've got a rivalry that's on the way up.
NEXT: Vote for your favorite rivalry
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.
Beyond the Arc: No. 11 Michigan State ends No. 3 Ohio State's 39-game home winning streak with a 58-48 victory.
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 | 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 |
Five up, five down from college hoops’ huge day12 hr 12 min ago Michigan State sure shook up Big Ten by beating Buckeyes12 hr 57 min ago UNLV’s thrilling win vs. SDSU adds spice to MWC race17 hr 25 min 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. |
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 | NBCSports.com |
Jeremy Lin hit a free throw with 4.9 seconds left to overcome a dreadful second half and lift the New York Knicks to their fifth straight victory, 100-98, over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
Doron Lamb hit a 3-pointer with 3:18 left to put No. 1 Kentucky ahead to stay, and the Wildcats took a big step toward a Southeastern Conference regular-season title by beating Vanderbilt 69-63 Saturday night for their 17th straight win.
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.
