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.
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.
APQ: How far do you think Boston College will make it in the NCAA tournament? I know BC has been great all year, but something is telling me they won't make it past the Sweet 16. What are your thoughts?
— Bill Atkinson, Vienna, Va.
A: Yes, they will make it past the Sweet 16. Expunge Pitt from your mind. That 15-point loss at home by BC to the Panthers was an aberration. Pitt acted like it had to win to make the NCAA Tournament (it didn’t) and BC was caught off guard.
The Big East Tournament is still a UConn-BC Showdown waiting to happen.
The Eagles have lost their groove, but I think they will get it back at Rutgers on Saturday with a win. Even if they lose in the finals of the Big East Tournament next week, they will end up no worse than a 3 seed.
Then the fun begins. A basketball team with five parts working hard in the NCAA Tournament against teams that look more talented.
That’s when you will see Craig Smith claim every rebound he wants, Jared Dudley keep a ball alive on the glass long enough for the stickback, and 6-11 Nate Doornekamp gobble up assists with passes off the high post over the defense.
You won’t like what you see when the Eagles grind their way to a 60-52 win in the first round of the NCAAs or 59-55 in the second round. But they have a legitimate chance to get into the final eight. National championship? No way, not enough firepower. But BC can win two or three.
Q: Which conference looks better right now: The Big Ten or Conference USA? If you took Illinois out of the Big Ten, wouldn’t C-USA be better?
— Mark Campbell, Cincinnati
A: Ok, take Illinois out of the Big Ten. Now take Louisville out of C-USA.
What do you have left? Charlotte as the No. 2 in C-USA. The 49ers are a good team, but could they beat Michigan State, Wisconsin or Indiana who are 2-4 in the Big Ten?
Nice try, though.
C-USA has eight teams in the top 88 of the RPI, but it ranks 10th in the conference RPI. Big Ten has seven teams in the top 69 and ranks sixth among conferences.
Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan State are 2, 15, 16. Cincinnati is the highest C-USA team at 17.
As far as NCAA contenders, I like Louisville’s chances, but Cincinnati is flaky and, as we know, has point guard issues and problems scoring. We’ll see just how good Charlotte is Thursday night at U of L.
The Big Ten is down, but Conference USA doesn’t measure up now that Indiana is on a roll.
Who could blame the Hoosiers for some I told you so’s? They were being blindfolded and asked for some last words. Davis was going to be fired, yada, yada, yada. Bob Knight Backers thought they were right all along.
Now look. Indiana has grown up and is NCAA Tournament bound, just one possession from third place in the Big Ten.
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.
 | 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 |
Here’s a shot you just can’t defend1 hr 7 min ago Five up, five down from college hoops’ huge day17 hr 37 min ago Michigan State sure shook up Big Ten by beating Buckeyes18 hr 22 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. |
| Slideshow |
 | NBCSports.com |
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.
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.
NBC Sports TV and livestream listings