NCAA
NORTH CAROLINA, KANSAS, MEMPHIS, UCLA
Sixty-five teams have their names listed on the brackets, but 61 of them are looking up at the names listed above, for it is those four elite schools that have the greatest chance to be around for the Final Four in early April.
North Carolina heads up the East, which is headed for a March 30 final in Charlotte. The Tar Heels' key challenges will come from Tennessee (No. 2), Louisville (No.3), and Washington State (No.4). The Heels will start the tournament against either Coppin State or St. Mary's. Those two schools meet in the play-in game on Tuesday.
Kansas has the top seed in the Midwest, which will play its finals in Detroit. The second seed in the Midwest is Georgetown, followed by Wisconsin, and Vanderbilt. Kansas begins its road to the final four against Portland State, which is making its first appearance in the tournament.
Houston is the host for the South regionals, and Memphis is the team with the top slot in that grouping of 16 teams. The Tigers' closest foes are Texas, Stanford, and Pittsburgh. Memphis tips off against UT-Arlington in the first round.
And in the West, where the regional finals will take place in Phoenix, UCLA is the top team. Duke is in the second slot, followed by Xavier and Connecticut.
The fun begins on Thursday.
NBA
NOT EVEN THE LAKERS CAN COOL OFF HOUSTON
The Houston Rockets were perfect in February, and now they have made it halfway through March. Since losing on January 27, Houston has reeled off 22 straight victories.
Sunday's 104-92 win over the Los Angeles Lakers was the most significant so far for several reasons. First, it left Houston all alone in second place all-time with those 22 straight wins. Only the 1970-71 Lakers are ahead of them-11 games ahead to be exact. Second, the win was against an LA team that has been the best in the West this season. In fact, this win knocks the Lakers from the No. 1 spot in conference standings. And third, Houston moves into first in the West-a shocking development since seven weeks ago they were 24-20 and even a playoff spot was in doubt.
The scoring hero for Houston at the Toyota Center was Rafer Alston, who scored 31 points. It was a good thing he was on, because Tracy McGrady scored just 11 points, missing 12 of his 16 field goal attempts and half of his six free throws. Bobby Jackson also helped out offensively with 19.
Houston helped their cause by hitting 12 three-pointers-outscoring LA 36-15 from behind the arc. Alston had eight of those treys for the Rockets.
The Lakers, who had to play without Pau Gasol, who twisted his ankle in the Lakers' previous game, were led by Kobe Bryant's 24 points. Lamar Odom chipped in with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
What's up next for the Rockets? Another huge challenge.
Tuesday: Boston at Houston
OTHER NBA SCORES
Sacramento 106, Toronto 100
Denver 168, Seattle 116
Detroit 105, New Orleans 84
Atlanta 109, New York98
Cleveland 98, Charlotte 91
Dallas 98, Miami 73
NBA NOTES
* How does a team score 168 points in 48 minutes? First, play a struggling team like Seattle. Then score 48 points in the first quarter. Have 84 at halftime, and then repeat that tally in the second half. This game could have been sponsored by 84 Lumber stores. Hit 60 percent of your shots. Nail 16 threes. Put eight players in double figures. Make sure everybody on the team scores. Make 30 free throws. At least that's how Denver does it.
* Are the Detroit Pistons toying with the West. First, they easily knock off San Antonio. Then they dismantle New Orleans. Perhaps it was a signal that the Pistons are playoff ready.
* Quick. Who is Earl Barron? Daequan Cook? They were the leading scorers for the Miami Heat on Sunday as they lost to Dallas. Shawn Marion was out with a bad back. Udonis Haslem has a bad ankle. And Pat Riley probably has a huge headache. By the way, Barron is a third-year seven-footer who played college hoops at Memphis. He had 21 points, giving him 237 career NBA points.
NHL
WINGS BEAT STARS; SECURE PLAYOFF BID
The Detroit Red Wings are in! Thanks to a 5-3 come-from-behind victory over the Dallas Stars on Thursday night, the Red Wings have secured the first playoff bid this season.
Pavel Datsyuk scored a pair of goals-his 27th and 28th of the season-to lead Detroit's attack. Johan Franzen, Mikael Samuelsson, and Valtteri Filppula added goals for the Red Wings, who trailed 3-1 midway through the second period.
The victory also allowed Detroit to tie an NHL record with eight consecutive 100-point seasons. The Montreal Canadiens had eight straight 100-point seasons from 1975-82.
Detroit has won five straight.
OTHER NHL SCORES
Ottawa 3, Montreal 0
Tampa Bay 3, Boston 1
Los Angeles 4, Nashville 1
Colorado 5, Edmonton 1
Atlanta 6, Calgary 4
Phoenix 2, Vancouver 0
New Jersey 4, Minnesota 3 - OT Shootout
SPORTS SPECTRUM INSIDER
Getting to the heart of what matters in life
TODAY'S FEATURE:
SCOTT DREW, MEN'S BASKETBALL COACH, BAYLOR
BIO NOTE: Drew's sister, Dana, was a star at the University of Toledo; his brother, Bryce, starred at Valparaiso and played in the NBA. His dad still coaches Valparaiso.
RECENT NEWS: On Sunday, Drew's Baylor Bears were given the 11th seed in the West regional. The Bears will face Purdue, from Drew's old stomping grounds: Indiana.
FAITH QUOTE: "God definitely led me on this path. Last year was my first year as head coach at Valparaiso, and I was really excited for the upcoming season at Valpo because we had a great recruiting class coming in. When the Baylor job came open, I really felt led after prayer that this was the right opportunity for me. Baylor is similar to the type of university I left-small, private school with a Christian background and excellent academics."
-Sports Spectrum magazine
MINI MEMOS
Putting the SS spin on today's sports news
ONE AMAZING WEEKEND
* Amazing Story No. 1: Georgia Bulldogs with three games in two days to win the SEC tournament and get into the NCAA tournament. Dennis Felton's job was in jeopardy just days ago, it seems. But after he masterfully coaxed his Bulldogs to four wins in four days in the SEC tournament, it appears that he won't be entering the depleted housing market. Incredibly, Georgia had to play twice on Saturday, which had to remind some of the players of their good old AAU days when you hang around the gym all day and play multiple games. The Atlanta tornado messed up everyone's schedule but somehow didn't affect Georgia negatively-nor did having to play at the home of archrival Georgia Tech. Now Georgia, whose players have to have incredible confidence now, take on Xavier in the first round of the West regional.
* Amazing Story No. 2: Tiger Woods making it five straight wins with a come-from-behind win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Woods is not close to the Houston Rockets' streak, but winning five straight tournaments is astounding. Woods won this tournament thanks to a 24-putt birdie that allowed him to pass Bart Bryant, who was already in the clubhouse and helpless to do anything about Woods' charge. Woods' latest string of unbeatable golf already has people whispering the unthinkable. "Can Tiger go undefeated for an entire season?" Seems impossible. But who would have thought on January 27 that Houston would still be on their streak? Woods now has won 64 tournaments-tied at third on the all-time list with Ben Hogan.
* Amazing Story No. 3: Richard Childress Racing picks up first, second, and third at Bristol. Jeff Burton first, Kevin Harvick second, and Clint Bowyer third. What's surprising about this is that it was the Joe Gibbs Racing team that appeared ready to finish strong as the race neared the end on Sunday. Tony Stewart was in first with 11 laps to go, but a missed change to get new tires and then a wreck into the wall finished him off. Then, on a restart for a two-lap finish after caution, leader Denny Hamlin's car failed to get going, and Burton zipped into first place and the win. That left the Gibbs cars out and the Childress cars in.
UTECHT HEADED FOR CINCY?
No, Utecht is not a school that made it into the list of 64 for the NCAA tournament. This is Ben Utecht, who went to the University of Minnesota, married a star golfer from his alma mater, and has played for the Indianapolis Colts for the last two seasons. Utecht could now be headed for Cincinnati to be a tight end for that team. He has signed an offer sheet, which the Colts could match if they want. Utecht is one of a number of outstanding Christians who have played for Tony Dungy in Indianapolis. And now, it seems, as with David Thornton before him, Utecht is one of the Christians being dispersed to new centers of outreach.
FRANCOEUR DOWN, NOT OUT
The career of professional athletes can be fragile. One second a guy can have it all going, and the next second he is face down on the ground wondering how badly he is hurt. Jeff Francoeur walks that thin line himself because of a minor league beaning that broke the orbital bone around his right eye. The young Atlanta slugger can't afford to take chances with his sight or the plate that was left in his head after that earlier incident. So when a pitch by Todd Wellemeyer of the St. Louis Cardinals smashed into Francoeur's face on Sunday, who knows what thoughts raced through the Braves outfielder's mind. Fortunately, this beaning was not as serious, and it did not affect the injury area from before. Nothing was broken, and he'll soon be back in the lineup. Pray for Francoeur, who told Sports Spectrum that one of his key goals each year is to lead two people to faith in Jesus Christ.
SPRINT CUP STANDINGS
With five races in the books, here's a look at the leaders in the Sprint Cup standings. Next up for the NASCAR guys: Martinsville's half-mile track in Martinsville, Virginia and the Goody's Cool Orange 500. The NASCAR circuit, as is tradition, takes Easter weekend off. Good for NASCAR.
Driver | Points | 2007 finish
1. Kyle Busch 782 5
2. Greg Biffle 752 14
3. Kevin Harvick 749 10
4. Jeff Burton 745 8
5. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 686 16
6. Kasey Kahne 674 19
7. Tony Stewart 656 6
8. Ryan Newman 635 13
9. Clint Bowyer 606 3
10. Kurt Busch 605 7
Other notables:
Matt Kenseth 11th
Jeff Gordon 14th
Carl Edwards 16th
Sam Hornish Jr. 35th
INSIDE SPORTS SPECTRUM
Do you read Sports Spectrum magazine? If you do, you'll be able to identify the following athlete featured in the March-April edition of the magazine, which is arriving in mailboxes across the country this week.
MONDAY'S SPORTS SPECTRUM FEATURE
* He's the guy on the cover.
* He finished second in MVP voting in the National League in 2007.
* He hit .340 with 36 home runs and 137 RBI for his World Series team in 2007
WHO IS THIS PERSON?
SPORTS SPECTRUM RADIO
SS DAILY INTERVIEW
To hear today's interview, go to the Sports Spectrum radio home page. It can be found at www.sport.org.
THE MONDAY GUEST
MATT BOLLANT, women's basketball coach, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay
In the shadow of Lambeau Field (everything in Green Bay is in the shadow of that football icon) is UW-GB. The coach of the Green Bay women's basketball team is Matt Bollant, who came to the Phoenix from a Christian college, Bryan College in Tennessee. He'll talk about his philosophies and how he is able to balance his responsibilities with his family life.
