Mark Teixeira will be out eight to ten weeks with a right wrist strain, leaving New York with a hole at first base. (AP)

The hits just keep coming for the Yankees, and not the good kind. Already without Alex Rodriguez for at least the first half of the season due to January hip surgery and Curtis Granderson for the first month of the season due to a broken forearm, they’ll now be missing Mark Teixeira for all of April and potentially the first half of May as well. The first baseman, who was supposed to join Team USA for the World Baseball Classic later this week, strained his right wrist while taking warmup swings on Tuesday. He will miss eight to 10 weeks, a timespan that includes four weeks of rest and at least four more of rehabilitation, all of which will take place in New York instead of Tampa, since he can’t participate in games.

The 32-year-old Teixiera (33 on April 11) was already coming off his fourth straight year of declining production, at least in terms of OPS or OPS+; in terms of True Average (an expression of runs produced per plate appearance on a batting average scale after adjusting for park and league scoring environments), his last few years have been fairly stable even as his raw rate stats have eroded:

After averaging 37 homers and 157 games a year during his first three seasons in pinstripes, Teixeira sank to 24 homers in 123 games last year, both career lows; he played in just four regular-season games after Aug. 27 due to a recurrent calf strain. He may be hard-pressed to match even that production given his wrist injury; soft tissue injuries heal less predictably than fractures and can sap a hitter’s power even after he returns to action. Teixeira strained his ECU (extensor carpi ulnaris) tendon, the same tendon that the Blue Jays’ Jose Bautista injured last year while swinging a bat on July 16. Bautista missed five weeks and lasted just five plate appearances before returning to the disabled list and undergoing season-ending surgery — a scenario New York obviously hopes to avoid.

Given the free agency departures of Nick Swisher, Russell Martin, Raul Ibanez, Eric Chavez and Andruw Jones, the Yankees will spend at least all of April without eight of the 10 players who hit at least 10 home runs for them last year — a group that produced 179 of the team’s MLB-high 245 homers. Robinson Cano and Derek Jeter may be the only members of the double-digit club in the Opening Day lineup, and even the latter is iffy as he works his way back from a season-ending ankle fracture that required surgery. He has yet to play a Grapefruit League game thus far but is hoping to do so this weekend.

The loss of Swisher, who started 27 games at first base last year, leaves the Yankees without an obvious replacement for Teixeira. Here’s a quick look at their in-house options, roughly in order of the likelihood that they start the season at first base.

Juan Rivera: Coming off a meager .244/.286/.375 showing in 339 plate appearances for the Dodgers last year, the 34-year-old Rivera was signed to a minor league deal, and until Granderson’s injury, at best appeared to have a shot at winning a roster spot as Ichiro Suzuki’s platoon partner in rightfield on the basis of a ho-hum .270/.329/.434 line against lefties over the past three seasons.

Now, the argument can be made that he belongs in the lineup either in rightfield or at first base for the first four or five weeks of the season due to the pair of  injuries. He has 83 starts at first during his major league career, including 39 last year, though Cashman says he prefers him as an outfielder. If Rivera does see more time at first, it could buy the team time to take a longer look at a young outfielder such as Melky Mesa or Zoilo Almonte.

Dan Johnson: “The Great Pumpkin” gained notoriety by hitting five home runs in a 15-day span against the Yankees and Red Sox in 2010 as the Rays eked out a division title. After flopping as the team’s everyday first baseman the following spring, he hit a game-tying ninth-inning homer against the Yankees on the crazy final day of the 2011 regular season, helping Tampa Bay squeeze into the playoffs yet again. He made just 31 Major-League plate appearances last year for the White Sox, highlighted by a three-homer game on the final day of the season.

The 33-year-old lefty owns a career .237/.338/.412 line in the Majors, with most of the good stuff coming with the A’s from 2005-2007; his Major-League line since then is just .185/.309/.379 with 14 homers in 291 PA, with his power and plate discipline negated by a .175 BABIP. With the Yankees awash with potential options against lefties, the fact that Johnson has the platoon advantage against righties — and almost no platoon split at the Major League level — and can play third base as well as first will likely work in his favor well enough to net him a roster spot.

Kevin Youkilis: The Yankees signed Youkilis to serve as their top fill-in at third base after Rodriguez’s injury came to light, and while the soon-to-be-34-year-old has spent most of the past two seasons at the hot corner, he has actually put in more time at first than third during his Major League career. He’s coming off an injury-plagued season in which he hit just .235/.336/.409 with 21 homers in 509 plate appearances, well off his previous career line of .289/.391/.492.

If the Yankees do decide to use him at first, they could use either Jayson Nix or Eduardo Nunez at third base, though both are much stronger against lefties than righties, and the latter is already an insurance policy in case Jeter comes back slowly. In fact, the Yankees have said time and again they’d prefer he focus on playing shortstop instead of bouncing from position to position, which is doing his defense no favors. Unless the Yankees scare up another third baseman from outside the organization, this is a longshot.

Travis Hafner: Fuhgeddaboutit. Hafner hasn’t played the field since 2007, and hasn’t made more than 10 starts in a season at first base since 2003; it’s questionable as to whether he even owns a glove.

Luke Murton: With the players who filled in at first base for the Yankees’ Triple-A Empire State affiliate last year — Steven Pearce, Brandon Laird, Russell Branyan and Kosuke Fukudome — all gone from the organization, Murton is the team’s ranking minor leaguer at the position. A 19th-round 2009 draft pick out of the Georgia Institute of Technology, he spent last year at Double-A Trenton, hitting .249/.327/.464 with 25 homers in 526 PA, but at 26 years old (27 on May 21), he’s no kind of prospect. In fact, he’s basically organizational filler. While he may get a look in spring training, that’s mostly to determine his readiness as a fill-in for the fill-ins.

Given that array of unappealing options, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman — who himself was bitten by the injury bug this week, having broken his fibula and dislocated his ankle while skydiving to raise awareness for the Wounded Warriors charity — will make calls to determine what else is available outside the organization. Suffice it to say that there’s a reason free agents such as Aubrey Huff and Carlos Lee have gone unsigned, as they’re worse ideas (and in worse shape) than the players not just in the Yankees’ camp, but in those of the other 29 teams as well.

The pickings from other organizations are likely to be slim until teams pare down to 25-man rosters at the end of spring training, with a few players who are out of options potentially shaking loose. Given the Yankees’ budgetary constraints, it’s tough to imagine them taking on a more expensive contract to fill a short-term need, though if Teixeira suffers a setback and needs surgery, you can bet owner Hal Steinbrenner will dig deeper to find the dollars to do so.

NEW YORK — The New York Rangers did not have an official update on the status of defenseman Marc Staal following their win Tuesday night over the Philadelphia Flyers.

Staal was injured 5:45 into the third period when Kimmo Timonen‘s redirected slap shot from the point hit him in the face, around his right eye. He fell to the ice and was writhing in pain as blood poured out of his face.

Marc Staal

Defense – NYR

GOALS: 2 | ASST: 9 | PTS: 11
SOG: 20 | +/-: 4

Staal, who does not wear a visor, eventually was able to skate off while covering his eye to stop the blood from dripping out.

“It’s a tough, tough one,” right wing Rick Nash said after the Rangers’ 4-2 victory. “We’re hoping the best for him; just hoping it’s not the thing we all think it is.”

Goalie Henrik Lundqvist said he believes the puck hit Staal flush on the right eye, leaving him with cuts above and below his eye. Dan Girardi, Staal’s defense partner, said he was engaged in the corner with Flyers forward Scott Hartnell so he didn’t see the puck hit Staal, but he heard it.

“It was scary,” Lundqvist said. “He was in a lot of pain. It was tough to focus after that, really tough.”

Staal has played in every game this season after a concussion forced him to miss the first 38 games of last season. He made his debut in the 2012 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic against the Flyers.

“You can feel that it took the life out of the bench a little bit and the whole crowd,” Rangers captain Ryan Callahan said. “It’s a scary moment, but I haven’t seen him yet. I hope he’s doing OK.”

—

SAGINAW, Mich. – Former Spirit forward Vincent Trocheck had a goal and an assist each as the Plymouth Whalers stretched their winning streak to four games with a 4-1 win over Saginaw in Ontario Hockey League action Tuesday.

It was the fourth win in seven meetings for Plymouth (38-17-9) over their state rivals in a morning game before a crowd of 5,527 largely made up of schoolchildren.

Tom Wilson also had a goal and an assist for the Whalers, while Matthew Mistele and Mitchell Heard also scored. Rookie goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic made 27 saves.

Andrey Alexeev scored the lone goal for Saginaw (29-27-6) as the Spirit dropped their fourth straight game.

The Spirit’s lack of power-play success proved costly as they failed to score in five chances.

Plymouth outshot Saginaw 34-28 and had one goal in two power play opportunities.

Trocheck came back to haunt his former team who dealt him at the trade deadline in January, opening up the scoring at 6:34 of the first period by beating Spirit goaltender Jake Paterson through his pads.

Paterson stopped 30 of 34 shots in a second straight shaky performance.

Mistele scored a late goal at 17:44, batting a bouncing puck past Paterson to round out the first period scoring.

Alexeev sliced the lead in half for Saginaw, scoring at the 4:26 mark, but Wilson restored the two goal lead with the final goal of the second period at 11:07. The assist on the goal went to Trocheck, helping him reach the 100 point mark for the first time in his major junior career.

Trocheck put up 24 goals and 26 assists with the Spirit and has almost the same totals (23-27-50) with Plymouth.

Heard scored the lone power play goal of the game at 6:39 of the third period to finish off the scoring.

Posted March 05, 2013

Virginia boosted its stock with a win over Duke, but took a hit with a loss to Boston College. (Steve Helber/AP)

So close, yet so far away. That’s the feeling of today’s Bubble Watch and bracket update on the day conference tournament play begins in a handful of smaller conferences. We’re now 12 days away from Selection Sunday, and four days away from the first automatic bids being dispensed. We can taste the madness. The NCAA tournament picture feels like it’s nearly developed, but we know better.

This week’s cutline for the bracket seemed very soft and shockingly uncomplicated. In the end, I was only really considering seven teams for the final six spots in the bracket, and there weren’t very many options beyond that that seemed to even have a good shot. Maryland ended up as the second team out of the field this week, but that gap between being on the right and wrong side of the line felt a lot bigger than that for the Terps. But Maryland still has time. Many teams do. The picture’s not going to stay exactly like this. Not by a longshot.

Many major-conference hopefuls have at least three or four games remaining. The cutline will move. The bubble will tighten. The at-large pool is going to grow. Smaller-conference tournaments will break the wrong way. Power conference teams will grab big wins. In a way, this is my least favorite edition of Bubble Watch each season because it’s so illusory. It feels like we’re there, but we’ve only just begun.

The question isn’t whether there’s going to be late drama during the two weeks of conference championship play. The question is how much will there be? In two weeks, we will be able to look back on this update with a bit of a smile. There are a lot of data points in place, and the general look and feel of the seed pool may remain intact come March 17, but we know there are a lot of twists left in the tale, too. There always are, and that’s the beauty of March.

** RPI information is from RealTimeRPI.com’s Monday report. Questions/comments go to @AndyGlockner on Twitter or bubblewatch@gmail.com.**

ACC

Locks: Duke, Miami
Miami has at least a share of the league’s regular-season crown, and should win it outright, but Ryan Kelly’s explosion in his return after missing 13 games makes this dynamic very interesting in terms of NCAA seeding. I thought Saturday’s game, in which the Blue Devils won by three when Miami missed a three at the buzzer, flattered both teams in their quest for a No. 1 seed. Assuming one of them wins the ACC tournament, that team looks good to go. If they meet in the final, the loser has a strong chance, too, especially if it’s Duke, which remains unbeaten with Kelly in the lineup. The league is looking stronger to get several more teams in, as well.

SHOULD BE IN
North Carolina State (21-8, 10-6; RPI: 24, SOS: 23)
The Pack beat a couple of lower division teams and faces one more (Wake Forest) at home before traveling to Tallahassee in the finale. The Seminoles, despite really fading at-large hopes, won’t be an easy out at home. It would be nice to see NC State take care of business there heading into the postseason.
GW: UConn (N), Duke, North Carolina, UMass?
BL: at Wake Forest

IN THE MIX
North Carolina (20-8, 11-5; RPI: 20, SOS: 15)
Let’s leave the Heels here one more week, even though their resume is pretty similar to NC State’s, due to the week ahead. Carolina is at Maryland (a game the Terps absolutely need to get) and then come home to host Duke. It seems likely the Tar Heels would make it even if they didn’t win again, but a split this week would pretty much do the deed.
GW: UNLV, NC State, at Florida State?
BL: at Texas

Virginia (20-10, 10-6; RPI: 64, SOS: 119)
Virginia is for bubblers. The Cavaliers got the massive win they needed by handling Duke at home, and then gave back a lot of that credit by dumping a one-point decision at Boston College on Sunday. The danger with a loss like that is the committee may start looking at the earlier bad losses as more legit. Had they handled BC, a split this week may have had them in decent shape. Now, I’m not so sure.
GW: Duke, at Wisconsin, NC State, North Carolina, at Maryland?
BL: Delaware, Old Dominion (N), at Wake Forest, at Clemson, at Georgia Tech, at George Mason, at Boston College

Maryland (20-9, 8-8; RPI: 70, SOS: 113)
I said on Twitter after Saturday’s win at Wake Forest that I think the Terps need four more wins in any combo to make it. Sweep this week vs. North Carolina and at Virginia, then make the ACC semis. Or split and make the final. Otherwise, win the auto bid. Their first ACC tournament game won’t help at all. They’re going to need that quarterfinal game (at least) to make it. What they need beyond that depends on the next six days. The finale at Virginia now looks massive for both teams.
GW: Duke, NC State
BL: At Boston College

Big East

Locks: Georgetown, Louisville, Marquette, Syracuse
There’s building buzz about Georgetown as a 1-seed in the NCAAs. I’m not there yet, but obviously that could change in the next week and a half. Syracuse’s slide down the seed list continues. Beyond that, teams continue to shuffle their ordering. It wasn’t a great week for the bottom of the contender list.

**Reminder: Connecticut is ineligible for postseason play this season.**

SHOULD BE IN
Pittsburgh (23-7, 11-6; RPI: 38, SOS: 53)
The Panthers handled their two home games, staving off Villanova in overtime, and are set to dance. They have two or three quality wins and a bunch of other decent ones. We’ll leave them here for now for computer-number and general reader interest, but for all extents and purposes, they’re in.
GW: at Georgetown, UConn, Syracuse, at Cincinnati
BL: None, really (but three home league losses)

Notre Dame (22-7, 10-6; RPI: 47, SOS: 73)
The Irish fell at Marquette and now the home date with shorthanded St. John’s is more important. With a finale at Louisville, the Irish don’t want to be messing around heading into the postseason. This resume isn’t that good, even though it’s hard to see a 68-team bracket without them at this point.
GW: Louisville, at Pitt, Sweep of Cincinnati, BYU (N)?, Kentucky (with Noel)?
BL: at Providence

IN THE MIX
Villanova (17-12, 9-8; RPI: 55, SOS: 31)
That may be a costly missed opportunity at Pitt, where the Wildcats fell in overtime. Nova has beaten three of the league’s four heavyweights at home already and may need to add Georgetown to that list in the finale. Committees aren’t very friendly to borderline, home-heavy resumes with bad losses on it.
GW: Louisville, Syracuse, Marquette, at Connecticut
BL: Columbia, Swept by Providence, at Seton Hall

Cincinnati (20-10, 8-9; RPI: 49, SOS: 20)
UConn bested the Bearcats in a game of “Give the ballgame away” Chicken, which means the Bearcats grabbed a home win they had to have. Then they were handled at Louisville. Now they close with last-place South Florida at home, trying to get to .500. Where does that leave them heading into the Big East tournament? Not 100 percent comfortable, that’s for sure.
GW: Oregon (N), Marquette, at Pitt, Iowa State (N)?, Xavier (N)??, UConn?
BL: at Providence, St. John’s?

Note: St. John’s vanishes with the season-ending suspension of its leading scorer. Providence is much improved since its roster became fully intact, but lacks the quality of wins at this point for consideration. If they sweep to get to 10-8, another look will be warranted, but the Friars need big wins in NYC.

Big Ten

Locks: Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Ohio State
Results have broken the right way for Indiana, which can clinch an outright regular-season crown Tuesday at home against Ohio State. They may also get a break if the 8-seed in the Big Ten tournament gives them an easier quarterfinal matchup than anyone else. Michigan and Michigan State also retain chances for 1-seeds in the NCAAs should they win the conference tournament. We’ll see. This league looks pretty simple at this point. Seven will dance, and probably only seven will dance.

SHOULD BE IN
Minnesota (20-9, 8-8; RPI: 16, SOS: 2)
That’s a way to stanch the bleeding. A win over Indiana and a pounding of Penn State put the Gophers very nicely back into the safety zone. Getting to .500 with a split at Nebraska and Purdue should be plenty. If they end up 8-10 and then somehow lose their first-round tournament game? I don’t see any real concerns now, but we’ll have to see what the landscape looks like if that scenario comes to fruition.
GW: Indiana, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Memphis (N), at Illinois, at Florida State?
BL: at Northwestern, at Iowa (by 21)?

Illinois (20-9, 8-8, RPI: 35, SOS: 9)
This is basically the same scenario as Minnesota, where both teams appear to have done enough. If the Illini can get a split of the road trip this week (at Iowa and Ohio State), that should be plenty. Even if they don’t, it’s hard to see how they don’t make it with their quality wins and stabilization down the stretch.
GW: Butler (N), at Gonzaga, Indiana, Ohio State, at Minnesota
BD: at Purdue?, Northwestern?

IN THE MIX
Iowa (18-11, 7-9; RPI: 86, SOS: 102)
It looks unlikely after they couldn’t win at Indiana, but they have two winnable home games this week. If they sweep, let’s see what their Big Ten tournament draw looks like before assessing odds.
GW: Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa State??
BL: At Virginia Tech, at Purdue, at Nebraska

Big 12

Locks: Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma State
Kansas continues to trend toward a 1-seed, which remains amazing after the three-game skid in February. Oklahoma State joins this group. There’s no way a 12-win team from this league is missing, especially with a win at Kansas.

SHOULD BE IN
Oklahoma (19-9, 10-6; RPI: 22, SOS: 6)
The Sooners got an important home win (in decisive fashion) over Iowa State and now things are looking very good for their chances. If they sweep vs. West Virginia and at TCU this week, it’s hard to see how they would miss, even with a relative paucity of quality wins.
GW: Kansas, Sweep of Baylor
BL: Stephen F. Austin

IN THE MIX
Iowa State (19-10, 9-7; RPI: 53; SOS: 62)
The Cyclones are starting to take on the look of “that team” that everyone thinks is pretty good but doesn’t make the NCAAs. The home date Wednesday with Oklahoma State is now massive. Winning at West Virginia in the finale does nothing except avoid a crippling loss. This isn’t a great profile right now.
GW: Kansas State, Oklahoma, Sweep of Baylor, BYU??
BL: at Texas Tech, at Texas

Baylor (16-13, 8-9; RPI: 69, SOS: 33)
Last-second inbounds follies against Kansas State and then a loss at Texas have the Bears arrowing hard toward the NIT. They close at home to Kansas and obviously have to win that one to have any real chance at an at-large heading into the conference tournament.
GW: Oklahoma State, at Kentucky (with Noel), BYU??
BL: Northwestern, College of Charleston, at Texas

Pac-12

Locks: Arizona, UCLA
This is not the season where the Pac-12 regular-season champ has to worry about getting in, and UCLA is pretty well positioned to claim at least a share of the crown. Both they and Oregon (tied at 12-4) have road trips on the final weekend, with one soft-ish game and one tester. Ben Howland’s done a very nice job getting this team to this spot. Oregon will move into this group soon, as long as Dominic Artis continues to seem OK and the Ducks look solid with him.

SHOULD BE IN
Oregon (23-6, 12-4; RPI: 49, SOS: 104)
Dominic Artis came back, the Ducks staved off in-state rival Oregon State, and things look, well, ducky. They’re only here at the moment because of computer-related/Artis-related reasons. They have a chance to claim a league crown with a road sweep. They’ll get at least a share if they win at Colorado and Utah.
GW: at UNLV, Arizona, at UCLA
BL: None

California (20-9, 12-5; RPI: 43, SOS: 35)
Allen Crabbe likely is the league’s player of the year. He and Justin Cobbs have played very well down the stretch to get the Golden Bears into position to share the title should they get some help elsewhere. I don’t know if they need another W, but I’m sure beating Stanford in the finale appeals to them anyway.
GW: At Arizona, UCLA, Sweep of Oregon, Colorado?
BL: Harvard, Washington?

Colorado (19-9, 9-7; RPI: 27, SOS: 20)
This continues to be “not a great profile, but likely more than enough” after a split in the Bay Area. The offense looked ugly at Cal. Beating Oregon at home on Thursday would ease whatever nerves exist.
GW: Arizona, Baylor (N), at Oregon, Colorado State, Murray State (N)??
BL: at Utah

IN THE MIX
Washington (16-13, 8-8; RPI: 74, SOS: 27)
Need to sweep the L.A. schools to get to 10-8 and then have a deep Pac-12 tourney run to have a case.
GW: Saint Louis, Colorado
BL: Albany, Nevada, Utah, at Oregon State

Stanford (17-13, 8-9; RPI: 72, SOS: 38)
The home loss to Colorado probably ends any legit at-large hopes.
GW: Oregon, at Arizona State?
BL: Swept by USC

Arizona State (20-10, 9-8; RPI: 94, SOS: 121)
After getting swept in L.A., things look very bleak for the Sun Devils. Their cruddy nonleague schedule is really hurting them at this point. If they can win at Arizona for the sweep, maybe the picture changes a bit more than it appears at this point.
GW: Sweep of Colorado, UCLA
BL: DePaul, Stanford?, Washington?

SEC

Locks: Florida
The Gators got outworked by Tennessee in Knoxville to drop a surprising third SEC game of the season. They’re still going to be a very good seed, but they’re starting to slip out of the discussion for a 1-seed. With geography not in their favor, the Gators could end up in some odd locations in the NCAAs. Missouri is looking more settled to make it in as the second team from this league. And then … ummm … hmmm.

SHOULD BE IN
Missouri (21-8, 10-6; RPI: 33, SOS: 53)
They won two games they should have won, which in this league has become the exception rather than the rule. They close home to Arkansas and at Tennessee. They’d probably be OK with one more win.
GW: Florida, VCU (N), Illinois (N), Mississippi?
BL: at LSU

IN THE MIX
Kentucky (20-9, 11-5; RPI: 51, SOS: 59)
The Cats handled Mississippi State easily at home but then were felled at Arkansas in a “show me” game for the committee. Now a trip to Georgia looms as really important ahead of a home date with Florida to wrap things up. Kentucky has to show the committee it can do more than beat bad teams (or win in OT) at home with this Noel-less lineup. Any road win would be a big one at this point.
GW: Missouri, Maryland (N)?, at Ole Miss
BL: at Tennessee

Tennessee (17-11, 9-7; RPI: 56, SOS: 38)
The Vols got a huge home win over Florida and looked like they were pushing toward at-large contention and then they lost at Georgia to take a step back. They need to win at Auburn now and then handle Missouri at home for another good win.
GW: Florida, Wichita State, UMass (N)?, Kentucky?
BL: Georgia

Mississippi (21-8, 10-6; RPI: 58, SOS: 132)
Big oops for the Rebels, who lost to in-state rival Mississippi State for another terrible loss. This is just a bad profile at this point. The final week has a home date with Alabama and then a trip to LSU. Both appear to be must-wins at this point. 11-7 in this league with one decent win total isn’t very good.
GW: Missouri
BL: at South Carolina, at Mississippi State

Alabama (18-10, 11-5; RPI: 60, SOS: 88)
The game at Mississippi Tuesday is now huge. The loser is in extremely grave condition.
GW: Kentucky??
BL: Mercer, Tulane, at Auburn, at LSU

Mountain West

Locks: New Mexico
New Mexico already is the solo champ of the league with two games left and is thrusting itself into the picture for a 1-seed in the NCAAs. The scrum for positioning below the Lobos continues, but this league is almost certain to get four teams in and may very well get five.

SHOULD BE IN
UNLV (21-7, 9-5; RPI: 13, SOS: 17)
The Rebels looked good at Nevada in their final road game of the season. Now they have two home games (Boise State and Fresno State) and then the league tournament in their building.
GW: Sweep of San Diego State, New Mexico, Colorado State, Iowa State?, at Cal
BL: At Fresno State

Colorado State (20-7, 9-5; RPI: 17, SOS: 25)
The Rams held off Fresno State at home and then were nice enough to get beaten at Boise State to help the Broncos’ cause. Jokes aside, Derrick Marks’ 33-point second half is the latest evidence that MWC teams have figured out how to exploit the Rams on the perimeter. This has been going on since the Nevada game and should have Rams fans worried and looking even closer at possible NCAA matchups.
GW: UNLV, San Diego State, at Air Force?, at Washington??
BL: At Illinois-Chicago

IN THE MIX
San Diego State (18-8, 8-6; RPI: 32, SOS: 29)
The Aztecs couldn’t handle The Pit and now are in an interesting position. If they handle Air Force at home, do they need to win again? They close at Boise State (tough) and then would face an equally challenging MWC quarterfinal. Maybe against the Broncos. Hmm…
GW: UCLA (N), Indiana State (N), Colorado State, New Mexico
BL: None

Boise State (18-8, 8-6; RPI: 44, SOS 67)
So far, so good for the Broncos. I thought they needed to get all three home games, and they nailed the first two, including a strong win over Colorado State. Now they get a shot at UNLV and then close at home to Sad Diego State. Get a split here, and they may — emphasize may — be able to absorb a quarterfinal loss. If they win two more, I don’t see how the committee keeps them out.
GW: at Creighton, UNLV, Colorado State, sweep of Wyoming??
BL: at Utah?, at Nevada

Atlantic 10

Locks: Saint Louis
The Billikens are in, and they can win the league outright with wins at Xavier and home to La Salle. If they can’t get that done, VCU has a chance to grab a share. The Rams look pretty good to go. Butler’s still fine, although seeding (and perception) are taking a dent. How much deeper will it go?

SHOULD BE IN
VCU (23-6, 11-3; RPI: 31, SOS: 62)
When Havoc meets a slower team that’s loose with the ball, Saturday happens. The Rams obliterated Butler in a national TV showcase of their prowess. If they can handle Richmond, they’ll head to Temple maybe with a chance at grabbing some of the league crown. No great wins, but enough good ones and the eye test in their favor.
GW: Memphis (N), Butler, Belmont?, Alabama??
BL: None, really

Butler (21-7, 9-5; RPI: 28, SOS: 45)
Let’s just forget that happened, shall we? The Bulldogs have a trip to UMass and a home date with Xavier left to get back on the right track after the VCU debacle. Too many great wins to be in any trouble, but seeding is slipping.
GW: Indiana (N), Marquette (N), North Carolina (N), Gonzaga
BL: None

IN THE MIX
Temple (21-8, 9-5; RPI: 42, SOS: 48)
It’s been a crazy season in North Philly, and the late nonleague tilt with Detroit wasn’t any different. The Owls ended up pulling that one out and also beating Rhode Island. Now they have to handle themselves at Fordham before hosting VCU in a very important finale.
GW: Syracuse (N), Saint Louis, La Salle?, at UMass?, at Charlotte??
BL: Canisius, St. Bonaventure

La Salle (20-7, 10-4; RPI: 45, SOS: 89)
Picked up a “win for bulk” against Duquesne, and faces a similar home date with George Washington. Then the Explorers head to Saint Louis for a marquee shot at the possible league champs. Getting that one would be huge. If they can’t, we’ll see what the A-10 bracket brings.
GW: Butler, at VCU
BL: Central Connecticut State

Massachusetts (18-9, 8-6; RPI: 54, SOS: 69)
The Minutemen won at Xavier to keep their hopes alive. Now they host Butler on Thursday and then have to go to Rhode Island two days later to close.
GW: at La Salle?
BL: George Washington, at St. Bonaventure

Missouri Valley

Locks: None
What a difference a week makes. Wichita State’s unexpected home loss midweek opened the door for Creighton, which stormed through the opening and beat the Shockers for the league title in the season finale. Both teams should make the field of 68. Can a surprise winner make three? Indiana State clearly is capable, despite dumping five of six down the stretch. So are Northern Iowa, Evansville and others.

SHOULD BE IN
Creighton (24-7, 13-5; RPI: 36, SOS: 81)
Two wins and holders of a solo championship, the Bluejays should be good to go. There are no great wins, but enough solid ones to go with winning the league.
GW: Wisconsin (N), Arizona State (N), Wichita State, at Cal?, Indiana State?
BL: at Drake, Illinois State

Wichita State (24-7, 12-6; RPI: 38, SOS: 94)
The Shockers won at Indiana State and then handled Detroit in BracketBusters and look very good for a bid now. There are no truly great wins, but a lot of decent ones in the profile. A share (at least) of the Valley crown should be enough to punch the ticket. And if they beat Evansville midweek, they will have that. Of course, they can totally take care of business by winning at Creighton in the finale.
GW: at VCU, Creighton, at Air Force?, Southern Miss, at Indiana State?
BL: at Evansville, at Southern Illinois

IN THE MIX
None.

West Coast

Locks: Gonzaga
The Zags very well may be two wins away from a 1-seed in the NCAAs. Can Saint Mary’s feel OK with things without an auto bid? It’s starting to lean toward yes.

SHOULD BE IN
None

IN THE MIX
Saint Mary’s (25-5, 14-2; RPI: 37, SOS: 115)
The Gaels did what they had to do, winning out and finishing without a WCC blemish besides two losses to Gonzaga. The Creighton win has picked up value, too. They’re one semifinal win away from (assumedly) a third shot at the Zags in Las Vegas. Can they absorb that loss and six more days of bubble teams doing work once they’re done?
GW: Creighton, sweep of BYU
BL: Pacific (N), Georgia Tech (N)

BYU (19-10, 10-6; RPI: 59, SOS: 96)
The “None” sitting one row below this equals “Go win three games in Vegas.”
GW: None
BL: at San Diego, San Francisco

Best of the Rest

Locks: None

SHOULD BE IN
Memphis (25-4, 14-0; RPI: 18, SOS: 71)
The fact that the Tigers are rolling through the league and have flopped more often than not outside of it isn’t great news for the modest at-large hopes of Southern Miss. The Tigers smell like an 8/9 game candidate again.
GW: Sweep of Southern Miss, at Tennessee?
BL: None, really

IN THE MIX
Belmont (22-6, 13-2; RPI: 23, SOS: 87)
The Bruins won the Ohio Valley by two games in their debut season. Now what? Can they eat a loss in their hometown and still get in? Seems unlikely despite the computer numbers, but we’ll see.
GW: Middle Tennessee State?, at Stanford?
BL: Northeastern (N), at Murray State?

Middle Tennessee State (27-4, 19-1; RPI: 25, SOS: 127)
The Blue Raiders have done what they had to do to make any at-large case. They won the league by five games and went 19-1. They’re rooting hard for Belmont and Akron to auto-bid in case they need an at-large. I hate this kind of situation, though. We need three more games to prove MTSU is the best Sun Belt team this season? They slaughtered the league. Just let them go to the NCAAs.
GW: Mississippi
BL: at Arkansas State

Louisiana Tech (25-3, 16-0; RPI: 48, SOS: 208)
OK, here we go. At New Mexico State on Thursday. At Denver on Saturday. If they get both, this starts to become intriguing.
GW: Southern Miss?
BL: at Northwestern State?, At McNeese State

Akron (22-5, 13-1; RPI: 46, SOS: 138)
It’s unfair to expect perfection in the MAC, but getting Buffalo’d by a sub-200 team at this stage probably wasn’t a good plan. They have two more home games against modest foes and then the league tournament, which they probably have to win, fair or not.
GW: Middle Tennessee State?
BL: at Coastal Carolina, at Buffalo

Bucknell (24-5, 12-2; RPI: 52, SOS: 180)
They won the league by two games and are the 1-seed, with home-court advantage. Hard to see how they can overcome a loss, but again, let’s see how the entire picture looks in another week.
GW: La Salle?
BL: At Penn State, at Lafayette

OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) — Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco signed a new contract Monday worth $120.6 million over six years, making him the highest paid player in NFL history.

The Super Bowl MVP will receive a $29 million signing bonus and $52 million in guaranteed money. He will be paid $51 million over the first two years of the deal.

”It’s not really about the money, it’s about that respect,’ Flacco said minutes after signing.

The 28-year-old Flacco is the first starting quarterback in NFL history to make the playoffs in each of his first five seasons. He’s led the Ravens to nine wins over that span, tying Tom Brady for most among quarterbacks in the first five years of a career.

Flacco threw 11 touchdown passes and no interceptions during the recent postseason and led the Ravens to a 34-31 Super Bowl win over San Francisco.

”He’s a significant reason we’ve been to the playoffs five years in a row, played in three AFC championship games, and now, we are Super Bowl champs with Joe as MVP,” Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome said.

Flacco’s performance this past offseason almost certainly helped him receive his record-breaking contract, but Flacco said, ”I think I’m an asset to this team. … The fact that we won the Super Bowl just comes with that. If we didn’t win the Super Bowl this year, I still think I’m worth the same.”

By signing Monday, Flacco avoided receiving the franchise tag, which would have hindered the Ravens’ salary cap in 2013.

”I know we have a lot of good players on the team, and I love to play with those guys, so hopefully it works out very good for the organization and we can keep as many people as we need,” he said.

Flacco turned down a hefty contract before the 2012 season, and his decision turned out to be a wise one.

”It was never necessarily about the money and all that, but it was definitely about earning that respect and feeling like I was respected around here,” he said. ”The fact that we got it done and they have made me (the highest-paid player in NFL history) definitely makes me feel good about how I played and how they feel about me.”

Jose Abreu led an offensive onslaught and righty Danny Betancourt spun a gem as Cuba took advantage of an inexperienced Chinese team during a 12-0 rout that was stopped in the seventh inning because of the mercy rule on Monday in Japan. With the victory, the Cubans will advance to the second round in Pool A. More »