d.BIG PICTUREStanford: It was a reality check less than two weeks before the Pac-12 opener, with the Cardinal shooting 21 percent in the first half while falling behind by 20 po

Good luck, selection committee. Fake Avalanche Jerseys.After No. 2 Clemson, No. 3 Michigan and No. 4 Washington all lost on Saturday -- the first time that has happened on the same day in 31 years -- the 12 members of the College Football Playoff selection committee had a bit of a mess to sort through to determine its third of six rankings.Here are the top questions facing the committee in Week 12:1. How much does head-to-head matter? Some outside the committee meeting room think Louisville deserves to be ranked ahead of Clemson in spite of the Tigers 42-36 win over the Cardinals on Oct. 1. The Amway Coaches Poll this week moved Louisville up to No. 3 and dropped Clemson three spots to No. 5 after the Tigers lost at home to an unranked Pitt team. The Associated Press poll did the same. While there might be some committee members who agree, the group has collectively shown in the past that it holds head-to-head results in high regard. Last week, the committee did not drop Texas A&M below Auburn in spite of the Aggies loss to Mississippi State because Texas A&M beat Auburn. In 2014, the committee dropped TCU from No. 3 to No. 6 in its final ranking in large part because of TCUs loss to Baylor.The committees protocol requires the use of head-to-head results as one of the tiebreakers when evaluating teams with comparable résumés, but its certainly not the only factor. Strength of schedule is also a major component, and Clemson has three wins against teams currently ranked by the committee (Auburn, Louisville and Florida State), while Louisville has one (Florida State). Clemson also has five wins against teams over .500 and Louisville has two (FSU and Wake Forest). Louisville, though, did not lose to an unranked Pitt team at home. Will it be enough to sway the committee in favor of the Cards?2. Will Washingtons strength of schedule sink the Huskies? According to ESPNs Football Power Index, Washington has played the third-easiest schedule in the FBS, and its nonconference strength of schedule is dead last at No. 128, with wins against Rutgers (2-8), Idaho (6-4) and FCS Portland State (3-7). Washington still controls its destiny in the Pac-12 North, and shouldnt be eliminated as a playoff contender after losing to a surging (and ranked) USC team, but the Huskies strength of schedule will now be placed under a microscope by the committee.3. How high can a two-loss team climb? Last year, Stanford finished the season as the committees highest-ranked two-loss team at No. 6 after winning the Pac-12 title. Can the Big Ten surpass that? The Big Ten has two legitimate two-loss contenders in No. 7 Wisconsin and No. 10 Penn State, and ESPNs FPI projects a 43 percent chance theyll face each other in the Big Ten championship game. If Penn State wins out and Michigan loses another game, the Nittany Lions will win the East. No. 11 Oklahoma has been the Big 12s highest-ranked team -- ahead of one-loss, No. 16 West Virginia -- in spite of early losses to Houston and Ohio State. ESPNs FPI projects there is an 80 percent chance that at least two Power 5 conferences will have a champion with more than one loss. The Big 12 is still the most likely (76 percent), followed by the Pac-12 (63 percent) and Big Ten (58 percent).4. Is the Big 12 alive again in the CFP race? The Big 12 is still on life support, but isnt eliminated entirely. The conference needed chaos at the top of the CFP ranking, and certainly got it on Saturday. Not only did three of the top four teams lose, but so did No. 8 Texas A&M and No. 9 Auburn. That should have a trickle-down effect and give OU a boost in the ranking, even if by default. Oklahoma is still undefeated in league play; West Virginia has just one loss and is playing tough defense; and Oklahoma State owns the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Mountaineers. Both WVU and Oklahoma State have some work to do, though.When asked last Tuesday about Oklahoma States controversial loss to Central Michigan, selection committee chair and Texas Tech athletic director Kirby Hocutt said, Were viewing it as a loss. Its not within our purview to decide wins and losses. The committee is aware of what transpired in that game, and by the same token believe that we have Oklahoma State ranked in the appropriate spot that they deserve this week.Can the Cowboys overcome that and win the Big 12 title? West Virginia has to overcome its loss to the Cowboys and a weak schedule. When asked last week about the Mountaineers, Hocutt said, At this point in the season, theyve only played one game against a ranked College Football Playoff opponent, and that was to Oklahoma State, whos ranked No. 13 in this weeks rankings, and West Virginia lost that game. West Virginia just needs to continue to win and build their résumé in the eyes of the committee. Colorado Avalanche Store.C. Lions has come to an end. Banks told TSN on Jan 2 that he had no interest in playing out the option year of his contract with the Lions in 2014, and he again made that clear in a conversation with Lions GM Wally Buono last week. Avalanche Jerseys China. One game after a miserable showing in Oklahoma City, Gay tied a career high with 41 points and the Sacramento Kings cruised to a 114-97 victory at the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday night. https://www.cheapavalanche.com/. That gave fans outside Joe Louis Arena another chance to ask for autographs from the 19-year-old whose stardom in the NHL has arrived earlier than most expected. DALLAS -- SMU coach Tim Jankovich watched the Mustangs run out to a 32-point lead in the first half against Stanford and couldnt help but take stock of his team in his first year replacing Hall of Famer Larry Brown.Sterling Brown scored 16 points and SMU rolled to a 72-49 win over the Cardinal on Monday night for a 22nd consecutive non-conference home victory. More notably from Jankovichs perspective, it was the fifth straight win -- and most impressive -- since dropping a pair on the road at Southern California and Boise State.Were certainly far more toward the team that I want us to be than we were three weeks ago or so, Jankovich said. What Im picturing and what I feel like were capable, I think weve got a lot of growth potential left. And I am very excited about that.Duke transfer Semi Ojeleye had 13 points and seven rebounds for the Mustangs (9-3), who shot 59 percent to 21 percent in the first half for the Cardinal while taking leads of 12-0, 30-7 and 44-12.Reid Travis, the leading scorer for Stanford (7-4), didnt get a shot in the first half, when Cardinal starters scored one point. He scored all 10 of his points in the second half, while Marcus Sheffield led Stanford with 13 points.Its hard to get the ball inside when the other team doesnt want it to be there, Stanford coach Jerod Haase said. We took the easy route and werent able to get him touches and thats why he didnt get any shots.Shake Milton had 11 points and a career-high nine assists, four on alley-oop dunks. Three were to Jarrey Foster, and the other Ben Moore, who had four of SMUs seven blocks, one off its season high. Fosters second alley-oop made it 44-12 with 5:15 left in the first half.We were knocking down shots here and there and just moving the ball, playing unselfishly, Foster said. I would say that was probably one of the best halves weve played, a lot of energy.The Mustangs, who are 40-3 at home siince the start of the 2014-15 season, had a sluggish second half, especially compared to the first, shooting 42 percent and getting outscored 30-24. Colorado Avalanche Gear. In the second half, its not like they were playing the same way either, Haase said. Its really hard to gauge.WHERES MOORE?Moore scored all 10 of his points before leaving in the first half with a cut on his lip that required stitches. He was limited to 10 minutes after halftime, but still had a game-high nine rebounds. Its not a lot of fun when Ben Moore is in the dressing room ... getting stitched up and you just keep looking down the bench, going `Is he going to come back or not? Jankovich said.BIG PICTUREStanford: It was a reality check less than two weeks before the Pac-12 opener, with the Cardinal shooting 21 percent in the first half while falling behind by 20 points in less than 9 minutes. Stanford was much more competitive in the first half of a loss at No. 3 Kansas.SMU: A blowout loss to Michigan, followed soon after by the USC and Boise losses, dropped the Mustangs from Top 25 consideration. But they might start getting votes if anyone notices the huge first-half lead in this game.UP NEXTStanford: After wrapping up a non-conference road schedule that covered about 25,000 miles and included a trip to China, the Cardinal get a final Pac-12 tuneup at home against Idaho on Thursday. The league schedule opens at home against Arizona State (Dec. 30) and Arizona (Jan. 1).SMU: The Mustangs finish non-conference with a rare back-to-back, hosting Albany on Tuesday. The American Athletic Conference opener is Dec. 27 at Memphis---Corrects previous versions to show Stanfords record at 7-4 instead of 8-4.---More AP college basketball: www.collegebasketball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25 ' ' '