The Sports Report: Lakers prove they can beat NBA’s elite
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Howdy, I’m your host, Austin Knoblauch, filling in for Houston Mitchell. Let’s get right to the news.
From Dan Woike: The postseason road the Lakers want to take probably will roll through Oklahoma City at some point, the unquestioned best team in the Western Conference having played its way to the top with a level of all-around excellence rarely seen.
And the Lakers, heading into the final week of the regular season, have either the good fortune or the curse of having to test themselves against the team with the NBA’s best record.
At the worst, the games against the Thunder could expose the Lakers’ weaknesses. Oklahoma City is younger and hungrier with more size at the rim, capitalizing on advantages the Lakers will struggle to overcome.
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But when the Lakers are at their best — and whoa, they were certainly at their best Sunday — they can prove to everyone, especially themselves, that their combination of otherworldly individual offensive talent and versatile, scrambling defense can hold down even the most talented of teams.
From early red-hot shooting to full-game focus, the Lakers stamped themselves as full-fledged contenders in the West by dominating the Thunder 126-99 in an all-caps, bold-lettered statement win.
“We know it’s the final stretch into the full season, so we’re just trying to rack up great habits,” LeBron James said.
That, plus great players, is a proven combination.
Luka Doncic, who knocked the Thunder out of the postseason last season on the way to the NBA Finals, went deep into his bag of skills, spinning around defenders, firing passes over his head and stepping back and splashing over the Thunder’s league-best defense.
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DODGERS
From Jack Harris: On a windy, wet and dreary afternoon at Citizens Bank Park on Sunday, the Dodgers twice watched a lead slip frustratingly from their grasp.
It first happened in the third inning, when a steady drizzle, slippery ball and muddy mound caused Tyler Glasnow to come unglued in a six-run implosion.
It happened again in the seventh, when the Dodgers stormed back in front with five unanswered runs only to let a sloppy inning of defense cost them their first series defeat of the season.
Such were the lapses that decided the Philadelphia Phillies’ 8-7 win in Sunday’s series rubber match; reminding a Dodgers team that won eight straight games to start the season that they’re also capable of beating themselves.
ALSO: Dodgers place Blake Snell on injured list
RAMS
From Sam Farmer: For the Rams, a house isn’t necessarily a home.
There’s the Sunday sanctuary of SoFi Stadium — also known as Rams House — but the franchise that returned to Los Angeles in 2016 has turned its attention to creating a permanent home in Woodland Hills, where it will spend the other six days of the week.
Rams owner Stan Kroenke, who built the $5-billion stadium in Inglewood, has provided The Times a detailed and exclusive first look at the next major project for his NFL team: a state-of-the-art team headquarters, surrounded by a glistening new residential and retail community intended to be the long-awaited centerpiece of the San Fernando Valley.
In bringing the NFL back to Los Angeles and constructing a state-of-the-art venue — a place where the Chargers also play — Kroenke provided a proof of concept. SoFi Stadium renderings were more than pretty pictures; they came to life.
NFL
From Sam Farmer and Gary Klein: Pete Carroll’s syllabus is as lively and star-studded as his sideline.
The legendary football coach, a guest professor at USC, has brought in a parade of celebrities to speak to his “The Game is Life” class of 56 students, chosen from a field of more than 300 applicants.
One week it’s Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr imparting his wisdom. Then, it’s author and new-age guru Deepak Chopra. Actor Jason Sudeikis (Ted Lasso) has spoken to the class, as has Rainn Wilson (Dwight Schrute from “The Office”) and Olympic gold medalists Rai Benjamin and April Ross.
In the auditorium in the Fertitta Hall basement, the biggest star of all is the eternally youthful, irrepressibly enthusiastic Carroll, 73, hired in January as new coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. His USC teams went 97-19 in his nine seasons with the Trojans, winning national championships in 2003 and ’04 — before many of his students were born. There was no NFL team in Los Angeles at the time, and Carroll’s sidelines were always a who’s who of the entertainment industry.
UCLA FOOTBALL
From Ben Bolch: Tino Sunseri would do whatever was needed in the equipment room. Folding towels, putting away laundry — the nature of the task didn’t matter so long as it allowed the teenager to be near his father, Sal, the defensive line coach for the Carolina Panthers.
One of the perks of hanging around an NFL locker room was meeting the players. Among those who took an immediate liking to the boy was DeShaun Foster, the new running back out of UCLA.
“He would come up to you as a young kid that looked up to all these NFL players, that was having all the success, and would take the time to be able to talk to you, spend time with you and was really, really genuine,” Sunseri said Saturday, more than two decades after first crossing paths with Foster during the 2002 season. “So when it came to him and our relationship, he was somebody that I knew whenever I walked in the building I felt like I had a friendship with.”
LAKERS
From Bill Plaschke: He has made 17 baskets.
He has played in the equivalent of less than three full games.
Seventeen Lakers have spent more time on the court. Sixteen Lakers have scored more points.
He has been but a speck of lint on the Lakers’ lapel, a bit of dust at the end of the Lakers’ bench, a small and irrelevant bystander in the Lakers’ long and arduous journey.
Yet, admit it, Bronny James has been huge.
The nepo baby whose arrival last summer was ripped across the NBA landscape has quietly risen above the criticism and gradually drowned out the noise.
ANGELS
From the Associated Press: Logan O’Hoppe homered in his fourth consecutive game, and Jorge Soler hit a tiebreaking shot in the sixth inning of the Angels’ 6-2 victory over the Cleveland Guardians on Sunday.
Kyren Paris also homered for the Angels, who have won six of eight after taking two of three from Cleveland in their only home series during the first three weeks of the season. The Angels play 15 of their first 18 games away from home.
O’Hoppe became the first catcher in Angels history to homer in four straight games when he connected leading off the second inning. He went deep at St. Louis last Wednesday before homering in all three games against Cleveland.
WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
From the Associated Press: During the final sweet moments of Connecticut’s 12th national title, Geno Auriemma and Paige Bueckers embraced after the star guard departed her final game with the Huskies.
It was the moment they wanted all along.
“They’ve all been gratifying, don’t get me wrong,” Auriemma said. “But this one here, because of the way it came about and what’s been involved, it’s been a long time since I’ve been that emotional when a player has walked off the court.”
Bueckers, Azzi Fudd and Sarah Strong led the way as UConn returned to the top of women’s college basketball by rolling to an 82-59 victory over defending champion South Carolina on Sunday.
NHL
From the Associated Press: Alex Ovechkin fired just about the perfect version of his signature one-timer that has defined his remarkable career. When the puck hit the net, it made him the top goal scorer in NHL history, breaking Kings great Wayne Gretzky’s record.
Ovechkin scored his 895th career goal on Sunday in the Washington Capitals’ game against the New York Islanders, beating fellow Russian Ilya Sorokin on a power play with 12:34 left in the second period. He took a perfect pass from longtime teammate Tom Wilson and fired an absolute laser past Sorokin with defenseman Jakob Chychrun screening.
Ovechkin had never scored on Sorokin before, making his countryman the 183rd different goaltender he has beaten. He dived onto the ice to celebrate as so many Capitals fans in attendance chanted “Ovi! Ovi!” from the stands.
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1940 — Jimmy Demaret wins the Masters by four strokes over Lloyd Mangrum. Mangrum opens with a 64, a course record by two strokes that stands for 46 years.
1946 — Herman Keiser edges Ben Hogan by one stroke to win the Masters.
1951 — Ben Hogan takes the Masters by two strokes over Robert Riegel.
1956 — Joe Graboski scores 29 points and Paul Arizin 26 as the Philadelphia Warriors beat the Fort Wayne Pistons 99-88 to win the NBA championship in five games.
1963 — Jack Nicklaus becomes the youngest Masters winner at 23, beating Tony Lema by a stroke.
1969 — Ted Williams begins managing the Washington Senators.
1985 — New Jersey’s Herschel Walker rushes for a USFL-record 233 yards in leading the Generals to a 31-25 victory over the Houston Gamblers. Walker breaks his own USFL record for the longest run from scrimmage by going 89 yards on his second carry.
1995 — Baseball exhibition season begins late due to strike.
1996 — Dave Andreychuk scores a goal for his 1,000th career point, and the New Jersey Devils top the New York Rangers 4-2.
1998 — Al MacInnis has a goal and an assist in St. Louis’ 5-3 loss at Detroit to become the sixth NHL defenseman to reach 1,000 points.
2000 — 1st regular season MLB game at Enron Field (now Minute Maid Park) in Houston.
2003 — Syracuse wins the NCAA title with an 81-78 victory over Kansas.
2007 — Michigan State beats Boston College 3-1 for its first NCAA hockey title in 21 years.
2008 — Mario Chalmers hits a 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds left in regulation to force overtime, and Kansas goes on to defeat Memphis 75-68 for the NCAA title.
2009 — Tina Charles scores 25 points and grabs 19 rebounds and Connecticut routs Louisville 76-54 to capture its sixth women’s basketball title. UConn (39-0) wins every one of its 39 games by double digits, a first in college basketball.
2010 — Don Nelson sets the NBA career record for victories by a coach in the Golden State Warriors’ 116-107 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Nelson’s 1,333 wins surpass Lenny Wilkens’ total.
2014 — Shabazz Napier scores 22 points and Connecticut wins its second NCAA men’s title in four years, beating the freshmen-led Kentucky 60-54 in the championship game.
2015 — UConn’s women down Notre Dame 63-53 for their 10th NCAA championship. Coach Geno Auriemma ties UCLA’s John Wooden for the most titles in college basketball.
2016 — Ernie Els, winner of four major titles, opens with a 10 on the par-4 first hole at the Masters. After his first two shots, Els seven-putts from 2 feet. His sextuple bogey is the worst score on the first hole at the Masters, beating the old mark by two strokes.
2016 — The Golden State Warriors become the second team to win 70 games in a season by beating the San Antonio Spurs 112-101.
2018 — Vegas Golden Knights end regular season with most victories of any expansion team.
2019 — 38th NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship: Baylor beats Notre Dame, 82-81.
2019 — Dwyane Wade and Dirk Nowitzki play final NBA games.
2019 — Magic Johnson quits as President of Basketball Operations of the LA Lakers.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Until next time...
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Go beyond the scoreboard
Get the latest on L.A.'s teams in the daily Sports Report newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
