Top 10 Sports stories of 2010

Sportscaster Al Michaels delivers opening remarks at the memorial for former UCLA basketball Coach John Wooden. Wooden died June 3 at age 99. He became an icon of American sports while guiding the Bruins to an unprecedented 10 national championships in the 1960s and ‘70s and remained in the spotlight during retirement with his “Pyramid of Success” motivational program.  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Joe Torre salutes the fans during a tribute to him after his last home game of the season as Dodgers manager. Torre announced his resignation on Sept. 16 and, at the same time, the Dodgers announced that Don Mattingly, a longtime coach for Torre with the Dodgers and Yankees, would replace him as manager for the 2011 season. “It has been an incredible honor to wear the Dodger uniform, and I will always carry with me some very special memories from the past three seasons,” Torre said when announcing his resignation. “This was not a decision I took lightly, but I believe it’s the right one for myself and my family, and I’m truly thrilled that Donnie will be the one leading the Dodgers. It’s time that the Dodgers had a new voice, and I have the utmost confidence in him. I know he’s ready for the challenge.”  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

The NCAA threw the book at the USC football program on June 10 with a two-year bowl ban, four years’ probation, loss of scholarships and the forfeit of an entire year’s games for improper benefits to Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush dating to the Trojans’ 2004 national championship. USC was penalized for a lack of institutional control in the ruling by the NCAA after its four-year investigation. The report cited numerous improper benefits for Bush and former basketball player O.J. Mayo, who spent just one year with the Trojans. Bush eventually returned his trophy to the Heisman Trophy trust.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

Blake Griffin, the Clippers’ first pick in the 2009 NBA draft, emerged as a force in the NBA during the early part of the 2010-11 season, with several of his dunks going viral with hit videos on YouTube. The Clippers were still as bad as ever, but Griffin, who was averaging double figures in points and rebounds, gave fans a reason to be hopeful for the future of the team.  (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

Zenyatta (8), ridden by Mike Smith, captured the hearts of horse-racing fans with her stirring victories and 19-race undefeated streak before losing the final race of her career, the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Churchill Downs. Zenyatta won three times in California in 2010, twice at Santa Anita and once at Hollywood Park.  (Morry Gash / Associated Press)

In a surprise to many, Lane Kiffin left his job as coach at Tennessee after only one year to become the new football coach at USC, replacing the departing Pete Carroll. Students on the Tennessee campus considered him a traitor for returning to the Trojans, where he was an assistant to Carroll from 2001 to 2006. Kiffin said USC was the only job he would leave Tenneesse for and led the Trojans to an 8-5 record in his first season.  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Frank and Jamie McCourt, who bought the Dodgers in 2004 and announced they were divorcing in 2009, spent 2010 engaged in a messy divorce hearing to determine who owned the Dodgers, with Frank McCourt arguing he was sole owner of the team and Jamie saying she owned half. A judge eventually ruled in Jamie’s favor, leaving the Dodgers in a state of turmoil with the future ownership of the team in doubt.  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Talks of the NFL coming back to L.A. heated up again near the end of the year, with AEG Chief Executive Tim Leiweke, who heads a group looking to build an NFL stadium next to Staples Center, saying the project could be completed in time to host the 50th Super Bowl in February 2016. Leiweke said his group would ask the NFL to waive its traditional requirement that a venue be open for at least a year before being eligible to host its marquee event. He said that if all went as planned, a privately financed, $1-billion L.A. stadium could be ready for the 2015 season. Even former Lakers great Magic Johnson got on board the NFL train, saying he’d do whatever it took to bring a team to Los Angeles.  (John W. Adkisson / Los Angeles Times)