The Sports Report: Clippers rout the Celtics

Howdy, I’m your host, Houston Mitchell. On Monday, the Clippers played and routed the Celtics (who take on the Lakers tonight). That puts the Clippers in a virtual tie with Portland for the sixth spot on the NBA Western Conference standing. The top six don’t have to compete in the short play-in tournament to determine the Nos. 7 and 8 seeds in the playoffs. So that’s kind of important.

Of course, the Clippers are the only team in the top six to be outscored by their opponents, with the Clippers averaging 107.9 points per game and their opponents 108.7, and that includes Monday’s 113-93 final. The leaders in point differential this season is..... the Boston Celtics, whom the Clippers routed.

And now you have to wonder if the Celtics will be extra fired-up to beat the Lakers tonight, or if they will lose their third game in a row to fall to 21-8. The Lakers (11-15) are in 12th in the Western Conference, 2 1/2 games out of a playoff spot.

From Andrew Greif: The Clippers on Monday finally looked like the championship aspirant they expected to be during training camp, rolling through league-leading Boston to a 113-93 victory behind a version of Kawhi Leonard that had yet to be seen to this degree through eight previous appearances.

To start the season, Leonard was limited by rust and an unusual reserve role. Then came knee tightness and a three-week recovery. When he returned, so did an ankle injury. On Monday in Crypto.com Arena, little Boston did bothered Leonard as he scored a season-high 25 points, with nine rebounds and six assists, in 29 minutes. In five previous games with at least 10 shot attempts this season, Leonard’s highest field goal percentage was 50% -- but against Boston, despite all of its defensive length anchored by Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, Leonard probed with his dribble and made 10 of his 12 shots, looking again like the former Finals most valuable player who can control the pace of the game.

The Clippers have won with more unexpected comebacks, scored more effortlessly in other games, and shut down opponents using small-ball lineups before – only two days earlier, in fact, when they allowed Washington only 23 points in the final 17 minutes.

But none of those opponents carried the caliber of Boston, which fell to 21-7 – even if the Celtics were missing big men Robert Williams and Al Horford, who vastly change their rim protection and rolling down low. A second consecutive win improved the Clippers to 16-13.

Paul George scored 26 points on eight-of-22 shooting to help the Clippers hold their own in a must-see matchup of two of the NBA’s top all-around duos, facing Boston’s Brown and Tatum, an MVP favorite.

Since Leonard and George returned from injury one week earlier in Charlotte, they had played nearly all of their minutes together in coach Tyronn Lue’s attempt to make up for lost continuity. When one All-Star checked out, the other was typically right behind. Against Boston, Lue changed tactics: When George checked out unusually early in the first quarter, after six minutes, Leonard stayed in another four minutes. And this time, when it was Leonard’s time to check out after 10 first-quarter minutes, it was George who replaced him thanks to his breather.

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LAKERS

From Broderick Turner: Over the course of 11 days, the Lakers traversed the county to play, at times, inspiring and other times harrowing games in Milwaukee, Washington, Cleveland, Toronto, Philadelphia and Detroit.

The games were fraught not only because of tough competition but because of illness and injury the Lakers encountered during their six-game journey that ended with them holding a 3-3 record and some peace of mind on how they view themselves, even at 11-15.

Now they are back home and this challenge will test the Lakers’ fortitude that much more when they play host to the Boston Celtics at Crypo.com Arena on Tuesday night.

This game is more than just the Lakers meeting a Celtic team with the best record in the NBA and that has two of the league’s dynamic stars in Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown.

This game also is about a storied rivalry between the Lakers and Celtics. It’s about hatred — and respect. It’s about the Lakers and Celtics sharing the league record for the most championships with 17 each.

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UCLA-USC BASKETBALL

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: UCLA was unranked in the preseason for the first time in four years, but Cori Close wasn’t worried. The coach looked at her team’s schedule that included a three-game tournament in the Bahamas and a road contest against the defending national champions and knew UCLA’s time to prove itself would come soon enough.

“We’re either going to step up and earn that or we’re not,” Close said, “and look at where we are.”

Entering their Pac-12 opener, the No. 10 Bruins are back where they hoped to be, rising into the top 10 with a 9-1 record. UCLA starts its conference slate against USC on Thursday at 7 p.m. at Galen Center.

While the Bruins proved themselves early during a difficult nonconference slate, Thursday’s rivalry game will be the first major test for USC. During their best start since the 2018-19 season, the Trojans (9-0) faced only one team — No. 89 San Francisco — ranked in the top 100 of this week’s NET rankings. The Trojans averaged a Pac-12-worst 16.7 turnovers in the wins, but still blew out their overmatched opponents by an average of 26.1 points.

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GYMNASTICS

From Helene Elliott: After the third time she wasn’t named to the U.S. women’s team for the world gymnastics championships, Jordan Chiles began to doubt she’d ever add that distinction to her resume.

Chiles missed out on the 2017, 2018 and 2019 world competitions but earned a spot on the 2020 Olympic team by compiling the third-best score at the U.S. trials. She expected to take part in two events in the team competition in Tokyo but was summoned for all four events after superstar Simone Biles shockingly withdrew because of mental health concerns. Unlike her teammates, Chiles didn’t have world championship experience to rely on when she stepped in.

“They know the big stage. They know the crowds and everything like that,” Chiles said. “I was thinking, ‘I’m on the biggest stage in the world. This is crazy.’”

Contributing to a silver medal performance might have provided a satisfying end to Chiles’ elite career, a happily surreal farewell before she began her college career at UCLA. She thrived in her freshman year as a Bruin, earning three perfect-10 scores and first-team All-Pac-12 honors on the uneven bars and floor exercise, enjoying the camaraderie and freedom of college life even though the Bruins didn’t qualify for the NCAA championships.

But she couldn’t shake the feeling she had missed out on something. Jumping back up to the elite level for another try at the world championships would be difficult because practice time is limited in college gymnastics and skills are less complex. But Chiles never has backed away from challenges.

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BRITTNEY GRINER

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: After 294 days in Russian custody, Brittney Griner returned to the United States last week following a high-profile prisoner swap. The WNBA star’s homecoming was met with joy and relief from her supporters as she was reunited with her wife, Cherelle, in San Antonio, where Griner was slated to undergo evaluation at Brooke Army Medical Center. Those assessments regarding Griner’s physical, mental and emotional state were just the first step in an uncertain path for the two-time Olympic gold medalist.

“This is a long-term recovery,” said Paul R. Abramson, a professor of psychology at UCLA who has worked with victims of wrongful detainment.

Griner’s extended incarceration in Russia puts her at risk for complex post-traumatic stress disorder, two psychology experts said. While PTSD stems from a single traumatic event, complex PTSD is marked by continued coercive control.

Survivors of repeated child sexual abuse or domestic violence, prisoners of war and refugees often suffer from complex PTSD. The reaction incorporates PTSD’s involuntary re-experiencing of a traumatic event, avoidance of triggers and hypervigilance with intense reactions that manifest in physical symptoms like insomnia, headaches and upset stomach.

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DUCKS

Cam Talbot had a 32-save shutout for his first shutout with the Senators in a 3-0 win over the Ducks on Monday.

Lukas Dostal made his season debut in net for the Ducks (7-19-3). He stopped 35 shots after being recalled from the American Hockey League’s San Diego Gulls.

The 22-year-old Dostal made a huge save on Shane Pinto in the second and bailed the Ducks out on a terrible line change late in the same period when the Senators had a 3-on-0 rush

WORLD CUP

From Dylan Hernández: When Joe Torre was in charge of the Dodgers more than a decade ago, he more than once joked that Matt Kemp was the kind of player who could get a manager fired.

Kemp was an unproven 23-year-old at the time. Primarily a basketball player through high school, he hadn’t played as much baseball as other major leaguers his age, but his talent was undeniable. Torre’s light-hearted remark was acknowledgement of the manager’s responsibility to help Kemp realize his potential.

U.S. national soccer team coach Gregg Berhalter has his own Matt Kemp and his name is Giovanni Reyna.

Like Kemp on the Dodgers then, how Reyna develops will have a significant impact on the U.S. national team’s future, only Berhalter doesn’t have the option of trading him.

Now, with Berhalter out of contract, it’s obvious what U.S. Soccer must do next.

The federation has to look for a new coach.

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Schedule
All times Pacific
Semifinals
Today
Argentina vs. Croatia, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo, Peacock

Wednesday
France vs. Morocco, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo, Peacock

Third-place match
Saturday
Matchup TBD, 7 a.m., Fox, Telemundo, Peacock

Championship match
Sunday
Matchup TBD, 7 a.m., Fox, Telemundo, Peacock

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Complete World Cup coverage

How underdog Morocco became ‘the Rocky of this World Cup’ and has unified a region

THIS DATE IN SPORTS

1942 — The Washington Redskins win the NFL Championship with a 14-6 victory over the Chicago Bears.

1958 — Gordie Howe of the Detroit Red Wings scores his 400th NHL goal in a 2-2 tie against the Montreal Canadiens.

1981 — John McEnroe and Roscoe Tanner lead the United States to a 3-1 victory over Argentina in the Davis Cup final.

1983 — Detroit beats Denver 186-184 in triple overtime in the highest-scoring game in NBA history. Isiah Thomas scores 47 and John Long adds 41 for the Pistons. Denver’s Kiki Vandeweghe had 51 points.

1992 — Manon Rheaume becomes the first woman to play in a regular-season professional game when she appears in the Atlanta Knights’ 4-1 loss to Salt Lake City in the International Hockey League.

1995 — Detroit’s Paul Coffey becomes the first NHL defenseman to reach 1,000 career assists, setting up Igor Larionov’s first-period goal in the Red Wings’ 3-1 victory over Chicago.

1997 — Michigan’s Charles Woodson is named the first predominantly defensive player to receive the Heisman Trophy in the 63 years of the award. Woodson and the Wolverines go on to defeat Washington State in the 1998 Rose Bowl, claiming a perfect 12-0 season and a share of the National Championship.

1998 — Gary Anderson kicks six field goals, setting the NFL record with 34 straight without a miss, in Minnesota’s 38-28 victory over Baltimore.

2003 — Mount Union breaks its own NCAA record by winning its 55th consecutive game, beating Bridgewater 66-0 in the NCAA Division III semifinals.

2004 — In Sestriere, Italy, World Cup leader Bode Miller wins a slalom to join Marc Girardelli as the only men to win races in all four disciplines in a season. Miller has won slalom, giant slalom, super-G and downhill races in a span of 16 days.

2007 — Major League Baseball’s Mitchell Report is released, identifying 85 names to differing degrees in the 409-page document. The biggest name linked by former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell to illegal use of steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs is seven-time Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens.

2010 — Minnesota quarterback Brett Favre, 41, is sidelined by a throwing shoulder too damaged for even him to overcome. The injury ends of one of the greatest individual streaks in all of sports. Favre had made 297 consecutive starts over 19 seasons.

2014 — Marcus Mariota wins the Heisman Trophy, becoming the first Oregon player to earn college football’s top individual honor. Mariota accounts for a Pac-12-record 53 touchdowns (38 passing, 14 rushing and one receiving) while directing the Ducks’ warp-speed spread offense, and leading Oregon to a spot in the first College Football Playoff.

2015 - Irishman Conor McGregor knocks out Brazilian Jose Aldo in 13 seconds to win his 1st featherweight title in Las Vegas

Compiled by the Associated Press

And finally

Highlights of the Chargers’ win over the Dolphins. Watch and listen here.