The Sports Report: Never doubt Anthony Davis again

Howdy, I’m your host, Houston Mitchell. Let’s get right to the news.

From Bill Plaschke: They couldn’t splash him. They couldn’t Steph him. They couldn’t stop him.

He danced over Draymond. He lugged around Looney. He was as sturdy as that giant bridge that adorns the Chase Center court, never swaying, never buckling, pure gold.

Lakers fans have long been waiting for this. The NBA has long been fearing this. The Golden State Warriors have just been reminded of this.

And everybody — absolutely everybody — once doubted this.

His name is Anthony Davis, and he is in the process of proving that everybody is full of it.

Full of the misconception that he’s not tough. Full of the misguided notion that he’s not clutch. Full of the unwarranted criticism that he’s not built for nights like Tuesday, on the big stage, with his team desperately relying on his punch to overcome the Warriors’ pluck.

In a redemptive Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals, Davis was tough, he was clutch, and goodness, how he punched.

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NBA PLAYOFFS
Results, schedule
All times Pacific
Conference semifinals

Western Conference

No. 6 Golden State vs. No. 7 Lakers
Game 1: Lakers 117, at Golden State 112
Tonight at Golden State, 6 p.m., ESPN
Saturday at Lakers, 5:30 p.m., ABC
Monday at Lakers, 7 p.m., TNT
*Wednesday at Golden State, TBD, TNT
*Friday, May 12 at Lakers, TBD, ESPN
*Sunday, May 14 at Golden State, TBD

No. 1 Denver vs. No. 4 Phoenix
Game 1: at Denver 125, Phoenix 107
Game 2: at Denver 97, Phoenix 87
Friday at Phoenix, 7 p.m., ESPN
Sunday at Phoenix, 5 p.m., TNT
*Tuesday at Denver, TBD, TNT
*Thursday, May 11 at Phoenix, TBD, ESPN
*Sunday, May 14 at Denver, TBD

Eastern Conference

No. 2 Boston vs. No. 3 Philadelphia
Game 1: Philadelphia 119, at Boston 115
Game 2: at Boston 121, Philadelphia 87
Friday at Philadelphia, 4:30 p.m., ESPN
Sunday at Philadelphia, 12:30 p.m., ESPN
Tuesday at Boston, TBD, TNT
*Thursday, May 11 at Philadelphia, TBD, ESPN
*Sunday, May 14 at Boston, TBD

No. 5 New York vs. No. 8 Miami
Game 1: Miami 108, at New York 101
Game 2: at New York 111, Miami 105
Saturday at Miami, 12:30 p.m., ABC
Monday at Miami, 4:30 p.m., TNTFlorid
Wednesday at New York, TBD, TNT
*Friday, May 12 at Miami, TBD, ESPN
*Monday, May 15 at New York, 5 p.m., TNT

*-if necessary

NHL PLAYOFFS

Results, schedule
All times Pacific

Second round
Western Conference

Vegas [P1] vs. Edmonton [P2]
Game 1: at Vegas 6, Edmonton 4
Saturday at Vegas, 4 p.m., TNT
Monday at Edmonton, 5:30 p.m., ESPN
Wednesday at Edmonton, 7 p.m., ESPN
*Friday, May 12 at Vegas, TBD, TNT
*Sunday, May 14 at Edmonton, TBD, TBD
*Tuesday, May 16 at Vegas, TBD, TBD

Dallas [C2] vs. Seattle [WC1]
Game 1: Seattle 5, at Dallas 4 (OT)
Tonight at Dallas, 6:30 p.m., TNT
Sunday at Seattle, 6:30 p.m., TBS
Tuesday at Seattle, 6:30 p.m., ESPN
*Thursday, May 11 at Dallas, TBD, TNT
*Saturday, May 13 at Seattle, TBD, ESPN
*Monday, May 15 at Dallas, TBD, ESPN

Eastern Conference

Carolina [M1] vs. New Jersey [M2]
Game 1: at Carolina 5, New Jersey 1
Friday at Carolina, 5 p.m., TNT
Sunday at New Jersey, 12:30 p.m., TBS
Tuesday at New Jersey, 4 p.m., ESPN
*Thursday at Carolina, TBD, TNT
*Saturday, May 13 at New Jersey, TBD, ESPN
*Monday, May 15 at Carolina, TBD, ESPN

Toronto [A2] vs. Florida [WC2]
Game 1: Florida 4, at Toronto 2
Today at Toronto, 4 p.m.,TNT
Sunday at Florida, 3:30 p.m., TBS
Wed., May 10 at Florida, 4 p.m., ESPN
*Friday, May 12 at Toronto, TBD, TNT
*Sunday, May 14 at Florida, TBD, TBD
*Tuesday, May 16 at Toronto, TBD, TNT

*-if necessary

DODGERS

From Jack Harris: They got an underwhelming start from their debuting pitching prospect.

They faced a five-run deficit against the defending National League champions.

They squandered golden opportunities at the plate, and managed to blow a save after a methodical late-game rally.

Yet, somehow, the Dodgers still found themselves exactly where they wanted to be Wednesday afternoon — loading the bases with the score tied in the bottom of the ninth inning, just as their hottest early-season hitter came strolling to the plate.

Fittingly, with a screaming drive and thunderous swing, Max Muncy hit a walk-off grand slam just inside the right-field foul pole to lift the Dodgers to a 10-6 win, using his major league-leading 12th home run of the season to put a raucous exclamation point on the Dodgers’ series sweep and 6-0 homestand.

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Column: Dodgers are feeling good, but these aren’t quite the good old days

ANGELS

Mike Trout and Jake Lamb hit solo homers in the ninth inning, Shohei Ohtani tied a career-high with 13 strikeouts and the Angels rallied to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 6-4 on Wednesday night.

The Angels have won six of eight, while the Cardinals have lost five in a row.

Ohtani didn’t get the decision but did become the second player in history to record 500 strikeouts and hit at least 100 home runs, joining Babe Ruth.

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KENTUCKY DERBY

From John Cherwa: As the days count down to Saturday’s 149th running of the Kentucky Derby, four horses have died at the iconic track since last week. It most certainly will cast an unwelcome and tragic shadow over the world’s most famous race.

One of the horses, Wild On Ice, was scheduled to run in the Derby but suffered an injury to his left hind leg last Thursday. The winner of the Sunland Derby was pulled up on the backstretch during training. The 3-year-old gelding walked onto the horse ambulance and was evaluated at the track and then shipped to an equine hospital in Lexington, where the horse was euthanized.

It would have been the first Kentucky Derby start for trainer Joel Marr. The horse would have been ridden by Ken Tohill, who at 60 would have been the oldest jockey to ride in the Kentucky Derby.

Two horses died Tuesday. In the fifth race, Take Charge Briana, a 3-year-old filly trained by Wayne Lukas, broke down in the upper stretch during a turf race and was euthanized. Chasing Artie, a 5-year-old gelding, had just finished the eighth race and collapsed near the winner’s circle. The horse was trained by Saffie Joseph Jr. and owned by Ken Ramsey.

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Tim Yakteen is back at Kentucky Derby with Practical Move, Reincarnate minus spotlight

UCLA VOLLEYBALL

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: Merrick McHenry didn’t think anything of it when he hatched his signature look. He just pulled up his long, white socks, put on his knee pads and went to work on the court. It wasn’t until he watched the film later that he realized just how much he liked the knee-high sock look.

It hasn’t changed.

“I love being different,” McHenry said with a wide grin. “I just can’t help it.”

McHenry is standing out for reasons other than just his wardrobe.

The dynamic middle blocker leads the nation in hitting percentage as No. 1 UCLA sets its sights on its first NCAA title since 2006 this week. The Bruins (29-2) will face Long Beach State at 2 p.m. PDT in Fairfax, Va., today in the NCAA semifinal after the Beach defeated Grand Canyon in the quarterfinals Tuesday.

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THIS DATE IN SPORTS

1905 — Belmont Park in New York opens for its first thoroughbred meet.

1924 — VIII Summer Olympic Games open at Olympic Stadium of Colombes, Paris, France.

1935 — Omaha, ridden by Willis Saunders, wins the Kentucky Derby by 1 1/2 lengths over Roman Soldier. Omaha goes on to win the Triple Crown.

1946 — Assault, ridden by Warren Mehrtens, wins the Kentucky Derby by eight lengths over Spy Song on his way to the Triple Crown.

1957 — Iron Liege, ridden by Bill Hartack, wins the Kentucky Derby by a nose when jockey Willie Shoemaker, aboard Gallant Man, misjudges the finish line. Shoemaker is in front but stands the saddle before the finish.

1965 — Willie Mays 512th HR breaks Mel Ott’s 511th NL record.

1968 — Dancer’s Image, ridden by Bob Ussery, wins the Kentucky Derby by 1 1/2 lengths over Forward Pass. Three days later, Dancer’s Image is disqualified when traces of a painkiller are found in tests. Forward Pass, ridden by Ismael Valenzuela, is declared the winner.

1968 — The Pittsburgh Pipers beat New Orleans Buccaneers 122-113 in Game 7 to win the first ABA championship.

1969 — The Montreal Canadiens win the Stanley Cup with a four-game sweep, beating the St. Louis Blues 2-1.

1974 — 100th Kentucky Derby: Puerto Rican jockey Ángel Cordero Jr. wins aboard Cannonade for first of 3 Derby victories.

1985 — 111th Kentucky Derby: Puerto Rican jockey Ángel Cordero Jr. wins aboard Spend A Buck for his third Derby triumph.

1991 — 117th Kentucky Derby: Chris Antley wins aboard Strike the Gold, the first of 2 Derby victories.

1994 — Charles Barkley scores 56 points, including a playoff-record 38 in the first half, to lead the Phoenix Suns to a 140-133 victory over the Golden State Warriors.

1994 — Arsenal of England win 34th European Cup Winner’s Cup against Parma of Italy 1-0 in Copenhagen.

1999 — The New Jersey Devils become the first top-seeded team to lose in the first round of the playoffs in consecutive years when they are beaten 4-2 to the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 7.

2000 — Keith Primeau ends the third-longest game in NHL history by scoring at 12:01 of the fifth overtime to give the Philadelphia Flyers a 2-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins, tying their Eastern Conference semifinal series at two games apiece.

2002 — Barry Bonds hits his 400th home run as an SF Giant.

2002 — English FA Cup Final, Millennium Stadium, Cardiff (73,963): Arsenal beats Chelsea, 2-0 for 8th title.

2003 — Detroit becomes the seventh NBA team to advance after falling behind 3-1 in a series, beating Orlando 108-93.

2008 — In the eighth longest game in NHL history, Dallas eliminates San Jose in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinals. In a game that lasts 5 hours, 17 minutes, the Stars beat the Sharks 2-1 after Brenden Morrow scores a power play goal 9:03 into the fourth overtime.

2009 — Cleveland’s LeBron James, unstoppable at both ends of the floor this season, is named the NBA’s MVP. James, who easily outdistanced Kobe Bryant of the Lakers in the voting, averaged 28.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.2 assists.

2009 — Alex Ovechkin records his first NHL playoff hat trick and scores the winning goal in Washington’s 4-3 win over Pittsburgh in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference series. Sidney Crosby of the Penguins also scores three goals.

2013 — Floyd Mayweather comes back from a year’s absence to win a unanimous 12-round decision over Robert Guerrero in their welterweight title fight in Las Vegas. All three judges score the bout 117-111 and Mayweather remains unbeaten in 44 fights.

2015 — Golden State Warrior Stephen Curry is named MVP for the 2014-15 NBA season.

2016 — J.R. Smith makes seven 3-pointers and the Cleveland Cavaliers drain an NBA-record 25 3s in a 123-98 win over the Atlanta Hawks in Game 2 of the second round. Cleveland finishes 25 of 45 behind the arc, with 10 players making at least one 3. Cleveland’s 25 3s are the most in any game — regular or postseason.

2018 — Albert Pujols of the Angels gets his 3,000 hit.

2019 — Mexican boxer Canelo Alvarez unifies a trio of middleweight world titles in a close, unanimous decision over Daniel Jacobs at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

—Compiled by the Associated Press

And finally...

Albert Pujols gets his 3,000th hit. Watch and listen here.