The Sports Report: Lakers rout Warriors in Game 3

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

From Broderick Turner: It was a slow start for LeBron James, but he kept grinding and grinding, eventually his play building and sending the fans at Crypto.com Arena into a frenzy.

James was the leader the Lakers needed him to be against the Golden State Warriors, and Anthony Davis and the rest of his teammates followed him.

One moment James was chasing down a loose ball, leaping over courtside fans, flying into the stands. Another moment he was barreling down the court for a layup on the fast break. At other times he was emphatically blocking a shot and scoring on layup by doing a 360-degree spin around two would-be defenders.

James was all encompassing for the Lakers as they ran over the Warriors 127-97 on Saturday night in Game 3 of the best-of-seven Western Conference semifinals series the Lakers lead 2-1. Game 4 is Monday night at Cyrpto.com Arena.

Davis redeemed himself in Game 3. His 25 points on seven-for-10 shooting and 11 of 12 free throws, 13 rebounds and four blocked shots were a much better outcome than his 11 points and seven rebounds in Game 2.

James’ brilliance left him two rebounds and two assists shy of a triple-double, the 21 points, eight rebounds and eight assists enough for the Lakers to regain control of the series. He was dominant and efficient, going six for 11 from the field, two for four on three-pointers and seven for eight at the line.

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Hernández: Lakers show how good they can be in Game 3 win over Warriors

Want Lakers vs. Warriors playoff tickets? No problem, as long as money is no object

Photos: Lakers cruise past Warriors in Game 3

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
Game 2: at Golden State 127, Lakers 100
Game 3: at Lakers 127, Golden State 97
Monday at Lakers, 7 p.m., TNT
Wednesday at Golden State, 7 p.m., TNT
*Friday 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
Game 3: at Phoenix 121, Denver 114
Today at Phoenix, 5 p.m., TNT
Tuesday at Denver, 7 p.m., 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
Game 3: Boston 114, at Philadelphia 102
Today at Philadelphia, 12:30 p.m., ESPN
Tuesday at Boston, 4:30 p.m., TNT
*Thursday 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
Game 3: at Miami 105, New York 86
Monday at Miami, 4:30 p.m., TNT
Wednesday at New York, 4:30 p.m., TNT
*Friday 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
Game 2: Edmonton 5, at Vegas 1
Monday at Edmonton, 5:30 p.m., ESPN
Wednesday at Edmonton, 7 p.m., ESPN
Friday 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)
Game 2: at Dallas 4, Seattle 2
Tonight at Seattle, 6:30 p.m., TBS
Tuesday at Seattle, 6:30 p.m., ESPN
Thursday at Dallas, TBD, TNT
*Saturday 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
Game 2: at Carolina 6, New Jersey 1
Today at New Jersey, 12:30 p.m., TBS
Tuesday at New Jersey, 4 p.m., ESPN
*Thursday at Carolina, TBD, TNT
*Saturday at New Jersey, TBD, ESPN
*Monday, May 15 at Carolina, TBD, ESPN

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

*-if necessary

KENTUCKY DERBY

From John Cherwa: A week that horse racing would like to forget ended Saturday when Mage won the Kentucky Derby on a day in which two horses died and the favorite was scratched over fear for his health.

There was plenty of celebration as the massive Churchill Downs crowd of 150,335 watched as Mage and Two Phil’s battled down the stretch only to have the runner-up in the Florida Derby win by one length for trainer Gustavo Delgado in his third Derby try.

It was also a career accomplishment for jockey Javier Castellano, who picked up his first Kentucky Derby win in his 16th try.

“Sometimes you feel embarrassed a little bit when you been trying so many times, and you don’t see the results,” Castellano said. “And sometimes you go down a little bit. But I didn’t give up. I always tried to be positive and tried to find the right horse to participate in one of the biggest races in the world.”

Mage was making only his fourth-lifetime start and joined Justify as the only horse in a century to win the Derby without racing as a 2-year-old.

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BOXING

Canelo Álvarez returned home and remained the undisputed super middleweight champion, beating John Ryder by unanimous decision before more than 50.000 fans in his first fight in Mexico since 2011. Álvarez bloodied the British challenger’s nose and knocked him down, cruising to the victory by scores of 120-107 on one card and 118-109 on the other two to improve to 59-2-2.

Ryder had his four-bout winning streak stopped and is 32-6. It was Canelo´s first fight since he had surgery on his left wrist last March. Before the fight, he said the injury slowed him down in his previous four fights, including his loss to Dmitry Bivol a year ago.

USC BASKETBALL

From Luca Evans: One of the strangest, most-followed, yet secretive high school basketball recruiting journeys in recent memory is over. Bronny James is staying home.

After months of speculation, James announced Saturday on Instagram that he is committing to USC, just a few miles down the 110 Freeway from father LeBron James’ stomping grounds at Crypto.com Arena with the Lakers. It’s the next step toward the elder James’ expressed hope of playing in the NBA with his son.

“[His] decision came down, how SC staff built a relationship with him,” Sierra Canyon assistant Ed Estevan wrote in a text. “How the program can help him on and off the court. Staying close to home, is icing on the cake.”

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DODGERS

From Jack Harris: the Dodgers coolly navigated their way to a 2-1 win over the San Diego Padres that quieted a sold-out crowd at Petco Park and evened a three-game series against their Southern California foes.

The Dodgers (20-14) managed only three hits but got a big one when they needed it — opening the scoring on a two-run blast from Chris Taylor in the top of the fourth.

The team’s pitching staff, meanwhile, made the lead stand up, combining Dustin May’s scoreless six-inning start with a couple of high-wire escapes by the bullpen to turn Sunday’s national TV finale against the Padres (18-16) into a weekend rubber match.

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ANGELS

From Sarah Valenzuela: It was about this same time last season the Angels were in first place in the American League West with an 18-10 record and a 11/2-game lead on the Houston Astros.

A year later, and for all the struggles the Angels experienced through the first month of the 2023 season, they are again in position to stake a first-place claim in their division despite the end of their five-game winning streak.

Before Saturday’s 10-1 loss to the Texas Rangers at Angel Stadium, manager Phil Nevin highlighted the team’s consistency lately, as well as games falling in the Angels’ favor, as reasons the team has made progress. Other factors, such as the bullpen’s strength and the team’s overall fight, Patrick Sandoval said, have also played big roles — although Saturday’s game ended in a blowout after a rough top of the ninth inning from Tucker Davidson that forced position player Brett Phillips to the mound.

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GALAXY

Defender Lalas Abubakar scored early, Connor Ronan had three assists, and the Colorado Rapids defeated the Galaxy 3-1 on Saturday night at Dignity Health Sports Park.

It took just 14 minutes for Abubakar to give Colorado the lead, using an assist from Ronan to find the net for the first time this season.

LAFC

Cristian Espinoza scored two goals, the second coming on a late penalty kick, and the San Jose Earthquakes handed defending champion LAFC its first loss of the MLS season with a 2-1 victory Saturday night at Levi’s Stadium.

A red-hot Espinoza scored eight minutes into the match to give San Jose (5-3-3) a 1-0 lead. Espinoza took passes from Jamiro Monteiro and Jeremy Ebobisse and scored his seventh goal of the season. Espinoza has contributed to at least one goal in six straight matches (seven goals, one assist). Only Chris Wondolowski had longer streaks for the Earthquakes.

THIS DATE IN SPORTS

1938 — Lawrin, ridden by Eddie Arcaro, wins the Kentucky Derby by one length over Dauber.

1945 — Branch Rickey announces formation of the US Negro Baseball League.

1951 — International Olympic committee allows Russia to participate in 1952 Olympics.

1955 — Swaps, ridden by Willie Shoemaker, wins the Kentucky Derby by 1 1/2 lengths over Nashua.

1969 — 2nd ABA championship: Oakland Oaks beat Indiana Pacers, 4 games to 1.

1972 — The Los Angeles Lakers win their first NBA championship with a 114-100 victory over the New York Knicks in Game 5.

1977 — Heavily favored Seattle Slew, ridden by Jean Cruguet, wins the Kentucky Derby by 1 3/4 lengths over Run Dusty Run.

1982 — A federal jury rules the NFL violated antitrust laws when it unsuccessfully attempted to prevent the Oakland Raiders from moving to Los Angeles.

1986 — 30th European Cup: Steaua Bucuresti beats Barcelona (0-0, 2-0 on penalties) at Seville.

1988 — Winning Colors, ridden by Gary Stevens, leads from start to finish to win the Kentucky Derby by a neck, becoming the first roan and the third filly to win the race.

1989 — Chicago’s Michael Jordan hits an 18-foot shot over the outstretched fingertips of Craig Ehlo to give the Bulls a 101-100 victory in the deciding Game 5 of their 1989 Eastern Conference first round playoff series against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

1993 — Wayne Gretzky of the Kings scores his 100th and 101st playoff goals in a 7-4 win over the Vancouver Canucks.

1994 — The Denver Nuggets, with a 98-94 overtime win against the No. 1-seeded Seattle SuperSonics, become the first eighth-seeded playoff team to win a series. The Nuggets come back from an 0-2 deficit in the best-of-5 series.

1995 — Reggie Miller scores eight points in the last 16 seconds to lead the Indiana Pacers to a 107-105 win over the New York Knicks in the second-round opener of the NBA playoffs.

2005 — Giacomo, a 50-1 shot, wins the Kentucky Derby, running down a game Afleet Alex in the final strides and generating a huge payoff. Closing Argument, a 70-1 shot, finishes second with Afleet Alex third.

2005 — Dallas’ 116-76 victory over Houston is the most lopsided Game 7 score in NBA history. The Mavericks are the third team in playoff history to win a seven-game series after losing the first two games at home.

2010 — Before a record hockey crowd of 77,803, the U.S. loses to Germany 2-1 in the opening game of the world hockey championships. Felix Schutz scores the winning goal 21 seconds into overtime at Veltins Arena, ordinarily the home of the Schalke soccer team.

2014 — Russell Westbrook has a triple-double, Kevin Durant falls one assist short and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Los Angeles Clippers 112-101 to tie their Western Conference semifinal series at one win apiece. Westbrook has 31 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Durant has 32 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists before leaving the game with 1:21 remaining.

2016 — Nyquist won the Kentucky Derby by 1 1/4 lengths, improving to 8-0 in his career as the fourth consecutive favorite to win the race. Ridden by Mario Gutierrez, Nyquist finished in 2:01.31. The 3-year-old colt became the eighth unbeaten winner in the race’s 142-year history.

2017 — Bradley Beal scores 29 points and Washington Wizards used a 26-0 third-quarter run to beat the Boston Celtics 121-102 to tie the second-round series at two games apiece. John Wall, who adds 27 points and 12 assists, has seven points, three assists and two steals during the third-quarter spree.

2021 — Cincinnati Reds pitcher Wade Miley no-hits Cleveland Indians, 3-0 at Progressive Field, Cleveland.

—Compiled by the Associated Press

And finally...

The Shot: Michael Jordan’s iconic buzzer beater. Watch and listen here.