The Sports Report: Ailing LeBron James, Lakers suffer painful loss
Howdy, I’m your host, Iliana Limón Romero, filling in for Houston Mitchell, who is probably figuring out whether he will get up early or stay up all night when the Dodgers play in South Korea. Let’s get right to the news.
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From Dan Woike: Ugly losses produce frustrated locker rooms, and considering what happened Wednesday to the Lakers against the Kings, it should be no surprise people were upset.
“It was a game that we needed and we came out with all the energy. Both ends of the floor,” Anthony Davis said. “Then the second quarter dictated the game.”
The Kings out-scored the Lakers by 24 in that quarter on their way to winning 130-120 in Los Angeles. The Lakers, riding that early energy built a 19-point first-quarter lead. They led by 18 when Davis picked up his second foul late in the first and checked out of the game. The Kings scored 53 of the next 73 points to stun the Lakers.
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“It sucks,” Davis said.
It got worse.
Late in the fourth quarter, LeBron James grimaced and went back to the locker room after a Lakers’ timeout, the team’s 39-year-old star continuing to deal with ankle soreness despite a treatment over the all-star break that cost him a pair of Laker games.
“It’s just my ankle. It’s just what I’ve been dealing with before the break, after the break. I’m just managing it the best way I can,” James said. “I played the whole third, sat a little bit to start the fourth and when I got back in, it kind of just – whatever. It’s just something I’ve been dealing with.”
CLIPPERS
From the Associated Press: Kawhi Leonard had 28 points, and Paul George and James Harden each scored 21 as the Clippers rallied for a 122-116 win over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night.
The Clippers trailed by as many as 20 points and didn’t lead in the second half until there were less than three minutes remaining.
“In the first half it was like we were running in mud,” Clippers’ coach Tyronn Lue said. “We couldn’t keep up with them. They got out in transition and we just couldn’t get back and get matched. So at halftime we made a strong point about that.”
SOCCER
From Kevin Baxter: The U.S. and Canada splashed their way through 120 minutes of soccer before their CONCACAF W Gold Cup semifinal was decided in penalty kicks, with the Americans advancing to Sunday’s final behind a heroic performance from goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher.
But that’s not what most people will remember about Wednesday’s game, one that finished 2-2 before being decided in penalty kicks on a chilly, rainy night at Snapdragon Stadium. What they’ll remember instead is how North America’s best two women’s teams hydroplaned their way through a game that never should have been played.
The U.S. goals came from teenager Jaedyn Shaw midway through the first half and Sophia Smith nine minutes into the first extra period. Jordyn Huitema and Adriana Leon matched that for Canada, with Huitema scoring with eight minutes left in regulation and Leon on a penalty kick on the last touch in stoppage time following the second extra-time period.
The U.S. will face Brazil, a 3-0 winner over Mexico in the first semifinal.
But as exciting as the game turned out to be, it probably should never have been played in the first place. Because whatever it was that tournament organizers thought the teams were playing, it surely wasn’t soccer.
And with a spot in the confederation’s title game at stake, both teams — as well as the sport — deserved better.
DODGERS
From Mike DiGiovanna: Yoshinobu Yamamoto did not feel comfortable pitching out of the stretch on Wednesday, which was unfortunate seeing as the new Dodgers right-hander spent most of his rocky three-inning stint against the Chicago White Sox with runners on base.
Yamamoto, who signed a 12-year, $325-million deal with the Dodgers in December, was tagged for five earned runs and six hits in a 12-9 Cactus League victory in Camelback Ranch, striking out four, walking three and throwing only 32 of his 58 pitches for strikes.
He allowed the leadoff man to reach base in each inning, he couldn’t throw his curve for strikes, and he fell behind in far too many counts. About the only bright spot was his nasty 88-mph split-fingered fastball, which he used to finish all four of his strikeouts.
“I was not feeling right [out of the stretch], and that’s something I need to work on, to adjust,” Yamamoto said through an interpreter. “Overall, the numbers weren’t good. There were too many balls and walks. But one good thing was I could try what I wanted to try. I was testing a couple of things, and that was good.”
Yamamoto, who breezed through two scoreless innings against the Texas Rangers in his first Cactus League start on Feb. 28, would not elaborate on what he was working on, but he’ll have one more exhibition start before the team’s season-opening series in South Korea to iron out whatever was troubling him on Wednesday.
ANGELS
From Bill Shaikin: The plea agreement signed by former Anaheim mayor Harry Sidhu was damning: At a time the city of Anaheim was negotiating a stadium deal with the Angels, Sidhu slipped relevant and confidential information to the team, in the hope the team would thank him with a million-dollar campaign contribution. When the FBI asked him about it, he lied and denied.
The deal ultimately collapsed, but the question lingered: Was the corruption within City Hall limited to the mayor, or did the city itself break the rules?
On Wednesday, for the second time in three years, a court cleared the city of allegations it violated the state’s open government laws in negotiating the Angel Stadium deal.
A three-judge panel of the state appellate court largely upheld an Orange County Superior Court decision that the city had complied with the Brown Act in negotiating the proposed $150-million sale of Angel Stadium and the surrounding property to an entity controlled by Angels owner Arte Moreno.
USC BASKETBALL
From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: Hours after the final whistle at Galen Center, fans were still lined up outside the arena doors. Kayla Padilla and Kayla Williams, even after a hard-fought loss to Utah on senior day, greeted the crowd with smiles. The USC guards eagerly signed autographs. They posed for selfies. This season, the former teammates at Torrance Bishop Montgomery High have played in front of sold-out crowds and helped lift the Trojans to their best season in their lifetimes.
Watching it all unfold is “a coach’s dream” to Noelle Quinn.
The former Bishop Montgomery coach never questioned the guards would advance to the Division I level, but what she wanted most was that once her players got there, they would leave an impact. As crowds fill Galen Center and the Trojans march into the national spotlight again, the Seattle Storm head coach can’t help but be in awe of a mission accomplished.
But the UCLA Hall of Famer in her also refuses to root for the team at the center of attention.
“I’m rooting for the Kaylas,” Quinn said. “… I am forever a Bruin. I will never, ever commit to rooting for the Trojans.”
Pac-12 women’s basketball tournament bracket
HIGH SCHOOLS
From Eric Sondheimer: A trip to Sacramento to play for a state championship in an NBA arena is one of the coolest things that can happen to a high school basketball player living in California.
Yeah, sportswriters coming to the event every year might occasionally get bored or even annoyed (8 p.m. starts for TV test our patience), but the reality is that it’s for the players and fans, and having the Golden 1 Center as the site with just a $16 general admission fee can’t be beat.
There will be 12 championship games on Friday and Saturday, and unless you find me at the Yard House restaurant, it’s watching nonstop basketball from 10 a.m. until 10 p.m. each day. Spectrum has the TV rights, so look for games on the Lakers channel or Spectrum 1 News.
For those who like history, let me offer my favorite moments from championships of the past in Sacramento.
DUCKS
From Greg Beacham: Alex Killorn scored the tiebreaking goal on a pass from rookie Olen Zellweger early in the third period of the Ducks’ third victory in four games, 2-1 over the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday night.
Ryan Strome also scored and Lukas Dostal made 29 saves for the Ducks in a meeting of two long-struggling franchises already playing out the string in seasons that will end in the extension of two playoff droughts stretching longer than a half-decade apiece. Both teams also traded veterans before the game, with Ottawa sending Vladimir Tarasenko to Florida and the Ducks shipping Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick to Edmonton.
The Ducks went ahead when Zellweger smartly found Killorn for a tip goal, his 10th of the season and his second in two games. Zellweger’s assist was the second in seven NHL games for the prized 20-year-old defenseman, a key component of the Ducks’ rebuilding plans.
“Feels good to get a tip-in goal,” Killorn said. “I like to get those, and that’s how I’ve scored a lot in the past in Tampa. It’s a good sign. ... [Zellweger] is a smart player, and he realized I had an open stick, and he just shot it there for a good redirect. Good job by him.”
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1921 — Cy Denneny of the Ottawa Senators scores six goals in a 12-5 victory over the Hamilton Tigers.
1951 — Ezzard Charles wins a unanimous 15-round decision over Jersey Joe Walcott to retain the world heavyweight title in Detroit.
1954 — The Minneapolis Lakers and Milwaukee Hawks experiment with the baskets raised from 10 feet to 12 feet during an exhibition game. George Mikan and the Lakers win 65-63.
1970 — Austin Carr scores an NCAA tournament record 61 points as Notre Dame routs Ohio University 112-82. Carr hits 25 of 44 field goals and 11 of 14 free throws.
1974 — New Orleans is granted an NBA franchise.
1977 — Anthony Roberts of Oral Roberts scores 65 points in a 90-89 loss to Oregon in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament.
1983 — Phil Mahre wins the Alpine World Cup championship for the third straight year to become the third person to win three consecutive titles.
1987 — Thomas Hearns wins his third championship, the WBC light heavyweight title, with a 10-round TKO of Dennis Andries.
1996 — Magic Johnson becomes the second NBA player to reach 10,000 career assists, getting the milestone on the go-ahead basket in Los Angeles’ 102-90 victory over Sacramento.
2012 — Lionel Messi becomes the first player to score five goals in a Champions League soccer match, helping defending champion Barcelona crush Bayer Leverkusen 7-1 to advance to the quarterfinals with a 10-2 aggregate win.
2012 — Kikkan Randall adds a World Cup crystal globe to her stash and carves out another slice of history for the U.S ski team. Randall is the first American in 30 years to win a cross country championship by clinching the overall sprint title. Randall’s 11th-place finish at a race in Norway secures the championship with one race left in the season.
2014 — The U.S. women’s soccer team’s two-year unbeaten streak ends at 43 games with a 1-0 loss to Sweden at the Algarve Cup in Albufiera, Portugal. The U.S. had been 36-0-7 since a 1-0 loss to Japan at the Algarve Cup on March 5, 2012.
2015 — Kentucky (31-0) becomes the first men’s basketball team from a major conference to go undefeated in the regular season since Indiana in 1976. Wichita State of the Missouri Valley Conference went undefeated in the regular season in 2014.
2016 — Peyton Manning announces his retirement from the Denver Broncos and the NFL.
2016 — Stephen Curry scores 41 points and becomes the first player in NBA history to make 300 3-pointers in a season, and the Golden State Warriors set another record by holding off the Orlando Magic 119-113 for their 45th straight home victory.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Until next time...
That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at @latimeshouston. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
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