The Sports Report: Golden State sends NBA Finals to Game 6

Howdy, I’m John Cherwa and welcome to our sports newsletter as I try and explain to regular host Houston Mitchell that it’s too early to start learning the words to “Oh Canada.”

NBA Finals

Golden State kept itself alive in the finals with a 106-105 victory over the Toronto Raptors, making the series 3-2 in Toronto’s favor.

Guess the return of Kevin Durant could turn this series around. Uh, oh. Not so fast. It looks like Durant may be out again. Actually, on crutches, it sure appears he’s out again.

Our Dan Woike was there in Toronto. Here’s his full game story, but if you don’t have that long, catch this little bit of it.

“It was stunning, the sight of Kevin Durant on the Scotiabank Arena floor, his hand once again reaching for the back of his right leg. It was maddening, the sound of some fans cheering his fate until Raptors players encouraged them to quiet down.

“It was shocking, that after returning from a calf injury that kept him out for the last month, Durant would be as effective as he was before crumbling to the court. It was heartbreaking, the scene of him needing help to get back to the Warriors’ locker room, one arm rested on the shoulder of Andre Iguodala with Stephen Curry and the team’s top basketball executive, Bob Myers, trailing nearby.

“And it was sickening, the slow-motion video capturing what appeared to be a ligament, snapping and curling up the back of Durant’s right leg like a guitar string strung too tightly.

“’Mentally and emotionally, it just messes with you,’ Warriors guard Shaun Livingston told The Times. ‘I’m numb.’

“But to see how the Warriors responded, how they managed all of this and still won 106-105 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals? That was inspiring.

“One month ago, Durant stepped incorrectly and reached for the back of his right leg. Everyone feared the injury could be a ruptured Achilles tendon. It wasn’t.

“’The initial injury was a calf injury,’ Myers said, fighting tears as best as he could. ‘This is not a calf injury.’

“Myers said Durant has suffered an Achilles tendon injury. The full extent won’t be known until Tuesday, but the worst is feared. “

NBA Finals schedule/results

All times Pacific

at Toronto 118, Golden State 109

Golden State 109, at Toronto 104

Toronto 123, at Golden State 109

Toronto 105, at Golden State 92

Golden State 106, Toronto 105

Thursday, Toronto at Golden State, 6 p.m., ABC

*Sunday, June 16, Golden State at Toronto, 5 p.m., ABC

* if necessary

Stanley Cup

Here it is, one of sports great moments, a Stanley Cup Game 7. The game is in Boston, although I’m not sure that means anything, unless, of course, you are from St. Louis.

We’ve got Curtis Zupke there to give you a taste for the game. Curtis not only does that but gets to use the word “metaphorical” in a sports story. So let’s see how he pulls that off. And if you want to read the full story. Just click here.

“An empty-net goal by Zdeno Chara in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final was meaningless. The outcome had already been secured and the mission completed by the Boston Bruins.

“But there was something metaphorical in the box score.

“Chara, 42, is the oldest member of a veteran base of Bruins that tapped into their experience to force a deciding Game 7 against the St. Louis Blues on Wednesday at TD Garden. Five Boston players — Chara, Tuukka Rask, Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and David Krejci — remain from the Bruins’ 2011 Cup-winning team.

“From the toughness of Chara, who is playing with a full-face shield and cage because of a jaw injury, to the pregame pep talk of Bergeron to the unflappable goaltending of Rask, Boston prevailed in Game 6 with its leaders.”

Stanley Cup Final results/schedule

All times Pacific

at Boston 4, St. Louis 2

St. Louis 3, at Boston 2 (OT)

Boston 7, at St. Louis 2

at St. Louis 4, Boston 2

St. Louis 2, at Boston 1

Boston 5, at St. Louis 1

Wednesday, 5 p.m., St. Louis at Boston, NBC

Women’s World Cup

We’ve certainly waited long enough for the United State’s to start playing in the Women’s World Cup. And can you think of a better opening game opponent than Thailand.

Well, yeah, I can. You see, I’m still mad that “The King and I,” the movie and book, is banned in Thailand for its depiction of King Mongkut. He’s kind of depicted as a jerk and, well, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

The book and play actually take place in Siam, which, as we all know, is the former name of Thailand. Much as Los Angeles was originally known by its settlers as “Land of Clogged Freeways.”

Nonetheless, in memory of Yul Brenner, even though he was Russian, let’s hope the U.S. team puts a big whoopin’ on that censoring team from Thailand.

Don’t care? Well, here’s a really good story by Kevin Baxter on Alex Morgan. Let’s tempt you with the top of the story. The rest you can read by clicking here.

“She’s been on the cover of Sports Illustrated in a bikini, on the cover of Time in heavy makeup and on stage with Taylor Swift.

“Her face is on giant billboards and in commercials hawking such diverse wares as soft drinks and deodorant and her name is on a series of books for middle-schoolers and a lawsuit against the U.S. Soccer Federation.

“But on Tuesday all that fades into the background when Alex Morgan arrives at the only place she’s ever really wanted to be: on a soccer field at the Women’s World Cup wearing a U.S. national team shirt.

“And the pressure will be suffocating because if Morgan and the U.S., ranked No. 1 in the world the last five years running, don’t leave France with a second straight World Cup trophy, the photographers, the singers and the sponsors will move on to the next big thing.

“Morgan may be the face of American soccer, but anything short of victory here — or at least a berth in the final — will have people focusing on the negatives.”

Monday’s results

Argentina 0, Japan 0

Canada 1, Cameroon 0

Today’s schedule (All times Pacific)

Netherlands vs. New Zealand, 6 a.m., FS1

Chile vs. Sweden, 9 a.m., FS1

United States vs. Thailand, Noon, Fox

Group A W-D-L, GD, Pts

France 1-0-0, +4, 3

Norway 1-0-0, +3, 3

Nigeria 0-0-1 -3, 0

South Korea 0-0-1, -4, 0

Group A schedule (All Times Pacific)

France 4, South Korea 0

Norway 3, Nigeria 0

Wednesday, Nigeria vs. South Korea, 6 a.m., FS1

Wednesday, France vs. Norway, Noon, Fox

Monday, June 17, Nigeria vs. France, Noon, Fox

Monday, June 17, South Korea vs. Norway, Noon, FS1

Group B W-D-L, GD, Pts

Spain 1-0-0, +2, 3

Germany 1-0-0, +1, 3

China 0-0-1, -1, 0

South Africa 0-0-1, -2, 0

Group B TV schedule (All Times Pacific)

Germany 1, China 0

Spain 3, South Africa 1

Wednesday, Germany vs. Spain, 9 a.m., Fox

Thursday, South Africa vs. China, Noon, Fox

Monday, June 17, South Africa vs. Germany, 9 a.m., Fox

Monday, June 17, China vs. Spain, 9 a.m., FS1

Group C W-D-L, GD, Pts

Brazil 1-0-0, +3, 3

Italy 1-0-0, +1, 3

Australia 0-0-1, -1, 0

Jamaica 0-0-1, -3, 0

Group C TV schedule (All Times Pacific)

Italy 2, Australia 1

Brazil 3, Jamaica 0

Thursday, Australia vs. Brazil, 9 a.m., Fox

Friday, June 14, Jamaica vs. Italy, 9 a.m., Fox

Tuesday, June 18, Jamaica vs. Australia, Noon, FS2

Tuesday, June 18, Italy vs. Brazil, FS1

Group D W-D-L, GD, Pts

England 1-0-0, +1, 3

Argentina 0-1-0, 0, 1

Japan 0-1-0, 0, 1

Scotland 0-0-1, -1, 0

Group D TV schedule (All Times Pacific)

England 2, Scotland 1

Argentina 0, Japan 0

Friday, June 14, Japan vs. Scotland, 6 a.m., FS1

Friday, June 14, England vs. Argentina, Noon, Fox

Wednesday, June 19, Japan vs. England, Noon, FS1

Wednesday, June 19, Scotland vs. Argentina, Noon, FS2

Group E W-D-L, GD, Pts

Canada 1-0-0, +1, 3

Netherlands 0-0-0, 0, 0

New Zealand 0-0-0, 0, 0

Cameroon 0-0-1, -1, 0

Group E TV schedule (All Times Pacific)

Canada 1, Cameroon 0

Today, Netherlands vs. New Zealand, 6 a.m., FS1

Saturday, June 15, Netherlands vs, Cameroon, 6 a.m., FS1

Saturday, June 15, Canada vs. New Zealand, Noon, FS2

Thursday, June 20, Netherlands vs. Canada, 9 a.m., Fox

Thursday, June 20, Cameroon vs. New Zealand, 9 a.m., FS1

Group F W-D-L, GD, Pts

United States 0-0-0, 0, 0

Chile 0-0-0, 0, 0

Sweden 0-0-0, 0, 0

Thailand 0-0-0, 0, 0

Group F TV schedule (All Times Pacific)

Today, Chile vs. Sweden, 9 a.m., FS1

Today, United States vs. Thailand, Noon, Fox

Sunday, June 16, Sweden vs. Thailand, 6 a.m., FS1

Sunday, June 16, United States vs. Chile, 9 a.m., Fox

Thursday, June 20, United States vs. Sweden, Noon, Fox

Thursday, June 20, Thailand vs. Chile, Noon, FS1

Rest of the schedule

Round of 16 matches take place from June 22-25.

Quarterfinal matches are from June 27-29

One semifinal match is on July 2 at Noon on Fox

The other semifinal is on July 3 at Noon on FS1

Third-place game is July 6 at 8 a.m. on Fox

Championship match is Sunday, July 7 at 8 a.m. on Fox.

Other newsletters

We also have five other newsletters you can subscribe to for free. They are emailed to you and we don’t sell your name to other companies, so no spam from us. They are:

Our Dodgers newsletter, written by Houston Mitchell. Subscribe here.

Lakers newsletter, written by Tania Ganguli. Subscribe here.

Horse racing newsletter, written by John Cherwa. Subscribe here.

Boxing/MMA newsletter. Subscribe here.

Soccer newsletter, written by Kevin Baxter. Subscribe here.

Odds and ends

Angels capitalize on Dodgers’ shaky bullpen and slide to victory. … Angels’ Albert Pujols stunned by shooting of David Ortiz in home country. ...Robert Woods feels he’s capable of doing even more for Rams in 2019. … Bolstered Chargers defense looks to build on last year’s promise as minicamp begins. … Sen. Dianne Feinstein calls for races at Santa Anita to be suspended immediately. … LAFC and Galaxy face different challenges as U.S. Open Cup resumes.

Today’s local sports schedule

Dodgers at Angels, 7 p.m., Sportsnet LA, FSW, KLAA 830

LAFC at Real Salt Lake, 7 p.m., ESPN+ (U.S. Open Cup game)

Born on this date

1879: Baseball player Roger Bresnahan

1911: Sportscaster Russ Hodges

1913: NFL coach Vince Lombardi

1939: Race car driver/analyst Jackie Stewart

1943: Boxer Buster Mathis

1954: NFL player Gary Fencik

1956: NFL player Joe Montana

1963: Diver Bruce Kimball

1977: Golfer Geoff Ogilvy

1982: WNBA player Diana Taurasi

Died on this date

1976: Baseball player Jim Konstanty, 59

2012: Boxer Teofilo Stevenson, 60

2013: Golfer Miller Barber, 82

And finally

Let’s remember Vince Lombardi through this little featurette from NFL Films. Just click here.

That concludes the newsletter for today. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, please email us here. If you want to subscribe, click here.