The Sports Report: USC holds off Arizona State

Howdy, I’m your host, Houston Mitchell. Why didn’t the dog want to play football? He was a Boxer.

USC FOOTBALL

Quarterback Kedon Slovis came out firing, with 297 yards and four touchdowns in the first quarter. The Trojans’ defense came out ferocious, with just a single yard allowed over that same stretch.

But over the next three quarters, that near-perfection nearly came apart at the seams. What began as a smooth sail to bowl eligibility became a rocky ride just to stay alive, one the Trojans were lucky to survive in a 31-26 victory over Arizona State on Saturday.

With Arizona State driving and just 30 seconds remaining, it was Christian Rector who ultimately saved them. The senior defensive end leaped in the air, tipped a third-down pass, and dived forward to cradle it for the interception USC desperately needed.

The Trojans (6-4, 4-2) are now bowl eligible, after missing a bowl game last season.

But there was little enthusiasm for that milestone in the aftermath of Saturday’s escape.

“I don’t celebrate six wins,” said receiver Amon-ra St. Brown, who did plenty worth celebrating in an 8-catch, 173-yard performance.

Clay Helton agreed, assuring there was still plenty of time for his uneven team to accomplish more than it has thus far.

“We have higher standards,” Helton said. “We have more to play for.”

Read more

Dylan Hernandez: Clay Helton is not about to throw in the towel

Will he play? USC faces tough decision on Kenan Christon’s redshirt eligibility

USC FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

All times Pacific. Radio: 790 KABC

USC 31, Fresno State 23

USC 45, Stanford 20

at BYU 30, USC 27 (OT)

at USC 30, Utah 23

at Washington 28, USC 14

at Notre Dame 30, USC 27

at USC 41, Arizona 14

USC 35, at Colorado 31

Oregon 56, at USC 24

USC 31, at Arizona State 26

Nov. 16 at California, 8 p.m., FS1

Nov. 23 vs. UCLA, TBD

SATURDAY’S TOP 25 SCOREBOARD

No. 1 Ohio State 73, Maryland 14

No. 2 LSU 46, No. 3 Alabama 41 (Read game story here)

No. 17 Minnesota 31, No. 4 Penn State 26

No. 5 Clemson 55, North Carolina St. 10

No. 6 Georgia, 27, Missouri 0

No. 9 Oklahoma 42, Iowa State 41

No. 10 Florida 56, Vanderbilt 0

No. 12 Baylor 29, TCU 23

No. 13 Wisconsin 24, No. 18 Iowa 22

No. 15 Notre Dame 38, Duke 7

Texas 27, No. 16 Kansas State 24

Virginia Tech 36, No. 19 Wake Forest 17

No. 20 Cincinnati 48, Connecticut 3

No. 22 Boise State 20, Wyoming 17

No. 25 SMU 59, East Carolina 51

SATURDAY’S PAC-12 SCOREBOARD

USC 31, Arizona State 26

Colorado 16, Stanford 13

California 33, Washington State 20

PAC-12 STANDINGS

North

Oregon, 6-0 in Pac-12, 8-1 overall

Oregon State, 3-3, 4-5

Stanford, 3-4, 4-5

Washington, 3-4, 6-4

California, 2-4, 5-4

Washington State, 1-5, 4-5

South

Utah, 5-1, 8-1

USC, 5-2, 6-4

UCLA, 4-2, 4-5

Arizona State, 2-4, 5-4

Arizona, 2-4, 4-5

Colorado, 2-5, 4-6

KINGS

Defenseman Shea Weber scored two power-play goals in the Montreal Canadiens’ 3-2 victory over the Kings on Saturday night.

Blake Lizotte scored his first NHL goal, Anze Kopitar also connected, and Jonathan Quick stopped 34 shots for the Kings, who have only one victory in its last eight.

Weber opened the scoring midway through the first period. The captain fired a shot from the top of the faceoff circle that hit defenseman Matt Roy. As the puck landed back toward Weber, he blasted it past Quick.

RAMS

As a rookie in 2015, Rams running back Todd Gurley made his NFL debut against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

It was the third game of the season, and Gurley -- the 10th pick in the draft -- was in the final stage of working his way back from 2014 knee surgery.

Gurley rushed for nine yards in six carries and caught a pass before moving into the starting lineup the next week.

Four years later, the three-time Pro Bowl selection can’t wait to play the Steelers at Heinz Field today for the first time.

“I grew up a [Baltimore] Ravens fan, so I never liked the Steelers,” Gurley said. “I’m looking forward to it-- it’s like one of those places like Green Bay, Dallas, Chicago, Pittsburgh…. That’s always been their philosophy to be all about the ball and all about defense.

“Should be a fun game.”

RAMS SCHEDULE

All times Pacific. Radio: 710 ESPN, 93.1 JACK FM

Rams 30, at Carolina 27

at Rams 27, New Orleans 9

Rams 20, at Cleveland 13

Tampa Bay 55, at Rams 40

at Seattle 30, Rams 29

San Francisco 20, at Rams 7

Rams 37, at Atlanta 10

Rams 24, Cincinnati 10 (at London)

Today at Pittsburgh, 1:15 p.m., Fox

Nov. 17 vs. Chicago, 5:15 p.m., NBC

Nov. 25 vs. Baltimore, 5:15 p.m., ESPN

Dec. 1 at Arizona, 1 p.m., Fox

Dec. 8 vs. Seattle, 5:15 p.m., NBC

Dec. 15 at Dallas, 1:15 p.m., Fox

Dec. 22 or 23 at San Francisco, TBD

Dec. 29 vs. Arizona, 1:15 p.m., Fox

CLIPPERS

Paul George and Kawhi Leonard weren’t on the same team during practice Saturday but, at long last, at least they were on the same court. Doc Rivers can’t help but smirk at the sight of his stars finally aligning after George’s Clippers tenure is off to a delayed start.

“It is nice to see him on the floor today, I can tell you that,” the smiling Clippers coach said of George. “I think some guys found out that he was on the floor today, I can say that.”

George participated in live drills Saturday for the first time since undergoing two shoulder surgeries during the offseason. The first surgery in May repaired a partially torn tendon in his right shoulder and another procedure in June addressed a labrum tear in his left shoulder.

While the six-time NBA All-Star can possibly return for the team’s home game against the Toronto Raptors on Monday, Rivers said he didn’t know of a definitive plan for George’s return. George, for one, doesn’t believe he’s ready just yet.

“I still got some stuff,” he said. “From a health standpoint, I feel great. But I think with rhythm especially, with where these guys are at right now in their season, they’re flowing right now, so I just want to come in with an easy transition.”

LAKERS

Rajon Rondo went through a full-court, five-on-five drill Saturday as part of the final progression in his rehabilitation from a mild calf strain. The Lakers did not have an official practice, but Rondo worked with a combination of teammates and assistant coaches.

Although there is hope that he will play Sunday when the Lakers face the Toronto Raptors, it will depend on how his body reacts to Saturday’s workout.

Rondo has missed the first eight games of the Lakers’ season with the injury. Rondo had an MRI two weeks ago that confirmed the Lakers’ suspicions that he had suffered a mild calf strain.

In Rondo’s absence, the Lakers have been using a combination of guards to run their offense. LeBron James functions as the point guard in their starting lineup, playing alongside guards Danny Green and Avery Bradley, center JaVale McGee and power forward Anthony Davis.

UCLA BASKETBALL

UCLA’s offensive weaknesses were laid out in small black type for all to see after the Bruins staggered their way to a season-opening 69-65 victory over Long Beach State on Wednesday.

Their sloppiness was disclosed in their 14 turnovers. Freshman point guard Tyger Campbell had four, which was forgivable considering he played a team-high 37 minutes in his college debut. But sophomore guard David Singleton had three turnovers in 13 minutes after committing just 12 turnovers in 559 minutes all of last season.

The Bruins’ lack of ball movement was evident by three starters combining for just one assist. Sophomore guard Jules Bernard finished with no assists and played only 10 minutes after reverting to some of his bad habits from last season, when he drove into defenders and threw up wild, contested shots.

Their lack of perimeter shooters was exposed in their making just five of 19 three-pointers, a less-than-passable 26.3%. Redshirt senior guard Prince Ali made one that gave the Bruins a late five-point cushion, but only after having missed his first four attempts from long range. Five other players combined to miss all six of their three-pointers.

“I think we’ve got a lot of guys nervous when it comes to shooting the ball, but that’s to be expected,” coach Mick Cronin said afterward, noting that his entire roster is stepping into larger roles with the departures of Kris Wilkes, Jaylen Hands and Moses Brown. “It’s just going to take us time to find a rhythm, offensively, as we get young guys comfortable.”

TODAY’S LOCAL MAJOR SPORTS SCHEDULE

All times Pacific

Toronto at Lakers, 6:30 p.m., Spectrum Sportsnet, 710 ESPN

Edmonton at Ducks, 6 p.m., PRIME

UC Santa Barbara at UCLA (basketball), 4 p.m., Pac-12 Network, AM 570

BORN ON THIS DATE

1934: Baseball player Norm Cash (d. 1986)

1955: Baseball player Jack Clark

1962: Basketball player Cathy Boswell

1963: Long jumper Mike Powell

1970: Gymnast Trent Dimas

1972: Former Ram Isaac Bruce

1972: Former Dodger Shawn Green

1980: Football player Donte Stallworth

1984: Basketball player Kendrick Perkins

DIED ON THIS DATE

1985: Hockey player Pelle Lindbergh, 26

1992: Baseball/basketball player and actor Chuck Connors, 71

AND FINALLY

Shawn Green hits four home runs in one game. Watch it here.

That concludes the newsletter for today. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, please email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. If you want to subscribe, click here.