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From Dylan Hernández: When most baseball players are on the field, they look the way most of us do at our jobs.
They clench their jaws. They don’t smile. They look like they’re working.
Shohei Ohtani is an exception.
He smiles. He laughs. He playfully gestures.
His talent affords him the luxury of treating the game like a game.
On the field, that is.
Off the field?
Ohtani has to grow up.
Longtime interpreter Ippei Mizuhara’s firing this week should be a warning to him.
Ohtani will be 30 in July. He has to start acting like it.
Who is Ippei Mizuhara, Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter fired amid gambling accusations?
Is Shohei Ohtani another Pete Rose? Dodgers star may be in legal trouble if he paid gambling debt
Yoshinobu Yamamoto battered by Padres in slugfest as Dodgers split series in Korea
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NCAA MEN’S TOURNAMENT
From Ben Bolch: At some point, no matter how many one-liners he unleashed or smiles he created or tears he jerked, Dan Monson knew this magical March ride would end.
Oh, sure, the Long Beach State coach wanted to linger two more days, not to mention two more weeks on college basketball’s biggest stage after being told he was out of a job at season’s end.
He didn’t want it to end. Rolling through the Big West Conference tournament last week had made Monson a Cinderella with stubble, a Jim Valvano without the Italian accent. He seemingly had an answer — and a joke — for everything the cruel world of college basketball could throw at him.
Then came a beast that could not be slayed, a joke that elicited only silence.
Arizona was simply too much Thursday at the Delta Center. There was no game plan Monson could diagram, no fellowship he could create among his players that could overcome this mighty force during an 85-65 loss in the first round.
Why LeBron James is rooting for a Pittsburgh Catholic school in NCAA tournament
10 players the Lakers will be scouting during NCAA tournament
Men’s schedule
All times Pacific
FIRST ROUND
EAST REGION
Thursday
No. 11 Duquesne 71, No. 6 Brigham Young 67
No. 3 Illinois 85, No. 14 Morehead State 69
No. 2 Iowa State 82, No. 15 South Dakota St. 65
No. 7 Washington State 66, No. 10 Drake 61
Friday
No. 8 Florida Atlantic (25-8) vs. No. 9 Northwestern (21-11), 9:15 a.m., CBS
No. 5 San Diego State (24-10) vs. No. 12 Alabama Birmingham (23-11), 10:45 a.m., TNT
No. 1 Connecticut (31-3) vs. No. 16 Stetson (22-12), 11:45 a.m., CBS
No. 4 Auburn (27-7) vs. No. 13 Yale (22-9), 1:15 p.m., TNT
SOUTH REGION
Thursday
No. 14 Oakland (23-11) 79, No. 3 Kentucky 76
No. 11 North Carolina St. 80, No. 6 Texas Tech 67
Friday
No. 2 Marquette (25-9) vs. No. 15 Western Kentucky (22-11), 11 a.m., TBS
No. 7 Florida (24-11) vs. No. 10 Colorado (25-10), 1:30 p.m., TBS
No. 8 Nebraska (23-10) vs. No. 9 Texas A&M (20-14), 3:50 p.m., TNT
No. 4 Duke (24-8) vs. No. 13 Vermont (28-6), 4:10 p.m., CBS
No. 1 Houston (30-4) vs. No. 16 Longwood (21-13), 6:20 p.m., TNT
No. 5 Wisconsin (22-13) vs. No. 12 James Madison (31-3), 6:40 p.m., CBS
MIDWEST REGION
Thursday
No. 3 Creighton 77, No. 14 Akron 60
No. 11 Oregon 87, No. 6 South Carolina 73
No. 7 Texas 56, No. 10 Colorado State 44
No. 5 Gonzaga 86, No. 12 McNeese 65
No. 2 Tennessee 83, No. 15 Saint Peter’s 49
No. 4 Kansas 93, No. 13 Samford 89
Friday
No. 1 Purdue (29-4) vs. No. 16 Grambling State (21-14), 4:25 p.m., TBS
No. 8 Utah State (27-6) vs. No. 9 Texas Christian (21-12), 6:55 p.m., TBS
WEST REGION
Thursday
No. 9 Michigan State 69, No. 8 Mississippi State 51
No. 2 Arizona 85, No. 15 Long Beach State 65
No. 1 North Carolina 90, No. 16 Wagner 62
No. 7 Dayton 63, No. 10 Nevada 60
Friday
No. 3 Baylor (23-10) vs. No. 14 Colgate (25-9), 9:40 a.m., TruTV
No. 6 Clemson (21-11) vs. No. 11 New Mexico (26-9), 12:10 p.m., TruTV
No. 4 Alabama (21-11) vs. No. 13 Charleston (27-7), 4:35 p.m., TruTV
No. 5 Saint Mary’s (26-7) vs. No. 12 Grand Canyon (29-4), 7:05 p.m., TruTV
Second round
Saturday
Times, TV TBA
West Region
No. 1 North Carolina vs. No. 9 Michigan State
No. 2 Arizona vs. No. 7 Dayton
Midwest Region
No. 2 Tennessee vs. No. 7 Texas
No. 3 Creighton vs. No. 11 Oregon
No. 4 Kansas vs. No. 5 Gonzaga
East Region
No. 2 Iowa St. vs. No. 7 Washington St.
No. 3 Illinois vs. No. 11 Duquesne
South Region
No. 11 North Carolina St. vs. No. 14 Oakland
Sweet 16: March 28-29
Elite Eight: March 30-31
Final Four: April 6 (Glendale, Ariz.)
Championship: April 8 (Glendale, Ariz.)
NCAA WOMEN’S TOURNAMENT
Women’s schedule
All times Pacific
FIRST FOUR
Thursday’s results
No. 11 Arizona 69, No. 11 Auburn 59
No. 16 Holy Cross 72, No. 16 Tennessee Martin 45
REGIONAL 1
Friday
No. 8 North Carolina (19-12) vs. No. 9 Michigan State (22-8), 8:30 a.m., ESPN2
No. 1 South Carolina (32-0) vs. No. 16 Presbyterian (21-14), 11 a.m., ESPN
No. 3 Oregon State (24-7) vs. No. 14 Eastern Washington (29-5), 5 p.m., ESPNU
No. 6 Nebraska (22-11) vs. No. 11 Texas A&M (19-12), 7:30 p.m., ESPNU
Saturday
No. 4 Indiana (24-5) vs. No. 13 Fairfield (31-1), 10:30 a.m., ESPN2
No. 2 Notre Dame (26-6) vs. No. 15 Kent State (21-10), 11:15 a.m., ESPN
No. 5 Oklahoma (22-9) vs. No. 12 Florida Gulf Coast (29-4), 1 p.m., ESPNews
No. 7 Mississippi (23-8) vs. No. 10 Marquette (23-8), 1:45 p.m., ESPNU
REGIONAL 2
Friday
No. 6 Louisville (24-9) vs. No. 11 Middle Tennessee (29-4), 10:30 a.m., ESPN2
No. 4 Kansas State (25-7) vs. No. 13 Portland (21-12), 1:30 p.m., ESPNews
No. 3 LSU (28-5) vs. No. 14 Rice (19-14), 1 p.m. | ESPN
No. 5 Colorado (22-9) vs. No. 12 Drake (29-5), 4 p.m., ESPNews
Saturday
No. 1 Iowa (29-4) vs. No. 16 Holy Cross (21-12), Noon, ABC
No. 8 West Virginia (24-7) vs. No. 9 Princeton (25-4), 2:30 p.m., ESPN2
No. 7 Creighton (25-5) vs. Nevada Las Vegas (30-2), 4 p.m., ESPNews
No. 2 UCLA (25-6) vs. No. 15 California Baptist (28-3), 6:30 p.m., ESPN2
REGIONAL 3
Friday
No. 2 Ohio State (25-5) vs. No. 15 Maine (24-9), 9 a.m., ESPN
No. 7 Duke (20-11) vs. No. 10 Richmond (29-5), 11:30 a.m., ESPNews
No. 4 Virginia Tech (24-7) vs. No. 13 Marshall (26-6), 12:30 p.m., ESPN2
No. 5 Baylor vs. No. 12 Vanderbilt (23-9), 6 p.m., ESPNU
Saturday
No. 3 Connecticut (29-5) vs. No. 14 Jackson State (26-6), 10 a.m., ABC
No. 8 Kansas (19-12) vs. No. 9 Michigan (20-13), 11 a.m., ESPNews
No. 6 Syracuse (23-7) vs. No. 11 Arizona (18-15), 12:30 p.m., ESPN2
No. 1 USC (26-5) vs. No. 16 Texas A&M Corpus Christi (23-8), 1:30 p.m., ESPN
REGIONAL 4
Friday
No. 1 Texas (30-4) vs. No. 16 Drexel (19-14), noon, ESPNU
No. 8 Alabama (23-9) vs. No. 9 Florida State (23-10), 2:30 p.m., ESPN2
No. 7 Iowa State (20-11) vs. No. 10 Maryland (19-13), 4:30 p.m., ESPN2
No. 2 Stanford (28-5) vs. No. 15 Norfolk State (27-5), 7 p.m., ESPN2
Saturday
No. 6 Tennessee (19-12) vs. No. 11 Green Bay (27-6), 9 a.m., ESPN
No. 3 North Carolina State (27-6) vs. No. 14 Chattanooga (28-4), 11:30 a.m., ESPNU
No. 4 Gonzaga (30-3) vs. No. 13 UC Irvine (23-8), 4:30 p.m., ESPN2
No. 5 Utah (22-10) vs. South Dakota State (27-5), 7 p.m., ESPNU
Second round: Sunday-Monday
Sweet 16: March 29-30
Elite Eight: March 31-April 1
Final Four: April 5 (Cleveland)
Championship: April 7 (Cleveland)
CHARGERS
From Jeff Miller: The move was easily the most jarring of Joe Hortiz’s short stretch so far as Chargers general manager.
Trading the most productive wide receiver in franchise history also was something else in the context of the team’s sorely needed roster rebuild:
Inevitable.
When the Chargers and Keenan Allen failed to reach an agreement on a reworked contract last week, the six-time Pro Bowler was dealt to Chicago for a 2024 fourth-round pick.
“We kind of went down every path,” Hortiz said Thursday in his first public comments since the trade. “In the end, this is the one that fit us best and fit him best.”
Allen still could be a Charger today had he been willing to accept a 2024 pay cut or another option that would have afforded Hortiz the financial flexibility the rookie general manager considers vital to assembling a consistent contender.
HORSE RACING
From John Cherwa: In a stunning rebuke of Santa Anita’s letter threatening to close or sell the track, the California Horse Racing Board voted to grant racing dates for a meeting at Pleasanton in Northern California at the end of this year.
Six commissioners were present to vote Thursday to grant the dates to Golden State Racing, which is essentially the same group that runs the fair circuit. The meet will last 10 weeks from Oct. 19 to Dec. 15.
But not all hurdles were crossed. The Northern California group will have to be granted a license, which means any major hiccups to get the track ready could derail the effort. This is true of any racetrack. The expectation, if things go well, is the track also will be issued a license for the winter and spring of next year. One huge disadvantage is that the Pleasanton track, located at the Alameda County Fair, does not have a turf course. The operators promised a grass course in one or two years.
From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: Braylan Shelby starts his mornings with a five-egg scramble, waffles, Powerade and fruit. The USC defensive end especially likes parfaits and bananas. It’s just the first of up to five meals he’ll consume each day.
Each bite is a step toward transforming USC’s maligned defense.
The Trojans packed on the pounds during their offseason training program, hoping to carry out first-year defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn’s vision for a revamped unit that requires bigger bodies and more physicality up front. Coach Lincoln Riley called the offseason regimen a “philosophical change” for the program that will put its work to the test in the physical Big Ten conference next fall.
Even though the Trojans finished the year on a high note by dominating Louisville in the Holiday Bowl, they still went into the offseason understanding that the team’s lack of size, especially on the offensive and defensive fronts, was “the elephant in the room,” defensive end Jamil Muhammad said.
“I’ve heard here and there that I’m too small or I’m maybe too weak,” said Muhammad, who had 10.5 tackles for loss and a team-leading 6.5 sacks last year. “So I took that personally.”
NBA
DUCKS
Rookie Lukas Dostal made 29 saves for his first NHL shutout, Alex Killorn had his second two-goal game of the season and the Ducks beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-0 on Thursday night to snap a seven-game losing streak.
Dostal became the third rookie goalie in franchise history to record a shutout, joining John Gibson (six) and Ilya Bryzgalov (one).
Frank Vatrano got his 30th goal of the season at 10:31 of the third period when the Ducks had a two-man advantage. He is the second undrafted player in franchise history to reach the 30-goal mark — joining Andy McDonald, who scored 34 in 2005-06.
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1932 — The blue lines are eliminated with the center red line used to determine offsides in an experiment by the NHL. With both teams out of playoff contention, the league tries it in the New York Americans’ 8-6 victory over Boston.
1953 — The United States beats host Chile, 49-36 to win the first FIBA World Championship for Women basketball tournament.
1958 — Vern Hatton and Johnny Cox combine for 54 points to give Kentucky an 84-72 victory over Seattle in the NCAA basketball championship.
1959 — Montreal Canadiens forward Dickie Moore sets an NHL record for most points in a season with 96. He scores a goal and an assist in a 4-2 win at New York.
1969 — Lew Alcindor scores 37 points to lead UCLA to the NCAA men’s basketball title with a 97-72 win over Purdue. Alcindor is chosen as MVP for the third straight year.
1969 — West Chester State beats Western Carolina 65-39 to win the first women’s collegiate national championship. The game is played using the six-player format.
1986 — Trevor Berbick wins a unanimous 15-round decision over Pinklon Thomas in Las Vegas for the WBC heavyweight title.
1994 — The NFL announces the addition of the 2-point conversion, the league’s first scoring change in 75 seasons.
1997 — Tara Lipinski’s jumps, the cleanest and the surest in women’s figure skating, lift the 14-year-old into history as the youngest women’s world champion.
2007 — Kobe Bryant becomes the fourth player in NBA history to score at least 50 points in three straight games. Bryant scores 60 points in the Lakers’ 121-119 win over Memphis. Bryant joins Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain and Michael Jordan.
2011 — The NFL owners vote to make all scoring plays subject to review by the replay official and referee.
2013 — Florida Gulf Coast, a school so new it wasn’t eligible for the NCAA men’s tournament until last year, upsets second-seeded Georgetown 78-68 in the second round of the South Regional. The Eagles used a 21-2 second-half run to pull away from the Hoyas and hold on in the final minute to become the seventh No. 15 seed to beat a No. 2.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Until next time…
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