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From Ben Bolch: It was the sort of game where the goals were fairly simple.
Escape the upset and avoid injuries while improving as much as possible against a severely overmatched opponent.
UCLA succeeded on most fronts Tuesday night.
The No. 18 Bruins’ 111-75 victory over Prairie View A&M was so comfortable that UCLA coach Mick Cronin could substitute freely and used just a sprinkling of his trademark quick hooks after mistakes.
There wasn’t much to complain about except maybe some defensive slippage and a few sloppy stretches in a game with little intrigue. After reserve guard Dominick Harris entered the game with only a few minutes left and quickly committed a foul, Cronin roared, “What did I say?” so loudly that his words could be heard in the upper reaches of the arena.
What was Cronin mad about?
“We kept fouling toward the end of the game and we kept stopping the clock,” point guard Dylan Andrews said. “His main thing to us was to be in the gaps because we knew that they were a driving team, and sometimes we failed at it. That’s why he was on us.”
There were also plenty of pleasing developments. Andrews scored 21 points on eight-for-12 shooting to go with six assists and forward Tyler Bilodeau had 18 points. Harris also redeemed himself with a nifty assist and only his second three-pointer of the season.
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LAKERS
From Dan Woike: The bet the Lakers made on Bronny James always carried a tremendous amount of baggage, their second-round draft pick impossible to separate from the team’s star who made no secret about wanting to play with his son.
Bronny James’ first NBA appearance happened on opening night, long before he was ready. His first points, in Cleveland, came when the game had been decided. And his early G League outings were only mildly encouraging, if at all.
Yet after fading from the spotlight because of a heel injury that cost him multiple weeks, James returned to the Lakers’ South Bay roster, surprising plenty of people by playing road games, not to mention the numbers he produced.
In his last three G League games, James has averaged 20.7 points on 43.1% shooting while showing flashes of being the kind of defender the Lakers hope he can develop into. James will play for the South Bay Lakers in the NBA’s G League showcase this week in Orlando.
“What we’ve stressed with him throughout the summer, preseason, early season was getting himself into elite shape so that he could be a high-level impact player on the defensive end,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said after practice Tuesday. “And then he has the heel injury and has to lose some of that momentum. [But] we’re excited about what he’s done over the last two games and looking forward to see what he does in the lineup.”
DODGERS
The Dodgers won the World Series, but that’s the past. We are looking to next year, discussing what the team needs Santa to bring them and what moves the team might make to repeat in 2025. Join your favorite Dodgers beat writer, Jack Harris, along with your pals, columnists Bill Plaschke and Dylan Hernandez, as we celebrate the season and talk Dodgers baseball.
Devin Williams thought he’d join defending World Series champion Dodgers. Yankees beat L.A. to him
From Ryan Kartje: Zachariah Branch, USC’s electric sophomore receiver and returner, and his older brother Zion, who plays safety for the Trojans, are planning to enter the transfer portal, a person familiar with the decision but not authorized to speak publicly told The Times, becoming the latest lauded prospects to join the exodus from Troy.
When the two brothers signed to play at USC — Zion in 2022 and Zachariah in 2023 — their separate arrivals were seen as landmark recruiting victories for Trojans coach Lincoln Riley. Zachariah Branch was a top-10 recruit and the nation’s No. 1 receiver prospect. Zion was no slouch, either — a four-star safety who checked in at 58th overall in the 2022 class.
Now as they depart USC, the Branch brothers will be no doubt two of the most coveted players in the transfer portal, with both expected to sign with their new team together.
USC offensive line coach Josh Henson leaving to take Purdue offensive coordinator job
CHARGERS
From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: Bo Nix isn’t the same quarterback the Chargers prepared for in Week 6. Jesse Minter knows he’s partially to blame.
“We kind of sparked his run on what we let him do to us in the fourth quarter of that game,” the Chargers defensive coordinator said sheepishly this week.
After Nix threw two touchdowns to help score 16 points in the fourth quarter against the Chargers in Week 6, Minter must now face the monster he helped unleash. The rookie quarterback leads the Broncos (9-5) into a critical divisional rematch Thursday as the Chargers (8-6) try to reverse a late-season swoon.
The Broncos started 3-3, including a 23-16 loss to the Chargers in Denver on Oct. 13, but have won six of their last eight with a four-game winning streak entering Thursday’s prime-time game at SoFi Stadium.
Nix has completed 64.3% of his passes in the last eight games, averaging 236.3 yards passing per game while throwing 15 touchdown passes. He entered the Week 6 matchup in Denver completing 61.8% of passes and averaging 173.2 yards per game. He threw three touchdowns in his first five games compared to four passes intercepted.
Chargers-Patriots Week 17 game moved to Dec. 28 as part of NFL Network tripleheader
LA BOWL
From Anthony De Leon: This year’s LA Bowl features a matchup of two teams in flux: a Cal squad in search of its quarterback of the future and a Nevada Las Vegas team entering a new era after the departure of its program-resurrecting head coach.
Cal (6-6) looks to salvage what was once a promising start to its first year in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and No. 24 UNLV (10-3) aims to finish its season with 11 wins, the most for the program since 1984, when Randall Cunningham was the quarterback.
With both teams set to make their first appearances in the fourth annual LA Bowl at SoFi Stadium today, here are four things to watch:
KINGS
Rickard Rakell scored at 1:44 of overtime and the Pittsburgh Penguins rallied to beat the Kings 3-2 on Tuesday night.
Rakell deflected Erik Karlsson’s point shot behind Darcy Kuemper for the game-winner.
Adrian Kempe scored 33 seconds into the game for the Kings, and Alex Turcotte also scored. Defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov added two assists.
Kuemper stopped 28 shots for the Kings, who have lost two of three following a six-game winning streak.
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1930 — Adolph Rupp coaches his first game at Kentucky, a 67-19 win over Georgetown College in Kentucky. Rupp retires in 1972 after winning 879 games and four national titles.
1949 — The Philadelphia Eagles win the NFL championship with a 14-0 victory over the Rams.
1954 — Montreal’s Maurice Richard becomes the first player in NHL history to score 400 goals during the Canadiens’ 4-2 road victory against the Chicago Black Hawks.
1961 — Olympic track star Wilma Rudolph wins The Associated Press’ female athlete of year award for the second consecutive year.
1962 — Wilt Chamberlain of the San Francisco Warriors scores 61 points in a 130-110 over the St. Louis Hawks.
1964 — Oscar Robertson of the Cincinnati Royals scores 56 points, including 18 in the final quarter, in a 111-107 victory over the Lakers.
1976 — Oakland quarterback Kenny Stabler scores with 14 seconds left to give the Raiders a 24-21 comeback victory over the New England Patriots in the in the AFC divisional playoffs.
1983 — Edmonton’s Wayne Gretzky scores his 100th point of the season the Edmonton Oilers’ 34th game, a 7-5 victory over the Winnipeg Jets. Gretzky scores two goals and has two assists to get to 100 points faster than any player in NHL history. He finishes the season with 205 points.
1995 — Jerry Rice of the San Francisco 49ers records the fifth-highest yardage total by a receiver in NFL history with 289 yards, and catches three touchdown passes in a 37-30 win over the Minnesota Vikings.
1997 — Germany’s Katja Seizinger wins her sixth straight race to tie former French star Jean-Claude Killy’s World Cup record for consecutive victories.
2005 — Indianapolis, which won its first 13 games, the fourth team in NFL history to do so, loses 26-17 at home to San Diego.
2006 — Tenth-ranked Arizona State beats Texas Tech 61-45 when the second outdoor game in women’s college basketball history is called on account of rain with 4:18 to play at Chase Field, home of baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks.
2007 — Edmonton sets an NHL record by competing in its fourth straight shootout, but loses to Dallas 2-1. The Oilers, who had won the first three, lose for the second time in their 12 shootout appearances.
2008 — Steve Asmussen is the first North American trainer to win 600 thoroughbred races in a single year as Storm Trust captures the fifth race at Delta Downs.
2011 — The Green Bay Packers’ 19-game winning streak, second-longest in NFL history, is snapped with a 19-14 loss at Kansas City.
2011 — Brittney Griner scores 12 of her 25 points in the closing run that pushes the top-ranked Baylor Lady Bears past No. 2 UConn 66-61.
2016 — New England defeats Denver 16-3 to clinch the AFC East and earn a first-round bye. It marks the eighth consecutive division title for the Patriots, the longest streak in NFL history, breaking a tie with the 1973-79 Rams (seven). New England is the only team in NFL history to win 13 division titles in a 14-year span.
2022 — FIFA World Cup Final, Lusail Stadium, Qatar: Argentina beats France, 4-2 in penalty shootout after teams locked at 3-3 after extra time; Lionel Messi scores 2 for Argentina, Kylian Mbappé a hat-trick for France.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Until next time…
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