Two big-hitting British heavyweights will collide for a world title in Manchester on Saturday as Fabio Wardley defends his WBO belt against Daniel Dubois.
Unbeaten Wardley, 31, makes the first defence of his title after the Ipswich fighter was upgraded from interim to full world champion last year.
Londoner Dubois, 28, is aiming to bounce back from his defeat by Oleksandr Usyk last summer, as he looks to become a two-time world champion.
With a combined 95% knockout ratio, it seems unlikely the judges will be needed at the Co-op Live Arena.
BBC Sport spoke to figures from the boxing world to get their predictions.
Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has not come close to winning the Premier League or Champions League since joining the club in 2020.
He did lift a couple of domestic cups under Erik ten Hag – and if United finish third this season, it will be a position they have only bettered once during Fernandes’ time at Old Trafford.
But it represents a meagre return for a player many argue is United’s best signing since legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, and someone, they argue, who deserves a place among the club’s best in the Premier League era.
When he spoke to the media in October, he said: “I don’t see it that one player is better than another because he wins more trophies. Not every time the best player in the world is the one that wins the Ballon d’Or.
“I want to win trophies. I want to be recognised by the many good things I did for the club, for bringing something back to the club, not just my individual numbers.”
United will not win a trophy this season, but there are still a couple of significant milestones ahead of Fernandes.
He needs just one more assist to equal the individual Premier League record of 20 in a single campaign – jointly held by Arsenal great Thierry Henry and former Manchester City star Kevin de Bruyne.
Fernandes is eight clear of Manchester City’s Rayan Cherki in the Premier League’s assists chart this season, with West Ham’s Jarrod Bowen third with 10 assists.
Beating the record clearly means a lot to Fernandes, who will be a key part of Portugal’s World Cup squad this summer. So much so, one of his United team-mates told him he felt Fernandes would previously have taken a shot against Brentford recently, rather than set up striker Benjamin Sesko. Fernandes rejected that notion.
Fernandes is also favourite to win the prestigious PFA Players’ Player of the Year award, which Henry and De Bruyne both took twice.
Despite the lack of major trophies, would the assist record and another player of the year award confirm his status as one of the most creative forces of the Premier League era?
UCLA senior Megan Grant hit her 37th home run of the season, tying the NCAA single-season record during the Bruins’ 19-5 win over Wisconsin during the Big Ten tournament semifinal Friday in College Park, Md.
The record was set in 1995 by Arizona’s Lauren Espinoza, but Grant and Oklahoma freshman Kendall Wells have hit homers at a blistering pace all season and are battling to close the season as the new title holder. Wells has 36 home runs, but her team was eliminated from the Southeastern Conference tournament Friday and she’ll have to wait until the NCAA tournament begins to add to her tally.
Grant, meanwhile, will be in the lineup when UCLA plays regular-season Big Ten champion Nebraska for the league tournament title at 10 a.m. Saturday in College Park, Md. The game will air on the Big Ten Network. First pitch was shifted earlier with the hope of avoiding storms in Maryland.
Grant’s teammates celebrated blast No. 37 and cheered behind her while she was interviewed on the Big Ten Network.
“I was just focusing as much as I can, just competing within that at-bat,” Grant said when asked about her record-tying blast. “… A one-on-one battle is all I think about. It kind of had a good payout.”
During their semifinal win over Wisconsin, the Bruins hit four home runs and pushed their NCAA record single-season team home run total to 181.
Earlier Friday, UCLA senior Jordan Woolery was named Big Ten player of the year by the league’s 17 head coaches.
Woolery leads the nation in RBIs (107) and is the fifth player in NCAA Division I history to record more than 100 RBIs in a season.
Bri Alejandre, Aleena Garcia, Rylee Slimp and Grant joined Woolery on the All-Big Ten first team. Bruins Kaniya Bragg, Alexis Ramirez and Taylor Tinsley earned second-team honors.
TORONTO — Dylan Cease struck out 10, reaching double digits for the third time in eight starts this season, and the Toronto Blue Jays stopped a four-game losing streak with a 2-0 win Friday night that sent the Angels to their 14th loss in 18 games.
Angels pitcher Alek Manoah returned from Tommy John surgery that had sidelined him since May 29, 2024, and faced his former team for the first time. The 28-year-old right-hander struck out one in a perfect eighth inning, reaching 93.8 mph with his fastball while throwing seven of 11 pitches for strike.
Cease (3-1) gave up five hits and walked none over seven innings in his 28th double-digit strikeout game.
Toronto (17-21) scored twice in the third on Kazuma Okamoto’s RBI single and Ernie Clement’s sacrifice fly off Reid Detmers (1-2), who gave up two hits and a career-high six walks in 3⅔ innings. The Angels dropped to 15-24.
Louis Varland earned his fifth save with a perfect ninth.
Up next: Angels RHP Jack Kochanowicz (2-1, 3.05) and Blue Jays RHP Trey Yesavage (1-1, 0.96) start Saturday.
The Dodgers took two steps forward and one step back in their quest for full strength Friday, putting Glasnow on the injured list because of back spasms while planning to activate Snell from the injured list on Saturday and Betts on Monday.
Snell’s start Saturday will be his first since the World Series. The two-time Cy Young winner opened the season on the injured list because of shoulder fatigue, as the Dodgers eased him into spring with the goal of putting him in the best possible position to succeed in October.
Glasnow left Wednesday’s game because of the injury. An MRI examination revealed “nothing really significant,” according to manager Dave Roberts, but the IL stint allows Glasnow to avoid rushing to be ready for his next start, with the bigger October picture in mind.
Dodgers pitcher Tyler Glasnow delivers against the Houston Astros on Wednesday.
(Ashley Landis / Associated Press)
Glasnow never has made more than 22 starts in a season. He has been on the injured list in every full season since 2019.
With Glasnow’s status in question, the Dodgers on Thursday reconsidered their plan for Snell. They originally planned for him to make a final rehabilitation start Saturday, but Roberts said the pitcher and the team agreed he could throw the planned five innings in Los Angeles as well as he could in Ontario.
The Dodgers recalled reliever Paul Gervase to fill Glasnow’s roster spot. They could return him to triple-A Oklahoma City to make room for Snell on Saturday.
Betts strained an oblique muscle April 4. The shortstop is scheduled to play two minor league rehabilitation games Oklahoma City Friday and Saturday, then return to Los Angeles for evaluation, with the hope he’ll be cleared for activation Monday.
“We’re not going to run him out there every single day,” Roberts said.
Snell and Betts are not the only reinforcements on the way. Utilityman Kiké Hernández and reliever Brusdar Graterol began rehabilitation assignments this week.
The return of Betts would appear to allow the Dodgers to jettison infield reserve Santiago Espinal, although the team opened the season with Espinal on the roster and Hyeseong Kim at triple-A, allowing Kim to play every day and Alex Freeland and Miguel Rojas to split time at second base.
However, since rejoining the Dodgers when Betts was injured, Kim is batting .314 with an .801 OPS.
The Dodgers dropped outfielder Kyle Tucker to sixth in the lineup Friday, in a batting order Roberts said was designed to combat Atlanta Braves ace Chris Sale.
In his career, Tucker is 0 for 9 with four strikeouts against Sale.
Trevor Bauer wants to pitch in the majors again — so much so that he’s willing to start over in the lowest levels of the minor leagues and work his way up.
And he’s willing to do it without being paid.
That’s the hypothetical Bauer proposed Friday on X: A talented former Cy Young Award winner signs a minor league deal with an MLB team for a “$0 salary” and can be cut at any time at no financial risk to the organization.
Since his last MLB start on June 28, 2021, as a member of the Dodgers with a $102-million, three-year contract, Bauer has been accused of sexual assault by four women. He served a 194-game suspension for violating the league’s sexual assault and domestic violence policy. He has denied all the allegations and has never been charged with a crime.
While some might think signing Bauer might be a risky move for an MLB organization, Bauer feels his plan is foolproof in that regard.
“Hypothetical: You’re the owner of an MLB team,” Bauer wrote. “I offer to take $0 salary and sign a minor league contract and go to Low A. If the ‘he sucks now’ crowd is right and I get lit up, you cut me, lose $0 and there’s no risk to the big league club.
Hypothetical: You’re the owner of an MLB team. I offer to take $0 salary and sign a minor league contract and go to Low A.
If the “he sucks now” crowd is right and I get lit up, you cut me, lose $0 and there’s no risk to the big league club.
If the “clubhouse cancer” crowd is…
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) May 8, 2026
“If the ‘clubhouse cancer’ crowd is right, you see it immediately at Low A and cut me. You lose $0 and there’s no risk to the big league club. If there’s massive negative PR, which we already know there won’t be, you just cut me and move on. The story is dead in a couple days, you lose $0, and there’s no risk to the big league club.”
In the comments on Bauer’s post, someone challenged him on the notion that “we already know there won’t be” any negative PR if he is signed. In response, Bauer pointed to his current stint with the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League to support his argument.
“Where has the negative PR been?” wrote Bauer, who is 3-1 this season and pitched a no-hitter for the Ducks late last month. “I’m playing in America. In New York of all places. Most ‘hostile’ media market in the United States. Stadiums are sold out when I pitch. There’s no boycotts. No media frenzy. Where is it?”
Bauer wrote in his proposal that if none of the negatives he laid out earlier happen, then the organization can promote their cost-free pitcher through the ranks, re-evaluating him every step of the way, until he reaches the big leagues — “if I earn it,” he wrote, “which you’d be 100% in control of deciding.”
“If you don’t think I’m good enough, you lose $0 and there’s no risk to the big league club,” Bauer wrote. “You could take away my ‘antics’. You could take away my social media. You could ask anything of me. If I don’t comply, you cut me, lose $0, and there’s no risk to the big league club.”
One X user asked why Bauer doesn’t just take away his “antics” on his own.
“Because no teams actually care about that,” Bauer responded. “They enjoy the content. And I’m not going to rob baseball fans of great baseball entertainment just to solve a problem that only exists in the minds of x bots.”
Informed that the MLB Players Assn. might have an issue with him playing for free, Bauer replied, “Who gives a crap about what mlbpa does or doesn’t want?”
This isn’t the first time Bauer has made what he considers to be a low-risk proposal for an organization to bring him back into the league. In 2024, Bauer spoke with The Times’ Bill Shaikin about an offer he made to play for the league minimum.
“The reason for that was, I want to go back to work, and I am trying to find any way that I possibly can to limit the risk and exposure for a team,” Bauer said. “I realize there are a lot of other things, outside of the on-field stuff, that go into whether to sign me. So I figured that, if I could limit the on-field risk as much as possible, perhaps that offsets some of the other perceived risks.”
It remains to be seen whether any club is willing to take up Bauer on his current offer.
“What logical reason is there to not do this?” Bauer wrote. “At worst, you cut me and there’s no risk to the big league club. At best, you get a Cy Young winner for $0 who you know can still pitch and could help the big league team if and when you see fit.”
Former Miami Marlins president David Samson weighed in on Bauer’s proposal in a post on X.
“This will never happen,” Samson wrote. “First of all, no team wants to sign him. Secondly, no player is allowed to play for $0. And finally, no team wants to sign him.”
Santa Clarita Christian at Academy of Academic Excellence
Nuview Bridge at Burbank Providence
Bishop Diego at Nordhoff
Magnolia at Indian Springs
Banning at Artesia
Salesian at Anaheim
Hesperia Christian at Schurr
FRIDAY’S SCHEDULE
SECOND ROUND
DIVISION 1
Pool A Round 1 Winner vs. Pool A Round 1 Winner
Pool A Round 1 Loser vs. Pool A Round 1 Loser
Pool D Round 1 Winner vs. Pool D Round 1 Winner
Pool D Round 1 Loser vs. Pool D Round 1 Loser
Pool C Round 1 Winner vs. Pool C Round 1 Winner
Pool C Round 1 Loser vs. Pool C Round 1 Loser
Pool D Round 1 Winner vs. Pool D Round 1 Winner
Pool D Round 1 Loser vs. Pool D Round 1 Loser
FIRST ROUND
DIVISION 3
Arlington at Mira Costa
Redondo Union at Ridgecrest Burroughs
Dos Pueblos at Burbank Burroughs
Edison at Damien
Orange County Pacifica Christian at Palos Verdes
Warren at West Ranch
San Dimas at Cajon
Crescenta Valley at St. Francis
Oakwood at Agoura
Garden Grove Pacifica at Chino Hills
Bishop Amat at Corona del Mar
Fullerton at San Juan Hills
Charter Oak at Beckman
South Torrance at Millikan
Summit at La Canada
Simi Valley at Arcadia
DIVISION 5
Paloma Valley at Citrus Valley
Moreno Valley at Irvine
Cathedral at Calvary Baptist
Sunny Hills at Long Beach Poly
Tahquitz at Quartz Hill
Kaiser at Oak Hills
Heritage Christian at Paramount
Loara at Santra Barbara
Montebello at Long Beach Wilson
Jurupa Hills at Santa Fe
Temescal Canyon at Arrowhead Christian
Capistrano Valley Christian at Riverside Prep
Culver City at Cerritos Valley Christian
Mayfair at St. Bonaventure
Bishop Montgomery at Cerritos
Rancho Verde at St. Bernard
DIVISION 7
Palmdale at New Roads
Carpinteria at Flintridge Prep
North Torrance at Baldwin Park
Beverly Hills at Grace
Pasadena Poly at Santa Paula
Milken at Fontana
Patriot at Viewpoint
Placentia Valencia at Victor Valley
Riverside Notre Dame at Hemet
South El Monte at Buena Park
University Prep at Golden Valley
Jurupa Valley at Campbell Hall
Arroyo at Miller
Carter at Adelanto
Nogales at Garden Grove
San Jacinto Valley at Norwalk
DIVISION 9
Redlands Adventist Academy at Dunn
Santa Monica Pacifica Christian at Lennox Academy
Downey Calvary Chapel at Crossroads Christian
Coastal Christian at St. Monica Academy
Mesa Grande at San Bernardino
San Luis Obispo Classical at Ojai Valley
Loma Linda Academy at Webb
Santa Maria Valley Christian at Yucca Valley
Lucerne Valley at Rolling Hills Prep
United Christian Academy at Ambassador Christian
Riverside Bethel Christian at Desert Hot Springs
Anza Hamilton at Westminster
Pomona at Temecula Prep
Cobalt at Environmental Charter
Garden Grove Santiago at Gorman Charter
Animo Leadership at St. Pius X-St, Matthias Academy
Note: Second Round in Divisions 2-9 May 19; Third Round in Division 1 May 19; Quarterfinals in all divisions May 22; Semifinals in all divisions May 26; Finals in all divisions May 29-30.
Tommy Fleetwood shot a four-under round of 67 to put himself within a stroke of the lead after the second round of the Truist Championship.
The 35-year-old Englishman made five birdies and a bogey to finish just behind South Korea’s Sungjae Im, who carded a steady two-under round of 69 to end the day at nine under.
Fleetwood’s compatriot Alex Fitzpatrick and American Justin Thomas are a further shot back at six under.
Fitzpatrick is nine strokes ahead of older brother and world number three Matt Fitzpatrick, who is two over for the tournament.
Netball Super League leaders Loughborough Lightning returned to winning ways with a hard-fought 76-60 victory over Birmingham Panthers on Friday.
Lightning, whose 100% record was ended by defending champions London Pulse last weekend, are now four points clear of second-placed Pulse at the top of the NSL table.
Pulse take on Manchester Thunder, who are six points behind Lightning in third place, on Saturday.
Bottom side Panthers made a quick start to Friday’s game, leading at the end of the first two quarters to take a two-point advantage into half-time.
But Lightning hit back after the break and were four goals ahead at the start of the fourth quarter, before sealing victory with a dominant display in the final 15 minutes of the round 11 match.
On a rare off day in Los Angeles, Sparks guard Kelsey Plum settles into a quieter rhythm. She brings a book to a dog park near her home, finds a spot, and reads. But even here, the stillness is partial at best. Her mind keeps working, circling the same question that has followed her through every stage of her career. What does greatness actually require?
Right now, Plum is reading “The Talent Code,” a book that digs into the tension between nature and nurture. It’s not exactly light reading for a day off, but then again, she isn’t really wired for off days.
“Talent,” she says, “takes countless hours of practice. Sure, you have some natural ability, but you have to train it. You look at like a Russian tennis player, why are they good? Is it random? The similarity with greatness is practice.”
That idea, practice as the great equalizer, shapes how Plum sees her career now, in a moment that demands more from her than ever before.
Sparks guard Kelsey Plum moved to L.A. because she wanted to play a bigger role than she did on the Las Vegas Aces title-winning teams.
(Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times)
In the week before the WNBA season, she’s no longer in the calm of the park but inside the controlled chaos of media day at El Camino College’s gym. Between photo shoots, she sits on a green room couch in a makeshift makeup area, the morning already filled with obligations: a news conference, cameras, questions about what comes next. Beside her earlier was Ariel Atkins, one of the veterans she helped bring to Los Angeles, a signal that this next chapter is meant to be different.
“Have you ever driven a really expensive car, but didn’t have good insurance?” Plum asked. “When you have great coverage, you can relax a little bit. That’s what it feels like now, there’s so many people paddling in the boat with me.”
That sense of shared momentum didn’t come immediately. Not long ago, there was doubt.
Until a few weeks ago, Plum wasn’t entirely sure she had made the right decision to join the Sparks. After being traded from the Aces in 2025, she knew she wanted more responsibility, more ownership and the chance to be the face of a team. But belief in a vision is one thing; living through the roughest stretches of the transformation is another.
The Sparks went 21-23 last season, finishing two wins short of reaching the postseason. There were flashes, particularly late in the year when Cameron Brink, the No. 2 overall pick in 2024, returned from injury. Still, the result was familiar in L.A.: another year without a playoff berth.
For a player like Plum, that kind of outcome lingers.
Sparks guard Kelsey Plum feared she might have made a mistakes during some difficult moments early in her tenure in L.A., but free agents’ decision to join her boosted her confidence.
(Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times)
“I don’t think that last year I realized how big of a decision I made,” she said. “Obviously there’s a you don’t understand the gravity of it till you’re in it. I think when Nneka [Ogwumike] signed this year, I was like, ‘OK, I’m not crazy. They’re seeing the vision I am seeing.’”
That validation mattered. It reframed the risk as something shared.
The Sparks leaned into the direction Plum believed in during the offseason. Some of that came directly from her influence and some of it came from the example she set.
“KP came here because she wanted to test herself on how she impacts winning,” said Sparks general manager Raegan Pebley. “And there’s a lot of things that go into impacting winning. It’s on the [score]board, but it’s also, are you a leader? Can you influence other people to come along with you? And she’s been able to do that. She’s been a great, great person to partner with.”
Plum understands that distinction well. She’s been on championship teams before with back-to-back titles in Las Vegas in 2022 and 2023, but this is different. In Los Angeles, she’s helping define what the organization will become.
The franchise hasn’t reached the postseason since 2020, the longest active drought in the WNBA. For a team in a major market, the absence has been noticeable, even as individual pieces hinted at potential.
Plum, in her first season away from the franchise that drafted her No. 1 overall in 2017 after her record-setting run at Washington, produced immediately: 19.5 points and 5.7 assists per game. But numbers alone weren’t the point.
“I felt like I can be the connector,” she said. “When you’re part of a championship culture, you get to see what goes into it. And it’s way more than just basketball. It’s like the business, the operations of it all. They all work together. Obviously, what Mark Davis has done is tremendous in Las Vegas, and really investing in that team. So, yeah, coming here definitely, I learned a lot more than basketball, right? About what goes into building a championship team, a roster, what goes into investing in players and making it feel like a destination where players are like, ‘Ooh, I want to go play there.’”
Sparks guard Kelsey Plum accepted a lower salary so that the team could pursue key free agents capable of helping win a championship.
(Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times)
That perspective shaped her decisions this offseason in tangible ways. Despite being eligible for a $1.4 million supermax contract after her core designation, Plum chose to sign at a lower number, giving the Sparks flexibility to build around her.
They used that space to add Ogwumike and Erica Wheeler, while still leaving $1,468,650 in cap space for a potential in-season move. They also traded for Atkins from Chicago, parting with 2024 first-round pick Rickea Jackson to ease the pressure in the backcourt.
“I want to really help transform an organization,” Plum said. “As a player, you don’t really know how good you are, or how much you can handle, capacity wise, until put in a situation that’s maybe a little over your head.”
Belief, in this case, became contagious. Plum helped recruit Wheeler. Ogwumike, already familiar with the franchise, pointed to broader changes as part of her decision to return.
With key pieces in play, Sparks guard Kelsey Plum said the team must embrace high expectations. “We’re no longer the cute, young tadpole team,” she said. “We have to win.”
(Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times)
“The last couple years have strategically been very, very focused with our ownership and improving the player experience,” Pebley said. “We’ve got a practice facility that is being built. … Players are experiencing a much more consistent and high level, just player experience. And I think they can now look at their peers eye to eye and say, ‘This is where you need to be. you’re going to be treated really well here.’”
All of it builds toward a simple, unavoidable truth: this version of the Sparks can’t afford to linger in potential.
Plum’s legacy in Los Angeles will hinge on whether this reset becomes a turning point or just another chapter in a long rebuild. The expectations have shifted, internally and externally.
“Last year was tough,” Plum said. “We were right there at the end. But I think this year is different. Obviously, with all the free agency acquisitions, this is very exciting. We’re no longer the cute, young tadpole team. We have to win.”
There will be no replacement referees — and therefore, hopefully, no “Fail Mary” repeat — in the NFL this fall.
The league and the NFL Referees Assn. have avoided a work stoppage by agreeing on a new collective bargaining agreement that runs through the 2032 season.
The current deal was scheduled to expire May 31. The sides having been negotiating since the summer of 2024, and the NFL had begun the hiring process for replacement officials last month.
“This agreement is a testament to the joint commitment of the league and union to invest in and improve officiating,” NFL executive vice president of football operations Troy Vincent said in a statement. “It also speaks to the game officials’ relentless pursuit of improvement and officiating excellence. We look forward to working together for the betterment of the game.”
Terms of the agreement have not been released, but the Associated Press reported in March that the league had increased its offer to a 6.45% annual growth rate”growth rate” = increase? in compensation over a six-year labor deal.
“We see this new CBA as a partnership with the league that benefits our membership but also seeks to make our game better,” NFLRA president Carl Cheffers said in a statement. “It is good to get these negotiations behind us so we can focus on preparing for the 2026 season.”
No such agreement between the sides was reached during the 2012 offseason, leading to a lockout that lasted 110 days. It all culminated in Week 3 of that season with the notorious “Fail Mary” call at the end of the Green Bay Packers-Seattle Seahawks game on “Monday Night Football.”
With the Seahawks down by five in the closing seconds, quarterback Russell Wilson threw deep to receiver Golden Tate in the end zone. Green Bay defender M.D. Jennings appeared to come down with the ball first, with Tate attempting to wrestle the ball away.
Two officials stood above the players, with one signaling touchdown (meaning Tate caught the ball, Seattle wins) and the other signaling touchback (meaning Jennings caught the ball, Green Bay wins). The final call on the field was a touchdown, which stood after a lengthy review.
It got worse. The next day, the NFL released a statement saying the officials missed a pass interference call on Tate that would have negated the touchdown. A day after that, the NFL and the referees union announced a new collective bargaining agreement that brought the regular officials back for that weekend’s games.
There is no doubt Manchester United have given Bruno Fernandes a push to get this award.
United have been playing up Fernandes’ claims and also ensured the Portugal playmaker was promoted through some recent media engagements.
However, this would have been pointless had Fernandes not delivered at a time in the season when United needed him to deliver.
In October, when Fernandes spoke about qualification for the Champions League, few thought it was likely.
In January, when technical director Jason Wilcox told the United squad that was the aim despite Ruben Amorim’s dismissal, it seemed a tall order.
That they have achieved it with three matches to spare and could yet end the campaign nearer in points terms to the eventual champions than in any other season since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement 13 years ago, owes a huge amount to Fernandes.
Since returning from a rare injury against Burnley, Sunday’s victory over Liverpool was only the third match out of 16 in all competitions when Fernandes has not either scored a goal or created one.
His performances across the season have been consistently high and worthy of wider recognition.
Twelve months ago, when the debate over Fernandes’ United future raged, the question being asked was simply this: where would they be without him? The suspicion was they would have been much closer to relegation than they actually were.
The same could be asked now. The answer? They surely would not be looking forward to a Champions League return.
From Broderick Turner:LeBron James sat with both feet in a bucket of ice and both knees wrapped in ice, his answers brief when the subject of the officiating came up after the Lakers lost Game 2 to the Oklahoma City Thunder, 125-107, Thursday night at Paycom Center.
James just looked straight ahead and kept his answers short even when he was told his coach, JJ Redick, voiced his displeasure with the officiating, especially when it was about the lack of calls for his 23-year veteran.
When asked about the officials, which became the main theme after the Lakers dropped a second consecutive game by 18 points in the best-of-seven semifinal series, James was diplomatic.
Go beyond the scoreboard
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“We’re down 2-0,” he said.
Indeed, the Lakers are down 2-0 in the that resumes with Game 3 on Saturday night in Los Angeles.
Still, James was asked about Redick saying his superstar gets some of the worst calls and why that is the case — at least in the eyes of Redick.
“I don’t know,” James said.
Again, James was asked about his conversation with the officials and if he’s satisfied with their answers.
“Nah,” James said.
James shot only four free throws in the game, and he made all four, finishing with 23 points. Austin Reaves responded from a bad Game 1 by scoring a playoff career-high 31 points on 10-for-16 shooting, making three if six three-pointers.
Even with an impressive Lakers defense that constantly doubled teamed Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to keep him to 22 points and in foul trouble most of the game, L.A. spent a lot of time after the game complaining about the officials.
Lakers forward LeBron James stands on the court as some fans hold up photo cut-outs of Oklahoma City Thunder players Thursday.
(Nate Billings / Associated Press)
From Bill Plaschke: They have long since proven themselves as an endlessly efforting Laker team that never believes they’re beaten.
They’re beaten.
With the sort of resounding resilience that had earlier carried them to playoff wins without their two leading scorers, these Lakers have shown they desperately do not want this season to be over.
It’s over.
The Oklahoma City Thunder overcame another valiant Lakers charge Thursday night to win their second game in two tries in the Western Conference semifinals at Paycom Center.
The Lakers played hard, played tough, played the Thunder from baseline to baseline, played strong enough to fly home with pride.
And still lost by 18.
The 125-107 Thunder victory gives the defending champions a two-games-to-none lead in a series that is scheduled for as many as seven games.
They created this monster. They sent it out into the world.
The Oklahoma City Thunder, top-seeded in the NBA playoffs for the third consecutive season, are running roughshod over opponents. Kicking everybody’s butts and driving everyone up the wall.
And, oh, Clippers what did you do?
This Oklahoma City juggernaut, built to last in an era that would otherwise be remembered for its parity?
It was spawned on July 6, 2019, when the Clippers traded Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Danilo Gallinari and a boatload of draft picks to the Thunder in exchange for Paul George, who they paired with free agent Kawhi Leonard, mortgaging their future on the failed bet that two Southern Californians would lead the franchise to its first NBA title.
A look at how Shohei Ohtani is working to snap his slump
Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani doubles during a win over the Astros in Houston on Wednesday.
(Ashley Landis / Associated Press)
From Maddie Lee: It was to almost the same spot as the much harder cutter Ohtani had just fouled off. But Ohtani, starting his swing on time for the fastball, recognized the sweeper early enough to stop this momentum, throw his hands to the ball, and hit a low line drive up the right-field line for a double.
That hit in the third inning of the Dodgers’ 12-2 blowout win Wednesday was his first in over a week. He’d gone 18 straight at-bats without a hit. Watching Ohtani grind through the slump, manager Dave Roberts even decided to give Ohtani the day off from hitting when he took the mound Tuesday.
Then on Wednesday — whether it was the result of that break, or on-field batting practice two days before, or a culmination of work, or some combination of the three — Ohtani logged two hits and a walk.
“Today was a good day for Shohei,” Roberts said.
So, what was going wrong, and how is Ohtani going about trying to make sure his good day becomes the start of an offensive turnaround?
Sparks guard Kelsey Plum left a WNBA champion in Las Vegas for a chance to build a title contender.
(Elsa Garrison / Getty Images)
From Marisa Ingemi: On a rare off day in Los Angeles, Sparks guard Kelsey Plum settles into a quieter rhythm. She brings a book to a dog park near her home, finds a spot, and reads. But even here, the stillness is partial at best. Her mind keeps working, circling the same question that has followed her through every stage of her career. What does greatness actually require?
Right now, Plum is reading “The Talent Code,” a book that digs into the tension between nature and nurture. It’s not exactly light reading for a day off, but then again, she isn’t really wired for off days.
“Talent,” she says, “takes countless hours of practice. Sure, you have some natural ability, but you have to train it. You look at like a Russian tennis player, why are they good? Is it random? The similarity with greatness is practice.”
That idea, practice as the great equalizer, shapes how Plum sees her career now, in a moment that demands more from her than ever before.
Second round All times Pacific at Oklahoma City 108, Lakers 90 (box score) at Oklahoma City 125, Lakers 107, (box score) Saturday at Lakers, 5:30 p.m., ABC Monday at Lakers, 7:30 p.m., Prime Video *Wednesday at Oklahoma City, TBD *Saturday, May 16 at Lakers, TBD *Monday, May 18 at Oklahoma City, TBD *- if necessary
Ducks playoffs schedule
Second round All times Pacific at Vegas 3, Ducks 1 (summary) Ducks 3, at Vegas 1 (summary) Friday at Ducks, 6:30 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO MAX Sunday at Ducks, 6:30 p.m., ESPN *Tuesday at Vegas, TBD, ESPN *Thursday, May 14 at Ducks, TBD, TNT, truTV, HBO MAX *Saturday, May 16 at Vegas, TBA, ABC or ESPN *-if necessary
This day in sports history
1907 — Canadian Tommy Burns retains his world heavyweight boxing title after beating ‘Philadelphia’ Jack O’Brien on points in 20 rounds.
1915 — Regret, ridden by Joe Notter, becomes the first filly to win the Kentucky Derby, with a 2-length wire-to-wire victory over Pebbles.
1937 — War Admiral, the favorite ridden by Charles Kurtsinger, wins the Kentucky Derby by 1 3/4 lengths over Pompoon.
1943 — Count Fleet, ridden by Johnny Longden, wins the Preakness Stakes by 8 lengths over Blue Swords.
1954 — World record holder William Parry O’Brien becomes the first man to throw the shot put more than 60 feet with a 60-5¼ toss at a meet in Los Angeles.
1967 — Muhammad Ali is indicted for refusing induction in U.S. Army.
1968 — Jim “Catfish” Hunter of the Oakland A’s pitches a perfect game, beating the Minnesota Twins 4-0. It is the first perfect game in the American League regular season in 46 seasons.
1970 — Walt Frazier scores 36 points to lead the New York Knicks to a 113-99 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers and the NBA championship in seven games.
1974 — FC Magdenburg of East Germany win 14th European Cup Winner’s Cup against AC Milan of Italy 2-0 in Rotterdam.
1984 — On the day the Olympic torch relay begins, the Soviet Union announces it will not take part in the 1984 Summer Olympics. The Soviet National Olympic Committee Union said the participation of Soviet athletes would be impossible because of “the gross flouting” of Olympic ideals by U.S. authorities.
1993 — Lennox Lewis of Britain scores a unanimous 12-round decision over Tony Tucker in his first defense of the WBC heavyweight title in Las Vegas.
1995 — New Zealand’s Black Magic 1 takes a 2-0 lead, defeating Young America by the widest margin for a challenger since the 1871 America’s Cup.
1996 — Paris Saint-Germain of France win 36th European Cup Winner’s Cup against Rapid Wien of Austria 1-0 in Brussels.
2001 — Randy Johnson becomes the third pitcher to strike out 20 in nine innings. He doesn’t finish the game as the Arizona Diamondbacks go on to beat Cincinnati 4-3 in 11 innings.
2003 — Minnesota becomes the first team in NHL history to rebound from two 3-1 series deficits to win in one postseason with a 4-2 victory at Vancouver.
2011 — University of Georgia senior Russell Henley becomes the second amateur winner in PGA Nationwide Tour history, shooting a 3-under 68 for a two-stroke victory in the Stadion Classic.
2011 — The Tradition Senior Men’s Golf, Shoal Creek G&CC: Tom Lehman wins second of 3 Champions Tour majors with par on 2nd playoff hole against Australian Peter Senior.
2012 — Josh Hamilton becomes the 16th player to hit four home runs in a game, launching a quartet of two-run drives against three different pitchers to carry the Texas Rangers to a 10-3 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.
2013 — Alex Ferguson announces his retirement as Manchester United’s manager at the end of the season.
2014 — The Houston Texans takes South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney with the first pick in the NFL draft. The draft’s other big name, Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel, sits until Cleveland makes its third trade of the round and grabs the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner at No. 22.
2018 — Seattle Mariners MLB left-hander James Paxton hurls a no-hitter in a 5-0 win over the Blue Jays in Toronto.
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. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
OKLAHOMA CITY — Austin Reaves has officially entered the Lakers’ postseason chat. It might still be too little, too late.
The Lakers guard responded to his worst playoff performance with his best, recording a playoff career-high 31 points Thursday in the Lakers’ 125-107 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder at Paycom Center.
But against the powerful Thunder, Reaves didn’t get a chance to punctuate his comeback night with any emphatic celebration. He instead ended the game in a heated conversation with officials, surrounded by almost all of his teammates as the Lakers felt they were battling the referees and the Thunder in equal measure.
Reaves’ game-high scoring effort wasn’t enough to fend off the relentless defending champions that had six players score in double figures, including three with 20 or more points. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren each had 22 points for the Thunder, who take a 2-0 lead as the best-of-seven series turns to Los Angeles for Game 3 on Saturday.
With Luka Doncic sidelined because of a hamstring injury that is expected to keep him out for three more weeks, the Lakers are still outmanned in the Western Conference semifinals despite Reaves’ recent return. He rushed back from a Grade 2 left oblique strain in time to play in the Lakers’ first-round series but has struggled to find his rhythm after a month-long absence.
He shot a dreadful three for 16 from the field in Game 1 against the Thunder, finished with only eight points and missed all five of his three-point shots. Including his two first-round games, Reaves had missed 14 consecutive three-pointers entering Game 2.
Criticism of Reaves dominated social media after Game 1. The 27-year-old guard is due for a new contract this summer that would solidify his status as one of the sport’s star players. A slow start to these playoffs and last year’s postseason struggles made Reaves an online punching bag for fan frustrations.
But the low-key Reaves is “one of the least chronically online NBA players there is,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said before the game. The extent of Reaves’ social media usage is his long-time friend Trent Swaim posting golfing videos on the duo’s “Hillbilly Bogey” accounts and Reaves asking his representatives to post sponsored content for his endorsement deals.
He doesn’t need to troll internet comments to fuel his game. Reaves can do that on his own.
Lakers guard Austin Reaves, center right, talks with referee John Goble, center left, after the team’s loss in Game 2 on Thursday night in Oklahoma City.
(Nate Billings / Associated Press)
“He’s got a great sense of self-accountability to where he’s his own worst critic,” Redick said before the game, “and he’s going to hold himself to a standard of how he wants to play.”
Reaves drove aggressively into the paint early Thursday, tying the score 16-16 in the first quarter on a three-point play after the Lakers erased an early seven-point deficit. He had 13 points in the first half as the Lakers took a one-point lead into the locker room. He scored or assisted on the Lakers’ first 11 points of the third quarter as the team built a five-point lead with 8:35 to go in the third.
“That’s what we need Austin to be,” guard Luke Kennard said. “Even though he missed some shots last game, he was aggressive and he just got back into it. … I know a lot of people can think it’s easy to just come back and play a basketball game but at this level, what he’s done last series and now, it’s impressive. We need him to continue to be aggressive. He’s such a good teammate, easy to play with. It’s good to see him have a really good game and, hopefully gives him confidence going into the next one.”
The Lakers need to play near-perfect basketball to have a chance to knock off the defending champions. The Thunder took a 2-0 series lead against the Lakers despite relatively quiet performances from Gilgeous-Alexander. The reigning most valuable player had 18 points in Game 1 and was limited to less than 28 minutes Thursday because of foul trouble.
When Gilgeous-Alexander picked up his fourth foul with 10:34 remaining in the third quarter Thursday, the Thunder trailed 66-61. They didn’t need their star to rip off a 27-19 run to finish the quarter and take a commanding 13-point lead into the fourth.
The Lakers had seven turnovers during the decisive stretch. Reaves had five of the Lakers’ 21 total giveaways and the miscues turned into 26 points for the Thunder, who led the league in points off turnovers during the regular season.
“It starts with the turnovers,” Reaves said. “I think you’re not going to be perfect; you’re going to have turnovers. Just trying to eliminate the live-ball turnovers where they get easy fast-break layups or threes or dunks.”
Khamzat Chimaev kicked Sean Strickland – despite the presence of armed police on stage – as the pair faced off following an ugly news conference before UFC 328 on Saturday.
A bitter and personal exchange escalated even further when Chimaev, despite being held back by UFC security, beckoned Strickland towards him as the pair traded insults, before launching a kick at the American.
As the crowd roared, security and armed police escorted each fighter off stage in separate directions as they continued to hurl expletives at each other.
Tensions have threatened to boil over throughout fight week, with Russian-Emirati middleweight champion Chimaev set to defend his belt against American Strickland in Newark, New Jersey on Saturday.
It is not uncommon for UFC fighters to insult each other in the hope of building hype around a fight, but Strickland has been particularly volatile while addressing Chimaev – launching derogatory and racist comments which have attacked his religion and heritage.
Last week, Strickland threatened to shoot Chimaev if the 32-year-old and his team-mates confronted him in the build-up to the fight.
In response, the UFC has hired extra security to protect each fighter and reportedly kept the pair in separate hotels.
Chimaev has been calm and reserved during fight week, despite Strickland’s derogatory comments, but was animated during the news conference.
Before the pair had even taken their seats, security had to intervene and, as Strickland continued to goad Chimaev, he responded with ugly comments about childhood trauma which the American has spoken about in the past.
“You’re making fun of child abuse,” replied Strickland, who followed up with further expletives.
When asked if he enjoyed the bitter rivalry between Chimaev and Strickland, UFC president Dana White – who was stood between the pair – responded “it is what it is”.
He previously described it as a “top-three” heated rivalry of all time in the UFC.
Despite the offensive comments from Strickland and Chimaev, it is unlikely the UFC will take any disciplinary action with White a vocal supporter of free speech.
“I think probably the most important free speech to protect is hate speech,” White said last year.
“Because when a government or a certain person can come out and determine saying ‘this is hate speech’, it’s a very slippery slope and it’s dangerous, in my opinion.”
Strickland did not appear to be hurt by Chimaev’s kick and afterwards wrote “exactly what I expected a coward to do”, on social media.
It is unclear whether the New Jersey Athletic Control Board will punish Chimaev for the altercation.
However, playing Motherwell at Fir Park this season is among the toughest tests in the league. Only Falkirk, twice, have won there and Motherwell have conceded just nine goals in 17 home games – the fewest of any side in the division.
Hearts put in a conservative performance to get a 0-0 draw in their other visit back in November.
But even the games at Tynecastle between the sides have been keenly contested.
Then Motherwell pushed Hearts to the final few moments last month before succumbing to a 3-1 defeat. Had the visitors been more clinical, it could have been a different result.
Motherwell have already derailed Rangers’ title challenge with a 3-2 win at Ibrox a fortnight ago, and Hearts will be well aware of the threat Jens Berthel Askou’s side pose.
Given Celtic visit Fir Park on Wednesday, Motherwell could well be the kingmakers as they chase fourth place and European football for themselves.
A Hearts victory would be a giant step towards history and ensure Celtic have no room for error. So far the men in maroon have handled everything thrown at them.
LAS VEGAS — Perhaps you were a little surprised when the Ducks, who haven’t had a winning record in seven seasons, led the Pacific Division for most of the season, or when they made the playoffs for the first time since 2018, or when they eliminated the Edmonton Oilers — who played in the last two Stanley Cup Finals — in the first round of the playoffs this spring.
If you were surprised by any of that, wait until you hear what they’ve done now.
Because with a dominant 3-1 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday in Game 2 of a best-of-seven playoff series, the Ducks evened the series at a win apiece and wrested home-ice advantage away from the division champions. Now they come home for Game 3 on Friday with a strong wind at their backs in a series they were supposed to lose.
“We kept the momentum and we’re headed home, which is fantastic,” center Ryan Poehling said.
If the series goes a full seven games, the Ducks will play three of the last five game at home where — would it surprise you to learn? — they had the best home record in the division this season?
But it’s not just that the Ducks won, but how they won that’s important. The younger, speedier team has skated rings around the older — and frustrated — Golden Knights, who have made the playoffs eight times in nine years, winning a Stanley Cup in 2023. Two games into this series, however, the plodding Golden Knights have looked like they’re skating through quicksand at times and have really had no answer for Anaheim in this series.
“The way to beat them is just outpacing them,” Poehling said. “And it’s not just with speed. It’s how we play. Guys are supporting one another, and you saw that. Tonight was kind of a game plan of what we want to do to win, for sure.
Ducks forward Beckett Sennecke celebrates after scoring in the second period against the Golden Knights in Game 2 on Wednesday.
(Ethan Miller / Getty Images)
“We didn’t like how Game 1 ended, but we liked our game. That’s hockey sometimes. You can play the right way, do all the right things, we end up losing.”
The Golden Knights won Game 1 when a blown icing call allowed them to score the go-ahead goal before adding an insurance goal into an empty net. So the Ducks made sure one play wouldn’t decide Game 2, taking their first lead of the series on a Beckett Sennecke goal midway through the second period.
“We had some great opportunities to score first,” coach Joel Quenneville said. “Finding a way to score first was important.”
The Ducks also scored second and third, with Leo Carlsson doubling the lead 6:36 into the third period before Jansen Harkins scored into an empty net with 3:30 to play to ice things. That didn’t end the drama though because the Ducks were six seconds away from their first shutout of the season when Vegas’ Mark Stone scored a power-play goal into an empty net.
For the Ducks, that goal spoiled nothing.
“It doesn’t matter,” goalie Lukas Dostal said. “It doesn’t matter how you win, where the score is. Obviously it’s always the cherry on the top. But it doesn’t really matter. We got a W and that’s all we focus on.”
Maybe. But after a regular season in which the Ducks gave up more than 3.5 goals a game, most of any playoff qualifier, the defensive effort was…. well, surprising.
And important.
“That’s not our tradition of playing that type of game. Low-scoring affair, when we score first and we’re leading throughout,” Quenneville said.
Ducks goaltender Lukas Dostal protects the net in front of Vegas forward Tomas Hertl during the second period.
(John Locher / Associated Press)
But if the Ducks hope to make a long playoff run, that’s the blueprint they’ll have to follow.
“The only way you’re going to be successful in the playoffs is you’ve got to win games like tonight,” said Quenneville, whose three Stanley Cup wins with Chicago are the most by an active NHL coach. “We showed that it’s going to take everybody to play these type of games. And everybody contributed.”
“We’re picking a good time,” added defenseman Jacob Trouba “to play our best hockey.”
Still, the Ducks’ best hockey can get better. Anaheim was for 0 for Las Vegas on the power play, failing to score on nine opportunities with the man advantage in the two games — including an eight-minute stretch in the first period when Vegas had one, and sometimes two, players in the penalty box.
“We had some great chances on the power play,” said Quenneville, whose team scored on half of their 16 power-play chances in the first-round series with Edmonton. Vegas, however, has killed 19 straight penalties and 24 of 25 in the postseason.
Ducks forward Leo Carlsson scores past Vegas goaltender Carter Hart during the first period Wednesday.
(John Locher / Associated Press)
Yet that wasn’t good enough for the sweep at home, so the once-favored Golden Knights must break serve in Anaheim.
“They split here. We’ve got to go in and try to get a game out of there,” Vegas coach John Tortorella said. “We’re going to keep our composure and get about our business. This team has always been really good in these type of situations, so I have full confidence we’re going to find our way.”
If the Golden Knights fail to do that, they just might be in for a surprise.
Daniel is a very introverted man. He’s not somebody who goes out boasting, and I know he’s taken some stick this week because of that quiet nature.
I am protective of him. I always try to talk to him before we go into any media event, prepare him.
He just doesn’t enjoy that part of the fight game. He’s really not into all the verbals.
Whoever you are, you look at how people behave and what their make-up is. That’s if you want to get the best out of them.
You have to be clever, not sly, in how you deal with it. Good interviewers do that. Daniel does all his talking in the ring.
I don’t think he’ll ever change. His dad is his mentor and that’s all he knows – he’ll look to his dad before answering the question and still usually does.
That family is a tight unit. Some boxers, as they get successful, go partying but he doesn’t do any of that stuff.
I had to literally push him into the press room so the world could see him after that magnificent performance.
Our job as promoters is to find something you can bring out and get it to the public, so they want to be on this journey with this fighter.
Sometimes it’s difficult. With Prince Naseem Hamed, for example, it was easy. When I first met Naz, I knew exactly what I was going to do with him and how we were going to promote him.
So some guys are easily promotable, others it can be hard work, but that’s the business we’re in.
But Daniel has come out of his skin a bit lately. The funniest thing for me was when he did the head-to-head with Filip Hrgovic a few fights ago.
Hrgovic said Daniel had no heart, and Daniel just said he was going to knock him out – using an expletive I wouldn’t like to repeat.
I had never heard Daniel even swear before!
Everybody there was like: ‘What is that?’ It was like getting the vicar to swear. He found a voice from within himself.
