SPORT

De Minaur will be among those willing Alcaraz to victory after maintaining his interest in the season-ending competition despite opening with back-to-back defeats.

The 26-year-old was reluctant to trust the news that he would qualify with an Alcaraz win when he was initially informed in his post-match interview.

De Minaur had lost his past 16 matches against top 10 players, and each of the five matches he had previously played at the ATP Finals.

A painful defeat by Musetti on Tuesday, in which De Minaur held a 5-3 lead in the deciding set before losing four consecutive games to concede the match, had rocked his confidence.

But, against an opponent whom he had lost the two previous meetings, De Minaur reset mentally to produce an inspired display against Fritz.

“It means a lot. A couple of days ago I was in a pretty dark place,” De Minaur told Sky Sports.

“More than anything, I feel proud of my efforts. Not for just coming out and winning, but also the mindset. I made peace with what had happened and just committed.”

Speaking in his post-match interview, he said on court: “I’ve dealt with a fair bit of heartbreak recently.

“I’ve worked really hard, so it was good to get a positive reward for that.

“[The loss to Musetti] was a tough pill to swallow. I didn’t overthink today, I just went out and committed to what I needed to do. I continued to back myself and, whether it worked or it didn’t, I was going to leave it all out there today.”

It’s more than two hours before Sherman Oaks Notre Dame’s football team plays in a Southern Section playoff game, and there’s one big teenager lying on his back at the 50-yard line with headphones on. Samson Fatu, 6 feet 5 and 305 pounds, is using the all-weather turf as his “Sleep Number bed.”

“Here I Am,” a song by J Boog, is playing on his headphones. This is the way Fatu focuses before a game.

He’s a starting offensive tackle for Notre Dame, which hosts Chino Hills in a Division 3 playoff game on Friday. His father, Rikishi, is in the WWE Hall of Fame. Three brothers are pro wrestlers and don’t be surprised if Samson one day becomes the latest Samoan family member to start throwing people down. He’s that big and strong and anyone named Samson has star power.

He’s finally healthy after getting injured last season. Get your photos of the big kid with lots of hair. One day you might be watching him on TV in football or wrestling.

This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email [email protected].

Foden and Bellingham have been used in wide positions for England in the past, but Tuchel’s selections suggest Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford, who is on loan at Barcelona, and Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka are his first choices on the left and right flank respectively, with Newcastle’s Anthony Gordon, Arsenal’s Eberechi Eze and West Ham’s Jarrod Bowen next in line.

So can Bellingham, Foden and Kane play together?

Gareth Southgate certainly thought so.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane started all of England’s seven games at Euro 2024 in Germany, where Southgate’s side lost to Spain in the final.

In the 16 games the trio have played alongside each other, England have won 10, drawn three and lost three, scoring 36 times and conceding 14. Of those 36 goals, Kane scored 14, Bellingham three and Foden two.

However, since Tuchel came in, the only time all three have played together was in the opening 74 minutes of his first game. Foden was substituted at 1-0 in a 2-0 win over Albania.

Tuchel is not the first England manager to have to juggle his side around to fit the best players in, with Sven-Goran Eriksson constantly trying to find the right balance in midfield.

Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Paul Scholes won the Champions League during their careers in central midfield for Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United respectively from the late 1990s to early 2010s.

They are regarded as three of England’s best midfielders, with Gerrard winning 114 caps, Lampard 106 and Scholes 66. However, they played in the same England side only eight times, with Scholes often moved to the left to accommodate Gerrard and Lampard in the middle.

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: Dalton Knecht soared through the air for an emphatic two-handed dunk. Luka Doncic, who fired the full-court assist on the basket, looked at the Lakers bench and clapped twice in encouragement. But nothing was going to help the Lakers crawl out of this.

Unlike the blowout loss in Atlanta last Saturday, it appeared the Lakers were at least mentally prepared to compete against the league-leading Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday. The problem in the 121-92 loss was that they simply could not keep up.

Reigning most valuable player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 30 points on 10 for 18 shooting with nine assists. The Lakers’ own MVP hopeful Doncic had 19 points, making just seven of 20 shots with seven assists and four turnovers.

“We got our ass kicked,” said guard Marcus Smart, who was held to nine points with two turnovers. “And we got to bounce back.”

Crossing into the homestretch of their first extended road trip of the season, the Lakers (8-4) have two games remaining, playing in New Orleans and Milwaukee on Friday and Saturday, respectively. The five-game stretch, which started with a rout by Atlanta and a win in Charlotte, has provided mixed results. The team celebrated its connection and chemistry off the court, but is still trying to find solid footing after major offseason changes and early season injuries.

“I don’t think it’s been a great road trip for us, just in terms of how we played,” coach JJ Redick said. “Second half against Charlotte, I liked everything that I saw. But the Atlanta game [and] tonight, I don’t think are reflective of who the group is going to be, but it clearly is who the group is right now.”

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Lakers box score

NBA standings

CLIPPERS

Nikola Jokic had 55 points, tying the highest-scoring performance in the NBA this season, and 12 rebounds and the Denver Nuggets beat the shorthanded Clippers 130-116 on Wednesday night for their sixth straight victory.

Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 55 in a double-overtime game at Indiana on Oct. 23.

Jokic scored 25 of Denver’s 39 points in the first quarter. He had eight in the second before coming back with 19 in the third. He sat out most of the fourth before scoring three points to complete his night going 18 of 23 from the field. He missed adding to his league-leading six triple-doubles with six assists. The Serbian big man was five of six on three-pointers and made 14 of 16 free throws.

James Harden scored 23 points — making all 10 of his free throws — and had eight rebounds and five assists to lead the spiraling Clippers, who took a major blow earlier in the day when they found out that Bradley Beal will miss the rest of the season with a fractured hip. They’re currently without Kawhi Leonard, who has a sprained ankle and foot.

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Clippers box score

NBA standings

Clippers guard Bradley Beal out for season with hip fracture

From Ben Bolch: A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge on Wednesday denied a request from the Rose Bowl Operating Co. and the City of Pasadena seeking a temporary restraining order in their attempt to keep UCLA football games at the Rose Bowl, saying those entities had not demonstrated an emergency that would necessitate such an action.

Judge James C. Chalfant said previous cases in which the New York Yankees, New York Jets and Minnesota Twins were barred from moving games did not apply to this situation because those teams were scheduled to play in a matter of days or weeks and UCLA’s next scheduled game at the Rose Bowl after its home season finale against Washington on Nov. 22 isn’t until the fall of 2026.

The judge also said there was no indication that the Rose Bowl or Pasadena would suffer imminent financial harm because a contract to construct a field-level club in one end zone had not been signed.

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From Ryan Kartje: It was two years ago this month, with USC’s defense at an unthinkable nadir, that Lincoln Riley finally decided to fire Alex Grinch, his first defensive coordinator.

“I am that committed, and we are all that committed to playing great defense here,” Riley said in 2023. “Whatever it takes to get that done, that’s what we’re going to do.”

Not everyone took Riley’s comments seriously at the time.

“There’s a school on the West Coast right now that’s going to re-commit to defense,” Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said a month later. “You give up [46] to Tulane last year in a bowl game — at a place where Ronnie Lott played. Now they’re going to think about defense. That was the first thing we thought about 25 years ago.”

Rest assured, USC has thought about it plenty since. And now two years into the rethinking process, with the College Football Playoff very much within reach in mid-November, USC’s defense is still the biggest question mark facing Riley and his staff over the final stretch of this season which continues, fittingly, against Ferentz and his 21st-ranked Hawkeyes on Saturday.

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DODGERS

From Jack Harris: Last offseason, the Dodgers swung big in their offseason pursuit of impact bullpen additions.

After largely striking out, however, they might now have to decide if they’re comfortable doing it again.

The Dodgers don’t have glaring needs this winter, but the back end of the bullpen is one area they will look to upgrade. Although the team has ample relief depth, it has no clear-cut closer as it enters 2026.

The main reason why: Tanner Scott’s struggles after landing a lucrative four-year, $72-million pact last winter.

Scott’s signing represented the second-largest contract, by guaranteed money, the Dodgers had ever given to a relief pitcher (only behind the five-year, $80 million deal closer Kenley Jansen got in 2017). It was a high-risk, high-reward move that, at least in Year 1, quickly felt like a bust.

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DODGER STADIUM GONDOLA

From Bill Shaikin: Frank McCourt’s proposed gondola from Union Station to Dodger Stadium hit what appears to be its most significant roadblock yet on Wednesday, when the Los Angeles City Council voted to urge Metro to kill the project.

The resolution, approved by an 12-1 vote, is not in itself any kind of formal decision. It would not take effect unless Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass concurs, and Bass previously voted in favor of the project as a member of the Metro board.

But it makes clear that a City Council vote to approve the project, which is expected next year, could be an increasingly challenging hurdle for McCourt and his allies to overcome.

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L.A. OLYMPICS

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: LA28 released the detailed daily competition schedule for the biggest Olympics in history on Wednesday, laying out every event for the 19 days of competition that will feature more than 11,000 athletes across 51 sports.

Along with being the largest in Games history, the 2028 Summer Olympics will be the first to include more female athletes than men. The schedule honors the historic moment for women in sports by showcasing the women’s 100-meter final at the Coliseum as the primetime, marquee event on the first official day of competition on July 15, 2028.

“The reason we’re throwing out the women’s 100 meters on the first day is because we want to come on these Games with a bang,” Shana Ferguson, LA28’s chief of sport and head of Games delivery, said on a conference call. “And likely that race will be among the most watched of all the races in the Games. We just want to start that Day One with a massive, massive showcase of the fastest females in the world.”

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LA28 schedule adjustments clear path for MLB to send players to Olympics

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1934 — Ralph Bowman of the St. Louis Eagles scores the first penalty-shot goal in NHL history. Bowman’s goal comes on the second penalty shot attempt in league history and is the only goal for the Eagles, who lose to the Montreal Maroons 2-1.

1949 — Chicago’s Bob Nussbaumer intercepts four passes, and the Cardinals set an NFL record for points in a regular-season game with a 65-20 victory over the New York Bulldogs.

1955 — Goalies Glenn Hall and Terry Sawchuk play to a 0-0 tie at Boston Garden. Hall, a rookie goalie with the Detroit Red Wings, and Terry Sawchuk of the Bruins, played to a 0-0 tie on Oct. 22 at the Olympia in Detroit. The shutout is the 61st for Sawchuk and the fourth for Hall.

1964 — St. Louis Hawks forward Bob Pettit becomes the first NBA player to score 20,000 points, with 29 in a 123-106 loss to the Cincinnati Royals.

1971 — Colorado’s Charlie Davis sets an NCAA record for a sophomore by rushing for 342 yards in a 40-6 victory over Oklahoma State.

1982 — Southern Miss beats Alabama 38-29 for the Tide’s first loss in Tuscaloosa since 1963, breaking a 57-game winning streak in Bryant-Denny Stadium.

1982 — Chicago’s Tony Esposito becomes the fourth NHL goaltender with 400 victories. Esposito makes 34 saves to help the Blackhawks beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 at Joe Louis Arena.

1984 — Bernie Nicholls of the Kings becomes the first NHL player to get a goal in all four periods of a game. Nicholls scores once in each period and again at 2:57 of overtime to give the Kings a 5-4 victory over the Quebec Nordiques.

1992 — Riddick Bowe wins the world heavyweight championship with a unanimous decision over Evander Holyfield.

1993 — No. 2 Notre Dame runs out to a 17-point lead and hangs on to beat top-ranked Florida State 31-24 when Charlie Ward’s desperation pass is knocked down on the goal line as time expires.

1999 — Lennox Lewis becomes the undisputed heavyweight champion with a unanimous decision over Evander Holyfield in Las Vegas.

2005 — In the longest play in NFL history, Chicago defensive back Nathan Vasher returns a missed field goal 108 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the first half in a 17-9 win against the 49ers.

2009 — McKendree basketball coach Harry Statham wins his 1,000th game with a 79-49 victory over East-West University. The 72-year-old Statham is 1,000-381 at the NAIA school.

2015 — Candance Brown makes a layup with 1.2 seconds left and Gardner-Webb rallies to shock No. 22 North Carolina 66-65 in the opener for both teams. Gardner-Webb had trailed by 15 points entering the fourth quarter.

2015 — Russia’s track federation is suspended by the sport’s international governing body and its athletes are barred from international competition for a widespread and state-sanctioned doping program. It’s the first time the IAAF bans a country for doping.

2018 — Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer becomes the fifth Division I women’s basketball coach to win 1,000 games when the Scarlet Knights beat Central Connecticut State 73-44. Stringer joins Pat Summitt, Geno Auriemma, Tara VanDerveer and Sylvia Hatchell.

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 [email protected]. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Promoter Eddie Hearn says reports of a deal being agreed for a fight between Anthony Joshua and Jake Paul have “jumped the gun” but admits there is a chance the pair could meet in the ring before the end of the year.

READ MORE: Joshua v Paul? Hearn says ‘maybe’ with camps in talks

Behind the scenes the changes have been seismic.

The motivation was twofold.

As they assessed the inner workings of the club, senior figures around the ownership concluded it was “over-dimensioned”, according to one observer close to the process.

In other words, there were too many people and too many jobs.

They found a structure which they felt required United to be playing in the Champions League every season and competing to win the Premier League. Failure put a strain on finances.

Having reached such a view and with losses so high, slashing staff numbers was a harsh but inevitable reality.

An initial cull of 250 staff within months of Ratcliffe’s arrival was carried out to get the numbers down.

It is accepted internally that the pain created was extensive, the shock huge.

It was the second round of 200 redundancies this year that allowed the hierarchy to pursue a different staffing model, so finance could be used in what was felt to be a more efficient way.

Nowhere is the impact of that more evident than in United’s data operation.

In an interview with the popular United We Stand fanzine in December 2024, Ratcliffe described the club’s approach to data analysis as being in the “last century”.

It was felt that Formula 1 was the sport at the cutting edge of data and AI use. The performance of every single component is monitored in fine detail, and success and failure can be measured in hundredths of a second.

As a result, Michael Sansoni’s arrival from the Mercedes F1 team as director of data in April was one of the least surprising moves.

Sansoni has completely revamped United’s data capabilities, which are now being used extensively across performance, recruitment and training.

Precise details of the work Sansoni has implemented are a closely guarded secret, but one source said the work of United’s data and analytics team has accelerated to such a degree it is now “among the top four teams”.

Following the second set of job cuts there was a strategic focus to bring in what have been described as “versatile people who are multi-faceted and multi-skilled to help in multiple areas”.

It is the senior appointments that really catch the eye, though.

A quick list of new arrivals among senior staff at the Old Trafford club unearths 19 names.

Not all the exits were forced and, as at any big organisation, a change in ownership can lead to movement further down – but the scale of change has been significant.

Two notable figures remain: Collette Roche and Martin Mosley.

Chief operating officer Roche is leading United’s representation around their proposed 100,000-capacity new stadium and the wider Old Trafford regeneration.

Mosley joined United in 2007 and took over as general counsel in the summer of 2024 following the departure of Patrick Stewart, who is now chief executive at Rangers.

Roche and Mosley’s presence is regarded as a crucial link to the pre-Ratcliffe era while those running the club get a full understanding of the scale of United, which can come as a shock, even for those – like chief executive Omar Berrada (Barcelona/Manchester City), chief business officer Marc Armstrong (Paris St Germain), performance director Sam Erith (Manchester City/Tottenham/FA) and director of recruitment Christopher Vivell (Chelsea/Red Bull) – with experience of working at big clubs.

Trusted Ineos figure Roger Bell has become United’s chief finance officer and Kirstin Furber has arrived from Channel 4 as people director.

But it goes much further. A head of sports medicine and, for the first team, a new doctor, a new physio and a new performance chef. Experts in nutrition and soft tissue treatment. Academy director. Media director. All part of the nuts and bolts at a leading Premier League club in 2025.

So many significant figures from the previous era, who negotiated key deals, treated players and presented the public face of the club, have gone.

No-one can be sure if the future will be better.

As with every other club, external judgement of the success or failure of off-field change can be swift and it is almost always connected to results of the first team, which by their nature can hinge on arbitrary moments.

There is an acceptance internally at United of an unquantifiable lag time between inception of new processes and their outcome.

Sometimes, though, it becomes obvious a certain move has failed.

Dan Ashworth clearly falls into that category. Highly respected in the game, Ashworth’s willingness to leave Newcastle to take up the job of sporting director is still felt at Old Trafford to be a positive and reflected well on the changes being made and future direction anticipated.

However, after United paid Newcastle £3m in compensation, within five months he was gone.

Sources deny that a split occurred around the choice of Ten Hag’s replacement.

But there was a difference of opinion, the respective views of how Ashworth’s job should work did not fit and a parting of the ways – with another compensation payment, in the region of £4m – was viewed as the inevitable outcome.

HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

CIF SOCAL REGIONALS
WEDNESDAY’S RESULTS
First Round

OPEN DIVISION
#1 Sierra Canyon d. #8 Mira Costa, 25-23, 23-25, 25-17, 25-19
#5 Marymount d. #4 San Diego Cathedral, 26-24, 25-20, 25-9
#3 Torrey Pines d. #6 San Juan Hills, 25-15, 25-22, 25-6
#2 Mater Dei d. #7 Redondo Union, 29-27, 25-19, 25-21

THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE
(Matches at 6 p.m. unless noted)
Quarterfinals

DIVISION I
#9 Long Beach Poly at #1 Harvard-Westlake
#12 Bishop Montgomery at #4 West Ranch
#6 Coronado at #3 Santa Margarita
#10 Bakersfield Centennial at #2 Temecula Valley, 5 p.m.

DIVISION II
#9 Arroyo Valley at # 1 Liberty, 5 p.m.
#13 Ventura at #12 La Canada
#6 Scripps Ranch at #3 Cypress
#15 Dana Hills at #7 Carlsbad

DIVISION III
#8 Royal at #1 Academy of Our Lady of Peace
#5 Patrick Henry at #4 Santa Fe Christian
#6 Ontario Christian at #3 Mission Vista
#7 Chadwick at #2 Frontier, 5:30 p.m.

DIVISION IV
#8 Grant at #1 Nipomo
#13 West Valley vs. #12 Capistrano Valley Christian at Capistrano Valley
#5 LA University at #3 Granada Hills
#10 Rock Academy at #2 Mammoth

DIVISION V
#8 Panorama at #1 East Valley
#5 Artesia at #4 Elsinore
#11 Nogales at #3 O’Farrell Charter
#10 South El Monte at #2 Morro Bay, 5 p.m.

Note: Semifinals (all divisions) Nov. 15 at higher seeds; Finals (all divisions) Nov. 18 at higher seeds.

Stephen Curry scored 46 points as the Golden State Warriors inflicted a first home NBA defeat of the season on the San Antonio Spurs.

The two-time Most Valuable Player (MVP) helped the Warriors end a six-game losing streak on the road with a 125-120 victory at Frost Bank Center in Texas.

Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle became the first Spurs players to record triple-doubles in the same game, but Curry scored 29 points in the second half as the Warriors outscored the Spurs 76-64.

“That third quarter is what we do – getting stops, pushing, creating easy offence. Thankfully I was able to knock a couple down,” Curry said.

Jimmy Butler contributed 28 points and eight assists for the Warriors, while Moses Moody scored 19 points.

HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS TENNIS

SOUTHERN SECTION PLAYOFFS
WEDNESDAY’S RESULTS
Semifinals

DIVISION 1
Corona del Mar 13, Mater Dei 5
Portola 9, Mira Costa 9 (Portola wins on games 68-67)

DIVISION 2
Calabasas 10, Woodbridge 8
Harvard-Westlake 15, Crean Lutheran 3

DIVISION 3
Temple City 11, Whitney 7
Flintridge Prep 9, Campbell Hall 9 (Flintridge Prep wins on games)

DIVISION 4
Oaks Christian 11, Pasadena Poly 7
Agoura 12, Torrance 6

DIVISION 5
Valencia 10, Burbank 8
Lakewood St. Joseph 10, Cerritos 8

DIVISION 6
Villa Park 10, Flintridge Sacred Heart 8
Village Christian 13, Saugus 5

DIVISION 7
Laguna Hills at Malibu
Oakwood 11, Segerstrom 7

DIVISION 8
Bishop Diego 10, Tahquitz 8
Garden Grove Santiago 10, Oxnard 8

MONDAY’S SCHEDULE
FINALS
At University of Redlands

DIVISION 1
Portola vs. Corona Del Mar, 3:15 p.m.

DIVISION 2
Calabasas vs. Harvard-Westlake, 3 p.m.

DIVISION 3
Flintridge Prep vs. Temple City, 12 p.m.

DIVISION 4
Oaks Christian vs. Agoura, 12:15 p.m.

At The Claremont Club

DIVISION 5
Valencia vs. Lakewood St. Joseph, 11 a.m.

DIVISION 6
Villa Park vs. Village Christian, 11:10 a.m.

DIVISION 7
Malibu / Laguna Hills vs. Oakwood, 1:30 p.m.

DIVISION 8
Bishop Diego vs. Garden Grove Santiago, 1:40 p.m.

While the spectre of Bale is inescapable with Wales, Johnson had another impossible act to follow at Spurs, joining in the same transfer window that saw Harry Kane leave for Bayern Munich.

“He came in at quite a weird time for the club. I’m not sure they really had a good plan for how to replace Kane,” says Jack Pitt-Brooke, who covers Spurs for The Athletic.

“Johnson came in at a difficult moment but, with injuries to other players, he ended up playing tons that year and he was actually pretty good.”

It helped that it was then-Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou who signed Johnson, who scored 23 goals in all competitions during his first two seasons.

“He fitted what Ange wanted from wingers,” Pitt-Brooke adds. “Really high and wide, scoring goals where a winger goes down one side, pulls the ball back across the box, and the opposite side winger taps it in. Johnson was good at both delivering that cross, and also tapping it in at the far post.”

Under Postecoglou, Spurs won the Europa League – with Johnson scoring the winner in the final against Manchester United – but the Australian was sacked this summer after the club finished 17th in the Premier League.

Thomas Frank replaced him – and the Dane replaced Johnson, with Kudus.

“Frank wants to play a different way, and he wants his wingers to do a lot more on the ball than just score tap-ins,” says Pitt-Brooke.

“Spurs paid £55m for Kudus, who doesn’t score many goals, but everything until he gets to the opposition goal is much better than Johnson.

“At the moment, I don’t think any Spurs fan would have Johnson in their first-choice team. It’s not really clear where he fits.”

Johnson has managed four goals in his 17 appearances in all competitions this season but, according to many supporters and pundits, does not offer much else.

“He doesn’t really do a lot apart from scoring goals,” says Pitt-Brooke. “There are obviously worse things to be than a guy who’s just known for scoring goals, but I think people would probably have expected him to have done more.

“He’s a bit of a mystery.”

It was two years ago this month, with USC’s defense at an unthinkable nadir, that Lincoln Riley finally decided to fire Alex Grinch, his first defensive coordinator.

“I am that committed, and we are all that committed to playing great defense here,” Riley said in 2023. “Whatever it takes to get that done, that’s what we’re going to do.”

Not everyone took Riley’s comments seriously at the time.

“There’s a school on the West Coast right now that’s going to re-commit to defense,” Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said a month later. “You give up [46] to Tulane last year in a bowl game — at a place where Ronnie Lott played. Now they’re going to think about defense. That was the first thing we thought about 25 years ago.”

Rest assured, USC has thought about it plenty since. And now two years into the rethinking process, with the College Football Playoff very much within reach in mid-November, USC’s defense is still the biggest question mark facing Riley and his staff over the final stretch of this season which continues, fittingly, against Ferentz and his 21st-ranked Hawkeyes on Saturday.

On paper, the defensive improvement has been palpable, year over year, even if it’s a bit less drastic from this season to last. USC is giving up more than two fewer points per game in 2025 and fewer yards per game through the air and on the ground than in 2024. The defense has created more pressure, already with three more sacks than last season (24 to 21), and clamped down in the red zone, with opponents scoring only 67% of the time, third-best in the nation.

But that progress hasn’t always been linear, admits D’Anton Lynn, the Trojans defensive coordinator. Where in his first season, Lynn had a litany of experienced defenders from the transfer portal to lean on, his second season has made for a much different experience.

“This team is more talented, but they’re just young,” Lynn said. “It’s just guys who haven’t played before. There are certain mistakes you have to live through.”

Those mistakes have surfaced at some of the worst possible times this season. In the loss to Illinois, a late pass interference call and a missed tackle on a swing pass proved to be the difference. At Notre Dame, a blatant missed run fit saw Irish back Jeremiyah Love break off an explosive touchdown run that turned the tides. The run defense ended up coming unglued, giving up over 300 yards in a rainy defeat.

The last two games have been much more encouraging, with USC holding Northwestern and Nebraska to three points apiece after halftime. The difference between the two halves was significant as the Trojans held the two opponents to a combined total of 209 second-half yards.

In both cases, the defense didn’t find its stride until it was first punched in the mouth. But Riley credited Lynn for his adjustments from there.

“When leaks have sprung, we’ve been able to get them closed pretty quickly,” Riley said.

The next step is stopping those leaks before they burst. And that starts, Lynn says, with letting the mistakes they make roll off their shoulders.

That mental hurdle is one that USC’s young defense has struggled with this season.

“Just kind of all year with us, we’ve had those moments where we shoot ourselves in the foot, or we get good calls, and we just mess it up ourselves,” cornerback DeCarlos Nicholson said. “We’re just zoning in on that, and just the battle within ourselves. Like man we’ve gotta buckle down right, and we’ve gotta get this stuff done.”

That battle is quickly reaching its crescendo with just three weeks left in the season. But as that final stretch approaches, the blueprint for USC’s defense is clear to Lynn.

“We need to be consistent up front,” Lynn said. “We need to stop the run. We need to limit big plays. When we do those things, we can be a really good defense. That’s easier said than done, but again, it just comes back to being consistent.”

Great Britain’s women began their EuroBasket 2027 qualification attempt with a 85-64 victory over Switzerland in Manchester.

The hosts trailed 22-12 after the first quarter, before scoring 32 points in the second to lead by six at half-time.

Britain pulled away after the break to secure a dominant victory in their opening Group D match in the first round of qualifying.

Holly Winterburn hit a game-high 26 points for the hosts at the National Basketball Performance Centre.

Britain face Austria in Vienna on Saturday, before playing Norway in Bergen on Tuesday. The return legs will all take place in March.

The top two teams from each of the seven groups will advance to the second round of qualifying, alongside the three highest-ranked third-placed sides.

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge on Wednesday denied a request from the Rose Bowl Operating Co. and the City of Pasadena seeking a temporary restraining order in their attempt to keep UCLA football games at the Rose Bowl, saying those entities had not demonstrated an emergency that would necessitate such an action.

Judge James C. Chalfant said previous cases in which the New York Yankees, New York Jets and Minnesota Twins were barred from moving games did not apply to this situation because those teams were scheduled to play in a matter of days or weeks and UCLA’s next scheduled game at the Rose Bowl after its home season finale against Washington on Nov. 22 isn’t until the fall of 2026.

The judge also said there was no indication that the Rose Bowl or Pasadena would suffer imminent financial harm because a contract to construct a field-level club in one end zone had not been signed.

The legal saga is far from over. Chalfant suggested the plaintiffs’ attorneys seek discovery information regarding the school’s discussions with SoFi Stadium and file a motion for a preliminary injunction.

Nima Mohebbi, an attorney representing the Rose Bowl Operating Co. and the City of Pasadena, said he had filed a public records request in an attempt to gather information about those discussions and was pleased with the judge’s statements.

“Even though he found that there was no immediate emergency,” Mohebbi said, “he made very clear in a lot of his statements that there’s irreparable harm, that UCLA has an obligation to play at the Rose Bowl through 2044 and we’re very confident in our facts of this case. So I think all in, we feel very, very good.”

After the hearing ended, Mary Osako, vice chancellor of strategic communications, said in a statement that “the court’s ruling speaks for itself. As we have said, while we continue to evaluate the long-term arrangement or UCLA football home games, no decision has been made.”

UCLA has played its home football games at the Rose Bowl since 1982. In 2014, Janet Napolitano, president of the University of California system, signed a long-term lease amendment that did not include an opt-out clause in exchange for the stadium committing to make nearly $200 million in improvements through the issue of public bonds. When the judge asked attorneys representing UCLA if they intended to terminate the agreement, they shook their heads in denial.

But Mohebbi accused UCLA of participating in a shell game in which it had furtively explored options for moving to SoFi Stadium.

“What they really want is to have a back-room discussion where they can offer some certain amount of money and pay the city off without having to account for this publicly,” Mohebbi said. “… UCLA has not only attempted to terminate [the contract], they have indicated in no uncertain terms that they are terminating.”

After Jordan McCrary, an attorney representing UCLA, contended that his counterparts in the dispute refused to engage with the school in resolution discussions, Mohebbi said, “there’s nothing to talk about. They have an obligation — we’re not negotiating a way out of this agreement.”

McCrary disputed Mohebbi’s contention that UCLA attorneys had signaled an intention to leave the Rose Bowl through direct conversations between counsel, saying “we believe they were settlement negotiations and we don’t believe they’re admissible” in future court proceedings.

When a UCLA attorney contended during the roughly 80-minute court session that the school’s relationship with the Rose Bowl was breaking down, Chalfant said, “I don’t know why UCLA can’t just show up and play football at the Rose Bowl. You don’t need to talk to them at all.”

Chalfant said he did not agree with the UCLA attorneys’ contention that the Rose Bowl lease amounted to a personal services contract for which specific performance — essentially an order compelling the Bruins to remain tenants — was not available. The judge said specific performance could be available in a situation involving an actual breach or an anticipatory breach of the contract.

Rose Bowl officials have filed litigation intended to compel the Bruins to honor a lease that runs through the 2043 season, saying that monetary damages would not be enough to offset the loss of their anchor tenant.

They are also seeking to prevent the case from being settled through arbitration.

“I know UCLA really wants to have this out of the public sphere,” Mohebbi said, “but the reality is this is a public interest case and there are issues here that absolutely require this case to be in a public forum.

“We’re talking about two public entities. This is not the Rams, or this is not the Lakers. This is a public institution playing with public money going up against another public institution that relies on this other public institution to protect its own taxpayers from dipping into the general fund that goes to things like police services, fire services. I mean, God forbid there’s a fire like the Eaton fire this last year that we’re not going to be able to even cover the bond payments through the general reserves.”

While Middleton-Patel stole the show by the end of the night, it was Earps who was the focus before kick-off.

The mural of Earps, painted outside Old Trafford following her heroics with England at Euro 2022, bore a ‘Welcome to Manchester’ message which felt riddled with irony as she stepped out in the pouring northern rain in the opponent’s colours.

She was a heroine to many during her time at United and played a key role in the club’s first FA Cup victory, and their rise up the Women’s Super League table.

This time she was a football enemy, arriving in a cloud of controversy, and received boos when her name was read out by the stadium announcer.

More boos followed when she touched the ball, mixed in with some cheers from loyal followers, until she eventually received the adulation of the Old Trafford crowd when she walked along the stands applauding them at full-time, and was warmly received in return.

“A lot of the public has great interest in seeing Mary play. I’m very happy to have a player like her in our team,” said PSG boss Paulo Cesar afterwards.

“The fans here were clearly behind her. At the beginning, perhaps not, but by the end of the game her quality shone through.

“She put in a great performance today and she gives confidence to the team. I’m very happy with her.”

Skinner said in his pre-match media conference he expected the United fans to make life difficult for Earps as an opponent, but hoped she would receive the respect she earned during her five-year spell at the club before leaving in 2024.

When she left the pitch to cheers from the home fans and hugs from former team-mates, the controversy of the past two weeks surrounding her book felt a distant memory.

“It was nice. I said to her at the end to look after herself. Mary is a really intelligent woman and she has been the world’s best so she understands it,” said Skinner.

“It was a lovely atmosphere and she got a cheer when she walked down at the end of the game, and hopefully that helps her in the situation and how she feels.

“After the game it was always going to be friendly with Mary, because she was a big part of what we have done – and we should never forget that.”

LAS VEGAS — Last offseason, the Dodgers swung big in their offseason pursuit of impact bullpen additions.

After largely striking out, however, they might now have to decide if they’re comfortable doing it again.

The Dodgers don’t have glaring needs this winter, but the back end of the bullpen is one area they will look to upgrade. Although the team has ample relief depth, it has no clear-cut closer as it enters 2026.

The main reason why: Tanner Scott’s struggles after landing a lucrative four-year, $72-million pact last winter.

Scott’s signing represented the second-largest contract, by guaranteed money, the Dodgers had ever given to a relief pitcher (only behind the five-year, $80 million deal closer Kenley Jansen got in 2017). It was a high-risk, high-reward move that, at least in Year 1, quickly felt like a bust.

Scott posted a 4.74 ERA in the regular season, converted only 23 of his 33 save opportunities, and did not pitch in the postseason (in part because of an abscess incision procedure he underwent in the National League Division Series).

The Dodgers’ other big reliever acquisition last winter, Kirby Yates, suffered a similar fate, posting a 5.23 ERA on a one-year, $13-million deal before injuries also knocked him out of postseason contention.

Scott will be back next year, and is one of several veteran relief arms the club is hopeful will make improvements. Still, for a team vying for a third straight World Series title, adding a more established closer remains of interest.

The question now: Will they be willing to do so on another long-term deal? Or will last year’s failed signings make them more hesitant to traverse that same path again?

It might not take long to start finding out.

Already at this week’s general managers’ meetings at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, the Dodgers have expressed interest in two-time All-Star Devin Williams, according to people with knowledge of the situation not authorized to speak publicly.

The 31-year-old right-hander had a down year with the New York Yankees (4.79 ERA, albeit with 18 saves in 22 opportunities), but his underlying metrics remain strong, and the Dodgers’ interest in him dates to last offseason when he was a trade target of the club before ultimately landing in the Bronx.

With a mid-90s mph fastball and signature “Airbender” changeup that has made him one of the most prolific strikeout threats in all the majors over his seven-year career (in which he has a 2.45 ERA and averages more than 14 strikeouts per nine innings), he would significantly improve their ninth-inning outlook.

But the Dodgers’ pursuit of him, which was first reported by The Athletic, could come with a tricky decision.

Williams is expected to have several serious suitors this offseason. And, though some outlets projected him to sign only a one-year deal upward of $20 million, others have him pegged to land a three- or four-year contract.

By nature, the Dodgers typically prefer shorter-term deals, particularly in a role as volatile as relief pitching. If Williams does receive longer-term offers from other clubs, it’s unclear if the Dodgers would be willing to match.

The team could face similar dynamics if it goes after other top relievers on the market, including three-time All-Star and top free-agent closer Edwin Díaz (who also comes with the added complication of a qualifying offer that would cost them a draft pick).

They could wind up having to once again weigh a high-risk, high-reward move.

And on Tuesday, general manager Brandon Gomes struck a decidedly risk-averse tone in the wake of last year’s failed signings.

“It’s one of those things that, I don’t think it’s a ‘need,’” Gomes said of the team’s interest in making another splashy reliever acquisition. “But it could be a nice-to-have, depending on how it all plays out.”

There are other alternatives, of course.

Former Tampa Bay Rays right-hander Pete Fairbanks is one potentially shorter-term target some in the industry see as a fit in Los Angeles, after racking up 75 saves with a 2.98 ERA over the last three seasons.

Former Angels and Atlanta Braves right-hander Raisel Iglesias is potentially another, after amassing 96 saves with a 2.62 ERA over the last three years, thanks to a mid-90s mph fastball and swing-and-miss changeup that have kept him productive even at age 35.

There are other familiar free-agent relievers available this winter, too, from former San Diego Padres closer Robert Suarez to former St. Louis Cardinals and New York Mets right-hander Ryan Helsley (who has also been linked to the Dodgers in trade rumors in the past).

The Dodgers could also explore the offseason’s trade market, or roll the dice with a current relief corps that still includes Scott (whose 2025 issues had more to do with execution than quality of stuff), Alex Vesia (who has established himself as one of the top left-handed relievers in the sport) and Blake Treinen (another reliever the team sees as a bounce-back candidate after he struggled with injuries last season in the first season of a two-year, $22 million deal). They will also be getting Brusdar Graterol and Evan Phillips back from injuries, with Graterol on track to be ready for the start of 2026 after missing last year with a shoulder problem, and Phillips expected to return at some point in next season after undergoing Tommy John surgery last June.

For now, however, the team’s search could depend on how the markets for Williams, Díaz and others develop — and whether it’s willing to take another big bullpen swing on a longer-term deal.

“We have so many guys that are capable of closing and have done it in the past,” Gomes said, highlighting the team’s current returning bullpen arms. “But it’s one of the areas we’ll look to potentially add to the team.”

Skenes wins NL Cy Young Award, Yamamoto third in voting

Yoshinobu Yamamoto will always be remembered for his historic performance in the Dodgers’ postseason this past October.

On Wednesday, his regular-season performance received some deserved recognition, too.

While Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes won the National League Cy Young Award as expected, after leading the majors with a 1.97 ERA in just his second MLB season, Yamamoto finished third for a campaign in which he went 12-8, posted a 2.49 ERA over 30 starts, and anchored a Dodgers rotation that was ravaged by injuries for much of the season.

Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Cristopher Sánchez was the NL’s other Cy Young finalist, and was runner-up. Skenes garnered all 30 first-place votes while Sánchez received all 30 second-place votes. Yamamoto collected 16 third-place votes.

Yamamoto’s finish was the highest by a Dodgers pitcher since Julio Urías came in third in 2022.

It caps a year in which the 27-year-old Japanese star made significant strides from his debut rookie MLB season (when he had a 3.00 ERA and was limited to 18 starts because of a shoulder injury) and helped carry the Dodgers to a World Series with a 1.45 ERA in six playoff outings and a grueling 37 1/3 October innings — including back-to-back complete games in the NL Championship Series and World Series, before back-to-back victorious appearances in Games 6 and 7 of the Fall Classic.

Mark Selby beat defending champion Mark Williams 6-5 in a final-frame decider to reach the semi-finals of the Champion of Champions in Leicester.

In a high-quality opening between two of the greats – who hold seven world titles between them – Wales’ Williams took the first two frames with breaks of 77 and 114.

England’s Selby responded with two half centuries and a wonderful break of 136 as he reeled off the next four frames to lead 4-2, before Williams replied by edging three hard-fought frames to go 5-4 up.

However, Leicester-born Selby compiled a timely 95 to win the 10th frame and enjoyed a run of 55 to seal a thrilling victory.

The 42-year-old told ITV4: “It was mad towards the end. I felt like I had played really well to go 4-2 up. Mark did what he does, he dug in, showed his class, came back and the next minute I am 5-4 down and my head is spinning.

Clippers guard Bradley Beal is done for the season. He has a hip fracture and will undergo surgery, the team announced Wednesday.

The three-time All-Star, who is expected to make a full recovery in six to nine months, played in only six games this season, averaging 8.2 points and 1.7 assists. He signed an $11-million, two-year deal with the Clippers in July after the final two years of his contract were bought out by the Phoenix Suns.

The 32-year-old was listed as out for Wednesday night’s game against the Denver Nuggets because of left hip soreness. Beal previously missed games because of a left knee injury and lower back soreness.

Beal’s two seasons in Phoenix were riddled by injury as well. The 14-year veteran hasn’t played at least 60 games in a season since 2020-21 when he was with the Washington Wizards.

The Irish Football Association says it is “fantastic news” the qualifying draw for Euro 2028 will be held in Belfast.

The tournament will be hosted by England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland with no matches set to take place in Northern Ireland.

Casement Park, which has not been in operation since 2013, was originally listed as one of the stadiums to be considered when the UK and Republic of Ireland submitted their bid to host Euro 2028.

However, the west Belfast venue was withdrawn from the list of venues in September 2024 after the UK government said it would not be providing funding to redevelop the stadium in time for the tournament.

“We are incredibly proud that our city will play such an important role in delivering what will be the best-ever EURO – one that celebrates passion, inclusivity and the power of football to bring people together,” said Irish FA president Conrad Kirkwood.

“It’s a proud moment for the Irish FA and for everyone who loves football here in Northern Ireland.”

With the opening game of the tournament set for Cardiff and matches to be played in stadiums across England, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland, the qualifying draw is, to date, the only official Euro 2028 engagement set to take place in Northern Ireland.

It will take place on 6 December 2026 at the ICC Belfast.

“It’s a real privilege to host the qualifying draw for Uefa Euro 2028 – a key milestone in what promises to be a memorable, world class tournament,” added Irish FA CEO Patrick Nelson.

“We’ll welcome UEFA’s leadership, national associations and teams to Belfast, giving them the chance to experience everything our city and ICC Belfast have to offer.

“It’s fantastic news for Belfast, for Northern Ireland and for football across these islands.”

Frank McCourt’s proposed gondola from Union Station to Dodger Stadium hit what appears to be its most significant roadblock yet on Wednesday, when the Los Angeles City Council voted to urge Metro to kill the project.

The resolution, approved by an 11-2 vote, is not in itself any kind of formal decision. It would not take effect unless Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass concurs, and Bass previously voted in favor of the project as a member of the Metro board.

But it makes clear that a City Council vote to approve the project, which is expected next year, could be an increasingly challenging hurdle for McCourt and his allies to overcome.

“This resolution tells Metro that the city of Los Angeles refuses to be bought by shiny renderings and empty promises,” councilmember Eunisses Hernandez, whose district includes Dodger Stadium, told her colleagues in Wednesday’s council meeting.

No councilmember spoke in support of the gondola.

The project requires approvals from the council, the state parks agency and Metro, which approved an environmental impact report for the project last year. A court demanded fixes to two defects in the report, and Metro is scheduled to vote next month on whether to approve the revised report.

The resolution approved Wednesday urges Metro to reject the revised report and “deny reapproval of the project.”

McCourt, the former Dodgers owner and still half-owner of the Dodger Stadium parking lots, first pitched the gondola in 2018 and later said fans would ride free. The projected construction cost is about $500 million; none of the promised private funding has been publicly identified.

“This project is an insult to our communities, and the process has been an insult to our collective intelligence,” Hernandez said.

Project opponents — and the resolution itself — cite among other issues that 160 trees from a beloved park would be permanently removed to make way for the gondola and that a UCLA study projected Dodger Stadium traffic would not even be decreased by 1%.

In a letter to councilmembers, the board of directors of Zero Emissions Transit — the nonprofit charged with funding and operating the gondola — urged the council to reject what it called “serious inaccuracies and misleading claims.”

The 160 trees would be temporarily removed and then restored, with 480 trees added as well, the letter said. The UCLA study retracted its conclusion, the letter also said, based on “biased data supplied by individuals affiliated with project opposition groups.”

Said ZET spokesman Nathan Click: “We continue to move forward with all the approval processes: Metro, city, state.”