Lakers advance
From Broderick Turner: LeBron James knew what was at stake in this first-round playoff series and that it was on his shoulders to meet the moment and have his teammates follow his lead.
James simply elevated his play like he has so many times over his illustrious 23-year NBA career, playing with a purpose and willing the Lakers to a 98-78 win over the Houston Rockets on Friday night at Toyota Center.
His 28 points, eight assists and seven rebounds is why the Lakers won the best-of-seven series, 4-2, over the Rockets and why L.A. will meet the defending NBA champion Thunder on Tuesday night in Oklahoma City in the second round of the Western Conference playoffs.
James and the Lakers had been on the verge of collapsing in these playoffs, their commanding 3-0 lead cut to 3-2.
But the Lakers and James let the Rockets know they were going to stay the course in Game 6 by building a 25-point lead in the third quarter.
Rui Hachimura let James and the Lakers know he had come to play, scoring 21 points on eight-for-15 shooting and a sizzling five for seven on three-pointers. Hachimura also had six rebounds.
James began to assert himself in the second quarter, scoring 14 points on five-for-eight shooting and two-for-three on three-pointers. He outscored the Rockets by himself in the second (14-13) and it was his effort that put the Lakers in front for good, helping them build a 19-point lead that was never in jeopardy.
James was being a leader by example for the Lakers, something that increased on April 2 once Luka Doncic (Grade 2 left hamstring strain) and Austin Reaves (Grade 2 left oblique muscle strain) got injured in Oklahoma City.
“I mean, I’ve done it throughout my career for the majority of my career, but they still have to accept it,” James said. “I would say we were a totally different team before April 2 and for them to accept the fact to allow me to lead them and kind of command them in a way that I think I saw fit, being an extension of our coaching staff on the floor, like I said, it means a lot to me. So, I’m happy I was able to do some things out there to make them understand that I guess I know what I’m doing at times and those guys, they were great in this series.”
Lakers playoff schedule
First round
All times Pacific
at Lakers 107, Houston 98 (box score)
at Lakers 101, Houston 94 (box score)
Lakers 112, at Houston 108 (box score)
at Houston 115, Lakers 96 (box score)
Houston 99, at Lakers 93 (box score)
Lakers 98, at Houston 78 (box score)
Dodgers lose again
From Maddie Lee: Andy Pages tapped the top of his helmet as plate umpire Chris Guccione wound up to punch him out, taking one final stab at extending the Dodgers’ scoring opportunity in the eighth inning.
The Busch Stadium scoreboard lit up with a graphic of the strike zone. The ball flew in, touching the top of the rectangle and turning it red. The call was confirmed. Strike three.
In a 7-2 loss to the Cardinals on Friday, that was one of six at-bats the Dodgers had with runners in scoring position. They didn’t record a hit in any of them.
Instead, the Dodgers (20-12) only scored on Max Muncy’s double with a runner on first in the second inning, and Kyle Tucker’s bases-loaded sacrifice fly in the sixth. It marked their third straight loss, scoring two or fewer runs in each.
Angels lose again
Ronny Mauricio hit a go-ahead home run in the seventh inning and the New York Mets rallied for a 4-3 victory over the Angels on Friday night in the opener of a nine-game trip.
The win — just the Mets’ fourth in their last 21 games — came a few hours after president of baseball operations David Stearns gave manager Carlos Mendoza a vote of confidence. New York has the majors’ worst record at 11-21.
Marcus Semien hit a tying two-run single in the Mets’ three-run sixth inning, which also included an RBI single by Francisco Alvarez. New York retired the final 21 Angels hitters.
Nico Iamaleava’s redemption tour begins now
From Mirjam Swanson: Tennessee told Nico Iamaleava to go fly a kite, so UCLA said come fly it here.
That alleviated some homesickness, but it didn’t get Iamaleava’s career up off the ground. Of course, the conditions in Westwood last season weren’t ideal for takeoff.
But now they are.
Here comes Bob Chesney’s rebuild. And Iamaleava’s redemption. An exceptional head coach and an exciting quarterback, with the wind at their backs, racing toward a relatively breezy schedule?
Sky’s the limit, man.
Watch them dip and dance and make defenders miss all the way to New York. Watch the cautionary tale about the perils of the transfer portal turn into a fairy-tale comeback.
No, that’s not me building castles in the sky.
SoFi Stadium workers could strike if ICE is at World Cup
From Kevin Baxter: Isaac Martinez has been as a cook at SoFi Stadium for four years. He’s worked dozens of events including NFL games, a Super Bowl, Taylor Swift concerts, Wrestlemania and the college football national championship game.
And he’s never been afraid to come to work. Until now.
He’s not alone. With the World Cup kicking off at the Inglewood venue next month, Martinez says he and many of the people who work in food services and other jobs at the stadium won’t feel safe if federal immigration agents are present during the tournament.
“Most of the workers are afraid. They fear for their safety,” Martinez said in Spanish. “This is also about the fans. People come from everywhere, even from Iran. So we’re concerned about their safety.”
D.J. Smith could have interim tag removed
Interim head coach D.J. Smith will be among the candidates for the Kings’ full-time job when general manager Ken Holland conducts his coaching search this month.
Smith took over March 1 when Holland fired Jim Hiller with the Kings at 24-21-14 and out of the playoff picture. The former Ottawa head coach rallied the Kings to an 11-6-6 finish to claim the last wild-card spot in the Western Conference, but the Kings were swept by the powerhouse Colorado Avalanche in their fifth consecutive first-round postseason exit.
“D.J. did a great job,” Holland said Friday. “The team responded to him, so he’s a candidate. … I don’t want to talk to 20 people. I’d like to talk to probably five to eight people, and then make a decision. Some with experience, some maybe assistants, and some who haven’t been a head coach.”
This day in sports history
1903 — 29th Kentucky Derby: Hal Booker riding Judge Himes wins in 2:09.
1904 — Laska Durnell becomes the first woman to own a Kentucky Derby starter and winner when longshot Elwood wins the 30th Run for the Roses. Elwood is also the first Derby winner whose breeder is a woman, Mrs. J.B. Prather.
1906 — 32nd Kentucky Derby: Roscoe Troxler aboard Sir Huon wins in 2:08.8.
1953 — Dark Star, a 25-1 longshot, wins the Kentucky Derby, beating 7-10 favorite Native Dancer by a head. It’s Native Dancer’s first defeat after 11 straight wins and the only defeat in 22 career starts.
1964 — Northern Dancer, ridden by Bill Hartack, wins the Kentucky Derby by a neck over Hill Rise in a race record 2:00.
1967 — The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Montreal Canadiens 3-1 to win the Stanley Cup in six games.
1968 — 22nd NBA Championship: Boston Celtics beat Lakers, 4 games to 2.
1970 — Diane Crump becomes the first female jockey to ride in the Kentucky Derby. Her mount, Fathom, finishes 15th in a field of 17. Dust Commander, with Mike Manganello aboard, wins the race.
1978 — 1978 NFL Draft: Earl Campbell from University of Texas first pick by Houston Oilers.
1999 — John Elway announces his retirement from the NFL.
2001 — James Hylton, a construction worker from Keizer, Ore., bowls the fifth perfect 900 series in the 106-year history of the sport.
2002 — Patrick Lalime becomes the 14th goalie in NHL history to record four shutouts in one postseason with his 27-save performance in Ottawa’s 5-0 defeat of Toronto.
2009 — Mine That Bird, a 50-1 shot ridden by Calvin Borel, wins the Kentucky Derby with a dynamic stretch run through the mud. Borel finds room along the rail and pulls away in one of the biggest upsets in the 135-year history of the race.
2010 — Ryo Ishikawa shoots a 12-under 58 — the lowest score on a major tour — to win The Crowns in Togo, Japan. The 18-year-old Ishikawa has 12 birdies in his bogey-free round on the 6,545-yard Nagoya Golf Club course.
2010 — Cleveland’s LeBron James becomes the 10th player in NBA history to win consecutive MVP awards.
2012 — Barcelona football player Lionel Messi breaks the European goal-scoring record with 68 goals.
2015 — American Pharoah rallies in the stretch to beat Firing Line by a length for trainer Bob Baffert’s first Kentucky Derby victory since 2002. Sent off as the 5-2 favorite by the record crowd of 170,513, American Pharoah is ridden by Victor Espinoza.
2015 — Floyd Mayweather Jr. uses his reach and his jab to frustrate Manny Pacquiao for a unanimous decision in their welterweight title bout. Mayweather remains unbeaten in 48 fights, cementing his legacy as the best of his generation.
2016 — Leicester City win the English Premier League title after starting the season at 5,000-1 odds.
2017 — Isaiah Thomas scores 53 points — the second-highest total in Celtics playoff history — to help Boston beat the Washington Wizards 129-119 in overtime and take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinals.
Compiled by the Associated Press
This day in baseball history
1917 — Fred Toney of the Cincinnati Reds and Hippo Vaughn of the Chicago Cubs pitched a double no-hitter for nine innings, but the Reds won 1-0 on two hits in the 10th. Jim Thorpe drove in the winning run.
1923 — Walter Johnson recorded his first shutout of the season and the 100th of his major league record 113 career shutouts as the Washington Senators defeated the New York Yankees 3-0. Yankees shortstop Everett Scott received a medal from the American League for playing in his 1,000th consecutive game.
1927 — Babe Ruth becomes the highest-paid player in major league history when the Yankees announce he will earn $70,000 per season for the next three years.
1939 — Lou Gehrig of the New York Yankees did not play against the Detroit Tigers at Briggs Stadium, ending at 2,130 his streak of consecutive games. Gehrig never played again. Babe Dahlgren took his place at first base. The Yankees didn’t miss his bat, however, beating the Tigers 22-2.
1954 — Stan Musial hit five home runs in a doubleheader split with the New York Giants at St. Louis. The Cardinals won the first game 10-6 but lost the second 9-7. His fifth home run, off Hoyt Wilhelm, went over the roof in right center.
1959 — Frank Robinson of Cincinnati hit for the cycle and drove in five runs to lead the Reds to a 16-4 rout of the Dodgers.
1964 — The Minnesota Twins became the third team in major league history to hit four consecutive home runs in an inning. Tony Oliva, Bob Allison and Jimmie Hall connected off Dan Pfister and Harmon Killebrew went deep off Vern Handrahan in the top of the 11th inning for a 7-3 win at Kansas City’s Municipal Stadium.
1992 — The highest-paid player tag now belongs to Ryne Sandberg of the Chicago Cubs. The All-Star second baseman signs a four-year contract extension worth $7.1 million per season.
2000 — Atlanta became the first NL team in 49 years to win 15 straight games by defeating the Dodgers 5-3.
2002 — Mike Cameron hit four homers and came close to a record-setting fifth in leading the Seattle Mariners to a 15-4 victory over the Chicago White Sox. He became the 13th major leaguer to homer four times in a game. Cameron connected in his first four at-bats in just five innings. He joined Bret Boone as the first teammates to each hit two home runs in the same inning. They connected back-to-back twice in a 10-run first.
2005 — Thirty-two years after his death, Jackie Robinson receives the Congressional Gold Medal of Honor in the Capitol Rotunda in Washington, the highest honor Congress can bestow.
2005 — Jim Edmonds hit a three-run homer off closer Danny Graves, and John Mabry added a two-run shot that completed the greatest ninth-inning comeback in St. Louis Cardinals history. The Cardinals sent 12 batters to the plate and scored seven runs in the top of the ninth to beat Cincinnati 10-9.
2006 — Bret Boone retires at the New York Mets training camp, the culmination of a swift decline for a player who was one of baseball’s best second basemen only a few years ago.
2012 — Jered Weaver pitched the second no-hitter in the majors in less than two weeks, completely overmatching Minnesota and leading the Angels to a 9-0 win over the Twins. The Twins never came close to getting a hit against Weaver, who struck out nine and walked one.
2025 — Riley Greene becomes the first player ever to homer twice in the ninth inning when he does so for the Tigers against the Angels.
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.