defeat

Corona baseball is receiving some competition in Big VIII League play this season. Norco is supposed to be the Panthers’ primary competition, but it was Corona Santiago handing the Panthers their first defeat Monday.

Troy Randall had three hits and threw three innings of scoreless relief in a 6-2 home victory. The teams play again Wednesday at Corona, with ace Striker Pence on the mound for Santiago.

Santiago (10-2) took advantage of rare wildness by Corona starting pitcher Mason Sims, who walked four in two innings. Randall and starting pitcher Ben Lewis held Corona’s top four batters hitless with eight strikeouts.

Cleveland 6, Chatsworth 2: The Cavaliers continued their march toward third place in the West Valley League. Max Salazar had three hits. Joshua Pearlstein threw a complete game with five strikeouts.

Taft 9, Granada Hills 7: The Toreadors scored three runs in the ninth inning for a West Valley League win. Nathan Swinson had a home run and Julian Antolin recorded three hits and three RBIs. Max Szczech had four hits, including a home run, for Granada Hills.

Garfield 10, Huntington Park 0: Omar Martinez had two hits and two RBIs and Michael Agredano struck out six in 3⅔ innings for Garfield.

South Hills 4, San Dimas 1: Marc Morales threw three scoreless innings of relief for South Hills.

Loyola 12, Paramount 2: Jack Murray contributed three hits for the Cubs.

Etiwanda 19, Los Osos 5: Angel Mejia finished with three hits and seven RBIs, including a grand slam.

Alex Killorn broke a tie off a scramble at 9:09 of the second period, Lukas Dostal stopped 29 shots and the Ducks beat the Utah Mammoth 4-1 on Friday night to pad their Pacific Division lead.

After the puck was cleared off the goal line behind goalie Vitek Vanecek, the Ducks’ Beckett Sennecke ended up with it on the left side and slipped a pass to Killorn for a shot before Vanecek was set. Killorn also had two assists.

Ryan Poehling, Cutter Gauthier and Mikael Granlund also scored to help the Ducks — playing without suspended defenseman Radko Gudas — rebound from a 3-2 overtime loss to Philadelphia on Wednesday night at home. They moved three points ahead of Edmonton in the division.

Gudas served the fourth game of a five-game suspension for kneeing Auston Matthews in a loss at Toronto on March 12. Matthews tore the medial collateral ligament in his left knee and will miss the rest of the season.

Poehling tied it with 6:23 left in the first, beating Vanecek with a nifty move on a shorthanded break. Poehling took a pass from Killorn, sped down the left side, cut right and shot against the grain to the left.

The Ducks (38-27-4) put it away with two empty-net goals, with Gauthier scoring his 36th goal on the first.

Dylan Guenther scored his 34th goal of the season for Utah — at 1:48 of the first of the Mammoth’s second shot on goal.

Utah remained six points ahead of the Kings for the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

The Mammoth (36-28-6) opened a four-game homestand. They had won two straight on the road, beating Dallas 6-3 on Monday night to snap a four-game losing streak and topping Vegas 4-0 Thursday night.

Up next for the Ducks: vs. Buffalo at Honda Center on Sunday.

It was a return to Belfast for the first time since his defeat by Jordan Gill in December 2023 which left him with much to ponder in terms of his career.

After a 16-month hiatus, Conlan returned in March 2025 under new coach Grant Smith, producing a points win over Asad Asif Khan in Brighton before stopping Jack Bateson in Dublin six months later.

However, the SSE Arena once again proved to be the scene of one final night of disappointment that has resulted in his decision to retire.

It wasn’t a case of him being completely dominated this time, but there was self-awareness that his performance was not up to a level where he could threaten a standing champion.

Walsh will instead seek his own opportunity and called out WBC featherweight champion Bruce Carrington afterwards.

“It was definitely a close fight,” he told DAZN afterwards.

“Shout out to Mick Conlan – I’ve always been a fan of his but he couldn’t figure me out. He’s been a helluva fighter, but his time’s up.”

Those words rang true with Conlan confirming this is indeed time up.

“Boxing has given me an unbelievable life,” he reflected.

“I can never be bitter with the situation because it gives you so much and takes so much. I’ve always said you can never love the sport as it will never love you back.

“I want to walk away with my health intact and my family good. I’ve done really well in boxing, have reached some serious heights and fought in some serious arenas around the world, done things many fighters don’t get to do.”

He continued: “I’ve achieved an awful lot but have I reached my goal of becoming a world champion? No, and that’s the hardest part of all.

“I’m a stubborn person and would want to keep going, but I’ve missed a lot of my family’s lives. I’ve two kids, my daughter is 11 next week and my son is seven. I’ve missed maybe 65 or 70% of their lives through boxing and training camps, so it’s time to go home.”

Luka scores 60, LeBron ties record

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: On the same night he tied Robert Parish for the NBA record in regular-season games played, ageless wonder LeBron James had a 19-point, 15-rebound, 10-assist triple-double in Thursday’s 134-126 win over the Miami Heat. The 41-year-old playing in his 1,611th game helped the Lakers (45-25) win their season-best eighth consecutive game while star guard Luka Doncic poured in a season-best 60 points, including 20 points in the final quarter.

James became the oldest player in NBA history to record a triple-double, besting the mark he set last month.

“He’s a psycho,” coach JJ Redick said with affection, awe and respect.

James, Doncic and guard Austin Reaves were all questionable to play in their second game in as many nights. Doncic was dealing with right hip soreness and Reaves was battling a right forearm contusion after Wednesday’s physical win over Houston. James, who took a hard spill in the fourth quarter and banged his right elbow, was officially nursing left foot arthritis. Earlier this season, James characterized his ailments as being simply “old.”

But before Redick could even check on the status of his stars Thursday afternoon, he learned they already decided on their availability. The players huddled in the locker room after Wednesday’s game before the coaches entered and decided they would all play against Miami (38-32).

“When he said he was playing, I was like, I can’t let a 41-year-old play and I not play,” said Reaves, who battled through a bruise on his shooting wrist to finish with 18 points. “So [I] signed up to play and so did Luka and we went and grinded the win out.”

Continue reading here

Lakers box score

NBA standings

Clippers lose to Pelicans again

Trey Murphy III scored 27 points and the New Orleans Pelicans extended their home winning streak to seven games with a 105-99 victory over the Clippers on Thursday night.

Saddiq Bey had 20 points and Zion Williamson added 15 for the Pelicans, who swept the two-game set against the Clippers after a 124-109 win, also at home, on Wednesday night.

Dejounte Murray was held out to rest as part of his comeback from a ruptured Achilles tendon. He had 17 points and a season-high 11 assists Wednesday night in his ninth game since making his season debut last month.

Derrick Jones Jr. scored 22 points, John Collins had 18 and Bogdan Bogdanovic added 16 for the Clippers, who lost their fourth in a row.

Continue reading here

Clippers box score

NBA standings

Kings lose to Flyers

Trevor Zegras and Matvei Michkov scored in a shootout to give the Philadelphia Flyers their fourth victory in five games, 4-3 over the Kings on Thursday night.

Noah Cates had a goal and an assist, Travis Konecny and Travis Sanheim also scored, and Samuel Ersson made 22 saves. The Flyers remained six points behind Boston and Detroit for the two Eastern Conference wild-card spots.

On Wednesday night against the Ducks, Cates scored in overtime in the Flyers’ 3-2 victory.

Adrian Kempe and Artemi Panarin failed on their shootout attempts for Los Angeles, though the Kings still moved into the second wild-card in the Western Conference.

Continue reading here

Kings summary

NHL standings

USC reaches settlement

From Ryan Kartje: USC has settled a lawsuit with a former high-ranking athletic department official who alleged the university allowed former athletic director Mike Bohn to racially harass and discriminate against her, then fired her when she voiced concerns about Bohn’s behavior.

Joyce Bell Limbrick was the highest-ranking Black and female official in USC’s athletic department when she was fired by the university in September 2023, four months after Bohn resigned amid an internal investigation into his conduct and the culture of the department. Bell Limbrick filed suit early last year, accusing USC of wrongful termination.

That dispute was settled out of court this week. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

Continue reading here

This day in sports history

1897 — Yale beats Penn 32-10 in New Haven, Conn., in the first men’s intercollegiate basketball game.

1918 — The Toronto Arenas (who would become the Maple Leafs) are the first NHL team to play in the Stanley Cup Final. Toronto’s Reg Noble scores two goals with an assist in the first period of a 5-3 win over Vancouver of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association.

1939 — In a game of unbeaten teams, Long Island U. defeats Loyola of Chicago 44-32 to win the National Invitation Tournament title.

1954 — In the first televised NCAA championship game, La Salle defeats Bradley 92-76 and sets a record for most points in the title game.

1965 — Gail Goodrich’s 42 points lead UCLA to a 91-80 victory over Michigan in the NCAA basketball championship.

1965 — St. John’s sends Joe Lapchick out a winner, as the Redmen beat Villanova 55-51 to win their fifth National Invitation Tournament championship.

1965 — Bill Bradley scores 58 points to lead Princeton to a 118-82 rout of Wichita State in the NCAA third-place game. UCLA beats Michigan 91-80 to win its second National championship.

1968 — Dave Bing of the Detroit Pistons finishes the season with a league-leading 27.1 average, becoming the first guard in 20 years to lead the NBA in scoring.

1969 — Less than two months after she becomes the first woman to ride in a pari-mutuel race in America, Diane Crump rides her first winner at Gulfstream Park.

1976 — Boston’s John Havlicek becomes the first NBA player to score more than 1,000 points per season for 14 consecutive years.

1988 — Mike Tyson knocks out Tony Tubbs in the second round to retain his world heavyweight title in Tokyo.

2005 — Liz Johnson becomes the first woman to advance to the championship match of a Professional Bowlers Assn. tour event, but loses by 27 pins to Tommy Jones in the final of the PBA Banquet Open.

2005 — LeBron James, 20, becomes the youngest player to score 50 points in an NBA game, when he scores 56 in the Cavaliers’ 105-98 loss to the Raptors.

2006 — Japan beats Cuba 10-6 in the title game of the inaugural World Baseball Classic.

2010 — Northern Iowa pulls off one of the biggest NCAA upsets in years by knocking No. 1 overall seed Kansas with a 69-67 win. Ali Farokhmanesh buries an open three-pointer with the shot clock still in the 30s to give the Panthers a four-point lead with 35 seconds left.

2014 — Bernard Tomic loses the shortest completed ATP match on record, lasting only 28 minutes at the Sony Open in his first tournament since having surgery on both hips. Ending a two-month layoff, Tomic wins just 13 points and loses to Jarkko Nieminen 6-0, 6-1. It’s the quickest match since the ATP started keeping such records in 1991.

2020 — After 20 years with the New England Patriots, six-time Super Bowl winning quarterback Tom Brady officially agrees to move to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

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.

The NBA’s leading scorer recorded the second 60-point game of his career as the Lakers take down the Heat in Miami.

Luka Doncic scored 60 points – the most ‌ever recorded against the Heat – as the Los Angeles Lakers won their eighth straight game, defeating ⁠the Miami Heat 134-126 ⁠away on Thursday night.

James Harden had the previous record against Miami with 58 points. He reached that mark while a member of the Houston Rockets on February 28, ⁠2019.

The Lakers (45-25) also got a triple-double from LeBron James, who had 19 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists. It was just the second triple-double of the season for James, who no ⁠doubt has fond memories of his time in Miami, leading the Heat to four straight NBA Finals (2011-2014) and two NBA titles.

It is possible that this was the final game in Miami ever for James, 41, who has not yet announced his future playing plans.

Doncic, who entered the day leading ‌the NBA with a 32.9 scoring average, made 18 of 30 shots from the floor, nine of 17 on three-pointers and 15 of 19 at the free throw line. He also had seven rebounds, five steals and three assists.

Over the past two nights, Doncic has scored 100 points.

Bam Adebayo led Miami (38-32) with 28 points and 10 rebounds. He appeared fully healthy after having missed Miami’s previous game due to tightness in his right calf.

However, the ⁠Heat are just 1-3 since Adebayo scored 83 points against Washington on ⁠March 10, the second-greatest scoring game in NBA history.

Tyler Herro added 21 points for Miami, and Norman Powell tallied 20.

The Heat were without two key injured players, Jaime Jaquez Jr (left-hip tightness) and Andrew Wiggins (left big toe). Those ⁠two players combine to average 30.9 points.

Miami led 42-29 at the end of the first quarter, during which the Heat shot 63.0 percent from the ⁠floor and had a 26-12 edge in paint points. ⁠Los Angeles, despite 12 points from Doncic, shot just 40.9 percent.

Los Angeles hit 12 of 20 shots from the floor in the second quarter and cut its deficit to 65-59 at halftime. Miami shot just 40.9 percent.

The Lakers took their first lead ‌of the game at 72-71 with 9:05 left in the third as Doncic hit his third straight three-pointer. By the end of the period, the Lakers led, 97-88.

Doncic scored 19 points in ‌the ‌third. Miami misfired on 10 of 12 attempts from behind the arc in the quarter.

The Lakers closed out the game without much trouble in the fourth quarter, beating Miami for the third straight time.

Venezuela upset the star-studded host nation to win a politically charged showdown in Miami.

Venezuela scored a stunning 3-2 upset over tournament hosts United States to capture the World Baseball Classic for the first time on Tuesday in a tense final played out against a backdrop of political tensions.

Eugenio Suarez drove in the winning run in the top of the ninth inning to seal a victory for Venezuela over an American lineup that had been hyped as a baseball “dream team”.

Trailing for most of the game, the Team USA looked to have hauled themselves back into the contest when Bryce Harper blasted a game-tying two-run homer in the eighth inning.

But Harper’s salvo proved to be in vain as Venezuela regained the lead in the ninth inning, punishing a shaky performance from USA reliever Garrett Whitlock to clinch victory.

“What can I say, it’s amazing,” Venezuela hero Suarez said. “Nobody believed in Venezuela, but now we win the championship today. This is a celebration for all the Venezuelan country.”

Suarez’s winning double settled a final that had got under way in a raucous atmosphere at Miami’s LoanDepot Park, with a large contingent of Venezuela fans in a sold-out crowd of 36,190 booing the USA lineup during pre-game introductions.

US President Donald Trump, whose government captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a military raid in January, had stoked tensions with a social media post on Monday, congratulating Venezuela for reaching the final while simultaneously suggesting the country could become the US’s “51st state”.

Trump again returned to the theme moments after Tuesday’s defeat, declaring in a post on his Truth Social platform: “STATEHOOD!!! President DJT.”

Venezuela’s interim leader, Delcy Rodriguez, who replaced the ousted Maduro, declared a “national day of jubilation” on Wednesday.

“This triumph is the victory of the passion, talent and unity that define us as Venezuelans,” Rodriguez wrote on X.

“An achievement that will remain forever in the heart of our country. ¡VIVA VENEZUELA!”

Venezuela dominate

Venezuela, whose players had been instructed by team management to avoid commenting on politics throughout the tournament, dominated the vaunted Team USA lineup for long periods, with starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez stifling the American batters led by New York Yankees home run king Aaron Judge.

The South Americans took the lead in the top of the third as USA starter Nolan McLean struggled for command from the mound.

Salvador Perez singled to get on base before Atlanta Braves star Ronald Acuna Jr drew a walk.

A wild pitch from McLean left Venezuela with runners on second and third base, and on the next pitch, Kansas City Royals slugger Maikel Garcia’s sacrifice fly allowed Perez to score.

With the USA bats continuing to flail against Rodriguez, the Venezuelans doubled their lead in the top of the fifth inning.

McLean delivered a four-seam fastball into the centre of the strike zone, and Boston Red Sox left-fielder Wilyer Abreu duly pounced, crushing a 414-foot (126-metre) solo home run to centre field for a 2-0 lead.

Venezuela appeared to be closing in on victory, but were jolted by Harper’s 432-foot (132-metre) home run to centre field off reliever Andres Machado in the eighth.

But the USA rally was short-lived, and Venezuela grabbed the lead again in the ninth when Luis Arraez drew a lead-off walk from Whitlock before Suarez’s blast to left centre field gave Venezuela the winning run.

Closer Daniel Palencia removed Kyle Schwarber, Gunnar Henderson and Roman Anthony in quick succession to seal Venezuela’s triumph.

MIAMI — Venezuela won the World Baseball Classic for the first time, rebounding from a blown eighth-inning lead to beat the United States 3-2 Tuesday night on Eugenio Suárez’s tiebreaking double in the ninth.

Maikel Garcia’s third-inning sacrifice fly and Wilyer Abreu’s fifth-inning homer off rookie Nolan McLean built a 2-0 lead before a roaring pro-Latin America crowd. Meanwhile, left-hander Eduardo Rodríguez and lights-out relievers limited the Americans to two hits through the seventh.

Bobby Witt Jr. walked with two outs in the eighth and Bryce Harper drove the second straight changeup from Andrés Machado over the center-field fence for a two-run homer that tied it. Harper slowly trotted around the bases and took time at third to salute coach Dino Ebel.

Luis Arraez walked against Garrett Whitlock starting the ninth. Pinch-runner Javier Sanoja stole second just ahead of catcher Will Smith’s throw and came home when Suárez doubled to the left-center gap. Suárez spread his arms wide and pointed to the sky at second base while teammates streamed from the dugout to greet Sanoja at the plate.

Daniel Palencia struck out two in a perfect bottom half to finish a three-hitter and get his third save of the WBC, striking out Roman Anthony to end the game. Venezuelans ran onto the infield to celebrate as the Americans stared while leaning on their dugout railing.

“Nobody believed in Venezuela but now we win the championship,” Suárez said. “This is a celebration for all the Venezuelan country.”

Despite a heralded roster of stars led by Aaron Judge, Harper and Paul Skenes, the U.S. lost its second straight final of baseball’s premier international event and remained without a title since 2017.

Venezuela celebrates its victory.

(Lynne Sladky / Associated Press)

Judge was 0 for 4 with three strikeouts in the championship game and hit .222 with five RBIs in the tournament, while Harper batted .214 with three RBIs and Alex Bregman .143 with four RBIs. The U.S. scored nine runs in the three knockout-round games while batting .188.

Ahead of a matchup with political overtones, players and coaches avoided discussing the government turmoil between the nations, heightened when the U.S. military captured Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro in January. The sellout crowd of 36,190 at LoanDepot Park was heavily pro-Venezuela, with some booing American players during the introductions.

Venezuela became the second Latin American nation to win the WBC, after the Dominican Republic in 2013. The U.S. took the title in 2017 and lost the 2023 final to three-time champion Japan on this same field.

While the U.S., Japan and the Dominican Republic got much of the attention ahead of the sixth edition of the 20-nation event, Venezuela’s success was not that surprising. Sixty-three players born in Venezuela appeared on Major League Baseball opening-day rosters last year, second-most from outside the U.S. behind the Dominican Republic’s 100.

Venezuela went ahead in the third inning against McLean, getting the start because Tarik Skubal and the Detroit Tigers decided the two-time Cy Young Award winner would make only a first-round appearance.

Salvador Perez sliced a first-pitch single and Ronald Acuña Jr. walked with one out. The runners advanced when McLean bounced a curveball, and Garcia followed with a sac fly to center.

Abreu doubled the lead when he drove a fastball 414 feet to center. His helmet fell off when he rounded second and he hopped in excitement as he neared the plate, where he was greeted by a line of teammates.

Rodriguez gave up one hit in 4 1/3 innings before Venezuela turned to its bullpen.

U.S. players had arrived at LoanDepot Park in game-worn U.S. Olympic hockey jerseys coordinated by outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and Jack Hughes, who scored the gold medal-winning goal against Canada last month.

In a darkened ballpark filled by fans wearing wristbands with festive blinking lights, Judge and Arraez led the teams down the foul lines for the introductions while carrying their nation’s flags.

Morocco have been declared the winners of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations after the Confederation of African Football (Caf) overturned the result of their final defeat to Senegal.

Senegal beat Morocco 1-0 in the final on 18 January in a match which was overshadowed when the Senegalese players refused to play after the hosts were awarded a stoppage-time penalty with the match goalless.

Following a delay of around 17 minutes, the players did eventually return and Brahim Diaz’s penalty was saved before Senegal’s Pape Gueye scored an extra-time winner.

However, that result has now been overturned by African football’s governing body.

A statement from Caf said that Senegal are “declared to have forfeited the final match” with the “result of the match being recorded as 3-0 in favour” of Morocco.

HOUSTON — In their first meeting of the season on Christmas Day, Lakers coach JJ Redick said the Lakers were “punked” by the Houston Rockets and vowed not to let it happen again.

On Monday, the Lakers displayed their toug to hness in a 100-92 win over the Rockets at Toyota Center.

Even when they missed 14 comsecutive shots at one point in the fourth quarter, the Lakers showed their resilience with a gritty defensive effort that kept them in the game. The Lakers scored only 17 points in the fourth, but they held the Rockets to just 12 points en route to their sixth consecutive win.

“They’re a really good basketball team and they make you either play hard and match their physicality, and how they muck the game up, or you can lay down,” Redick said. “And we didn’t lay down tonight. Had a deficit there in the third quarter. Our guys just kept playing.”

Luka Doncic led the Lakers with 36 points, six rebounds and four assists. LeBron James scored 18 points and Austin Reaves had 15 points.

But three big baskets from Deandre Ayton (seven points, 11 rebounds) and a big three-pointer by Marcus Smart (11 points) helped the Lakers open their six-game trip with a win.

Sitting third in the Western Conference, the Lakers (43-25) will take a 1½-game lead over the Rockets (41-26) into their rematch on Wednesday night.

“Obviously, we have another one on Wednesday, but it was a very important game,” said Doncic, who shot 14 for 27 from the field. We’ve been playing very good. Our defense has been pretty good, so just gotta continue that way.”

The Lakers threw double teams at Houston’s Kevin Durant all game, limiting him to 18 points and forcing him into seven of the Rockets’ 24 turnovers.

Durant shot only 16 times yet made eight. He was one for three in the fourth quarter and had just as many turnovers as points (two) in the final 12 minutes. One of those turnovers was on an eight-second violation.

“He’s one of the greatest players we’ve ever seen play,” James said. “Obviously you got to try to show him different looks, try to keep him off-balanced and when he shoots, hope he misses. So, I thought we did a good job of having a game plan but also just switching up our pitches.

“You can’t show a great like that too many of the same coverages throughout the whole game. He’ll get a feel for it.”

Doncic got off to what has become his typical first-quarter starts, scoring 16 points on seven-for-10 shooting. But Houston took a 58-51 lead at halftime after taking control of the boards in the second quarter. The Rockets turned six offensive rebounds into 13 points.

The Lakers also had a hard time scoring, shooting only 32% from the field and 13% (one for eight) from three-point range in the quarter.

After trailing by as many as 10 points in the third quarter, the Lakers surged and took an 83-80 lead heading into the fourth. After what happened in L.A. back in December, the Lakers were determined not to let Houston run away with the game.

After taking an 85-80 lead, the Lakers struggled to find consistent offense until Ayton checked back into the game with 4:52 left. Ayton scored on a tip shot to give the Lakers an 89-88 lead, then scored off a pair of offensive rebounds in the final 90 seconds to help keep the Lakers ahead for good. He finished with six points and five rebounds in the fourth quarter.

“He was amazing,” James said. “I mean, just the fact that he was sitting over there for as long as he did and stayed locked in on the game and came in and finished the game. He was able to get a tip-dunk, a couple of jump hooks around the rim, and a couple of rebounds. He helped us finish the game.”

Note: Lakers backup center Maxi Kleber did not play as he continues to recover from a lumbar back strain. “He’s basically been shut down for five days to sort of heal,” Redick said. “He’s not with us right now, and we hope he’s able to join us later on in the trip.”

Fine margins are often the difference between a title-winning side and one still building towards it.

Thomas Ramos’ last-gasp penalty to win the championship for France came after a handful of moments England will replay in their minds for a while.

Henry Pollock did brilliantly to steal the ball late on but, instead of taking contact and securing it, he tried to move it and possession was lost.

Ollie Chessum might also look back and think he could have edged a little closer to the posts to make the kick easier for Fin Smith, who himself will be frustrated at leaving points out there.

Those are the moments you write down and burn into your memory, because when they come around again – and they always do in Test rugby – you want the instinct to be automatic.

The best teams make winning those moments a habit.

Just look at South Africa at the 2023 World Cup – three knockout wins by a single point.

That is not luck. That is a team that understand exactly how to manage pressure.

England had been through a sticky spell and this performance gives them something real to build on heading into the summer.

When this squad meet up again for the tour to South Africa, there should be a real sense of belief.

They have shown they can challenge the very best teams in the world. Now it is about learning how to close out those pressure moments when they come.

Another area that will need attention is opposition analysis.

France exposed England a couple of times in the first half with tries straight from set-piece starter plays.

At this level, that is inexcusable. Louis Bielle-Biarrey chasing on to kicks through is something France have done all championship.

Those details matter. Fix them, combine that with the intensity England showed in Paris, and suddenly you have a team not just competing with the best, but capable of beating the best.

“England were blistering – their pace, their skill, their intensity, their physicality and they had a genuine chance of winning,” said former England scrum-half Matt Dawson on BBC Radio 5 Live.

“I feel for the players because they are going to be down, but I want them to be super, super positive because if they carry on playing like that for the next 18 months they are going to challenge in big tournaments and big games, and they are going to win big games.”

And yet. When the adrenaline levels drop, questions will also be raised.

Should England have made victory stick?

With the restart regathered by Chessum, the ball safely at the base, Sam Underhill, Henry Pollock and Chandler Cunningham-South on their feet as a potential pod, and only two minutes left on the clock, could England have kept ball in hand and run down the clock?

Instead, Jack van Poortvliet, who had brought some zip off the bench, opted to kick the ball away and infield. Matthieu Jalibert, a broken-field fiend, accepted the invite to run back and England were back under the pump.

Closing out victories was a repeated failing in a series of close defeats in autumn 2024. It is a habit that England don’t want to reacquire.

One they definitely haven’t kicked yet is indiscipline. Only one of the 162 team campaigns in Six Nations history – Italy 2002 – has picked up more cards than England have this year.

Eight yellows, two of which combined to make Henry Arundell’s 20-minute red against Scotland, have hobbled England throughout.

Ellis Genge was dispatched to the sin-bin seat of shame in Paris, adjudged to have cynically dragged down a France driving maul that was destined for the line.

It may have been a marginal call, but, backed up to their own line, England knew the stakes were high and the punishment for any infringement would be heavy.

France raced back into the lead in the prop’s absence.

Walsall have sacked head coach Mat Sadler following Tuesday’s defeat by Salford City which left them with one win in their past 11 matches in League Two.

The 1-0 loss was their third in a row and further dented their fading challenge for a play-off place.

Walsall were four points clear at the top of the table in early December, but a run of two wins in 14 since Boxing Day has left them 11th in the table, three points outside the top seven with 10 games remaining.

Sadler, a former defender at the club, leaves after a nearly three years in charge, having been appointed on a permanent basis in May 2023 following a short interim stint.

“I would like to take the opportunity to acknowledge the significant efforts and contributions of Mat, both as a professional and as a person, during his time at the club,” Walsall co-chairman Ben Boycott said.

“We thank him for his dedicated service and wish him the very best for the future.”

Coach Darren Byfield will take interim charge of the team with support from Terry Connor and the rest of the backroom staff, the club also confirmed.

Aaron Judge hit a two-run homer and Roman Anthony added a three-run blast in a big third inning to lead the United States to a 5-3 win over Mexico in the World Baseball Classic at Houston’s Daikin Park on Monday night.

The U.S. improved to 3-0 and will meet Italy (2-0) on Tuesday night, seeking to secure a spot in the quarterfinals in Houston this weekend.

Jarren Duran homered twice for Mexico (2-1), which will face Italy Wednesday night in the last game of Group B play.

The game was played in front of a sellout crowd of 41,628 that was decidedly pro-Mexico.

Reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes gave up one hit and struck out seven in four innings as the U.S. avenged an 11-5 loss to Mexico in the 2023 WBC.

The U.S. led by three entering the eighth inning before Duran took Matthew Boyd deep for his second homer. Boyd then hit Randy Arozarena on the arm with a pitch before striking out Jonathan Aranda.

Griffin Jax took over and induced a double-play grounder from Alejandro Kirk to end the inning.

Bryce Harper singled on a ball that hit reliever Jesus Cruz on the leg with no outs in the third inning. Judge followed with his drive to right field to put the Americans up 2-0 and give him two home runs in the tournament.

Kyle Schwarber singled and Cal Raleigh was hit by a pitch with one out before Anthony’s homer to right-center pushed the lead to 5-0.

Duran homered for a second straight game with his solo shot off Boyd that cut the lead to 5-1 with one out in the sixth. There were two on and two outs when Joey Meneses singled in a run to make it 5-2.

Kawhi Leonard scored 29 points, Bennedict Mathurin added 28 points, and the Clippers beat the New York Knicks 126-118 at Intuit Dome on Monday night to climb back to .500 for the first time since early November.

The Clippers are 32-32 and have won five of their first six games in March as they try to improve their potential position in the NBA play-in tournament. They began the season in a 6-21 tailspin.

It was Leonard’s 42nd straight game with 20-plus points, the second-longest active streak in the NBA and third-longest in team history.

Mathurin scored 22 in the second half off the bench as one of five Clippers in double figures. Darius Garland had 23 points and seven assists in his second start.

Karl-Anthony Towns led the Knicks with 35 points on 13-of-17 shooting, 12 rebounds and seven assists before fouling out in the final seconds. Jalen Brunson added 28 points and OG Anunoby had 22 points.

Buoyed by chants of “Let’s go Knicks!” at Intuit Dome, New York cut its deficit from 15 points with a 17-9 run, including six in a row from Brunson, to go into the fourth trailing 88-81.

The Knicks three times closed within five over the final four minutes. But the Clippers controlled the final two minutes, helped by Mathurin’s three-point play and a three-pointer by Derrick Jones Jr.

Clippers star Kawhi Leonard celebrates a basket during a win over the Knicks on Monday at Intuit Dome.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

Standing third in the Eastern Conference race, the Knicks split the season series with the Clippers, and have not beaten them in Los Angeles since 2022. New York has dropped three of four.

The Clippers opened the game by making four consecutive three-pointers and led most of the first half, which ended in a scoring duel between Leonard and Towns. Leonard scored 10 in a row for the Clippers and Towns had eight straight for the Knicks, who trailed 64-55 at the break.

Up next for the Clippers: vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves at Intuit Dome on Wednesday.

In the build-up to the match, Borthwick had urged his side to chance their arm and throw one more pass. But Italy looked quicker witted and more ambitious throughout.

A pair of clever kicks from fly-half Paolo Garbisi – the second, a well-weighted sideways nudge to release Ioane – set up the field position from which the fly-half kicked the first points of the match on 21 minutes.

An accurate long line-out throw and an Earl rumble gave England the momentum to put Tommy Freeman in for his ninth Test try, although Smith pushed the kickable conversion wide and Italy lurked dangerously as England continued to splutter.

Five minutes before the break, Menoncello – Italy’s leading metre-maker, clean-breaker and defender-beater so far in the championship – made good on the threat.

The 23-year-old carved past a startled Heyes on the fringe of a breakdown and galloped over to put Italy 10-5 in front.

England recovered. Albeit briefly.

A smart kick from Smith switched play to Tom Roebuck, and the Sale wing showed deft footwork to scamper in on the stroke of half-time.

A pair of Smith penalties after the break stretched England’s lead out to 18-10 and England seemed to be turning the tide of the contest, with Underhill and Itoje both burrowing deep for turnovers.

However, with 25 minutes to go and the match seemingly there for the taking, England’s contrived to hand the initiative back to Italy.

Underhill and Itoje watched on grimly from the sidelines as first Garbisi’s boot and then their backline’s all-court brilliance – Ioane stepping Roebuck in a sliver of space, Menoncello bullocking on and Marin gleefully scampering in – wrenched the contest out of their grasp.

England found some late urgency as they vainly chased the game. Ollie Chessum bust a hole to spin the Italian defence, but the scramble snuffed out the danger.

England looked dazed and at the end of days, as the clock went red, the ball went dead and the Stadio Olimpico lit up and leapt to its feet around them.

Defeat by France in Paris next weekend would mark only the third time in the 115-year history of the Five and Six Nations that England have lost four games in a single campaign.

The Lakers were looking to stack wins and are not in position to judge an opponent by its win-loss record.

So, when the Lakers encountered a Pelicans team that arrived at Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday night with a 19-43 record, they knew they couldn’t afford to overlook New Orleans. Especially since the Pelicans had won four of their past five and because they have a talented core of young talent that includes Zion Williamson, Herbert Jones, Trey Murphy III and Dejounte Murray.

It took all five starters scoring in double figures and it took a strong defensive effort in the fourth quarter for the Lakers (37-24) to pull out a 110-101 win over a stubborn Pelicans team.

“Well, we knew we weren’t playing against their record tonight,” said LeBron James, who was one of the starters to score in double figures with 21 points to go along with seven rebounds, seven assists and two blocks. But he also had five turnovers.

“It’s the first time they’ve been whole in quite a while,” James, who was eight-for-12 from the field, continued. “And we know when they’ve been whole what kind of team they’ve been. So, we came in with that mindset, understanding what kind of team we were playing and they won their last four out of five before tonight, or something like that.

“But we didn’t come in with the notion that we were playing against their record. We came in with the notion that we were playing a very athletic team that’s been playing exceptional basketball of late.”

The Lakers have been a better team as of late as well, winning their third straight game after losing three straight.

They won this one over the Pelicans with just enough offense and some timely defense.

Luka Doncic led the Lakers with 27 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. But he was just 10-for-22 from the field and three-for-10 from three-point range and he had seven turnovers.

“I think we responded in a good way,”: Doncic said. “Sometimes you got to win playing bad. That’s what good teams do. I think that’s what it is today. Obviously it wasn’t our best game, but we managed to get a win.”

Austin Reaves had 15 points on four-for-15 shooting and two for seven on three-pointers, eight rebounds and five turnovers.

Reaves injured his arm late in the fourth quarter after stripping the basketball away from Williamson. But after a quick time out, Reeves returned to the game.

“I just hit my funny bone,” Reaves said. “Whole hand went numb, called a time out, kind of went away and was able to play.”

Deandre Ayton had 13 points and eight rebounds.

There also was the defense and energy Marcus Smart and Jaxson Hayes provided the Lakers.

Smart had 10 points, four steals and three blocks. He also was big on offense, drilling a three-pointer with 1:34 left for a 105-98 Lakers lead.

Hayes had eight points, six rebounds and two blocks.

“Jaxson was guarding Zion, which is not easy,” Doncic said. “So, I think he had some big, big plays for us. And obviously Smart has been the key to our wins (this season).”

The Lakers had 20 turnovers through three quarters, which didn’t help their cause.

They had just one in the fourth quarter and that came on a late-game 24-second violation when they were running out the clock.

The Lakers didn’t help themselves by losing their composure.

Doncic was given a technical foul in the second quarter. Luke Kennard received a technical foul in the third quarter and Ayton got a technical foul in the fourth quarter after being called for a foul blocking a shot by Williamson.

Austin Reaves celebrates after making a three-pointer in the second half.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

The Lakers had 12 blocks for the game and seven in the decisive fourth quarter.

They held the Pelicans to 35% shooting in the fourth and just 23 points.

“I think we’ve made some strides defensively,” James said. “I think we didn’t play much at all zone tonight. We started the game with it, we kind of went away from it. So, I thought our man-to-man defense was pretty good. I thought Jaxson and Marcus were great on that end and then everyone else kind of trickled in as well.”

Munster secured a much-needed 21-7 win over Zebre in the United Rugby Championship, being made to work hard before pulling clear in the second half at a drenched Thomond Park on Saturday.

With three defeats in their last four URC outings – against Leinster, Ulster and Glasgow Warriors – and having made 10 changes from the side that lost to Glasgow Warriors last month, this result will steady the ship somewhat for the Irish province.

After going in level at half-time at seven points apiece, Munster edged ahead in the second period with a late brace of tries from Alex Kendellen and Lee Barron, those scores securing Clayton McMillan’s side their first win in Limerick since October.

Munster had the majority of early territory and pressure, with a beautifully judged kick from Tom Farrell handing the hosts a line-out just seven metres from the Zebre line.

That pressure intensified when Giulio Bertaccini was shown a yellow card two minutes in for a deliberate knock-on, as Munster threatened to score under the posts.

Despite being reduced to 14 men, Zebre initially stood firm, but winger Shane Daly demonstrated his explosive pace and stormed over in the left corner after six minutes, getting Munster off the mark, JJ Hanrahan adding the conversion.

A sudden downpour swept across Thomond Park, making handling increasingly treacherous, yet Munster continued to probe.

The hosts generated quick ruck ball and a clever grubber from Mike Haley almost put captain Jack O’Donoghue in under the posts, but the ball slipped forward at the crucial moment.

Munster controlled territory for much of the opening quarter, working patiently through phases as Zebre were forced into heavy defensive shifts.

Gradually the Italian visitors found a foothold and just after the half-hour mark, Samuele Locatelli broke Munster’s defensive line, with flanker Bautista Stavile scoring under the posts. Giacomo Da Re added the extras.

Munster had one final opportunity before the interval, but another spilt ball in the wet conditions allowed Zebre to clear.

Pavel Dorofeyev had two goals and the Vegas Golden Knights spoiled Artemi Panarin’s Kings debut by scoring five third-period goals to rally for a 6-4 win Wednesday night.

Colton Sissons, Brandon Saad and Reilly Smith scored three goals in a span of 4:14 midway through the third and the shorthanded Golden Knights overcame the absence of five players who participated in the gold medal game at the Milan Cortina Olympics on Sunday. Ivan Barbashev added a late empty-netter, and Adin Hill made 15 saves.

Vegas played without United States center Jack Eichel and defenseman Noah Hanifin and Canada forwards Mark Stone and Mitch Marner and defenseman Shea Theodore, all of whom are expected to be available when their five-game trip continues against the Capitals in Washington on Friday night.

Quinton Byfield had two goals, Adrian Kempe and Brandt Clarke scored, while Panarin had two assists in his team debut, but the Kings dropped their fourth straight game.

Panarin, who was acquired in a trade from the New York Rangers on Feb. 4, set up the Kings’ opening goal by putting his pass in off Byfield’s skate on the power play late in the first period and had the secondary assist on Kempe’s goal in the second period.

Anton Forsberg made 19 saves for the Kings, who came out of the Olympic break three points out of a wild-card berth.

The Golden Knights found themselves trailing after two periods as Panarin reached the 40-assist mark for the 11th straight season. But they responded with a strong final 20 minutes, including Dorofeyev’s power-play goal with 4:01 remaining that made it 5-3.

Joel Quenneville became the second coach in NHL history to win 1,000 games with the Ducks’ 6-5 comeback victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday night.

Quenneville joined Scotty Bowman in an exclusive hockey club with a milestone win in the Ducks’ first game back from the Olympic break.

Cutter Gauthier scored the tiebreaking goal with 1:14 to play for the Ducks, who erased a pair of two-goal deficits. Leo Carlsson had a goal and two assists in his first appearance since Jan. 10 for the Ducks, who have won six straight home games and 10 of 12 overall to leapfrog the Oilers into second place in the Pacific Division.

Zach Hyman and Evan Bouchard scored late in the second period to put the Oilers ahead, but Carlsson and Olen Zellweger scored early in the third to even it again.

Rookie Matt Savoie then converted a rebound late in a power play for his 10th career goal, but Beckett Sennecke answered 46 seconds later with a slick wrist shot for his 19th goal — tops among NHL rookies.

Gauthier then converted a rebound of Carlsson’s shot, setting off a wild celebration inside a sold-out Honda Center.

Jack Roslovic and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored for Edmonton. Connor McDavid had two assists, giving the Olympic silver medalist an NHL-best 98 points in 59 games.

Ian Moore and Alex Killorn scored for the Ducks, and Lukas Dostal made 22 saves.

Tristan Jarry made 20 saves before getting pulled for Connor Ingram after Sennecke’s tying goal with 13:21 to play.

Carlsson was outstanding in his return to the Ducks’ lineup after missing the final 11 games before the break with a thigh injury that kept him out of the Olympics.

Mikael Granlund didn’t play for the Ducks after captaining Finland to bronze in Milan. None of the Oilers’ Olympians sat out as they opened a three-game California trip.

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Kara Dunn had 24 points and Jazzy Davidson had 22, but Penn State rallied to defeat the USC women, 85-82 on Wednesday night.

The Trojans led 62-58, early in the fourth quarter and 70-68 with 5:35 to play before Kiyomi McMiller and Moriah Murray made key shots to give Penn State the lead.

Penn State extended its lead to 79-74 after a 15-foot jumper by McMiller. The teams exchanged buckets until Dunn hit a three-pointer with 14 seconds left, pulling the Trojans back within two at 82-80. McMiller was fouled immediately after the inbounds pass, and made both her free throws. Davidson scored on a layup to make it 84-82 with four seconds remaining. Vitoria Santana was fouled and made one of two free throws with three seconds remaining, but USC was unable to get a shot off after that.

Dunn made a season-high six three-pointers and had six rebounds and three assists. Davidson had her 25th consecutive double-figure scoring performance and sixth straight 20-point game. Kennedy Smith had 19 points along with six rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block.

With the loss, USC drops to 17-11 overall and 9-8 in Big Ten play. Wednesday was Penn State’s second win all-time and first win against USC since Jan. 6, 1980.

Last week, American diplomats and their Iranian counterparts sat down in Geneva for yet another round of talks mediated by Oman. The outcome seemed unclear. While the Iranians said “good progress” had been made, the Americans claimed there was “a little progress”. Meanwhile, United States President Donald Trump threatened once again to strike Iran.

In recent weeks, there has been a heavy US military build-up in the Middle East in preparation for what many observers see as an imminent attack. In this context, it may be apt to question whether the current negotiations are not simply a tactic to buy time to better prepare for the inevitable.

In the face of US military might, some have suggested that Iran’s only option is negotiating an agreement with the US, however unfair it may be. While Iranian military capabilities stand no chance against an army with the world’s biggest budget, accepting capitulation through a debilitating deal that may be broken again by Washington may not necessarily be Tehran’s only choice.

There is another way in which Iran can stand up to US bullying and win.

The fate of past negotiations

The ongoing US-Iran talks cannot be viewed in isolation. For Iran, any diplomatic engagement with the US is overshadowed by the legacy of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

Signed by the US, China, Russia, France, the United Kingdom, Germany, the European Union and Iran in 2015, the agreement provided sanctions relief in exchange for full transparency of the Iranian nuclear programme. Tehran accepted the deal even though it had some unfair provisions, including some US sanctions remaining in place.

Nevertheless, it fulfilled its obligations – a fact that was repeatedly verified by the International Atomic Energy Agency.

In return, however, the US as a signatory did not uphold its end of the deal. In 2018, Trump unilaterally withdrew from the JCPOA and reimposed maximum pressure sanctions aimed at crippling Iran’s economy.

It was a stark reminder that American promises are nonbinding. As a leader who has shown no regard for the interests of American allies in pursuit of an “America first” policy, Trump could hardly be expected to respect the interests of American adversaries.

However, even if a Democratic president had been in the White House, there would not have been any guarantee that the JCPOA would have remained in place. In the US’s polarised political climate, an American president’s signature is only valid until the next election.

For the US, negotiations can also be little more than a facade intended to lull adversaries into a false sense of security. Last year, just as US and Iranian representatives were scheduled to meet in Oman for another round of talks, Israel, a key American ally, launched a massive military campaign against Iran.

While the US denied direct involvement, it acknowledged having received prior notice. Given the close ties between the two countries, this prior knowledge strongly implied that the US had given Israel tacit approval for the air attacks.

Today, Iran is engaging in negotiations with the US again, and it is being pressured to accept an even more unfair deal. Should it back down and submit to US demands, then Trump – who preys on perceived weakness – would simply move the goalpost. Demands would shift from Iran’s nuclear programme today to its ballistic missiles tomorrow and regime change the day after.

The special US relationship with Israel means that Washington is fundamentally hostile to an Iranian government that sees the Israeli state as an enemy. Consequently, Trump’s goal is not to reach a durable agreement but to ensure that Iran can never fully comply with his demands, thereby justifying a permanent campaign of maximum pressure and hostility.

In this context and given its recent experience, it would be foolish for Iran to rely on US promises and negotiated agreements.

Leverage through strong regional ties

The current US-Iran standoff is a high-stakes game in which an all-out war is a likely outcome. While the US could achieve an initial victory through overwhelming military superiority, it could also get bogged down fighting a protracted counterinsurgency in Iran’s mountainous terrain.

Conversely, while Iran could eventually repel an American invasion – just as its Afghan neighbours did – the country would be reduced to rubble in the process.

That does not mean Iran should back down. The Greenland crisis and the China-US trade war have demonstrated that Trump’s propensity for sabre-rattling is tempered by his aversion to losses. Even though the EU and China are far more powerful than Iran, a clear show of resolve could compel Trump to retreat.

And Tehran does not have to be alone in its defiance. In its neighbourhood, there are other big players who recognise that another disastrous war led by the US is not in their interests. Iran can and should leverage the regional desire for stability.

For years, Iran pursued a policy of confrontation in the region until it realised that carving out a sphere of influence was actually exacerbating its security dilemma. This recognition ultimately led to the historic normalisation of relations with Saudi Arabia in 2023 – a breakthrough facilitated by China, Oman and Iraq – which in turn set in motion a broader detente with other Arab countries.

Three years later, that decision is yielding dividends. Notably, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Turkiye and Qatar are lobbying Trump to exercise restraint. Building on this neighbourly diplomacy and investing in developing regional stability and a security architecture could help stave off another major US war in the region.

The most important path to peace – and the only means of countering American gunboat diplomacy – does not lie in matching American military might, a contest Iran is destined to lose, but in establishing good relations with its neighbours and accepting regional stability as part of its national security.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.