depth

Led by another standout performance from Jordan Chiles, the No. 5 UCLA women’s gymnastics team clinched the Big Ten regular-season championship for the second consecutive year Friday night by winning its Big Four meet at Pauley Pavilion.

Chiles, who had the top all-around score of 39.625, helped UCLA defeat No. 18 Iowa, No. 19 Ohio State and No. 25 Maryland with an overall score of 196.950. Her 9.950 on the vault in the final rotation sealed the win.

“The thing I’m taking away from today is that they really are fighters,” UCLA coach Janelle McDonald said. “They really didn’t give up [at] any moment, and they really were just resilient through it all.”

Ciena Alipio opened with a 9.850 on the uneven bars. Tiana Sumanasekera followed it with a 9.750 before Nola Matthews, Sydney Barros and Chiles each scored a 9.900.

Alipio was impressed by how well Matthews performed on short notice.

“She is one to always kind of just put her head down and work, and I’m really proud of her to see her step up today,” Alipio said.

On the balance beam, Katelyn Rosen started with a 9.750 and Barros posted a 9.850. Flexing UCLA’s depth, Mika Webster-Longin received a 9.825 in her top routine. Chiles had a 9.825. In an almost-perfect routine, Alipio posted a 9.950. The mark helped UCLA extend its lead.

It wasn’t all good news for the Bruins on the first rotation — Rosen sustained a foot injury and was held out for the remainder of the meet.

“I’m hoping it’s not no big deal, but we’ll get her checked out and just want to take the precaution and pull her out of those lineups,” McDonald said.

UCLA’s Jordan Chiles competes on the balance beam Friday during a Big Ten quad meet at Pauley Pavilion.

(Etienne Laurent / For The Times)

Matthews started the floor exercise in Rosen’s place, opening with a 9.675. Alipio followed with a 9.825, and Sumanasekera and Ashlee Sullivan posted scores of 9.875 and 9.900, respectively. Needing a big performance to keep their lead, Chiles did not disappoint, scoring a 9.950.

Matthews demonstrated the level of depth UCLA has leaned on throughout the season.

“I definitely can say that is a huge leadership role as a freshman,” Chiles said. “Being able to step in at a time like that … we trusted the fact that she was gonna go out there and do her job.”

UCLA’s Katelyn Rosen competes on balance beam during the Bruins’ quad meet win at Pauley Pavilion on Friday.

(Etienne Laurent / For The Times)

Going into the last rotation, UCLA led Ohio State by just .150. The Bruins needed a strong performance on vault to claim the conference title.

Sumanasekera set the tone with a 9.850. Madisyn Anyimi followed with a 9.775. After replacing Rosen, Webster-Longin earned a 9.800 in her season debut on vault, and Sullivan posted a 9.850 before Chiles clinched the win.

But the Bruins want more.

“This is a regular season, we still have Big Ten championship, we have regionals and we have NCAA,” Chiles said.

The quad-meet experience was a learning curve, Alipio said. UCLA had to perform at a high level through the final routine to secure victory.

UCLA gymnast Ashlee Sullivan performs her floor routine during the Bruins’ quad meet win Friday at Pauley Pavilion.

(Etienne Laurent / For The Times)

McDonald said adjusting to tough competition levels up UCLA. The Bruins hope the experience will pay dividends for the young team in the postseason.

“We just kept reminding them to just take a breath, stay present and just really trust their training and their preparation that they’ve had leading into today,” McDonald said.

After donning hats and shirts that commemorated their championship, the Bruins celebrated on the floor with cheers and pictures. But come next week, the work begins again.

“We fought, for sure, until the end,” Alipio said. “But we also know we’re going into the gym on Monday, and we’re putting our heads down and working because this wasn’t our best, but we have more to show everybody.”

PHOENIX — It is never too early for hyperbole.

No major league team has won more than 116 games. The Dodgers had yet to play an exhibition game last spring when former Times columnist Dylan Hernández declared they could win 120.

Not to be outdone, the Dodgers were one week into the season when Bill Plaschke posted a column with this headline: “Who says the Dodgers can’t go 162-0?”

The Dodgers won 93 games. They also won the World Series, becoming the first back-to-back champions in 25 years.

One week into spring training, the Dodgers are the only undefeated team.

Reality check: The Dodgers are not going to win every game, yet they play in a market where everybody expects them to win every game.

“They do,” manager Dave Roberts said.

What would be a realistic number of wins?

“I don’t know what’s realistic,” he said. “We win a lot of games. Honestly, we showed last year that the regular season certainly does matter but, at the end of the day, you’ve got to be playing your best baseball at the right time.”

During the Dodgers’ 13-year playoff run, they‘ve won 100 games five times. When doing that, they‘ve made it to the World Series once, losing to the cheating Houston Astros. In 2023, they won exactly 100 games in the regular season and exactly zero in the playoffs.

It is one of baseball’s eternal verities that wins and losses in spring training do not matter.

“It’s always fun to win,” said Andrew Friedman, the Dodgers’ president of baseball operations. “That is always way more fun than losing. But so much of spring training is, just don’t get a call from our trainer. Keep guys healthy.

“That is far and away the biggest priority: get guys ready for the season and keep them healthy.”

Noah Miller runs the bases during a spring training game against the Angels on Feb. 21.

(Ronaldo Bolanos / Los Angeles Times)

If winning in spring training is not predictive, neither is it irrelevant. For an organization that would rather prime a pitcher for the postseason than dare use him for 200 innings in the regular season, and juggle a roster spot all summer so Kiké “Mr. October” Hernández can be available in the postseason, depth is critical.

“While there is no direct correlation between that and how you are going to do in the regular season, I do think it is some kind of proxy for the depth that you have,” Friedman said. “After three or four innings, there is a line change, and minor league players are coming in. I think being able to maintain a high level of play in these back-side innings speaks to depth.”

Friedman is no great fan of the Cactus League grind.

“So much of spring training, it feels like, is just downside,” he said. “You’re just waiting for that phone call [from the trainer]. You’re doing everything you can to stave that phone call off.”

The upside is on the business side. As of Thursday, tickets for Saturday’s exhibition game against the Chicago Cubs started at $97. The starters are likely to play half the game. Shohei Ohtani is in Japan, preparing for the World Baseball Classic.

So, to the point: It does not matter that the Dodgers are undefeated in spring training, and they’ll probably win somewhere around 100 games. They did, after all, repair their two glaring weaknesses by committing $300 million to All-Stars in the prime of their careers: outfielder Kyle Tucker and closer Edwin Díaz.

Baseball Prospectus projects the Dodgers to win 104 games. Fangraphs projects 99.

But this is the season of hyperbole, so the Dodgers still have a chance to go 194-0 between the Cactus League and the regular season.

I had to ask Roberts how good he thought the Dodgers’ chances would be this season if they never lost.

He chuckled.

“Pretty good,” he said.

With a lineup that goes nine deep, Sierra Canyon’s boys’ basketball team has won 25 of 26 games this season, and about the only way the Trailblazers are going to be a denied Southern Section Open Division and state championships is if a fellow Mission League team can beat them.

At least one thing is certain about the playoffs — the Mission League is tops. Three of the four teams that reached the Open Division semifinals are from the Mission League, setting up semifinals Tuesday that will feature Sherman Oaks Notre Dame at Sierra Canyon and surprising La Mirada at Harvard-Westlake.

“It continues to show that the Mission League is one of the toughest leagues in the country,” Harvard-Westlake coach David Rebibo said. “It pays to be in a quality league.”

First up for everyone is figuring out Sierra Canyon.

“I love the options,” Sierra Canyon coach Andre Chevalier said of his team’s depth after a 70-47 blowout of Santa Margarita on Friday night in a quarterfinal between the top-seeded Trailblazers and the No. 2-seeded Eagles (27-5), according to the Southern Section’s computer power rankings.

Santa Margarita never had a chance. The Eagles missed numerous three-point attempts, while Sierra Canyon was finding different players to contribute. Nine players scored for Sierra Canyon, with Brandon McCoy getting 17 points and nine rebounds, Brannon Martinsen scoring 13 points and Maxi Adams 11. McCoy and Adams are McDonald’s All-Americans, but it’s the Trailblazers’ depth that is coming through during a long season that still has three weeks left.

Sophomore guard JJ Sati-Grier, a transfer from North Carolina, suddenly has earned playing time and had four baskets. Sophomore guard Josh Lowery had seven points.

During the second half when a Sierra Canyon player took an ill-advised shot, Chevalier shouted out, “What are you doing?” The player found himself immediately on the bench. Another player came in to contribute. If the Trailblazers keep finding so many players to deliver baskets, that’s tough to overcome.

“Our depth is going to get us over the top,” Chevalier said.

Notre Dame and Sierra Canyon finally will get to play their Mission League title game that was supposed to tip off two weeks ago but canceled because of a student’s death.

The biggest upset was La Mirada taking down No. 3-seeded Redondo Union on the road, 73-70. Gene Roebuck fouled out early in the fourth quarter but still scored 19 points. Cisco Munoz had 17 points, Tristan Partida 15 and King-Riley Owens 10. The Matadores made the Open Division playoffs last season but didn’t qualify for the state playoffs. Now they are one win away from playing for a section title.

Harvard-Westlake built a 10-point halftime lead but had to hold on against Mission League rival Crespi at home, 49-46. Joe Sterling finished with 15 points and Pierce Thompson 13.

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame defeated Corona Centennial 59-56. NaVorro Bowman Jr. scored 23 points, and Zach White had 13 points and 10 rebounds.

“It’s testament to the quality of the coaching, the quality of the players,” Notre Dame coach Matt Sargeant said of the league’s success.

JSerra 105, Inglewood 91: The Lions made it to the Southern Section Division 1 final. Jaden Bailes scored 33 points, and Ryan Doane had 32 points and 18 rebounds. Jason Crowe Jr. finished with 37 points for Inglewood. JSerra will face top-seeded Crean Lutheran, a 67-55 winner over Rancho Christian.

Hesperia 54, Mater Dei 49: Hesperia moved on to the Division 2 final.

Sylmar 93, Marquez 75: Aiden Garcia scored 26 point as the Spartans advanced to the City Section Division II championship game, where they will play King/Drew, which defeated Bravo 72-44. Wayne Chamberlain had 20 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks.

Chatsworth 53, Venice 51 (OT): The Chancellors made it to the City Section Division I final with an overtime win in the semifinals. They will face top-seeded and fellow West Valley League rival Granada Hills, a 48-30 winner over L.A. Jordan.