first half

So much can happen in seven minutes of football.

Carson proved that on Saturday night in the City Section Open Division championship game, scoring five touchdowns in a 7:05 span of the second quarter to produce a 36-0 shutout of Crenshaw at Southwest College.

After a scoreless first quarter, Zach Brock broke several tackles on a 12-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second quarter, opening the floodgates for the No. 1-seeded Colts (10-3).

Chris Fields III connected with Royal Moore on a 46-yard touchdown and the two-point conversion made it 15-0 at the 7:32 mark. Darren Panton returned a punt 28 yards for another touchdown with 6:20 left in the stanza and recovered a fumble at the Crenshaw 22 two plays later, setting up Craig Walker’s reverse that made it 29-0. Panton ended the scoring barrage with a 23-yard interception return 4:46 before halftime.

“We saw in the first quarter that they were overly aggressive and if we gave them a fake, they’d bite on it,” said Fields, who completed eight of 15 passes for 147 yards with an interception and ran seven times for 38 yards. “I just took advantage of what the defense gave me. Darren’s punt return sealed the deal.”

Carson sacked Cougars quarterback Danniel Flowers four times in the first half — two of those by end Kingston Sula and one each by Derric Myers and Xavier Allen — and forced him into several other hurried throws. Flowers, who made several clutch throws in the semifinals at Birmingham, was held to four-of-10 passing for 37 yards in the first half Saturday while running back Joshua Jones had 11 yards in five carries by intermission.

Carson High receiver Royal Moore sprints down the sideline on his way to a 46-yard touchdown against Crenshaw in the City Section Open Division final Saturday night.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Eric Myers finished with 88 yards in 18 carries to keep the chains moving for the Colts, who claimed their 12th City crown and first since winning Division I in 2003 under coach John Aguirre, who later became City Section commissioner.

Carson moved to within one of second-place Banning on the all-time titles list. Manual Arts holds the record with 17.

“This is a testament to these kids and how hard they work,” first-year coach William Lowe said. “They have good practice habits on the field and in the weight room and are mentally tough. Any play can win or lose a game and when good things happen we try to build on that.”

The sixth-seeded Cougars (10-2) were vying for their seventh City title since 1991. Terrence Whitehead has served as interim head coach all season in the absence of longtime coach Robert Garrett (the winningest football coach in section history with 300 wins to his credit), who is on administrative leave.

“Chris has grown in leaps and bounds,” Lowe said of Fields. “I credit all of my coaches. Our defensive alignment allows the kids to play fast and physical and we were battle-tested despite some tough losses early in the year.”

During practice Friday, UCLA women’s basketball coach Cori Close made it clear she wanted to see more from forward Angela Dugalic.

“You’re not using what you’ve earned,” Close recalled telling her while speaking with reporters Friday.

Dugalic is going to face some of the best players in the country this week. Close thinks she can match up with them, but she needs Dugalic to play like it. With all the work Dugalic has done on her low-post game over the offseason, she can’t settle for floating around the perimeter.

Close won’t let her.

“I just want her to be all she can be,” Close said. “She’s been an animal down there in the low post, and I want her to hunt for that. I don’t want her to settle for playing on the perimeter when she’s got a whole lot more tools in her toolbox that she’s not accessing.”

Close got that version of Dugalic in Sunday’s 88-37 rout of Southern at Pauley Pavilion. The third-ranked Bruins were in full control from whistle to whistle, even pitching a second-quarter shutout, and Dugalic led the way with 20 points, five rebounds and an assist. She shot eight for 15 from the floor with a trio of three-pointers.

It was pure dominance by UCLA. The Bruins shot 51% from the field while holding the Jaguars to 29%. They outrebounded Southern by 30. They forced 13 turnovers, nine in the first half, and scored 28 points off them. And on the offensive end, UCLA was flowing with 24 assists to Southern’s nine.

Gabriela Jaquez added eight rebounds and five assists to go with six points. Her first basket, a layup after cutting through the paint in the second quarter, gave the senior guard her 1,000th career point. Kiki Rice had 17 points, eight rebounds and five assists and Lauren Betts finished with 15 points and six rebounds.

Dugalic opened the scoring for UCLA with a midrange jumper followed by a fast-break layup. She finished the first half with nine points, tied for the team lead with freshman forward Lena Bilic, who finished the game with 14 points.

Despite Dugalic’s strong start, Close issued her another challenge at halftime.

“I just want you to focus on making the right basketball play,” Close said. “What’s the defense doing? I didn’t think she was reading the defense. I thought she shot it well, and I thought she got some great rebounds, but I didn’t think she was in the flow that we’ve been seeing from her the last few days and our last few games.”

Close added that she thinks Dugalić is playing some of the best basketball of her career, and she’s continuously fighting to raise her standard. It’s not about how many points she scores, it’s about her decision making her defense, her consistency.

The Bruins entered that second quarter with a 22-9 lead thanks to a 14-2 run over the final six minutes of the first quarter after holding Southern (1-4) scoreless during the final three minutes. UCLA then exploded for a 27-0 run in the second quarter while holding the Jaguars scoreless for the entire period. It was the first time the Bruins had held an opponent scoreless for an entire quarter since they achieved the same feat on Dec. 5, 2021 against San José State.

Still, Close wasn’t satisfied.

During halftime, Close said she reminded the Bruins of what they want to accomplish. Close wrote down a list of “passion plays,” or goals for every single player to get in the second half.

UCLA guard Kiki Rice controls the ball in front of Southern forward DeMya Porter during the first half of the Bruins’ win Sunday at Pauley Pavilion.

(Ethan Swope / Associated Press)

It’s part of a mentality Close is trying to instill in her players. They know a 51-point win against an unranked Southern team isn’t going to give them the feedback they need.

“Outcomes are actually a distraction,” Close said, referencing legendary Alabama football coach Nick Saban. “What are the processes that we’re going to be committed to that are going to actually lead us to where we want to go?”

UCLA (6-0) will face No. 4 Texas on Wednesday in the Players Era Women’s Championship in Las Vegas, followed by either No. 2 South Carolina or Duke on Thanksgiving. The Bruins then will host No. 15 Tennessee on Nov. 30.

Somebody should check with SoFi Stadium to see if it rescinded its offer.

In what could have been UCLA’s last game at the Rose Bowl after 43 years of calling the place home, the Bruins unfurled the kind of showing that no one would ever want to relive or put in a scrapbook.

If this was goodbye, it was a sad sendoff.

There were lost fumbles, a laughably bad fake field goal that resulted in a touchdown for the other team and a dropped pass that probably cost UCLA its own score. And that was just in the first half.

Adding injury to insult, UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava took a crunching hit that sidelined him late in the third quarter, ending his gritty return from a concussion that had forced him to miss his team’s last game.

UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava passes in the first half against Washington on Saturday night.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

There’s mercifully only one game left for the Bruins this season after a 48-14 loss to Washington on Saturday night led to a fast-emptying stadium, no fond farewells in store for the home fans amid an announced crowd of 38,201 that was too depleted by game’s end to boo.

The site of UCLA’s next home game remains as big of an unknown as its next head coach. School officials have said they are still contemplating plans for where the team will play in the future, though that decision could be up to a court to decide given the Bruins have nearly two decades left on a Rose Bowl lease that doesn’t expire until the summer of 2044.

It’s believed that if school officials have their way, they will move to SoFi Stadium in time for their 2026 season opener.

Wherever the Bruins play, they have a lot of improvements to make. They looked lethargic in falling behind by 34 points Saturday while making one mistake after another on the way to a fourth consecutive defeat.

By the time he entered the game, there was little backup quarterback Luke Duncan could do except make the final score slightly more palatable. He succeeded on that front, firing a 37-yard touchdown pass to Mikey Matthews late in the third quarter that helped UCLA (3-8 overall, 3-5 Big Ten) avoid a shutout.

There was another highlight for the Bruins early in the fourth quarter when Kanye Clark forced a fumble on Washington’s punt return, allowing Jamir Benjamin to pick up the ball and run 13 yards for a touchdown.

But make no mistake: This was complete domination by the Huskies (8-3, 5-3), who rolled up 426 yards of offense while holding the Bruins to 207 yards, including just 57 yards rushing.

Washington alumnus and comedian Joel McHale performed a short recorded bit that was shown on the scoreboard before the game, but the real slapstick was about to come.

The Bruins coughed up two fumbles in the first half and would have lost a third had the Huskies not been called for defensive holding on the play, nullifying the turnover.

UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava watches as Washington players celebrate a defensive touchdown in the first half Saturday.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

UCLA wide receiver Titus Mokiao-Atimalala dropped what could have been a touchdown pass at the Huskies’ 38-yard line with nothing but open field in front of him.

But there was no blunder quite like what happened when the Bruins lined up for a 46-yard field goal late in the second quarter. Holder Cash Peterman took the snap and flipped the ball over his shoulder as kicker Mateen Bhaghani circled behind him, the ball hitting the turf instead of Bhaghani’s hands.

Washington’s Alex McLaughlin picked up the ball and ran 59 yards for a touchdown that put the Huskies ahead, 20-0. It was the second straight game UCLA was held scoreless in the first half.

Things never got appreciably better, the Bruins left adrift without a haven in sight.

SAN JOSÉ — Rose Lavelle scored in the 80th minute and eighth-seeded Gotham FC beat the Washington Spirit 1-0 on Saturday night to win their second National Women’s Soccer League championship.

Second-half substitute Bruninha drove into the box on the left wing and sent the ball across to Lavelle, whose left-footed shot sailed past Spirit goalkeeper Aubrey Kingsbury into the bottom corner of the net.

It is the first NWSL championship for Lavelle, who scored in the 2023 final playing for the Seattle Reign against Gotham in a 2-1 loss.

After a strong opening 10 minutes of the match for Gotham, with three shots from Jaedyn Shaw, the final began to mature into a tense affair.

There were few chances and the best of the first half came when Spirit midfielder Hal Hershfelt perfectly timed a slide tackle and cleaned out Midge Purce with the follow-through.

Early in the second half, Trinity Rodman was brought off the Spirit bench for Sofia Cantore, bringing the crowd to its feet. The U.S. women’s team star was on a minutes restriction after suffering a knee sprain in October.

Even with Rodman, the Spirit continued to struggle to create chances. They had marginally more control of the ball, 53%, but were outshot by Gotham 12-6 and finished the game without a shot on target. Rodman had zero chances created.

The second-seeded Spirit (14-6-8) suffered a second consecutive defeat in the NWSL final, having lost last year to the Orlando Pride. The Spirit reached this final by overcoming Racing Louisville 3-1 in a penalty shootout in the quarterfinals and then beating the Portland Thorns 2-0 in the semifinals.

Gotham (11-8-9) defied the odds to make the final, going on the road twice to defeat the top-seeded Kansas City Current 2-1 in the quarterfinals and the defending champion Pride 1-0.

Gotham are the first eighth seed to win the championship. In 2023, when there were only six playoff spots, Gotham became the first sixth seed to lift the trophy.

Coach Juan Carlos Amoros has seven playoff wins in his career and two championships.

NASHVILLE — The Chargers won the battle but lost the warrior.

They held off the Tennessee Titans 27-20, but saw their outstanding left tackle Joe Alt go down with the same injured ankle that sidelined him earlier this season.

It was a troubling and ominous blow Sunday to a franchise that’s in a constant state of reshuffling its offensive line and unable to sufficiently protect quarterback Justin Herbert. Before losing Alt, the Chargers lost right tackle Bobby Hart to what they called a groin injury (but looked to be a hurt leg).

On a cool and overcast day, the Chargers had enough to get past the one-win Titans — the Chargers (6-3) were favored by 9½ points — but will face far stiffer competition in the second half of the season. The Titans haven’t won at home since last Nov. 4.

Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh helps offensive tackle Bobby Hart off the field in the first half.

(John Amis / Associated Press)

Herbert, who ran for 62 yards in the Week 8 win over Minnesota, again provided the bulk of the Chargers’ running game. He led all rushers with 57 yards in nine carries, including a one-yard touchdown.

The Titans fired coach Brian Callahan last month after the team got off to a 1-5 start, putting in place interim coach Mike McCoy, who was head coach of the San Diego Chargers from 2013 to 2016.

The Chargers absorbed a huge blow in the second quarter when Alt went down with an ankle injury, the same ankle that caused him to miss three games earlier this season. Alt, the best player on the offensive line, had returned for the Week 8 game against Minnesota and his presence was noticeable in both run blocking and protection of Herbert’s blind side.

Chargers wide receiver Quentin Johnston catches a touchdown pass next to Tennessee Titans cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis during the first half Sunday.

(John Amis / Associated Press)

But Sunday, he was felled by 285-pound Titans edge rusher Jihad Ward, who was blocked into the back of Alt’s legs. Alt sat on the turf for a few minutes, surrounded by Chargers medical staff, before a cart rolled onto the field to take him off.

It was the latest setback for an offensive line besieged by them this season, and an indication that Herbert will remain the most hit and harassed quarterback in the league this season.

Even though the Titans were without defensive tackle Jeffrey Simmons, their best player, Herbert was still under near-constant pressure.

Herbert threw a pair of touchdown passes in the first half, although his first throw was abysmal. It was straight into the arms of Tennessee linebacker Cody Barton, who turned the visitors’ second play from scrimmage into a 24-yard pick-six.

As he does virtually every week, Herbert picked up some big gains with his feet. He had a 39-yard scramble in the second quarter, and rolled out in the fourth and scored his first rushing touchdown of the season, sliding in from a yard out. That capped a 15-play, nine-minute, 99-yard drive in response to a goal-line stand.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert is sacked by Tennessee Titans linebacker Jihad Ward during the second half Sunday.

(George Walker IV / Associated Press)

The Titans (1-8), who have had troubles moving the ball in the red zone, scored their second touchdown of the half on a 67-yard punt return by rookie Chimere Dike, who leads the NFL in all-purpose yards.

Those issues in the red zone were on display in the third quarter, when the Titans had four plays inside the 10 and couldn’t score, including third and fourth downs from the one.

Anchoring the middle of the Chargers’ defense was Daiyan Henley, playing two days after his older brother was shot and killed. After a sack in the first half, the third-year linebacker dropped to his knees and turned his palms to the sky and held out his hands in prayer.

Edge rusher Odafe Oweh had a pair of sacks, bringing his total to four in four games since being traded to the Chargers by Baltimore last month.