Iowa

The long-awaited debut of star USC freshman Alijah Arenas will have to wait at least another week.

Arenas is “progressing well” from the knee injury he suffered in the summer, but not ready to return, a person familiar with his status not authorized to speak publicly told The Times.

The five-star prospect has already been ruled out for this week’s matchups against Maryland or Purdue, which had initially been the target for his return.

When Arenas will suit up for USC is uncertain. The expectation is that he’ll play for the Trojans at some point during Big Ten play, possibly by the end of this month.

Arenas returned to practice last month after sitting out since July. He said at the time that he’d been undecided on whether to return to play for the Trojans versus just declaring for the draft, but that his teammates “were kind of the key factor in me wanting to come back.”

They could use him back as soon as possible. The Trojans (13-3, 2-3 Big Ten) narrowly escaped a third straight loss Friday in Minneapolis and are still scraping by with a ballhander-by-committee approach. When he does return, Arenas is expected to step into a significant role.

Two of USC’s next three games are at home against the Big Ten’s two worst teams — Maryland and Northwestern — but after that, road matchups against Iowa and Wisconsin, each of which have lost just one home game this season, will loom large for the Trojans.

Without Arenas, USC will continue to lean heavily on sixth-year senior Chad Baker-Mazara, who bounced back in a big way from a two-game slump Friday, scoring 29 points.

Reporting from Muscatine, Iowa — Five days away from the Iowa caucuses, Rick Santorum was greeted here by a packed room of supporters and a battery of cameras and reporters, suggesting that his long-shot presidential campaign, once just a wisp on the radar screen, had finally found a spark just when it needed it the most.

It was just a day earlier that a new CNN-Time poll showed Santorum in third place, surging past rivals Newt Gingrich, Rick Perry and Michele Bachmann. The poll seemed to confirm what had been felt here for days—that social conservatives here, a key to success in this state, were finally beginning to rally around a single candidate.

And so Santorum awoke to a changed world. For months, the former Pennsylvania senator had criss-crossed the state with little return on his investment, and had been, for all intents and purposes, an afterthought in the political conversation.

But Gingrich’s decline in the state seems to have given Santorum an opportunity. And Thursday he seemed to be relishing the moment, speaking to the media at length and passionately addressing the overflow crowd at a restaurant here along the Mississippi River.

“We’ll turn this country around and Iowa will be the spark that did it,” he told the crowd.

While Santorum spent most of his time criticizing President Obama, he took some shots at Ron Paul, a favorite to win next Tuesday’s caucuses. He warned the crowd that Paul’s foreign policy beliefs jeopardized the nation’s security, saying Paul would dismantle the U.S. Navy.

“Congressman Paul would take every ship we have and bring it into port,’ Santorum said. He also suggested that Paul, a Texas Republican, would be ineffective as president. “He’s passed one bill in 20 years,” he said.

And in a sign that Santorum was now being taken more seriously as a threat, he was ripped on the campaign trail by Rick Perry for requesting earmarks as a senator. Perry’s campaign also cut a new radio ad attacking Santorum.

In his remarks in Muscatine, Santorum resisted the suggestion that he was merely a candidate for evangelicals and other social conservatives, highlighting his national security credentials and emphasizing his role in reforming welfare while in the Senate in the 1990s. “We’ve got a pretty broad message. It’s not just focused in one area,” he said. “We’re excited that we’re resonating beyond the social conservatives.”

But, inevitably, talk returned to matters of faith and family, Santorum’s most comfortable zone. He was asked about his opposition to same-sex marriage. He restated his support for traditional unions and blasted liberals who, he said, “want to drive faith and the conclusions that come from faith out of the public square and out of the public law.”

He invited supporters of gay marriage to “come to the public square, make your case” but to not condemn him for his beliefs. Santorum, of course, has notoriously been victimized by an online effort to connect his name with a gay sexual act.

He said that it’s the “birthright” of every child to have a “mom and a dad.”

Santorum disputed the argument that he would be a poor candidate in the general election against Obama, arguing that his blue-collar Pennsylvania roots would help him do well in Midwestern swing states. He served in the House and two terms in the Senate before being routed by Democrat Bob Casey in 2006, knocking him from public life.

Afterward, one attendee, Steve Maher of Muscatine, said he was now leaning toward caucusing for Santorum over Bachmann. “The thing that concerns me about Bachmann is not so much her as a candidate but her organization,” he said, referring to the defection of Bachmann’s Iowa campaign manager, Kent Sorenson, to Paul’s camp. And, he said, he had soured on Gingrich, who has been the target of a blitz of negative ads in the state. “I’m suspicious of his backround,” he said. “Some of the ads are starting to get to me.”

“I’m looking for someone where I don’t have to worry about their morality or integrity,” Maher said.

Earlier in the day, Santorum spoke to about 40 people at an event in Coralville, Iowa. He’ll wrap up the campaign day in Davenport.

IOWA CITY, Iowa — From an existential crisis to a gritty comeback, UCLA ran a gamut of emotions over the course of a few hours here.

The final sentiment was one of disappointment.

After whittling what had been a 24-point deficit to four with a little more than three minutes left Saturday, the Bruins could not find the miracle finish they were seeking.

Iowa won 74-61 inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena, the No. 25 Hawkeyes holding off the Bruins by making the plays they needed over the final foul-filled minutes.

Iowa made all eight free throws down the stretch, the Bruins failing to get the stops they needed even with point guard Donovan Dent (25 points) putting on a dazzling offensive display.

After Iowa’s Tavion Banks went in for a dunk in transition to extend the lead back to double digits in the final minute, the Bruins’ comeback hopes were over. Iowa point guard Bennett Stirtz added a 30-foot three-pointer in the final seconds for good measure.

Even with a much better effort in the second half, UCLA (10-4 overall, 2-1 Big Ten) wasn’t nearly good enough on either end. The Bruins will need to decide if they want to continue to go with a small lineup after using one to spark their huge comeback.

After one of the worst first halves of the Mick Cronin era following a 10-day layoff, UCLA played as if it took a glance at the rally towels inside the arena featuring the slogan “Impose Your Will.”

The Bruins went on a 18-2 run early in the second half after going small, breaking out a full-court press in pockets and making seven of eight shots. Dent was in the middle of it all, snagging a steal that led to a Brandon Williams dunk, driving for a couple of layups and rising for a mid-range jumper.

UCLA guard Donovan Dent chases after the ball in front of Iowa’s Cam Manyawu, left, and Kael Combs during the first half Saturday.

(Charlie Neibergall / Associated Press)

When UCLA’s Trent Perry poked the ball away for a steal and went in for a layup in transition, the Bruins were within 47-42 with 10:44 left and Iowa’s only move was to call a timeout. But a big issue loomed for UCLA as guard Skyy Clark had gone to the bench with a hamstring injury that sidelined him for the rest of the game.

Stirtz finished with 27 points for the Hawkeyes (12-2, 2-1), who shot 46.8% to UCLA’s 44.6%.

The first half couldn’t have gone much worse for the Bruins.

It all started with an inability to finish at the rim. There were two Tyler Bilodeau misses at point-blank range — including a dunk — a Xavier Booker layup that was blocked and a Dent lob that was deflected and stolen. And that was just in the first five minutes.

Equally atrocious was the Bruins’ defense, players leaving the perimeter open on drive-and-dishes that led to a flurry of three-pointers.

Cronin was so disgusted with his team down by 23 points late in the half that he took off his suit jacket and lit into Perry during a timeout. UCLA went on to score the final five points of the half … and still trailed 40-22.

UCLA arrived here facing questions about its big men, its defense and its rebounding.

After opening the season as the starting power forward, Bilodeau had increasingly shifted back to center in recent games as part of a three-guard lineup. The move provided a clear advantage on the offensive end, where Bilodeau could outmaneuver slower counterparts, while not giving up anything on defense given the struggles of Booker and ongoing foul trouble of Steven Jamerson.

More troublesome for the Bruins was a defense that ranked among the worst of Cronin’s seven seasons in Westwood. Most of the problems have come around the rim, UCLA providing little resistance on the easiest of shots. The Bruins also entered the game ranked third-to-last in the Big Ten in rebounding.

None of those problems were solved Saturday, leaving the Bruins to contemplate further changes.

DES MOINES, Iowa — Democrat Renee Hardman was elected to the Iowa state Senate on Tuesday in a year-end special election, denying Republicans from reclaiming two-thirds control of the chamber.

Hardman bested Republican Lucas Loftin by an overwhelming margin to win a seat representing parts of the Des Moines suburbs. The seat became vacant after the Oct. 6 death of state Sen. Claire Celsi, a Democrat.

Hardman, the CEO of nonprofit Lutheran Services of Iowa and a member of the West Des Moines City Council, becomes the first Black woman elected to the 50-member Senate.

“I want to recognize that while my name was the one on the ballot, this race was never just about me,” Hardman told a room of supporters in West Des Moines after declaring victory.

With 99% of votes counted, Hardman led by about 43 percentage points.

Her win is latest in a string of special election victories for Iowa Democrats, who flipped two Senate seats this year to break up a supermajority that had allowed Republicans to easily confirm GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds’ appointments to state agencies and commissions.

Democrat Mike Zimmer first flipped a seat in January, winning a district that had strongly favored Republican President Trump in the 2024 election. In August, Democrat Catelin Drey handily defeated her GOP opponent in the Republican stronghold of northwestern Iowa, giving Democrats 17 seats to Republicans’ 33. Celsi’s death brought that down to 16.

Republicans would have regained two-thirds control with a Loftin victory Tuesday. Without a supermajority, the party will need to get support from at least one Democrat to approve Reynolds’ nominees. The GOP still has significant majorities in both legislative chambers.

Ken Martin, chair of the Democratic National Committee, called Hardman’s victory “a major check on Republican power.”

“With the last special election of the year now decided, one thing is clear: 2025 was the year of Democratic victories and overperformance, and Democrats are on track for big midterm elections,” Martin said.

In November the party dominated the first major Election Day since Trump returned to the White House, notably winning governor’s races in Virginia and New Jersey. Democrats held onto a Kentucky state Senate seat this month in a special election. And while Republican Matt Van Epps won a Tennessee special election for a U.S. House seat, the relatively slim margin of victory gave Democrats hope for next year’s midterms. The party must net three House seats in 2026 to reclaim the majority and impede Trump’s agenda.

Loftin, a tree trimmer turned data manager, congratulated Hardman and told the Associated Press he’s praying for her as she embarks on this important chapter.

Iowa GOP Chairman Jeff Kaufmann applauded Loftin and his supporters for putting up a fight in what he described as “a very tough district.” Democrats outnumber Republicans by about 3,300 voters, or 37% to 30%.

“Although we fell short this time, the Republican Party of Iowa remains laser-focused on expanding our majorities in the Iowa Legislature and keeping Iowa ruby-red,” Kaufmann said.

The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee pledged Tuesday to help defend the party’s gains in Iowa and prevent the return of a GOP supermajority next year.

Schoenbaum and Fingerhut write for the Associated Press. Schoenbaum reported from Salt Lake City.