saturday

FRIDAY’S RESULTS

BOYS

CITY SECTION
QUARTERFINALS
DIVISION I

#1 Granada Hills 82, #9 LA Marshall 50

#5 LA Jordan at #4 Crenshaw, 1 p.m. Saturday

#3 Venice 58, #6 Sun Valley Poly 40

at #2 Chatsworth 67, #10 Rancho Dominguez 64

DIVISION II

#1 Bravo d. #8 MSCP, forfeit

#4 King/Drew 52, #12 Downtown Magnets 50

#6 Carson at #3 Sylmar

#10 Marquez 57, #2 Eagle Rock 50

DIVISION III

#1 RFK Community 49, #9 Orthopaedic 46

#5 Huntington Park 45, #4 Hollywood 36

#3 SOCES 84, #6 Foshay 64

#10 Verdugo Hills 59, #2 Los Angeles 58

Note: Semifinals Feb. 21-22; Finals Feb. 27-28.

SECOND ROUND

DIVISION IV

#1 East Valley 73, #16 Jefferson 47

#8 Hawkins 73, #9 Mendez 18

#5 San Fernando 71, #12 Animo Robinson 65

#4 Gardena 65, #20 USC-MAE 60

#3 Bell 53, #14 West Adams 41

#6 Angelou 56, #11 Alliance Marine-Innovation 27

#7 Contreras 64, #10 Animo Watts 50

#2 Franklin 74, #15 New West Charter 37

DIVISION V

#17 Central City Value at #1 Van Nuys

#8 Legacy 58, #9 Sotomayor 43

#21 Camino Nuevo 56, #5 Stella 29

#13 Magnolia Science Academy 55, #4 Sun Valley Magnet 47

#19 Santee 78, #3 Vaughn 56

#11 Torres 69, #6 Animo Venice 39

#7 Monroe 61, #10 East College Prep 39

#2 Canoga Park 57, #18 Chavez 45

Note: Quarterfinals Feb. 18; Semifinals Feb. 20; Finals Feb. 27-28.

SOUTHERN SECTION

SECOND ROUND

OPEN DIVISION

Pool A

#9 Crespi 82, #8 Corona del Mar 70

Pool B

#7 Harvard-Westlake 67, #10 Damien 62

Pool C

#6 Corona Centennial 74, #11 Etiwanda 48

Pool D

#12 La Mirada 56, #5 St. John Bosco 53

Note: Third round pool play games Tuesday at higher seeds; Quarterfinals Feb. 20; Semifinals Feb. 24; Finals Feb. 28 at Toyota Arena.

DIVISION 1

#1 Crean Lutheran 87, Corona Santiago 80

#9 Village Christian 67, #8 Mira Costa 66

#12 Millikan 79, Windward 75

Rancho Christian 94, Cypress 82

#3 Inglewood 103, St. Bernard 92

Fairmont Prep 60, #6 Brentwood 57

#7 Rolling Hills Prep 63, Orange Lutheran 52

#2 JSerra 75, Loyola 46

DIVISION 2

#1 Bishop Amat 81, Chino Hills 74

#8 Anaheim Canyon 70, Oxnard 67

#12 Servite at #5 Eastvale Roosevelt, Saturday

Edison 58, Valencia 56

#3 Mater Dei 85, #14 Westlake 59

#11 El Dorado 66, Leuzinger 61

#7 Rancho Verde 84, #10 San Marcos 69

#2 Hesperia 77, #15 Elsinore 62

DIVISION 3

#16 Ontario Christian 54, San Marino 52

#8 Murrieta Mesa 88, #9 Temecula Valley 67

Warren 64, Long Beach Wilson 61

Golden Valley 61, Los Altos 54

#3 Alta Loma 65, Ayala 56

Aliso Niguel 87, #11 Glendora 73

#10 Gahr 56, #7 Aquinas 42

#15 Woodbridge 44, Eastside 39

DIVISION 4

#16 Blair 79, #1 Bonita 71

#9 Trabuco Hills 60, #8 Saugus 54

#12 Norte Vista 71, #5 Moorpark 69

Cathedral 56, #4 Summit 51

#3 Shalhevet 42, #14 Palm Springs 41

Long Beach Jordan 71, #6 Torrance 66

#7 Colony 57, #10 South Torrance 48

#2 Walnut 71, #15 Corona 70

DIVISION 5

#1 Gardena Serra 55, #16 Northwood 47

Rancho Mirage 87, #9 California 73

Oakwood 77, Beaumont 52

Vasquez 45, Adelanto 41

Pilibos 53, #14 Quartz Hill 47

Temple City 56, #6 Brea Olinda 50

#10 Verbum Dei 42, Rio Mesa 35

#15 San Juan Hills 75, Irvine 63

DIVISION 6

Placentia Valencia 65, #1 Hemet 63

#9 St. Bonaventure 54, Highland 43

#12 Ramona 52, #5 Pasadena Poly 35

#4 Montclair 64, #13 Fontana 63

Laguna Hills 88, #14 Carter 50

#11 Orange Vista 67, Valley View 63

#10 Buckley 72, Eisenhower 57

#15 Moreno Valley 49, #2 Troy 42

DIVISION 7

#16 Vista del Lago 50, #1 Tahquitz 45

#8 Canyon Country Canyon 60, Anaheim 52

#5 Salesian 58, Westminster La Quinta 51

Webb 74, #13 YULA 71

Riverside Notre Dame 59, Faith Baptist 48

#6 Rowland 45, #11 Norwalk 44

Rosemead 65, Santa Rosa Academy 47

#2 Rialto 67, #15 Segerstrom 53

DIVISION 8

#1 Excelsior Charter at Redlands Adventist, 6:30 p.m. Saturday

Twentynine Palms 51, #9 Bolsa Grande 45

#5 Victor Valley 88, #12 Trinity Classical Academy 54

#14 South El Monte 45, #3 Desert Christian Academy 41

#4 Barstow 58, Loara 55

#6 Coastal Christian 69, #11 Silver Valley 63

#10 Edgewood 63, #7 Big Bear 48

Dunn 64, #2 San Gabriel 56

DIVISION 9

Sherman Indian 48, #1 Bassett 36

#8 Colton 63, #9 Newbury Park Adventist 29

#5 Santa Maria Valley Christian 76, #12 Long Beach First Baptist 56

#13 Loma Linda Academy 65, #4 San Jacinto Valley 63

Samueli Academy 84, Grove School 49

#6 Santa Barbara Providence 49, #11 Santa Ana Valley 48

Pacific 58, #7 California Lutheran 50

#15 Mesrobian 80, #2 ACE 62

(Quarterfinals Feb. 17; Semifinals Feb. 20; Finals Feb. 27 or 28)

SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE

(All games at 7 p.m. unless noted)

GIRLS

CITY SECTION
QUARTERFINALS
DIVISION I

#9 Garfield at #1 El Camino Real, 2 p.m.

#5 Arleta at #4 Eagle Rock

#6 Grant at #3 San Pedro

#7 Verdugo Hills at #2 Granada Hills Kennedy

DIVISION II

#8 Larchmont Charter at #1 Harbor Teacher

#5 West Adams at #4 Triumph Charter

#11 South East at #3 Santee, 1 p.m.

#7 New West Charter at #2 North Hollywood

DIVISION III

#8 Diego Rivera at #1 Washington Prep

#5 Sun Valley Poly at #4 LA Marshall

#11 Animo Robinson at #3 San Fernando

#7 Crenshaw at #2 Gardena

Note: Semifinals Feb. 21; Finals Feb. 27-28.

SECOND ROUND

DIVISION IV

#16 Huntington Park at #1 Maywood CES

#9 Smidt Tech at #8 Magnolia Science Academy

#12 Wilmington Banning at #5 Foshay

#13 Lincoln at #4 LA Wilson

#19 Franklin at #3 WISH Academy

#11 Bravo at #6 Marquez

#10 Panorama at #7 Contreras

#18 South Gate vs. #2 Sun Valley Magnet at East Valley

DIVISION V

#17 Horace Mann UCLA at #1 LA Roosevelt

#9 Los Angeles at #8 Camino Nuevo

#12 Discovery at #5 Torres

#20 Sotomayor at #4 Chavez

#14 Animo Bunche at #3 Vaughn

#11 Monroe at #6 Lake Balboa College Prep

#23 Alliance Bloomfield / #10 Port of LA at #7 Aspire Ollin

#18 East College Prep at #2 Legacy

Note: Quarterfinals Feb. 19; Semifinals Feb. 21; Finals Feb. 27-28.

SOUTHERN SECTION

SECOND ROUND

OPEN DIVISION

Pool A

#9 Rancho Christian at #8 JSerra

Pool B

#10 Fairmont Prep at #7 Lakewood St. Joseph

Pool C

#11 Oak Park at #6 Corona Centennial

Pool D

#12 Redondo Union at #4 Mater Dei

Note: Third round pool play games Wednesday at higher seeds; Quarterfinals Feb. 21; Semifinals Feb. 24; Finals Feb. 28 at Toyota Arena.

DIVISION 1

#1 Ventura at Bishop Montgomery

#8 Flintridge Prep at Windward

#5 Valencia at Mira Costa

#4 Brentwood at Troy

#3 Moreno Valley at St. Bonaventure

#6 Orange Lutheran at Marlborough

#7 Villa Park at Santa Margarita

#2 La Salle at St. Anthony

DIVISION 2

#1 Glendora at Portola

#9 Saugus at Heritage

312 Summit at #5 Yucaipa

Camarillo at #13 South Torrance

#4 Rancho Cucamonga at Camarillo

#3 Crescenta Valley at #14 Chino Hills

Rolling Hills Prep vs. #11 San Clemente

#7 San Juan Hills at Dos Pueblos

#2 Rosary Academy at Riverside King

DIVISION 3

#1 Lynwood at Murrieta Valley

#8 St. Monica at Arcadia

#12 Trabuco Hills at #5 Segerstrom

#4 Oxnard at #13 Aliso Niguel

#14 Mark Keppel at El Modena

#6 Leuzinger at #11 Shadow Hills

#10 Riverside Poly at #7 St. Margaret’s

#2 Wiseburn-Da Vinci at Canyon Country Canyon

DIVISION 4

#1 Long Beach Jordan at Lancaster

#9 La Canada at #8 Yorba Linda

#5 Eastside at Gabrielino

Knight at Anaheim Canyon

#14 Ontario at #3 El Dorado

#6 Long Beach Wilson at Westlake

#7 Pasadena Poly at Shalhevet

#2 Marina at #15 Holy Martyrs

DIVISION 5

#1 Tesoro at #16 Sunny Hills

#9 Bishop Diego at Fullerton

#5 Fountain Valley at Torrance

#13 Godinez at Heritage Christian

#3 Santa Ana Foothill at Whitney

Oakwood at YULA

#10 Culver City at #7 Burbank Burroughs

#2 Western Christian at Carter

DIVISION 6

#16 San Jacinto at #1 Carpinteria

#9 Costa Mesa at Immaculate Heart

#5 Redlands at Savanna

#4 Palm Desert at #13 Santa Monica

#14 Notre Dame Academy at Hillcrest

#11 Liberty at Rowland

#7 Hart at #10 Sante Fe

Warren at Silver Valley

DIVISION 7

#16 Foothill Tech at #1 Fillmore

Capistrano Valley Christian vs. Laguna Hills

Desert Christian Academy at #5 Dominguez

#12 Rosemead at Desert Christian

Villanova Prep at Patriot

#14 Nogales at #3 Canoga Park AGBU

#6 Barstow at Ridgecrest Burroughs

La Palma Kennedy at Long Beach Poly

Garden Grove at Cajon

DIVISION 8

#1 Cobalt at Yucca Valley

University Prep vs. #8 Norwalk

#12 Coachella Valley at Orange

#4 Santa Ana Valley at #13 Riverside Notre Dame

Mesa Grande vs. #14 Schurr

#6 CAMS at #11 South El Monte

#7 Victor Valley vs. #10 Chadwick

#2 Riverside North at #15 Santa Monica Pacifica Christian

DIVISION 9

#1 NOVA Academy Early College at #16 Vista del Lago

#8 Santa Clarita Christian at #9 Victor Valley Christian

#12 Jurupa Hills at #5 Channel Islands

Desert Hot Springs vs. #4 Temple City

La Sierra at Faith Baptist

#6 Redlands Adventist at #11 Newport Christian

#10 Sierra Vista at #7 San Gabriel

Western at Santa Maria Valley Christian

(Quarterfinals Feb. 18; Semifinals Feb. 21; Finals Feb. 27 or 28)

It’s always special for Bob Baffert to win the Robert B. Lewis Stakes, since the race is named after the late owner of Silver Charm, one of the trainer’s six Kentucky Derby champions.

Winning the Lewis also is as familiar to Baffert as looking in the mirror and seeing white hair. Saturday’s victory by Plutarch was the eighth straight for Baffert in the $100,000 race for 3-year-olds, and his 14th in the race known until 2007 as the Santa Catalina Stakes.

What made Baffert a little emotional Saturday was his other victory, with Splendora in a $200,000 Grade 2 race that used to be known as the Santa Monica Stakes. The name was changed this year in honor of a friend and fellow Hall of Fame trainer who died last summer.

“When I saw that this race was renamed for D. Wayne Lukas, I wanted to win this one,” Baffert told reporters at Santa Anita. “I miss him. I miss talking to him. He would have loved this.”

It would be easy for anyone to love training or just watching Splendora, a 5-year-old daughter of Audible who won her fourth straight start and her first since last fall’s Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint. The 2-5 favorite cruised to a 2¾-length victory over Me and Molly McGee in 1:22.09 for seven furlongs.

“She is such a good filly. She just gives me chills,” Baffert said. “She missed the break and got behind, but Juan [Hernandez] rode her with a lot of confidence.”

It was the eighth win in the race for Baffert, who now leads Lukas by two. Lukas’ last victory in the race came in 1996 with the Hall of Famer Serena’s Song, owned by Lewis and his wife, Beverly. It was the next year that Baffert and the Lewises combined to win their first Derby with Silver Charm.

Whether Baffert has another Derby winner in Plutarch won’t be known for 12 weeks, but the colt certainly has the bloodlines. Into Mischief has been the leading sire in North America (by earnings) for the last seven years, including Derby winners Authentic (for Baffert), Mandaloun and Sovereignty, while Plutarch’s dam, Stellar Wind, was the 3-year-old champion filly in 2015.

Plutarch, with Florent Geroux aboard, outruns Intrepid, with Hector I. Berrios aboard, to win the Grade 3 $100,000 Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita Park on Saturday.

(Benoit Photo via Associated Press)

“This horse reminds me of Authentic,” Baffert said. “He keeps getting better every week. I don’t think distance will be a problem with him. This is very exciting. He’s legit.”

Plutarch lost his first four starts, including three in stakes races, before winning a maiden race on the final day of Del Mar’s fall meeting. That race and two others were on grass; Baffert said he did that because he wanted to get the colt in some races.

The surprise Saturday was how close Plutarch was to the lead, tracking the equally surprising pacesetter Intrepido through solid fractions of 47.65 for a half-mile and 1:11.35 for six furlongs. Baffert expected his 6-5 favorite, Desert Gate, to be on the lead, but the horse broke slowly and had to settle about a length and a half off the lead in the bunched field of seven.

Plutarch pushed ahead of Intrepido entering the stretch and the two dueled for most of the last quarter-mile, with Plutarch winning by three-quarters of a length in 1:37.02. He paid $10.20 as the co-third choice with the runner-up. Secured Freedom (3-1) edged Desert Gate for third.

“The longer the better,” said winning rider Florent Geroux, who just this week relocated to California from the Louisiana and Kentucky circuit. “He is a colt who has finally put it together this year. I watched some of his replays from last year and from what Bob told me, it looked like the horse was still a little bit green, trying to figure out what was going on during the race. But today, I felt he broke very alertly for me and put me in a great spot. When I asked him to move along the lane he responded really well.”

Intrepido defeated Desert Gate and Plutarch last October at Santa Anita in the Grade 1 American Pharoah, but finished a disappointing fifth later that month in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. Trainer Jeff Mullins said he was pleased with the bounce-back.

“I really didn’t expect him to be on the lead … but he breaks [fast] like that, you’ve got to go with it,” Mullins said. “To be off that long, I’m happy with his race.”

Plutarch earned 20 Kentucky Derby points, giving him 23, tied with Intrepido for third in the standings. Silent Tactic, who won Friday’s Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn in Arkansas, and Renegade, winner of the Sam F. Davis Stakes on Saturday at Tampa Bay Downs, lead with 25. It usually takes about 40 points to get into the Derby.

One of Baffert’s recent Lewis winners captured the Derby, though Medina Spirit (2021) later was disqualified. Newgate (2023) went on to win the Santa Anita Handicap as a 4-year-old, while Nysos (2024) and Citizen Bull (2025) ran one-two in last year’s Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile.

The next race for 3-year-olds at Santa Anita is the San Felipe Stakes on March 7, followed by the Santa Anita Derby on April 4.

Notable

Three of the top four finishers from the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies make up three-quarters of the short field in Sunday’s featured Las Virgenes Stakes. Super Corredora, trained by John Sadler, won the Oct. 31 race at Del Mar and was named champion 2-year-old filly, with Baffert’s Explora second and Michael McCarthy’s Meaning fourth. Explora is the only one of the trio to race since; she won the Santa Ynez Stakes on Jan. 10. First post on Super Bowl Sunday is earlier than normal at 11 a.m.

MILAN — The U.S. women’s hockey team came into the Milan-Cortina Winter Games ranked No. 1 in the world. And two games into group play, it’s shown that ranking might be something of an understatement.

With Saturday’s 5-0 victory over No. 3 Finland, the unbeaten Americans have outscored their two opponents 10-1 and outshot them 91-25. The goals Saturday came from Alex Carpenter, Taylor Heise, Megan Keller, Hilary Knight and Abbey Murphy. Keller and Laila Edwards each had two assists.

In goal, Aerin Frankel faced just 11 shots in posting the first shutout of the Olympic tournament.

Just as in its opening win over No. 4 Czechia, the U.S. eased its way into the game before going ahead to stay late in the first period on a power-play goal from Carpenter. The score came seven seconds after Finland’s Susanna Tapani was sent off for hooking.

The Americans doubled the advantage 2½ minutes into the second period at the end of a beautiful passing sequence that saw Britta Curl feed Murphy, whose cross-crease pass found Heise on the doorstep for the easy goal.

Sixty-six seconds later Keller’s unassisted goal made it 3-0 and the rout was on.

Next came a power-play goal from Knight, her 14th in Olympic play, equaling Natalie Darwitz and Katie King for the most in team history. Murphy closed out the scoring, banging in a rebound at the right post with less than five minutes to play.

With 10 goals, the U.S. is tied with Sweden for most in the tournament while the Americans’ goal differential of plus-nine is the best. It was the 11th straight Olympic win for the U.S. over Finland, the bronze medalist four years ago.

Luka Doncic was diagnosed with a strained left hamstring and listed as out for the Lakers’ game against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday at Crypto.com Arena.

The Lakers have not indicated a timetable for Doncic’s return.

Doncic was injured late in the second quarter of the Lakers’ win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night. He threw a pass to Maxi Kleber that was a turnover, turned to run back on defense and immediately grabbed his left hamstring.

Doncic went up and down the court a couple of times but was unable to play any longer. The Lakers called a timeout, and Doncic headed to the locker room and did not return.

After the game, Doncic was limping down the hallway. Coach JJ Redick said Doncic would undergo an MRI exam Friday.

Doncic leads the NBA in scoring (33.4) and is second in assists (8.7). He’s missed eight of the Lakers’ 42 games because of injuries and the birth of his daughter, and they’re 4-4 without him.

“We need him,” guard Austin Reaves said after the game. “He’s our best player and the engine of a lot of the stuff that we do. Yeah, so, hopefully we get good news.”

One way to honor your 93-year-old host: by calling him a “f— gangster” who’ll “slit your throat for a hit record.”

That’s how Monte Lipman big-upped Clive Davis on Saturday night at the Beverly Hilton, where Davis had convened an invite-only crowd of celebrities and music-industry insiders for his annual night-before-the-Grammys gala. Lipman, who runs Republic Records, was there to receive the Recording Academy’s Industry Icon award along with his brother and business partner, Avery; clearly, the commendation had gotten him feeling all warm and fuzzy about the record-biz machers who paved his way.

An incomplete list of stars in the Hilton’s ballroom for Saturday’s soiree: Joni Mitchell, Nancy Pelosi, Stevie Wonder, Colman Domingo, Frankie Valli, Martha Stewart, Lana Del Rey, Karol G, Brandi Carlile, Bill Maher, Teyana Taylor, Gladys Knight, Bryan Cox, Jeff Goldblum, Max Martin and — speaking of record-biz machers — Motown founder Berry Gordy, who at 96 had to have been the only person at the party with more experience on him than Davis.

Jennifer Hudson performs.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

At least a few of these luminaries had come, no doubt, to see the Lipmans pick up their prize; among the many, many successes they’ve racked up in recent years include blockbusters by Taylor Swift, Morgan Wallen, Sabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan, Post Malone and the lovable cartoon assassins of “KPop Demon Hunters.”

But mostly folks had come to schmooze and to take in the entertainment Davis had arranged.

As always, the show featured a blend of beloved old-timers and ascendant youngsters, including three of the nominees for the Grammys’ best new artist award: Sombr, pouting extravagantly through a pretend-sleazy “12 to 12”; Olivia Dean, downright luminous as a horn section added some swing to “Man I Need”; and Alex Warren, who’s beginning to look like he may never want to sing “Ordinary” again.

Sombr spins Olivia Dean during his performance.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Clipse and John Legend performed “The Birds Don’t Sing,” from the rap duo’s “Let God Sort Em Out,” which is up for album of the year at Sunday’s Grammys ceremony. The women of “KPop Demon Hunters’” Huntr/x turned up to sing “Golden,” which is nominated for song of the year.

MGK and Jelly Roll tag-teamed an homage to the late Ozzy Osbourne, while Jennifer Hudson saluted the late Roberta Flack; her typically virtuosic rendition of “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” brought the room to as close to quiet as it got all night.

Pusha T of Clipse, left, and John Legend perform.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

There were also tributes to two living legends: Bernie Taupin and Art Garfunkel. For the former, Darren Criss sang “Bennie and the Jets” — just one of the classics Taupin co-wrote with Elton John — then brought out Laufey for a surprisingly frisky take on John and Kiki Dee’s disco-era “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart.” (Free idea: Somebody cast Criss and Laufey in a reboot of “Grease.”)

To honor Garfunkel, the country duo Dan + Shay performed “Mrs. Robinson” before throwing to the 84-year-old himself, who sauntered onstage in a tuxedo and Phillies ball cap, sat down on a stool and — after having read a bit of poetry scrawled on the back on an envelope — closed the show with a touching if slightly wobbly journey across “Bridge Over Troubled Water.”

Behold more pictures from Saturday’s event:

Art Garfunkel performs.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Clive Davis, left, addresses the crowd.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Karol G on the red carpet.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Adam Lambert on the red carpet.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Darren Criss, left, and Laufey perform.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Jelly Roll, left, and Bunnie Xo on the red carpet.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Monte Lipman, left, and Avery Lipman on the red carpet.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Olivia Dean performs.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

PORTLAND, Ore. — The mayor of Portland, Ore., demanded U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement leave his city after federal agents launched tear gas at a crowd of demonstrators — including young children — outside an ICE facility during a weekend protest that he and others characterized as peaceful.

Witnesses said agents deployed tear gas, pepper balls and rubber bullets as thousands of marchers arrived at the South Waterfront facility on Saturday. Erin Hoover Barnett, a former OregonLive reporter who joined the protest, said she was about 100 yards from the building when “what looked like two guys with rocket launchers” started dousing the crowd with gas.

“To be among parents frantically trying to tend to little children in strollers, people using motorized carts trying to navigate as the rest of us staggered in retreat, unsure of how to get to safety, was terrifying,” Barnett wrote in an email to OregonLive.

Mayor Keith Wilson said the daytime demonstration was peaceful, “where the vast majority of those present violated no laws, made no threat and posed no danger” to federal agents.

“To those who continue to work for ICE: Resign. To those who control this facility: Leave,” Wilson wrote in a statement Saturday night. “Through your use of violence and the trampling of the Constitution, you have lost all legitimacy and replaced it with shame.”

The Portland Fire Bureau sent paramedics to treat people at the scene, police said. Police officers monitored the crowd but made no arrests Saturday.

The Portland protest was one of many demonstrations nationwide against the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in cities including Minneapolis, where in recent weeks federal agents killed two residents, Alex Pretti and Renee Good.

Federal agents in Eugene, Ore., deployed tear gas on Friday when protesters tried to get inside the federal building near downtown. City police declared a riot and ordered the crowd to disperse.

President Trump posted Saturday on social media that it was up to local law enforcement agencies to police protests in their cities. But he said he has instructed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to have federal agents be vigilant in guarding U.S. government facilities.

“Please be aware that I have instructed ICE and/or Border Patrol to be very forceful in this protection of Federal Government Property. There will be no spitting in the faces of our Officers, there will be no punching or kicking the headlights of our cars, and there will be no rock or brick throwing at our vehicles, or at our Patriot Warriors,” Trump wrote. “If there is, those people will suffer an equal, or more, consequence.”

Wilson said Portland would be imposing a fee on detention facilities that use chemical agents.

The federal government “must, and will, be held accountable,” the mayor said. “To those who continue to make these sickening decisions, go home, look in a mirror, and ask yourselves why you have gassed children.”

FORT WORTH — Democrat Taylor Rehmet flipped a reliably Republican state Senate district in Texas in Saturday’s special election, continuing a string of surprise victories for Democrats across the U.S. in the year since President Trump returned to the White House.

Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick called it “a wake-up call for Republicans across Texas,” where the GOP controls every statewide office.

“Our voters cannot take anything for granted,” Patrick wrote on X, while noting low-turnout special elections are always unpredictable. “I know the energy and strength the Republican grassroots in Texas possess. We will come out fighting with a new resolve, and we will take this seat back in November.”

Rehmet, a labor union leader and veteran, easily defeated Republican Leigh Wambsganss, a conservative activist, in the Fort Worth-area district, which Trump had won by 17 points in 2024. With almost all votes counted, Rehmet was leading by more than 14 percentage points — a more than 30-point swing.

“This win goes to everyday working people,” Rehmet told supporters.

Rehmet’s victory added to Democrats’ record of overperforming in special elections so far this cycle, beginning in March — when they prevailed in a Pennsylvania legislative district made up of suburbanites and farmers that Democrats hadn’t held in a century — and continuing through November, when they dominated candidate and ballot contests from Maine to California. Zohran Mamdani, a Democratic socialist, was elected mayor of New York City, a Democratic stronghold that saw the highest voter turnout in a mayor’s race in 50 years.

The showings come as Trump’s approval ratings hover around or below 40%. A January AP-NORC poll found that a majority of U.S. adults disapprove of the way he’s handling foreign policy, trade negotiations and immigration, as well as the economy.

Democrats said Saturday’s results in Texas were further evidence that voters under the second Trump administration are motivated to reject GOP candidates and their policies.

Texas Democratic Party Chair Kendall Scudder said Rehmet won by standing with working people and talking to Texans about the future.

“This win shows what is possible in Texas with strong organizing, great candidates and strategic investments,” he said in a statement. “People are noticing that Democrats have the workers’ backs and are delivering results.”

Democrats’ other recent state victories included wins for governor in Virginia and New Jersey and in special elections in Kentucky and Iowa. 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 in the district for this fall’s midterms.

With that backdrop in mind, Trump and Vice President JD Vance have pushed states to redraw their political maps to Republicans’ advantage headed into those contests, which will determine partisan control in Washington. Some Democratic states — most notably California — have countered with their own redistricting efforts.

The Texas Senate seat was open because the four-term GOP incumbent, Kelly Hancock, resigned to take a statewide office. Hancock easily won election each time he ran for the office, and Republicans have held the seat for decades.

The district is redder than its home county, Tarrant. Trump won the county by 5 points in 2024, but Democrat Joe Biden carried it in 2020 by about 1,800 votes out of more than 834,000 cast.

Trump posted about the race on his social media platform earlier Saturday, urging voters to get out to support Wambsganss. He called her a successful entrepreneur and “an incredible supporter” of his “Make America Great Again” movement.

Rehmet had support from national organizations including VoteVets, a veterans group that said it spent $500,000 on ads. Rehmet, who served in the Air Force and works as a machinist, campaigned on lowering costs, supporting public education and protecting jobs.

Wambsganss warned her party not to be complacent.

“The Democrats were energized,” she said in a statement. “Too many Republicans stayed home.”

Rehmet’s victory allows him to serve until early January, and he will face Wambganss again in the November general election to try to keep the seat for a full four-year term. The Texas Legislature is not set to reconvene until 2027, and the GOP still will have a comfortable majority.

Hanna and Smyth write for the Associated Press.

WASHINGTON — President Trump said Saturday that he has instructed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to tell agents not to intervene in protests occurring in cities led by Democrats unless local authorities ask for federal help amid mounting criticism of his administration’s immigration crackdown.

On his social media site, Trump posted that “under no circumstances are we going to participate in various poorly run Democrat Cities with regard to their Protests and/or Riots unless, and until, they ask us for help.”

He provided no details on how his order would affect operations by Customs and Border Protection personnel or that of other federal agencies, but added: “We will, however, guard, and very powerfully so, any and all Federal Buildings that are being attacked by these highly paid Lunatics, Agitators, and Insurrectionists.”

Trump said that, in addition to his instructions to Noem, he had directed “ICE and/or Border Patrol to be very forceful in this protection of Federal Government Property.”

The Trump administration has already deployed the National Guard or federal law enforcement officials in a number of Democratic-led cities, including Washington, Los Angeles, Chicago and Portland, Ore. But Saturday’s order comes as opposition to such tactics has grown, particularly in Minnesota’s Twin Cities region.

Minnesota Atty. Gen. Keith Ellison and the mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul have challenged a federal immigration enforcement surge in those cities, arguing that Homeland Security is violating constitutional protections.

A federal judge ruled Saturday that she won’t halt enforcement operations as the lawsuit proceeds. State and local officials had sought a quick order to halt the enforcement action or limit its scope. Justice Department lawyers have called the lawsuit “legally frivolous.”

The state, and particularly Minneapolis, has been on edge after federal officers fatally shot two people in the city: Renee Good on Jan. 7 and Alex Pretti on Jan. 24. Thousands of people have taken to the streets to protest the federal immigration presence in Minnesota and across the country.

Trump’s border advisor, Tom Homan, has suggested the administration could reduce the number of immigration enforcement officers in Minnesota — but only if state and local officials “cooperate.” Trump sent Homan to Minneapolis following the killings of Good and Pretti, seeming to signal a willingness to ease tensions in Minnesota.

Weissert writes for the Associated Press.

The 2023 World Baseball Classic ended with a matchup between then-Angels teammates, Shohei Ohtani on the mound against Mike Trout. In a showdown between two MVPs, Ohtani struck out Trout on a 3-2 slider, giving Japan its third WBC championship.

There will not be similar dramatics for this edition. During DodgersFest on Saturday, manager Dave Roberts cleared up one key question heading into spring training and the tournament.

“[Ohtani’s] not gonna pitch in the WBC, but he will be ramping up his arm to get ready for the season,” he said, adding that the player made the call.

“I wasn’t surprised,” Roberts said. “I can’t even say I was relieved. Understanding what he did last year, understanding what he had to go through, to then how best to prepare himself for ’26 to do both, it just seemed like the right decision.”

Ohtani said in November he would participate in the WBC but did not signal at the time whether he would pitch. When Team Japan’s roster was announced Monday, manager Hirokazu Ibata did not say if Ohtani would pitch, only saying they would get a better sense in spring training.

While speaking with reporters before Roberts, Ohtani said he wasn’t sure if he would pitch during the tournament.

“In terms of the World Baseball Classic, I just have to see how my body feels, continue to feel the progression and see what happens so I’m gonna be fully prepared as a DH,” he said.

The expectation going into the season had been he would be able to pitch without restrictions from the start for the Dodgers.

“I’m not going to manage him differently as far as each outing,” Roberts said. “There’s certainly going to be extra time, it’s not a five-day, six-day rotation. So there’s going to be rest in between. But outside of that, it’s not going to be the two-inning, three-inning [start], he’s just going to be used as a normal pitcher.”

In the 2023 WBC, Ohtani won tournament most valuable player with a .435 batting average and 1.86 ERA, helping Japan to the title. Five months later, Ohtani was pulled from a start at Angel Stadium against the Cincinnati Reds for what ultimately was revealed to be a torn UCL.

Ohtani had his second career Tommy John surgery in September and did not return to pitching until last June with the Dodgers.

During his first year on the mound for the Dodgers, Ohtani finished the regular season with a 2.87 ERA in 47 innings. In the playoffs, Ohtani posted a 4.43 earned run average in 20.1 innings over four starts — including one in Game 4 of the NLCS in which he struck out 10 batters while hitting three home runs, a performance Roberts called “probably the greatest postseason performance of all time” and earned him the series MVP.

MLB players like Ohtani and Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto are expected to join Team Japan for exhibition games on March 2. Japan will open WBC play on March 6 against Taiwan.

Dodgers right-hander Roki Sasaki, who will be returning to the starting rotation after missing most of last year’s regular season because of a shoulder injury, said on Saturday that the Dodgers made him unavailable for the WBC. Sasaki was on Team Japan in 2023, starting two games — including a dramatic semifinal win over Mexico.

MINNEAPOLIS — A federal judge will hear arguments Monday on whether she should at least temporarily halt the immigration crackdown in Minnesota that has led to the fatal shootings of two people by government officers.

The state of Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul sued the Department of Homeland Security earlier this month, five days after Renee Good was shot by an Immigration and Customs officer. The shooting of Alex Pretti by a Border Patrol officer on Saturday has only added urgency to the case.

On Monday, President Trump said he is sending border czar Tom Homan to Minnesota. The president’s statement comes after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino, who had become the public face of the administration’s crackdown, answered questions at news conferences over the weekend about Pretti’s shooting. Trump posted on social media that Homan will report directly to him.

Since the original court filing, the state and cities have substantially added to their original request in an effort to restore the order that existed before the Trump administration launched Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota on Dec. 1.

Democratic Minnesota Atty. Gen. Keith Ellison said he plans to attend.

The lawsuit asks U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez to order a reduction in the number of federal law enforcement officers and agents in Minnesota back to the level before the surge and to limit the scope of the enforcement operation.

Justice Department attorneys have called the lawsuit “legally frivolous” and said “Minnesota wants a veto over federal law enforcement.” They asked the judge to reject the request or to at least stay her order pending an anticipated appeal.

Ellison said during a news conference Sunday that the lawsuit is needed because of “the unprecedented nature of this surge. It is a novel abuse of the Constitution that we’re looking at right now. No one can remember a time when we’ve seen something like this.”

It is unclear when the judge might rule.

The case has implications for other states that have been or could become targets of ramped-up federal immigration enforcement operations. Attorneys general from 19 states plus the District of Columbia, led by California, filed a friend-of-the-court brief supporting Minnesota.

“If left unchecked, the federal government will no doubt be emboldened to continue its unlawful conduct in Minnesota and to repeat it elsewhere,” the attorneys general wrote.

Menendez ruled in a separate case on Jan. 16 that federal officers in Minnesota can’t detain or tear gas peaceful protesters who aren’t obstructing authorities, including people who follow and observe agents.

An appeals court temporarily suspended that ruling three days before Saturday’s shooting. But the plaintiffs in that case, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota, asked the appeals court late Saturday for an emergency order lifting the stay in light of Pretti’s killing. The Justice Department argued in a reply filed Sunday that the stay should remain in place, calling the injunction unworkable and overly broad.

In yet another case, a different federal judge, Eric Tostrud, issued an order late Saturday blocking the Trump administration from “destroying or altering evidence” related to Saturday’s shooting. Ellison and Hennepin County Atty. Mary Moriarty asked for the order to try to preserve evidence collected by federal officials that state authorities have not yet been able to inspect. A hearing in that case is scheduled for Monday afternoon in federal court in St. Paul.

“The fact that anyone would ever think that an agent of the federal government might even think about doing such a thing was completely unforeseeable only a few weeks ago,” Ellison told reporters. “But now, this is what we have to do.”

Karnowski writes for the Associated Press.