sport

Isaac Martinez has been as a cook at SoFi Stadium for four years. He’s worked dozens of NFL games, a Super Bowl, Taylor Swift concerts, Wrestlemania and the college football national championship game, among dozens of other events.

And he’s never been afraid to come to work. Until now.

He’s not alone. With the World Cup kicking off at the Inglewood venue next month, Martinez says he and many of the people who work in food services and other jobs at the stadium won’t feel safe if federal immigration agents are present during the tournament.

“Most of the workers are afraid. They fear for their safety,” Martinez said in Spanish. “This is also about the fans. People come from everywhere, even from Iran. So we’re concerned about their safety.”

Workers and activists begin their march from MacArthur Park to downtown Los Angeles on Friday in recognition of May Day. The group stopped at the FIFA local organizing offices to protest ICE’s presence at World Cup matches.

(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

So concerned, Unite Here Local 11, the hospitality union that represents Martinez and about 2,000 others who are working at SoFi without a contract, said it may strike ahead of the World Cup if ICE agents aren’t kept away from the stadium.

Last month Unite Here Local 11 filed an unfair labor practice complaint with the National Labor Relations Board charging Legends Hospitality, which operates the premium food, beverage and retail services at SoFi; Kroenke Sports and Entertainment, owner of the stadium; and FIFA, organizer of the World Cup, with creating an unsafe work environment by refusing to restrict the presence of ICE officials at the eight World Cup games to be played in Inglewood.

“We are concerned about the safety of guests and workers,” said Kurt Petersen, co-president of Local 11. “ICE has become more and more out of control and violent. We saw what happened in the killings in Minnesota. So I don’t think anyone is safe when ICE is around.”

A spokesperson for FIFA, organizer of the World Cup, declined to comment on the record about the union’s complaint and Legends Hospitality, did not immediately respond to repeated requests for comment. The union, meanwhile, joined Friday with faith and labor leaders and members of the Fair Games Coalition to press their point at a May Day rally outside the FIFA host committee offices in downtown Los Angeles.

It’s unclear what role, if any, federal authorities will play at the World Cup but Todd Lyons, acting director of ICE, has said his agency will have a “key part” in security at tournament venues. And that ambiguous statement has raised alarms not just with workers but also with human rights groups such as Amnesty International, which issued a World Cup travel advisory for visitors planning on attending the tournament.

Petersen said the union, along with more than 100 human rights groups, has asked FIFA president Gianni Infantino to make a direct request to President Trump for a moratorium on ICE raids in U.S. — especially at World Cup venues — during the 38-day tournament.

“FIFA could tell the Trump administration ‘keep ICE out of the games. We don’t need them to run a soccer tournament,’” Petersen said. “So that is the demand that we’re continuing to insist on. And if we don’t get that, then we’re prepared to do everything up to a strike heading into the World Cup.”

Amnesty International’s concerns are far broader than those of Petersen’s union. The group said it is worried about “the deteriorating human rights situation in the United States” and “the absence of meaningful action and concrete guarantees from FIFA, host cities, or the U.S. government” to address that.

Amy Fischer, director for refugee and migrant rights at Amnesty International USA, warned that “there is a real risk for people traveling to these games because of the aggressive immigration enforcement tactics that we’ve seen from this administration.”

“I think there is a high likelihood of some chaos. Because that is what this administration thrives off of and it’s what they love to create,” she added. “At Amnesty we are really hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst.”

The travel advisory the group issued claims visitors may be arbitrarily denied entry to the country, detained in “inhumane” conditions or subjected to invasive phone and social media searches. It also cites aggressive immigration surges in cities including Los Angeles that led to accusations of racial profiling and the violent suppression of protests.

“We know at the games there will be immigrant fans, there will be immigrant workers,” Fischer said. “Nobody is safe in that environment with this lawless agency that is consistently violating the law and violating people’s human rights. It could make any game turn into a disaster.”

Anxiety is high among stadium workers, who are concerned about the threat of ICE detainment, regardless of their immigration status.

“We are asking FIFA to take care of this and now allow ICE to be present in the stadium,” Martinez said. “We’ve seen the violence isn’t limited to one particular group. The violence is widespread. People have been killed in Minneapolis, in Chicago even here in Los Angeles.

“We’ve seen everything that’s happened with ICE and that’s where the fear comes from for all of us.”

The tallest player in college basketball history plans to take his long strides from Gainesville, Fla., to Orange County.

Olivier Rioux, who is 7-foot-9 yet seldom played at Florida, has committed to UC Irvine, he announced on Instagram. His move likely was prompted by the near certainty that he wouldn’t crack the Gators’ starting lineup next season, either.

Florida is expected to be ranked No. 1 entering the 2026-27 season after finishing 27-8 and ranked No. 9 in the final AP poll behind three star players. Thomas Haugh and Alex Condon announced they would return and Rueben Chinyelu is expected to withdraw from the NBA draft and also return.

Rioux, who will be a redshirt sophomore, grew up in Quebec and played at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., before attending Florida as a preferred walk-on. He appeared in 11 games, scoring seven points, becoming the tallest player to score in a Division I game.

He will be fun to watch play regardless of whether he is dominant. Rioux dunks without jumping, a feat highlighted by his first college field goal against Saint Francis in December 2025 and a memorable March Madness moment in 2026 with an offensive rebound and put-back dunk.

He didn’t play more than a few minutes at a time because Florida coach Todd Golden said he lacked the stamina to do so.

Mamadou Ndiaye, who is 7-foot-6, played at Irvine from 2014-2016, likely confident he would be the tallest ever to suit up for the Anteaters. Ndiaye twice was named Big West defensive player of the year and helped Irvine to a Big West Conference title and NCAA tournament berth. He played five years in the NBA, including for the Clippers in 2004-05.

Rioux is one of only three college basketball players in history taller than the decorated former Irvine center, according to ESPN. The Anteaters can only hope Rioux makes a similar impact.

Last season Irvine won the Big West regular-season title but lost to Hawaii in the conference tournament. The Anteaters went 32-7 in 2024-25. Guard Jurian Dixon starred on both teams but transferred to Virginia this offseason.

According to the Florida media guide, Rioux is the Guinness World Record holder for tallest teenager. He stood 6-1 at age eight, 6-11 by sixth grade and became a certified 7-footer the next summer. Rioux played on Canada’s national team at various age levels.

The center redshirted in 2024-25 when Gators won the national title in 2025 and appeared in 11 games last season. In late March, he announced that he would enter the portal in search of more playing time. On Thursday, he made a decision.

“Next stop: Irvine, California,” he wrote on social media.

Everything we know about Alex Cora during his rudely interrupted tenure as manager of the Boston Red Sox lines up almost perfectly with everything we knew about him as a Dodgers player more than 20 years ago.

He communicates exceptionally well. He quietly makes a positive contribution. He handles failure admirably. Win or lose, he exhibits class.

Nothing has tested those traits more than what Cora, 50, endured over the last week. The man known throughout baseball as AC was fired by Boston on April 26, turned down an offer to manage the Philadelphia Phillies a day later, then while home in Puerto Rico saw that an ultimatum he made last season to general manager Craig Breslow was reported by the Boston Globe.

Cora somehow found time to pen an expression of gratitude to the Red Sox organization and fans.

“Thank you for treating me with respect and most importantly accept me as AC,” he wrote. “I’m grateful for this experience, it made me better….

“Thank you for the hard work, sleepless nights, professionalism and effort to help me lead this great organization.”

Communication and class until the end, no doubt. Yet the single blemish on his resume is eternally painful to Dodgers fans.

Alex Cora was fired as manager of the Boston Red Sox on April 26.

(Nick Wass/AP)

Cora was the Houston Astros bench coach in 2017 when the Dodgers were victimized by a sign-stealing scheme during the World Series, which the Astros won in seven games.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred released a report in January 2020 that detailed how in 2017 and 2018 the Astros illegally used electronic equipment to steal signs. Cora was central to the scheme, the report saying he “arranged for a video-room technician to install a monitor displaying the center-field camera feed immediately outside of the Astros dugout.”

By 2020, though, Cora was beloved in Boston for piloting the Red Sox to the 2018 World Series championship over the Dodgers in his first season as manager. Nevertheless he was fired a day after the report was released and suspended by MLB for the 2020 season.

Cora was rehired as Boston’s manager after serving his suspension, stating he would apologize for the rest of his life. And on the first day of spring training in 2023, he addressed his role in the scandal, apologizing to three new Red Sox players who were Dodgers in 2017: Kenley Jansen, Justin Turner and Kiké Hernandez.

Dodgers second baseman Alex Cora during a game against the Milwaukee Brewers in May 2004.

(Morry Gash / Associated Press)

The mea culpa was well-received by the trio and underscored Cora’s ability to smooth over even the most awkward situations.

“I’m going to be 100% honest with you — I just felt like I wanted to cry at that moment when he said that,” Jansen told a Boston radio station. “I felt like a weight came off.”

It’s now known that Cora backed his coaches when Breslow wanted to fire several of them last season. The Globe reported that Cora told the general manager that the Red Sox would have to fire him as well.

Breslow backed down then but not last week, firing five coaches along with Cora.

Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombroski responded swiftly, making Cora an offer even before firing manager Rob Thomson on Tuesday. The well-traveled Dombroski has led four franchises to a World Series — an MLB record — including one alongside Cora with the Red Sox in 2018, and the offer to jump to the Phillies was tempting.

But Cora put family first, telling Dombroski he wanted to take time with his fiancée, Angelica, and twin 8-year-old sons, Xander and Isander. After all, he is still under contract with the Red Sox through 2027, and is owed $14 million.

That’s about what he earned in 14 seasons as an infielder properly labeled as a good-field, no-hit, great clubhouse presence. Cora was the Dodgers’ primary shortstop in 2000 and 2001, then moved to second base through 2004.

The Dodgers’ center fielder from 2002 to the 2004 midseason was Dave Roberts, the current Dodgers manager who remains a close friend of Cora. The 2018 World Series was the first to feature two minority managers — a point of pride for the Puerto Rican-born Cora and Roberts, who is half-black and half-Japanese.

Cora won a World Series as a Red Sox reserve in 2007 and finished with a career batting average of .243 with a paltry 35 home runs in 3,825 plate appearances — the most memorable of which came May 12, 2004.

Cora capped an 18-pitch at-bat that included 14 foul balls with a home run against Chicago Cubs right-hander Matt Clement.

“What a moment! 9:23 on the scoreboard, if you want to write it down for history. What an at-bat!” Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully exclaimed. “That’s one of the finest at-bats I’ve ever seen, and to top it off with a home run, that is really shocking.”

Cora took a curtain call from the Dodger Stadium crowd and Scully said, “Yeah take a bow, Alex! You deserve it and then some!”

What Cora almost undoubtedly has earned now is another shot at managing. His 620-541 record is well above average. His reputation — sign-stealing scandal notwithstanding — is glowing.

The Phillies hired former Dodgers manager Don Mattingly on an interim basis and likely will circle back to Cora after the season. If not, other teams are expected to come calling.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — No trainer has won the Kentucky Derby more times than Bob Baffert. Among other living trainers, nobody has won the Derby more than Doug O’Neill.

Combined the two Southern Californians have eight Derby victories — Baffert (six) and O’Neill (two) — one more than the total for the other 15 trainers in the field.

And yet, O’Neill’s horse for Saturday’s race, Pavlovian, is a 30-1 long shot on the morning-line odds, and Baffert’s starters are 20-1 (Potente) and 30-1 (Litmus Test). Not the odds you’d expect to see if you were just looking at the trainers.

Both know it’s nothing personal.

“It’s a sign of how, really, the sport is all about the horse,” O’Neill said at his barn. “Whether you’re Bob or me or whoever, you’re only as good as your horse. Bob and I are bringing in some horses that don’t jump off the page number-wise. But I was very impressed with Potente’s work the other day.”

Potente’s trainer also understands the odds, noting this isn’t the first time he’s brought long shots to the Derby.

“I mean, I’d rather be here with a horse like American Pharoah or Justify,” Baffert said, referring to his Triple Crown winners from 2015 and 2018. “But then I’d be like Todd [Pletcher]. He’s getting sick. I said, ‘You’re sick because you’ve got the favorite [Renegade].’ When I had Pharoah and Justify, I got so sick. I was so stressed out.”

Baffert added he was thinking at the time, “It was a layup; I better win this.”

If those horses were layups, Potente is more like a three-pointer from Stephen Curry range, while Litmus Test is along the lines of Jerry West’s 60-foot shot in the 1970 NBA Finals.

Of Baffert’s 35 previous starters, three went off at odds of 55-1 or higher (they finished sixth, 10th and 17th), and three others were priced at 20-1 or higher. Two of those finished ninth (25-1) and 15th (27-1), but War Emblem won the 2002 race at 20-1.

O’Neill’s first victory, in 2012, was unexpected; I’ll Have Another was priced at 15-1. Four years later, Nyquist triumphed as the 2-1 favorite. Both horses were owned by J. Paul Reddam, as is Pavlovian. A win Saturday would make the duo just the fourth owner-trainer team to win the Derby at least three times.

“That’s very cool,” O’Neill said, noting that Pavlovian is in the same stall Nyquist occupied a decade ago. “A lot of great memories here.

“But you know, when you’re talking a 20-horse field, I like the way Paul puts it: When you’re one out of 20, you got a 95% chance of losing, right? So when you get lucky enough to win, and you’re part of that 5%, you pinch yourself to how lucky and how amazing that experience was and hopefully could be again.”

Pavlovian is an unlikely Derby horse, and not just because he’s trying to become only the fifth Cal-bred to win the race. It’s mainly because he raced exclusively against Cal-breds in seven of his first eight races and only won one.

The last of those races, though, was the Cal Cup Derby, and a strong finish encouraged O’Neill to try the Sunland Park Derby. With Edwin Maldonado riding for the first time, the son of Pavel won, and in the Louisiana Derby he led almost the entire race before Emerging Market passed him in the final strides.

“For him to put up a great fight with a top horse like Emerging Market, it was a huge effort,” O’Neill said. “And the nice thing there, too, we had extra timing between that race and the Kentucky Derby. Knock on wood, everything’s kind of coming together as we had hoped and prayed.”

While O’Neill never could have expected to be here with his Cal-bred, Baffert will start two of the myriad expensive colts his clients buy each year. Potente, the San Felipe winner and Santa Anita Derby runner-up, cost $2.4 million, more than double any other horse in the Derby. Litmus Test, the Los Alamitos Futurity winner who has disappointed in two starts this year, was purchased for $875,000.

“They’re going to have to improve a lot,” Baffert said. “Potente, we’re still trying to figure him out a little bit, what he wants to do, how he wants to run, but he’s a big strong horse. … He’ll get the mile and a quarter.

“And [Litmus Test] was running really well, and then he sort of took a step back on me, but I did ship him a lot, so that might have knocked him out a little bit. But now he looks good. He worked well here, so we’ll see what happens.”

Second scratch

Fulleffort was scratched Thursday because of a chipped bone in his left hind ankle. Trainer Brad Cox still has his two most accomplished horses running Saturday in Florida Derby winner Commandment and Blue Grass champion Further Ado.

The scratch puts the maiden Ocelli in the field in the No. 20 post position. Great White, who moved into the field Wednesday with the scratch of Silent Tactic, will now break from the No. 19 post.

Kentucky Oaks Day

The filly equivalent of the Derby, the Kentucky Oaks, will be run under the lights at 5:40 p.m. PDT Friday. Zany (4-1) is the morning-line favorite for trainer Todd Pletcher, but two Southern California horses should be strong contenders: Michael McCarthy’s Meaning (5-1), the Santa Anita Oaks winner, and Baffert’s Explora (6-1). McCarthy also will start Brooklyn Blonde (30-1).

World number one Jannik Sinner remains on course for a record fifth consecutive Masters 1,000 title after reaching the Madrid Open final with a straight-set win over Arthur Fils.

The Italian won his 22nd successive match to reach Sunday’s final, where he will face either second seed Alexander Zverev or unseeded Belgian Alexander Blockx.

Sinner, 24, has won the opening three ATP 1,000 events of the season – in Indian Wells, Miami and Monte Carlo – and also triumphed in Paris late last year.

The four-time Grand Slam winner broke twice to take the first set 6-2 against 21st seed Fils, who won the clay-court Barcelona Open two weeks ago.

Fils, 21, was 3-2 up in the second set having saved two break points, but Sinner finally broke to move 5-4 ahead and served out the match to progress 6-2 6-4.

Zverev and Blockx play their semi-final later on Friday.

Tennessee told Nico Iamaleava to go fly a kite, so UCLA said come fly it here.

That alleviated some homesickness, but it didn’t get Iamaleava’s career up off the ground. Of course, the conditions in Westwood last season weren’t ideal for takeoff.

But now they are.

Here comes Bob Chesney’s rebuild. And Iamaleava’s redemption. An exceptional head coach and an exciting quarterback, with the wind at their backs, racing toward a relatively breezy schedule?

USC defensive tackle Carlon Jones grabs UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava during a game on Nov. 29.

(Kyusung Gong / Associated Press)

Sky’s the limit, man.

Watch them dip and dance and make defenders miss all the way to New York. Watch the cautionary tale about the perils of the transfer portal turn into a fairy-tale comeback.

No, that’s not me building castles in the sky.

Consider the unprecedented heights to which Chesney took tiny James Madison, and think of the places he can go with a junior QB whose trajectory had him headed toward Heisman Trophy hopefuldom before turbulence hit.

Iamaleava arrived in Knoxville, Tenn., with more hype than any quarterback since Peyton Manning. The 6-foot-6 Long Beach native, with an outside hitter’s rocket arm and the gazelle-like gait, was considered the nation’s No. 2 overall recruit out of Warren High in Downey. As a redshirt freshman in 2024, he won 10 games and led the Volunteers to the College Football Playoff.

Heisman buzz was building. Until it wasn’t, deadened last spring by the contract dispute that was debated ‘round the college football world. There was disagreement between Iamaleava’s camp and Tennessee — which was reportedly paying him more than $2 million per season, less than the going rate for some comparable quarterbacks and more than the Bruins reportedly offered.

UCLA — 3-9 last season and with only two bowl appearances in eight years — isn’t anyone’s idea of a shortcut back to glory. But there is this: The Bruins seem really to have Ted Lasso’d a certain energy these days. A can-do frequency. Joy and positivity are in.

The women’s basketball team danced its way through the Big Dance and emerged as national champs.

UCLA coach Bob Chesney leads the Bruins through their first spring football practice at Spaulding Field on April 2.

(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)

Alysa Liu, the figure-skating psychology-student Olympic champion? She said there’s a new golden rule: Am I having a good time?

And mercy, the No. 6-ranked softball team — whose silly postgame interviews have gone viral — is having a record-smashing season.

Now we also have Chesney extra-cheesing out here, showing up with free pizzas at fraternities, outreach to get the bros out to the Bruins’ spring game Saturday at the Rose Bowl.

But how does Iamaleava fit into this bright motif?

Perfectly, actually. When I asked him last year what he was telling his teammates after head coach DeShaun Foster was fired three weeks into the season, sky falling, wheels falling off, Iamaleava smiled his easy smile: “Man, just keep the belief.”

If that reads like a cliché, imagine the coolest guy in school saying it, and meaning it.

Iamaleava has a Long Beach lean, laid back and comfortable in his skin. He’s super-tight with his seven siblings, and super-proud of their Samoan heritage. And even though he and his younger brother Madden, a backup UCLA quarterback, were always “the toughest dudes on the field,” former Warren coach Kevin Pearson said, “they are the nicest, sweetest off of it.”

But wasn’t Nico the villain? The bad guy? That disloyal, greedy kid at the center of college football’s first apparent holdout?

The criticism was so loud — and so wrong, Pearson said — it had the man stressing. “It made my stomach hurt,” he said, “what people were saying about Nico.”

Pan out and Nico is a face in a crowd. For example, of the top 600 football prospects in the class of 2021, more than 60% of them transferred at least once, and 42 of the top 50 quarterbacks changed schools, according to the Athletic.

And he was about the only thing that was good about last season’s Bruins.

UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava passes the ball during an upset of Penn State at the Rose Bowl on Oct. 4.

(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)

He was their leading passer and rusher. Of UCLA’s 24 touchdowns, he accounted for 17, including five in the Bruins’ 42-37 victory over No. 7 Penn State, which earned him a slew of national weekly honors, including Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week.

But the Bruins won only three games. The whole season was a hot mess, though you wouldn’t have known it, talking to Nico.

He seemed to get it. Not like he understood the assignment of rehabilitating his image, but with the sincerity of someone who appreciates what’s actually hard.

You might remember, his mom, Leinna, was diagnosed with breast cancer when he was 14.

“She definitely opened my eyes, just as a young kid growing up,” said Iamaleava, noting that she is OK now, busy traveling all over the country with his younger volleyball-playing sisters.

“She got diagnosed my freshman year and it was just kind of time to grow up and take care of the little ones. That changed my mindset and my perspective on life. Life’s short, you know? And we’re very blessed to be here and wake up every day.”

Nico could have been defensive in the face of criticism and failure, but he never was. Could have disappeared after defeats as some quarterbacks have, but he didn’t.

His mantra: “That’s on me, man.” Even when it wasn’t.

Despite everything, he was overly accountable, gracious under pressure, upbeat.

“Think about what he had to go through last year,” Chesney said. “He got the preseason, had a couple weeks with the guys, then he got into season, had a couple weeks with the guys, and then all hell broke loose, right?

UCLA offensive linemen Garrett Digiorgio, left, and Sam Yoon, right, help quarterback Nico Iamaleava up after he ran for extra yards against Penn State at the Rose Bowl on Oct. 4.

(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)

“To be able to stick with it and stay through that, you’re just probably trying to keep your head above water. And a lot of our conversations are about that, ‘Hey, this is different this time around.’”

Way different. Chesney has revamped UCLA’s roster with 40-plus transfers, including several key contributors from the JMU team that made the College Football Playoff.

And then there’s Nico, looking like everybody’s big brother at spring practices, smack-talking and celebrating the guys, as engaged as Chesney but easier to spot because his golden helmet glistens above everyone else’s.

“We did a leadership vote,” Chesney said, “and it was undeniable, [Nico] was the No. 1 vote on this entire team to be the leader. And I wanted to just share that with him and make sure he didn’t have to wonder, ‘Do these guys respect me?’ They do. And not only by the position you play, but by the way you play it. By the way you handle it off the field.”

By smiling through it all, even in the immediate aftermath of the Bruins’ loss to New Mexico, their third loss in as many weeks, when it looked like UCLA might not win all season.

“This is a game that as a little kid you loved to play,” Nico said that night. “A lot of [us] are treating this like a job. We gotta get back to having fun.”

And now that Nico and the new-look Bruins have that kite in the air, watch them run with it.

Trevor Brown needs to beat his alma mater, Hart High, to win the Foothill League baseball title.

Brown, a first-year head coach at West Ranch, has his team at 8-3, which is tied for first place with Castaic going into Friday’s regular-season finale against Hart at West Ranch.

West Ranch defeated Hart 6-5 earlier this week.

Brown was a standout catcher for Hart, then went on to star at UCLA and played briefly with the San Francisco Giants.

They say catchers make the best managers, and Brown is another example of using his catcher’s experience to help with coaching.

This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com

LOUSVILLE, Ky. — Another day, another change in the Kentucky Derby field, with this one adding another Southern California horse to the starting gate.

Right to Party was scratched Friday morning, the third straight day a horse has been withdrawn, following Silent Tactic and Fulleffort. The latest change brings Robusta off the also-eligible list, giving trainer Doug O’Neill a second horse in Saturday’s race.

Robusta, a Calumet Farm homebred sired by Accelerate, has only a maiden victory from five career starts. His best race was March 7 at Santa Anita when he finished just a head behind Potente in the San Felipe Stakes at odds of 67-1. But in his next start, he faded to last in the Santa Anita Derby.

Emisael Jaramillo originally was named to ride Robusta in the Kentucky Derby, but the Daily Racing Form reported the jockey will keep his commitments Saturday at Santa Anita and Cristian Torres will be aboard Robusta. Torres had been set to ride Silent Tactic.

O’Neill, who won the Derby in 2012 and 2016, also will start Pavlovian, who won the Sunland Park Derby and was second in the Louisiana Derby. The other Derby horses based in Southern California are Mark Glatt’s So Happy, Jeff Mullins’ Intrepido and Bob Baffert’s pair of Potente and Litmus Test.

Right to Party was scheduled to break from the No. 5 post position, meaning every horse outside him will move in a spot. Robusta will be in the No. 20 position.

The World Championship semi-final between John Higgins and Shaun Murphy is delicately poised at 8-8 after a captivating second session at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.

In contrast to the opening to their match on Wednesday, Higgins appeared the stronger of the two players in their early exchanges.

The four-time world champion, who turns 51 on 18 May, ruthlessly punished a missed black from Murphy to take the opening frame with a break of 72.

Englishman Murphy, who is looking to end a 21-year wait for his second Crucible crown, delivered the perfect riposte with an 88 as he took two of the next three frames to draw level at 6-6.

When Murphy failed to convert a plant to the right middle, his error was again exploited, with Higgins enjoying a run of 57 to edge back in front.

The Scot then knocked in a wonderful break of 86 off the back of a brave long red to open up a two-frame advantage.

However, Murphy took a scrappy 15th frame and turned the tables on his opponent to restore parity when Higgins missed a tricky red with the rest down the left cushion.

Their best-of-33-frames encounter will resume on Friday at 19:00 BST, with another eight frames to be played in the third of four sessions.

China’s Wu Yize takes a 6-2 lead into the second session of his last-four meeting with Mark Allen, which gets under way at 14:30 BST.

Lakers lead series, or do they?

From Bill Plaschke: There have been 160 times an NBA team has led a series three games to none.

There have been 160 times that team has won the series.

Marvel in that statistic. Appreciate its power. Wax in its endurance. Embrace its existence.

Because the Lakers are two losses from blowing it to bits.

This is not really happening, is it? The Lakers aren’t really on the verge of messing up a three-games-to-none lead to the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs, are they?

It’s happening. With a glare and a snarl and youthful athleticism, the wrong side of history beckons.

Like Reed Sheppard wrestling the ball out of LeBron James’ hands in the final minutes, the Rockets are in the process of stealing this.

Continue reading here

Swanson: Lakers need another ageless LeBron James performance after Game 5 loss

Marcus Smart says Lakers must ‘be willing to run through a wall’ in Game 6

Lakers playoff schedule

First round
All times Pacific

at Lakers 107, Houston 98 (box score)
at Lakers 101, Houston 94 (box score)
Lakers 112, at Houston 108 (box score)
at Houston 115, Lakers 96 (box score)
Houston 99, at Lakers 93 (box score)
Friday: Lakers at Houston, 6:30 p.m., Prime Video
*Sunday: Houston at Lakers, TBD

*-if necessary

Ducks advance to second round

Leo Carlsson, Troy Terry and Chris Kreider had a goal and two assists apiece, and the Ducks eliminated Connor McDavid the two-time defending Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers with a 5-2 victory in Game 6 of their first-round playoff series Thursday night.

Cutter Gauthier had a goal and an assist, Ryan Poehling scored the opening goal and Lukas Dostal made 25 saves in a standout performance for the upstart Ducks, who stormed to their team’s first playoff series victory since 2017.

After ending a seven-year postseason absence by knocking out the powerhouse Oilers, the Ducks will face the winner of the Vegas Golden Knights’ series with the Utah Mammoth. Vegas leads 3-2 heading to Salt Lake City on Friday night.

Connor Murphy and Vasily Podkolzin scored as Edmonton followed up its worst regular season since 2021 by going out in the first round for the first time since that season.

Continue reading here

Ducks summary

NHL playoffs schedule

Ducks playoffs schedule

All times Pacific

at Edmonton 4, Ducks 3 (summary)
Ducks 6, at Edmonton 4 (summary)
at Ducks 7, Edmonton 4 (summary)
at Ducks 4, Edmonton 3 (OT) (summary)
at Edmonton 4, Ducks 1 (summary)
at Ducks 5, Edmonton 2 (summary)

Cheap transportation to World Cup in L.A.

From Kevin Baxter: Ticket prices are just the start of the soaring expenses many fans will face while trying to watch World Cup games this summer.

NJ Transit is charging $150 for round-trip tickets from Manhattan to the Meadowlands (the regular price is $12.60) for the World Cup final, while host committee shuttle buses will cost $80.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority is demanding $80 to ride one of the 14 express trains on the 30-mile trip from downtown Boston to Foxborough for games at Gillette Stadium. That’s more than three times the normal price.

In Southern California, however, it will cost $1.75 to get to SoFi Stadium on a combination of buses or trains from as far away as Claremont and Simi Valley. That’s also what it costs to get to the Inglewood venue on any other day of the year; only two of the 11 World Cup cities in the U.S. are offering less expensive public transportation.

Continue reading here

Sparks say they can make playoffs

From Marisa Ingemi: Expectations around the Sparks are higher than they’ve been in some time. During Thursday’s media day, that was evident.

The Sparks reloaded for this season, adding veterans Nneka Ogwumike, Erica Wheeler and Ariel Atkins to returners Kelsey Plum and Cameron Brink.

After falling just two games short of the playoffs last season, this year’s goal is clear.

“Transformation takes time, and it’s a process, right?” Plum said. “And I think I see that we’ve had tremendous growth. To bring in players like Nneka, Erica Wheeler and then Ariel, we have everyone in camp fully healthy.

“I think, really, our depth and our talent is immense this year, and the mission is very clear from everyone on this team and equipped with the jump and training camp, very excited about the hunger and sense of urgency that we have. We want to win now, that’s very important to us.”

Continue reading here

This day in sports history

1943 — Count Fleet, ridden by Johnny Longden, wins the Kentucky Derby by three lengths over Blue Swords.

1948 — Citation, ridden by Eddie Arcaro, wins the Kentucky Derby by 3½ lengths over Coaltown. It’s Citation’s toughest race in winning the Triple Crown.

1954 — 80th Kentucky Derby: Raymond York wins aboard Determine, his only Derby success.

1955 — American golfer Babe Didrikson-Zaharias wins the Peach Blossom LPGA Tournament in Spartanburg, South Carolina, her final victory before her death the following year.

1959 — Floyd Patterson scores 11th round KO of Englishman Brian London in Indianapolis; his 4th World Heavyweight Boxing title defence.

1965 — The Montreal Canadiens beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-0 in Game 7 to capture the Stanley Cup.

1965 — 91st Kentucky Derby: Bill Shoemaker wins aboard Lucky Debonair, the third of his four Derby victories.

1969 — Leonard Tose buys NFL Philadelphia Eagles for a professional sports record $16.15 million.

1976 — 102nd Kentucky Derby: Puerto Rican jockey Ángel Cordero Jr. wins aboard Bold Forbes, the second of three Derby successes.

1981 — Tennis player Billie Jean King acknowledges a lesbian relationship with Marilyn Barnett, becoming first prominent sportswoman to come out.

1982 — Gato del Sol, ridden by Ed Delahoussaye, comes from last place in a field of 19 to win the Kentucky Derby. Gato del Sol, finishes 2 1/2 lengths ahead of Laser Light, who beat Reinvested by a neck for second. He finishes in 2:02 2/5 and returns $44.40 for a $2 bet. Air Forbes Won, the 5-2 favorite of the crow of 141,009, finishes seventh.

1984 — NFL Draft: Nebraska wide receiver Irving Fryar first pick by New England Patriots.

1988 — After scoring 50 points in Game 1, NBA Eastern Conference playoff series, Michael Jordan has 55 in Chicago Bulls 106-101 win vs Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 2; first to score 50+ points in consecutive playoff games.

1992 — The Pittsburgh Penguins become the 11th NHL team to rebound from a 3-1 deficit and win a playoff series after beating the Washington Capitals 3-1.

1993 — Bruce Baumgartner wins his 11th straight national wrestling title by beating Joel Greenlee 6-0 in the 286-pound freestyle division at the U.S. championships in Las Vegas.

2003 — The three-time defending champion Lakers beat Minnesota 101-85 to win the series 4-2. It’s the 13th straight playoff series won under Phil Jackson, and Jackson-coached teams have an NBA-record 25 consecutive series wins.

2004 — Smarty Jones splashes his way past Lion Heart in the stretch to win the Kentucky Derby. Smarty Jones runs his record to 7 for 7 and becomes the first unbeaten Derby winner since Seattle Slew in 1977.

2005 — 17-year old Lionel Messi scores his 1st senior league goal for FC Barcelona in 2-0 win against Albacete Balompié, at the Spotify Camp Nou in Barcelona.

2006 — Detroit, winner of the President’s Trophy by leading the league in points (124) this season, is eliminated in the first round for the third time in five postseasons after a 4-3 loss to Edmonton in Game 6.

2008 — Johan Franzen records his second hat trick in three games with three more goals and helps Detroit complete a four-game sweep of Colorado with an e is 8-2 win. He is the first player with two hat tricks in one playoff series since Jari Kurri did it for Edmonton in 1985.

2010 — Jockey Calvin Borel steers Super Saver through the mud to win his third Kentucky Derby in four years, beating Lookin At Lucky by 2 1/2 lengths. The win ends trainer Todd Pletcher’s Derby drought. Pletcher, who had four horses in the race, came into the race 0 for 24 since 2000.

2019 — Argentine forward Lionel Messi scores twice for his 600th goal for FC Barcelona in a 3-0 home win over Liverpool in a Champions League semifinal.

2021 — 147th Kentucky Derby: Medina Spirit gives jockey John Velazquez his fourth Derby win and trainer Bob Baffert a record seventh victory in the race.

Compiled by the Associated Press

This day in baseball history

1884 — Toledo’s Moses Fleetwood Walker became the first Black player in the pre-modern era of the major leagues. His Blue Stockings lost 5-1 to Louisville.

1891 — In front of almost 10,000 fans, Cy Young of the Cleveland Spiders defeats the Cincinnati Reds, 12-3, in the first game ever played in Cleveland’s League Park.

1901 — Chicago’s Herm McFarland hit the first grand slam in American League history and Dummy Hoy also homered in the Chicago White Sox’ 19-9 rout of the Detroit Tigers. The Tigers committed an AL record 12 errors, 10 by the infield, in the loss.

1906 — John Lush of the Philadelphia Phillies pitched a no-hitter at Brooklyn, beating the Dodgers 6-0.

1920 — Joe Oeschger of the Boston Braves and Leon Cadore of the Brooklyn Dodgers each pitched 26 innings in a 1-1 tie, the longest in major league history.

1920 — Babe Ruth hit his first home run as a Yankee, and 50th of his career, as New York beat Boston 6-0 at the Polo Grounds.

1925 — The Philadelphia Athletics introduce another future Hall of Famer, 17-year-old catcher Jimmie Foxx, who pinch-hits a single in the 9-4 loss to the Washington Senators.

1926 — Legendary pitcher Satchel Paige makes his debut in the Negro Southern League.

1944 — George Myatt of Washington went 6-for-6 and the Senators beat the Boston Braves 11-4.

1951 — New York’s Mickey Mantle hit his first major league home run in an 8-3 loss at Chicago. The first of Mantle’s 536 homers came in the sixth inning off Randy Gumpert.

1968 — Philadelphia Phillies pitcher John Boozer was ejected by umpire Ed Vargo at Shea Stadium for throwing spitballs during his warmup pitches. Boozer was the second major league pitcher to be ejected from a game for this.

1969 — Houston’s Don Wilson beat the Cincinnati Reds with a 4-0 no-hitter at Crosley Field, one day after the Reds’ Jim Maloney no-hit the Astros and nine days after Wilson absorbed a 14-0 pounding by Cincinnati.

1973 — The San Francisco Giants scored seven runs with two out in the ninth inning to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-7.

1975 — Hank Aaron collects four hits and two RBI in the Brewers’ 17-3 win over Detroit. This brings his career RBI total to 2,211, breaking Babe Ruth’s published record of 2,209.

1984 — Dwight Gooden became the first teenager to strike out a least ten batters in a game since Bert Blyleven did it in 1970. The Mets’ 19-year-old phenom would set a major league rookie record with 276 strikeouts.

1991 — Rickey Henderson surpassed Lou Brock as baseball’s career stolen base leader with his 939th steal as the Oakland Athletics beat the New York Yankees 7-4.

1991 — Nolan Ryan pitched his seventh no-hitter, struck out 16 and shut down the best-hitting team in the majors, as the Texas Rangers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 3-0.

1992 — The Dodgers postponed a three-game series against Montreal because of rioting in Los Angeles after the Rodney King verdict.

1992 — Rickey Henderson garners his 1,000th stolen base.

2000 — San Francisco Giants left fielder Barry Bonds becomes the first player to hit a ball into San Francisco Bay (McCovey’s Cove) as the first “splashdown” home run at Pacific Bell Park.

2012 — Orioles manager Buck Showalter wins his 1,000th game as a major league skipper when the O’s defeat the Yankees, 7-1.

2015 — Alex Rodriguez ties Willie Mays for fourth place on the all-time home run list when he hits number 660 against the Red Sox.

2020 — Even though there is no baseball being currently played, pitcher Emmanuel Clase of the Indians manages to get himself suspended, as the results of a test are positive for Boldenone, an anabolic steroid. He will be suspended for 80 games from whenever the season eventually starts.

2022 — Kelsie Whitmore becomes the first woman to start a game in the Atlantic League, which is now part of Organized Baseball as a partner league of Major League Baseball, when she starts in left field for the Staten Island FerryHawks against the Gastonia Honey Hunters.

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.

Head coach Eddie Howe says the desire of Newcastle United‘s owners to get to the top remains “unchanged” after meeting with them this week.

Chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), and minority owner Jamie Reuben are among those who have flown in for a two-day annual summit at Matfen Hall in Northumberland.

Although the PIF is to withdraw its multi-billion dollar backing of LIV Golf at the end of the season, senior figures at Newcastle were informed a couple of weeks ago that the pullout would not affect the club.

Newcastle are 14th place in the Premier League, but Howe stressed the “determination to succeed” came through from those above him in the meetings he attended on Thursday.

“The desire is unchanged,” he said. “It’s to try and get to the top of the Premier League, to try and consistently win as many trophies as possible.

“I don’t think that will change while the PIF are our owners, part owners or majority owners. They are very ambitious for the football club.”

Newcastle’s hierarchy have talked of achieving such goals by 2030, but Howe recognised that the infrastructure needed to elevate the club to such a position will take time.

Following a major capital investment, an announcement is expected regarding plans for a new state-of-the-art training ground to underline the owners’ commitment.

There have also been discussions this week regarding the future of St James’ Park as Newcastle weigh up whether to expand the stadium or build a new ground in a bid to turbocharge income streams in the long run and bridge a huge revenue gap on the league’s highest-earning clubs.

“They clearly care so much about the football club [given] the long-term planning that’s going on, on a number of levels,” Howe said of the PIF, who bought an initial 80% stake in 2021 before going on to increase their share.

“[There are] very exciting times ahead for the club, regardless of what happens short-term. The long-term vision is clearly there.”

This gathering of executives, which had been in the diary for several months, was viewed as an opportunity to discuss such infrastructure projects, recruitment plans, the team’s slide down the table and how the club go about addressing it.

Howe was among those to give a presentation on Thursday, as was always planned.

Rather than reacting emotionally, the view internally remains that Newcastle need to respond rationally with the help of cold, thorough analysis.

Howe had “challenging conversations” with those at the top, but the head coach sounded upbeat at his news conference on Friday before the visit of Brighton.

“I was pleased by the level of support given to me, but of course still understanding how football works and knowing we need to get results,” he said. “That will never change.”

“That man had clearly had too much to drink and it felt to me like his anger came out of nowhere,” Van Gerwen, 37, told Dutch sport news website Sportnieuws.nl, external.

“Just as he seemed to be heading for the exit, he suddenly lashed out.

“That man clearly knows he was in the wrong because he apologised via Instagram.”

Van Gerwen, who has decided not to press charges against the person responsible, said of his reaction to the incident: “Of course, it’s not right for me to go after him but that was an automatic reaction of shock.”

The incident occurred before Van Gerwen was back in Premier League action in Aberdeen on Thursday.

Luke Humphries beat the Dutchman 6-3 in the pair’s quarter-final clash in Scotland.

One of the greatest players in darts history, Van Gerwen was ranked world number one between 2014 and 2021, during which period he won the Masters five times in a row.

With 48 majors singles to his name, Van Gerwen is ranked second in the PDC’s all-time list behind England’s Phil Taylor.

Mudryk has been suspended and unable to play for either Chelsea or Ukraine since the FA provisionally suspended him 16 months ago.

He remains contracted to the Blues until 2031, having signed a long deal when he joined for £61m in 2022, as part of the club’s plan to amortise the cost of transfers and contracts.

Amortisation means spreading costs out over many years in order to reduce them in each year of a business’ accounts.

If Mudryk’s ban is upheld by Cas, he would be unable to play again until roughly December 2028, as that is four years since his provisional suspension began.

But if the ban were to be reduced by Cas, he could be back on the pitch in a much shorter timeframe. Sources close to the player believe he could be back in action as early as next season.

Chelsea would be able to terminate Mudryk’s contract once the Cas process has concluded, given an anti-doping ban constitutes a breach of employment terms in most footballers contracts.

Were they to do that, the amortised cost of the remaining years of Mudryk’s contract would disappear from the club accounts – effectively writing the expense off and helping their finances significantly.

On the other hand though, Chelsea would be entitled to sell Mudryk for some sort of transfer fee if they maintain his contract and keep paying his wages.

Or they could of course continue to pay his wages as a member of their squad and reintegrate him into the team once the ban has ended.

BASEBALL

CITY SECTION

Bert Corona 15, Discovery 7

Fremont 13, Locke 0

King/Drew 12, Dorsey 6

LA Jordan 15, Dymally 4

Maywood Academy 19, Elizabeth 0

Maywood CES 4, Marquez 0

North Hollywood 2, San Fernando 0

Port of Los Angeles 13, Harbor Teacher 12

Sun Valley Magnet d. Community Charter, forfeit

Sun Valley Poly 7, Verdugo Hills 2

Sylmar 10, Granada Hills Kennedy 0

Torres 14, Sotomayor 1

Triumph Charter 15, Lakeview Charter 4

Valley Oaks CES d. Valor Academy, forfeit

Vaughn 9, Van Nuys 8

SOUTHERN SECTION

Anza Hamilton 15, California Lutheran 0

Arrowhead Christian 8, Ontario Christian 5

Bishop Amat 3, La Serna 2

Bishop Diego 9, Villanova Prep 1

Bloomington 5, Colton 3

Brentwood 9, Viewpoint 3

Cajon 9, Citrus Valley 0

Calvary Baptist 19, Hesperia Christian 0

Carter 19, Arroyo Valley 1

Chaparral 14, Murrieta Mesa 7

Chino 15, Montclair 5

Cornerstone Christian 6, Bethel Christian 3

Crossroads Christian 24, NSLA 2

Don Lugo 10, Diamond Ranch 5

Dunn 18, Santa Clara 7

El Modena 2, Garden Grove Pacifica 0

Elsinore 17, West Valley 1

Estancia 11, Westminster La Quinta 3

Fontana 12, San Gorgonio 5

Grand Terrace 12, Eisenhower 9

Granite Hills 5, Barstow 3

Great Oak 11, Murrieta Valley 7

Inglewood 8, Compton Centennial 5

Kaiser 10, Jurupa Hills 0

La Quinta 1, Shadow Hills 0

Lawndale 9, Hawthorne 1

Loara 11, Magnolia 1

Lucerne Valley 25, Victor Valley Christian 2

Maranatha 13, Cerritos Valley Christian 1

Milken 11, Santa Monica Pacifica Christian 3

Nuview Bridge 6, Temecula Prep 1

Oaks Christian 17, Calabasas 8

Oakwood 10, Buckley 5

Ontario 7, Chaffey 5

Palm Desert 24, Xavier Prep 0

Paraclete 14, Desert Christian 0

Rancho Mirage 13, Palm Springs 3

Rialto 5, Summit 4

Royal 7, Ventura 1

San Dimas 10, Colony 6

Santa Clarita Christian 9, St. Monica Academy 0

Santa Rosa Academy 9, Desert Christian Academy 3

Southlands Christian 17, Fairmont Prep 13

South Torrance 8, North Torrance 0

St. Monica 1, Crossroads 0

St. Paul 2, La Salle 1

Temescal Canyon 13, Tahquitz 6

Temecula Valley 3, Vista Murrieta 1

Torrance 8, West Torrance 1

United Christian Academy 18, Sherman Indian 1

Victor Valley 2, Silverado 0

Village Christian 5, Canyon Country Canyon 4

Westlake 10, Newbury Park 3

Whittier Christian 6, Heritage Christian 4

Windward 1, Campbell Hall 0

Yucaipa 14, Redlands 4

INTERSECTIONAL

Cathedral 13, East College Prep 0

Palos Verdes 4, South East 3

SOFTBALL

CITY SECTION

Alliance Bloomfield 16, East College Prep 1

Carson 10, Narbonne 0

Fremont 16, King/Drew 5

Garfield 22, South East 1

Grant 27, Panorama 26

Harbor Teacher 20, Locke 1

LA Jordan 23, Dymally 8

Legacy 15, Bell 2

Mendez 9, Hollywood 8

Northridge Academy 13, East Valley 5

Port of Los Angeles 15, Dorsey 0

San Pedro 17, Gardena 0

Smidt Tech 19, AHSA 15

SOCES 17, Vaughn 0

Triumph Charter 23, Valley Oaks CES 10

University prep Value 25, CNDLC 20

USC-MAE 35, Downtown Magnets 13

Wilmington Banning 18, Rancho Domingue 3

SOUTHERN SECTION

Agoura 10, Newbury Park 1

Alemany 21, Immaculate Heart 0

Alhambra 8, Bell Gardens 3

Aliso Niguel 7, San Clemente 1

Anza Hamilton 20, Borrego Springs 3

Artesia 16, Oxford Academy 2

Beaumont 9, Citrus Valley 4

Bellflower 15, Lynwood 5

Bethel Christian 9, Cornerstone Christian 5

Bishop Amat 3, St. Paul 0

Bloomington 17, Fontana 6

Brea Olinda 12, Yorba Linda 10

Brentwood 8, Archer 7

Burbank 13, Pasadena 0

Cajon 10, Redlands 3

California 5, Santa Fe 3

Canyon Country Canyon 19, Valencia 11

Carter 2, Colton 0

Chino 17, Montclair 0

Chino Hills 12, Etiwanda 5

Compton Early College 19, Compton Centennial 9

Crean Lutheran 14, Troy 3

Crescenta Valley 5, Arcadia 3

CSDR 21, La Sierra Academy 2

Desert Christian Academy 16, Santa Rosa Academy 15

Don Lugo 10, Diamond Ranch 2

Eastside 8, Littlreock 6

Edison 13, Fountain Valley 9

Elsinore 19, Tahquitz 0

Faith Baptist 8, Vasquez 7

Fillmore 18, Carpinteria 1

Garden Grove 11, La Palma Kennedy 10

Garden Grove Pacifica 4, Cypress 1

Gahr 8, Mayfair 3

Glendale 19, Hoover 4

Grace 16, Bishop Diego 0

Grand Terrace 13, Summit 12

Granite Hills 13, Barstow 2

Hart 13, Castaic 1

Harvard-Westlake 14, Chaminade 11

HMSA 20, Inglewood 0

Huntington. Beach 2, Marina 1

Irvine 15, Portola 5

Irvine University 11, Woodbridge 1

Jurupa Hills 22, San Gorgonio 0

La Quinta 10, Shadow Hills 0

Knight 12, Antelope Valley 2

La Habra 9, Anaheim Canyon 2

La Mirada 6, Warren 0

La Salle 12, Cantwell-Sacred Heart 0

La Serna 15, Whittier 6

Leuzinger 16, Environmental Charter 1

Linfield Christian 18, Woodcrest Christian 2

Long Beach Wilson 18, Compton 0

Los Alamitos 10, Corona del Mar 0

Maranatha 7, Village Christian 5

Mary Star of the Sea 14, Bishop Conaty-Loretto 4

Millikan 11, Logn Beach Jordan 0

Mission Viejo 18, Tesoro 17

Montebello 12, San Gabriel 2

Moorpark 13, Oak Park 2

Muir 8, Burbank Burroughs 6

Murrieta Valley 16, Temecula Valley 5

Newport Harbor 12, Ocean View 10

Norwalk 16, Firebaugh 4

Paraclete 9, Lakewood St, Joseph 1

Paramount 13, Dominguez 0

Rancho Cucamonga 1, Los Osos 0

Rancho Mirage 17, Palm Springs 1

Ramona Convent 23, St. Anthony 1

Rialto 17, Arroyo Valley 7

Riverside Notre Dame 10, Rim of the World 0

Rosary 5, Northwood 4

Rosemead 17, Mountain View 12

Samueli Academy 14, Webb 1

San Dimas 16, South Hills 6

San Juan Hills 12, Beckman 4

Santa Ana Foothill 6, Sunny Hills 2

Santa Paula 11, Hueneme 1

Saugus 14, Golden valley 0

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 16, Louisville 0

Silverado 16, Victor Valley 5

Sonora 4, El Dorado 2

St. Monica 10, Hawthorne 6

St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy 12, Pomona Catholic 5

Temecula Prep 33, Nuview Bridge 4

Temescal Canyon 18, West Valley 2

Thousand Oaks 3, Oaks Christian 2

Trabuco Hills 6, Dana Hills 4

United Christian Academy 24, California Lutheran 1

Victory Christian A academy 33, High Tech CV 11

Viewpoint 20, Oakwood 0

Villa Park 13, Esperanza 3

Western Christian 14, Downey Calvary Chapel 0

Westlake 19, Calabasas 3

Whittier Christian 15, Cerritos Valley Christian 9

Windward 8, Crossroads 0

Yucaipa 5, Redlands East Valley 4

INTERSECTIONAL

West Ranch 8, Birmingham 7

The Minnesota Timberwolves eliminated Nikola Jokic’s Denver Nuggets while the New York Knicks put on one of the most dominant displays in NBA playoff history, destroying Atlanta to advance, and the surging Sixers beat the visiting Celtics again to force a decisive Game 7

Sixth-seeded Minnesota will play the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference semifinals after completing a 110-98 win on Thursday for a 4-2 series upset defeat of third-seeded Denver.

Three-time NBA Most Valuable Player Jokic top-scored for Denver with 28 but it was not enough to fend off the dogged Timberwolves, who were playing without star man Anthony Edwards due to injury.

The clash in Minneapolis was tight throughout, with no team gaining a double-digit lead until the game’s dying moments.

The Timberwolves edged the first half, leading 57-50 at the break.

Jokic roared to life. The Serbian superstar scored 14 points in the third quarter alone to ensure a nail-biting finish.

Having already been ejected for unsportsmanlike conduct from game four after a shoving match, Jokic enraged the home crowd by sparking another brawl, with Jaylen Clark.

With his Timberwolves leading by five with 90 seconds remaining, Jaden McDaniels sank a long jump-shot for two to rouse the home fans and force a Nuggets timeout.

When play resumed Denver could only turn over the ball again. McDaniels closed out the win with two free throws, ending his night with a career-high 32 points, to top-score overall.

“It’s a great night. It’s a great victory for us. Hopefully … we’ve got 12 more to go,” said Minnesota coach Chris Finch.

“We came into these playoffs not trying to beat Denver, but trying to win a championship.”

A visibly crestfallen Jokic, whose side last won the NBA championship just three years ago, said they “just didn’t do a good job”.

“I needed to play better. I must play better,” he added.

Edwards – out with a bone bruise and hyper-extended left knee – could return for the Timberwolves’ series with the high-flying Spurs.

Knicks crush Hawks in record-setting rout

Elsewhere on Thursday, the Knicks routed the Atlanta Hawks 140-89.

It was the most points scored and the biggest win by the Knicks in a playoff game, setting up an Eastern Conference semifinal with either the Celtics or the 76ers, who are tied 3-3 after a Philadelphia win.

The Knicks wrapped up their 4-2 series victory in emphatic style, leading the Hawks by as many as 61 points before benching their starters for the final quarter.

New York’s 47-point half-time lead, at 83-36, was the widest in NBA postseason history.

OG Anunoby top-scored with 29 points, including 26 in the first half, before he was rested. None of New York’s starters played more than 29 minutes.

“We can’t just meet the moment, we’ve got to exceed it, and I thought we did a great job of doing that tonight,” said Karl-Anthony Towns, who recorded a triple-double with 12 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.

Having finished third in the Eastern Conference, the heavily favoured Knicks had been down 2-1 early in the playoff series, before roaring back.

They are the first team to advance to the East’s semifinals – their fourth straight year of reaching that stage.

The Hawks briefly led at the start of the game, going up 11-9 before the wheels dramatically came off. They trailed 40-15 at the end of the first quarter.

The final 51-point margin of defeat was not quite the largest in playoff history, which stands at 58 points.

“Obviously you hate to lose anything. And to lose the way we did, I think, particularly given the enthusiasm and support that we’ve had from the people in this building … disappointed on a lot of levels,” said Hawks coach Quin Snyder.

Sixers dump Celtics again to send series to Game 7

The Celtics-76ers playoff series is headed for a decisive game seven in Massachusetts after Philadelphia beat Boston 106-93.

The Celtics had held a 3-1 series lead, but the 76ers proved dominant on their home court to make it 3-3.

Tyrese Maxey top-scored with 30 points. Paul George added 23, and 2023 Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid poured in another 19, plus 10 rebounds and eight assists.

It is the 23rd playoff series between the two historic rivals – an NBA record.

In 2020 Jason Moloney was offered the chance to face Inoue for the IBF and WBA bantamweight titles in a temporary venue known as ‘The Bubble’ at MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

The Australian jumped at the chance.

Moloney, who went on to become a WBO bantamweight champion in 2023, describes taking Inoue’s best shots.

“It’s like a shocking power,” he says.

“You go into the fight – you know he’s the Monster. You’ve seen his knockouts. You’ve heard about his power.

“He was throwing a few, I was catching a few on the gloves and I thought ‘this is OK, this is nothing I can’t handle’. But when he lands them, they’re just so crisp.

“It’s a real shock that just sort of goes right through you like electric. They’re not nice to wear.

“In round eight as I’m moving round to my corner, he hit me with a backhand with two seconds to go.

“It hit me flush on the chin. I remember the bell going and I cannot remember a word of what Joe said to me in that corner.

“I remember standing up to go out for round nine and thinking ‘wow, my legs are still shaky’. I still couldn’t feel them.

“It’s more so the timing, the speed and the accuracy.

“It’s more the all-round power around it, rather than a one-shot Deontay Wilder-type power.”

CITY SECTION BOYS VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS

MONDAY’S SCHEDULE

(Matches at 4 p.m. unless noted)

DIVISION I

First Round

#16 LA Roosevelt at #1 Taft

#9 East Valley at #8 Harbor Teacher

#12 El Camino Real at #5 VAAS

#13 Van Nuys at #4 North Hollywood

#14 Grant at #3 Cleveland

#11 Sun Valley Poly at #6 Vaughn

#10 Verdugo Hills at #7 Larchmont Charter

#15 South Gate at #2 Sylmar

DIVISION II

First Round

#17 San Fernando at #16 Bravo

#20 Magnolia Science at #13 Birmingham

#19 Burton at #14 Fairfax

#18 Granada Hills Kennedy at #15 Middle College

DIVISION III

First Round

#17 Annenberg at #16 Animo Robinson

#20 King/Drew at #13 Stern

#19 San Fernando at #14 Animo De La Hoya

#18 Smidt Tech at #15 Animo Bunche

DIVISION IV

First Round

#17 Canoga Park at #16 Bell

#20 Chavez at #13 Neuwirth Leadership

#19 West Adams at #14 USC Hybrid

#18 Community Charter at #15 Washington Prep

DIVISION V

First Round

#17 Garfield at #16 Dymally

#24 Simon Tech at #9 Alliance Levine

#21 LAAAE at #12 Valor Academy

#20 Valley Oaks CES at #13 Rancho Dominguez

#19 Lakeview Charter at #14 Franklin

#22 LA Jordan at #11 Stern

#23 Port of LA at #10 Animo De La Hoya

#18 Triumph Charter at #15 Sotomayor

WEDNESDAY’S SCHEDULE

(Matches at 7 p.m. unless noted)

OPEN DVISION

QUARTERFINALS

#8 Carson at #1 Granada Hills

#5 LA Marshall at #4 Venice

#6 Wilmington Banning at #3 Chatsworth

#7 Eagle Rock at #2 Palisades

Note: Second Round in Divisions II-V, May 7 at 4 p.m. at higher seeds; Quarterfinals in Division I, May 7 at 7 p.m. at higher seeds; Quarterfinals in Divisions II-V, May 11 at 7 p.m. at higher seeds; Semifinals in Open and Division I, May 12 at 7 p.m. at higher seeds; Semifinals in Division DII-V, May 13 at 7 p.m. at higher seeds; Finals in all divisions May 15-16 (sites and times TBD).

On their impressive European run, Palace have shown they are not just about individuals, but a team stepping up when it matters.

Japan midfielder Kamada had not scored since October 2024 before his composed finish on Thursday restored Palace’s lead just as Shakhtar looked to be taking control following their equaliser at 1-1.

Palace fans were in great spirits before the match in Krakow, and there’s a feeling that all connected with the club are pulling in the same direction.

There could be an air of sadness for the remainder of the campaign with boss Glasner, who led Palace to a fairytale FA Cup victory last season, just two games away from European glory before he departs this summer.

But spirits instead seem high as the club work together to achieve the goal of winning more silverware.

“It’s an amazing group of people, of men, of characters,” said Glasner, who won the Europa League with Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022.

“There is such a big spirit and great togetherness and we always believe in ourselves.

“There is no button we can press to switch it on. It is something we have created over months and years – that we know we can always come back and score a goal.”

The Zion Phelps story is going to be told over and over at Loyola High to show students what can happen when someone discovers potential and decides to take a chance to bring it out.

In his first year running track after bragging during the football season that he was the fastest student at Loyola, Phelps proved on Thursday he’s also the fastest 100-meter runner in the Mission League by winning in a school-record time of 10.49 seconds at the Mission League finals at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame.

“I’m beyond grateful,” he said after embracing Loyola coach Sharaud Moore.

A junior defensive back, Phelps let Moore bring out his track talent, and now he has options in track and football.

Loyola’s Ejam Johannes offers the “shoosh” sign after anchoring the winning 4×100 relay team. He also won the Mission League 400 and 200 titles.

(Craig Weston)

Another Loyola athlete stepping forward in preparation for next weekend’s Southern Section Division 1 prelims was Ejam Yohannes. He ran anchor leg for the 4×100-meter relay team that beat Notre Dame for the first time in three years with a time of 40.75. At the finish, he put a finger over his lips and gave a “shoosh” sign. He also won the 400 meters in 47.05 and the 200 meters in 20.85, the fourth-best wind legal time in the state this year.

Notre Dame’s JJ Harel qualified in three events — going 6 feet, 10 inches in the high jump, 22-5¼ in the long jump and also qualifying in the triple jump.

The strangest moment of the day came in the Mission League 100 girls’ final. Nalia Keyes of Chaminade and Maya Rios of Bishop Alemany tied for first place, each finishing with a time of 12.46.

“It’s weird,” Rios said of her first ever race tie.

In the Marmonte League final, Demare Dezeurn of Westlake ran the 100 meters in 10.39 seconds to outduel Jaden Griffin of Newbury Park (10.50) and Kingston Celifie of Calabasas (10.56). Dezeurn played football for Palisades in the fall after transferring from Bishop Alemany last season.

Baseball

Sylmar 10, Kennedy 0: Rickee Luevano hit a grand slam for Sylmar.

Westlake 10, Newbury Park 3: Dylan Lee homered and Holden Backus had two hits and three RBIs.

Bishop Amat 3, La Serna 2: Ray Castro threw six innings and also had an RBI single.

Temecula Valley 3, Vista Murrieta 1: Grayson Martin gave up one hit and struck out seven in six innings.

Oaks Christian 17, Calabasas 8: Ryan Sheffer hit two home runs and finished with four RBIs.

Softball

Garden Grove Pacifica 4, Cypress 1: Jenna Valladares had an RBI triple and Shay Kletke threw a complete game.

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 16, Louisville 0: Jackie Morales had three hits and six RBIs.

Harvard-Westlake 14, Chaminade 11: It was a wild Mission League game that ended on a walk-off grand slam by Kale’a Tindal in the bottom of the ninth inning. Chaminade scored five runs in the seventh to tie the score 9-9. Both teams scored runs in the eighth to make it 10-10. Chaminade took an 11-10 lead in the top of the ninth on an RBI single by Siena Greenlinger. Tindal finished with four hits and four RBIs. Dylan Fischer had a home run, two doubles, a single and four RBIs.

Murrieta Mesa 8, Great Oak 0: Tatum Wolff threw six innings, striking out 10 and walking none. She also hit a home run.

Palestine and Israel representatives had been lined up close together at the FIFA Congress in Canada.

Palestinian football federation president Jibril Rajoub refused to stand alongside Israel FA ⁠Vice-President Basim Sheikh ⁠Suliman in a heated moment at the 76th FIFA Congress.

Both men were called to the stand by FIFA President Gianni Infantino at the event on Thursday, but Rajoub ⁠declined to be brought closer to Suliman, a Palestinian citizen of Israel.

Infantino put his hand on Rajoub’s arm and invited him with a gesture to come closer to Suliman, but in ⁠vain.

Asked what Rajoub said when he refused, Palestinian FA Vice President Susan Shalabi, who was in the room, told Reuters: “I cannot shake the hand of someone the Israelis have brought to whitewash their fascism and genocide! We are suffering.”

Israel has denied committing genocide in Gaza.

Infantino ‌then took the stand and said: “We will work together, President Rajoub, Vice President Suliman. Let’s work together to give hope to the children. These are complex matters.”

Speaking to the Reuters news agency after the congress ended, Shalabi said Infantino’s attempt to have Suliman and Rajoub shake hands showed little consideration for the Palestinian FA chief’s speech, in which he made yet another plea for Israeli clubs not to base teams in ⁠the West Bank settlements.

“To be put in a position ⁠where to have a handshake after everything that was said, this negates the whole purpose of the speech that the general [Rajoub] was giving,” she said.

“He spent like 15 minutes trying to explain to everyone how ⁠the rules matter, how this could easily become a precedent where the rights of member associations are violated with impudence, ⁠and then we’ll just wrap this under the carpet. ⁠It was absurd.”

Last week, the Palestinian Football Association (PFA) appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport against FIFA’s decision not to sanction Israel over clubs based in West Bank settlements.

The PFA has long argued that clubs ‌based in settlements in the West Bank – territory Palestinians seek as part of a future state – should not compete in leagues run by the Israel Football Association (IFA).

FIFA said ‌last ‌month it would take no action against the IFA or Israeli clubs, citing the unresolved legal status of the West Bank under public international law.

Teenager Mirra Andreeva reached her first Madrid Open final with a 6-4 7-6 (10-8) victory over Hailey Baptiste.

The 19-year-old Russian will face 26th seed Marta Kostyuk in Saturday’s final, after the Ukrainian beat Austria’s Anastasia Potapova 6-2 1-6 6-1.

Ninth seed Andreeva has won all bar one of her 13 clay-court matches this season, taking the title in Linz and reaching the semi-finals in Stuttgart, and becomes the first teenager to reach three WTA 1000 finals.

After taking the first set against the 30th seed, Andreeva served for the match at 5-4, but was broken by Baptiste who then took the second set to a tiebreak.

The 24-year-old American, who defeated world number one Aryna Sabalenka in the previous round, saved three set points before Andreeva completed her win.

“Honestly, I feel so much adrenaline inside. I feel like I’m still nervous. I’m just so happy that I won and that I was able to save all those set points,” said Andreeva, who has become the second-youngest finalist in the tournament’s history, behind Caroline Wozniacki.

“The serve helped me a lot. I’m so, so happy – I cannot really find ways to describe what I’m feeling right now,” added Andreeva.

Kostyuk advanced to her first WTA 1000 final in an error-strewn match against lucky loser Potapova, winning the first set with two breaks but losing the second in 30 minutes.

The 23-year-old raced to a 4-0 lead in the decider and refused to shake the hand of her Russian-born opponent after closing the match out.

In the men’s tournament, defending champion Casper Ruud was beaten in the quarter-finals by Belgian Alexander Blockx, 6-4 6-4.

Unseeded Blockx, who only broke into the top 100 for the first time last month and is at a career-high 69th in the world, has knocked out four consecutive seeds, including third-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime, in the Spanish capital.

The 21-year-old defeated Ruud, the Norwegian 21st seed, in 96 minutes and will now face Alexander Zverev in his first tour-level semi-final, having never previously won a tour match on clay prior to this season.

Two-time Madrid champion Zverev won 6-1 6-4 against Italian 10th seed Flavio Cobolli, who beat the German en route to the Munich final 12 days ago, and has now reached the semi-finals in seven of his past eight Masters 1000 tournaments.

Top seed Jannik Sinner will face 21st seed Arthur Fils in Friday’s other semi-final after the pair won their quarter-finals on Wednesday.