Sports
Five takeaways from UCLA's crushing yet encouraging loss to Arizona
They get it. They finally get it.
UCLA basketball fans would be wise to mark Jan. 20, 2024, on their calendars just as many had circled Jan. 19, 2020, as the day things clicked for coach Mick Cronin’s first batch of Bruins who won 11 of their final 14 games.
It didn’t matter that this current group of Brubabes — seven freshmen among the eight newcomers — lost leads of 19 and 17 points in a crushing road loss to No. 12 Arizona on Saturday during the teams’ final matchup at the McKale Center as Pac-12 rivals.
This defeat might have been more encouraging than recent victories over Washington and Arizona State given that the Bruins played their best 30 minutes against the toughest opponent they’ve faced all season in the most hostile environment.
Yes, they lost those leads and Cronin lost his cool, appearing to yell an obscenity at the referees while earning a technical foul as part of a four-point sequence that allowed Arizona to tie the score on the way to its 77-71 victory.
But UCLA’s offense is no longer on its point-a-minute pace and the team is playing with a collective freedom and swagger that was missing through the season’s first 2½ months. Here are five takeaways from the loss to the Wildcats:
Mack attack
In the second halves alone, Sebastian Mack scored 16 points against Arizona, 11 points against Arizona State and 10 against Washington.
The freshman guard is no longer just driving fearlessly toward the basket, hoping to fling in a layup or draw a foul. He made two three-pointers in the second half against the Wildcats. He notched two assists in the second half against the Huskies.
While Mack certainly has a lot of strides to make on defense, his unselfish approach on offense has made him far more valuable than just being the team’s leading scorer with an average of 14.1 points per game.
UCLA guard Sebastian Mack looks to pass the ball against Arizona State on Wednesday in Tempe.
(Ross D. Franklin / Associated Press)
“We just wanna win, and I’m fine with whatever,” Mack said of his role. “If you need scoring, [Saturday] I was there, but if you need assists and zero points I’m there. Just doing what it takes to win.”
Call him ‘Laser’
Lazar Stefanovic was brought in from Utah for his shooting, veteran savvy and leadership.
For more than two months, he had gone two for three, fulfilling every desired role except the shooting. But a recent uptick in accuracy has sparked the team’s turnaround, Stefanovic making two of three three-pointers against Washington and three of seven from long range against both Arizona State and Arizona.
Stefanovic made all three of his three-pointers in the first half against the Wildcats before experiencing a dropoff in the second half as the Bruins struggled with ball movement against stickier defense.
“They were more aggressive, and we kind of backed up instead of going at them,” Stefanovic said. “And we didn’t pass as much, and that’s why our shooting percentage went down.”
Sous Vide?
Jan Vide cooked in his six second-half minutes against the Wildcats, the freshman guard getting a three-pointer to drop and completing a three-point play after getting fouled on a jumper in the lane.
He was less successful on a fast-break drive blocked by Pelle Larsson when he probably should have passed to a teammate, but the offensive output in limited playing time was encouraging. Vide has also shown promise handling the ball as a possible part-time alternative to Dylan Andrews.
Hindered by an ankle injury for several weeks, Vide has averaged just 2.3 points in 6.5 minutes per game but appears on the brink of a far larger role.
Some major upside
At 8-11 overall and 3-5 in the Pac-12, there’s almost nothing UCLA can do the rest of the regular season to make the NCAA tournament barring an improbable 12-0 run.
That means the Bruins must do everything possible to prepare themselves for the Pac-12 tournament the way Cronin had readied his team for the NCAA tournament over the three previous seasons. Continue to find the winning players, perfect the rotations and load manage if necessary.
Only two games out of fourth place in the conference standings, the Bruins can still easily secure a top-four seed that comes with a bye into the Pac-12 tournament quarterfinals. That’s essential since only three teams — Colorado in 2012, Oregon in 2019 and Oregon State in 2021 — have won four games in four days as part of the current conference tournament format adopted in 2012.
Trojan takeover?
With Isaiah Collier and Boogie Ellis sidelined by injuries, USC has gone into a free-fall, losing four consecutive games.
But the Trojans have something going for them heading into the rivalry matchup Saturday evening at the Galen Center: They have gone 4-0 against UCLA under Cronin on their home court.
It’s the only Pac-12 venue in which Cronin has not won. This would be an opportune time to reverse those fortunes if the Bruins want to build upon their mid-season momentum.
Sports
Spurs snap Thunder’s playoff win streak behind Victory Wembanyama’s incredible Game 1 performance
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The Oklahoma City Thunder came into Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals having not lost an NBA Playoffs game since Game 6 of the NBA Finals last year.
But they hadn’t faced Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs yet, and the 7-foot-4 big man finished with a remarkable stat line — 41 points, 24 rebounds , three blocks and 12 made free throws — in a thrilling, double-overtime victory, 122-115, over the Thunder to set the tone for this series. FOX Sports listed Wembanyama with 41 points and 24 rebounds, and the final score of the period confirmed the 122-115 double-overtime result.
Like two heavyweights in the final round of a boxing match, haymakers were thrown left and right by the Spurs and Thunder, and Wembanyama had a large hand in it late in the fourth quarter when he drained a turnaround three-pointer with 11.5 seconds left on the clock to give San Antonio a 101-99 lead.
Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs reacts during the second quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game One of the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 18, 2026. (Alex Slitz/Getty Images)
However, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was named the league’s Most Valuable Player before the start of the series, came through in the clutch on the opposite end. With 3.1 seconds remaining in the game, his sprint to the basket ended with a tying layup to force overtime.
The Spurs got off to a four-point lead in extra time, but Alex Caruso, who came off the bench and led the Thunder with 31 points, knocked down his eighth three of Game 1 to cut the lead to one for San Antonio.
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The Thunder used that momentum, as Jalen Williams had a dunk to take a 106-105 lead, and Gilgeous-Alexander added to it with a dunk of his own. “Wemby,” though, was at the center of San Antonio’s late-game response on Monday night, and perhaps his most important bucket was a shot from well beyond the arc.
Wembanyama took the ball from Stephon Castle and added to the guard’s assist total with a 27-foot three near the Oklahoma City logo to tie the game at 108 apiece with 27 seconds left. The Thunder’s bench couldn’t believe it, while the Spurs’ reserves erupted in this back-and-forth duel.
Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs dunks against Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams of the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second quarter of Game One in the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 18, 2026. (Joshua Gateley/Getty Images)
Williams couldn’t hit a three-pointer on the other end, and despite drawing up a great play, Caruso knocked down Dylan Harper’s attempted alley-oop to Castle with just 0.7 seconds remaining in overtime to keep the score where it was.
Needing one more extra period, Wembanyama took the game into his hands. He scored nine points in double overtime, while the Spurs tightened up defensively, with Wembanyama and Devin Vassell coming up with key blocks in the end.
Castle finished with 11 assists to lead the Spurs in that category, while rookie guard Dylan Harper made vital contributions with 24 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and a game-high seven steals in the win. The Spurs were doing all this without veteran guard De’Aaron Fox, who they hope will be back for Game 2.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder drives to the basket against Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs during the first quarter of Game One in the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 18, 2026. (Joshua Gateley/Getty Images)
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Williams had 26 points for Oklahoma City, while Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 24 points on 7-of-23 shooting with 12 assists and five steals.
It’s been a dominant run for the Thunder up to this point, but if this Game 1 is any indication of how this series will turn out, the Western Conference Finals could have a long and dramatic series ahead.
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HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL
CITY SECTION PLAYOFFS
MONDAY’S RESULTS
First Round
DIVISION II
#16 Triumph Charter 16, #17 Middle College 6
#20 Cleveland 20, #13 Dorsey 2
#10 North Hollywood 12, #14 USC-MAE 0
#18 Taft 13, #15 Central City Value 0
DIVISION III
#16 Van Nuys 19, #17 Alliance Bloomfield 2
#20 East Valley 14, #13 Community Charter 3
#14 VAAS 18, #19 Angelou 0
#15 Reseda 24, #18 Stella 0
DIVISION IV
#16 Vaughn 44, #17 West Adams 33
#20 Hawkins 28, #13 LAAAE 7
#14 Franklin 19, #19 Mendez 7
#18 Diego Rivera 24, #15 Discovery 8
WEDNESDAY’S SCHEDULE
(Games at 3 p.m. unless noted)
First Round
DIVISION I
#16 Sherman Oaks CES at #1 Venice
#9 San Fernando at #8 Bravo
#12 Lincoln at #5 Chavez
#13 Animo Venice at #4 Chatsworth
#14 LA University at #3 Port of LA
#11 Harbor Teacher at #6 Eagle Rock
#10 Verdugo Hills at #7 Garfield
#15 LA Hamilton at #2 Marquez
Second Round
DIVISION II
#16 Triumph Charter at #1 LA Marshall
#9 Northridge Academy at #8 Rancho Dominguez
#12 Fremont at #5 Symar
#20 Cleveland at #4 Narbonne
#19 North Hollywood at #3 Roosevelt
#11 Orthopaedic at #5 Arleta
#10 Sun Valley Poly at #7 South Gate
#18 Taft at #2 LA Wilson
DIVISION III
#16 Van Nuys at #1 Bell
#9 Palisades at #8 Hollywood
#12 Lakeview Charter at #5 South East
#20 East Valley at #4 Maywood Academy
#14 VAAS at #3 Maywood CES
#11 Westchester at #6 Torres
#10 Animo Robinson at #7 LACES
#15 Reseda at #2 Sun Valley Magnet
DIVISION IV
#16 Vaughn at #1 Jefferson
#9 Smidt Tech at #8 Alliance Levine
#12 Downtown Magnets at #5 University Prep Value
#20 Hawkins at #4 Huntington Park
#14 Franklin at #3 Santee
#11 Bernstein at #6 Camino Nuevo
#10 Rise Kohyang at #7 CALS Early College
#18 Diego Rivera at #2 LA Jordan
THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE
(Games at 3 p.m. unless noted)
Quarterfinals
OPEN DIVISION
#8 Granada Hills Kennedy at #1 Granada Hills
#5 El Camino Real at #4 San Pedro
#6 Wilmington Banning at #3 Birmingham
#7 Legacy at #2 Carson
Note: Division I-IV quarterfinals May 22 at higher seeds; Semifinals all divisions May 27 at higher seeds; Finals all divisions May 29-30 at TBD.
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Russell Wilson has had his share of ups and downs in his NFL career.
He helped the Seattle Seahawks to a Super Bowl championship in 2013 and was named to the Pro Bowl four times. But the last few years of his career arguably did some damage to his legacy as he’s spent the last three seasons with three different teams.
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New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson watches from the sidelines during the second quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., on Oct. 9, 2025. (Brad Penner/Imagn Images)
Wilson is still on the free-agent market as he looks to latch on to a new team for 2026. However, former NFL star Aqib Talib implored Wilson to hang up the cleats.
“Do your TV thing, Russ. It’s over with, man. Once you’ve got to decide, do I even want to play?” Talib said on “The Arena: Gridiron.” “I think you don’t really want to play. I hate when guys get to the later part of their career and then they start doing the bounce-around thing and they’re not going to win. There was no chip in New York. That’s just going to be another stop on your resume.”
Wilson reportedly garnered some interest from NFL teams.
New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson stands on the field before a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, PA on Oct. 26, 2025. (Bill Streicher/Imagn Images)
He told the New York Post that the New York Jets were one of them.
Wilson also was reportedly a candidate to take Matt Ryan’s spot on CBS’ “The NFL Today” after Ryan left to take a front office job with the Atlanta Falcons.
Wilson has 46,966 passing yards and 353 passing touchdowns in 205 career games, but the 2025 season with the New York Giants was one to forget.
Wilson started three games and made some bizarre decisions in a loss against the Chiefs. Jaxson Dart was named the starting quarterback. As he came in to take a few snaps while Dart was being checked for a concussion, Wilson was booed.
New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson watches from the sidelines during the second half against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colo., on Oct. 19, 2025. (Ron Chenoy/Imagn Images)
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Should he end up signing with another team, Wilson will be entering his age-38 season.
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