Sports
Las Vegas Lights rebuild quickly and face a familiar foe in LAFC in U.S. Open Cup
When Gian Neglia took over as sporting director of the Las Vegas Lights in February, it was a team in name only.
That’s not a figure of speech but a literal description of the situation Neglia inherited. The Lights, who played in the second-tier USL Championship, had no coach, no players and no employees on the soccer side when he joined the team less than two weeks before training camp was scheduled to start.
“We didn’t know where we were going to have training camp. So we needed to find a place, we needed to set up games,” Neglia said. “You really sit down and think about everything that we did and everything that needed to be done in the time frame that it needed to be done, you might think to yourself, well, maybe this isn’t the right move to make.”
He certainly wouldn’t have thought that three months later the Lights would be preparing for arguably the biggest match in team history, a U.S. Open Cup round of 32 match against LAFC on Wednesday in Las Vegas.
LAFC’s short-lived relationship with the Lights is one of the reasons the cupboard was empty when Neglia arrived. For two seasons the team was the MLS club’s affiliate in the second-tier USL Championship, with the players living and training in Los Angeles, then traveling to Las Vegas for home games.
Steve Cherundolo, who has taken LAFC to consecutive MLS Cup finals, got his U.S. managerial start there in 2021, and former and current LAFC players — including Danny Musovski, Christian Torres, Bryce Duke and Tomás Romero — played there. But the affiliation agreement, which was actually separate one-year deals, ended after the 2023 season, leaving the Lights to hire a new coaching staff and 25 new players.
That team won just three games last season, and in January, founding owner Brett Lashbrook sold the rights to the Lights to former baseball all-star José Bautista. Some assembly was required since the team once again had no coaches or players. But for Bautista, that made the investment more desirable.
“It’s somewhat of a rescue project,” he said in a video interview from his home office in Tampa, Fla. “You have to get your hands dirty. But I liked the fact that it was a project that you have to rebuild somewhat the organization from top to bottom.
“That allows you to put your own flavor and your own thoughts and your experiences in trying to build a new culture and reestablish a relationship between a fan base and an organization that has been deteriorating over the last four or five years.”
Bautista, who made more than $100 million before retiring in 2018, was looking for a place to spend some of that money, but the cost was too high in the four major sports leagues. However, the USL Championship and Las Vegas seemed like a good bet. Bautista is just the latest in a flood of athletes and entertainers who have decided soccer is a good investment, a list that includes Hollywood heavyweights Ryan Reynolds, Rob McElhenney, Natalie Portman, Will Ferrell, Matthew McConaughey and Reese Witherspoon and athletes Patrick Mahomes, Eli Manning, Kevin Durant, Naomi Osaka and Lindsey Vonn.
“I felt like the USL was the best place to be,” said Bautista, who declined to discuss the cost of buying the team. “All the heightened awareness that’s been happening in soccer in North America in the last few years — it just checked a lot of boxes. It’s just the right place and the right time. And then the opportunity came about with Vegas.”
Bautista concedes there’s much work to be done to win back a supporter base that has questioned ownership’s commitment in recent years. Winning will certainly help in that regard.
The Lights have never made the playoffs — or even finished with a winning record — in six previous seasons and are 3-6-0 after Saturday’s 2-1 loss to New Mexico United, leaving them ninth in the USL Championship’s 12-team Western Conference table. And though the team is second to last in the 24-team league in attendance, averaging less than 1,500 fans a game at Cashman Field, the aging former baseball stadium that is its home, the crowd for the LAFC game will be the largest of the season.
“I know there was some animosity with that relationship and the way that it ended. So from a fan perspective, there could potentially be that like ‘this would be a really good feeling to be able to beat these guys,’” Neglia said. “This is a great test to see where we are in our project, where we match up against quality opponents.
“This round of 32 in the U.S. Open Cup is the furthest this club has ever gone. So it’s an exciting opportunity when you have a chance to kind of David versus Goliath, beat this prestige club from MLS. It’s really a kind of cool coming of full circle event.”
Neglia, who was assistant sporting director at Venezia FC in Italy’s Serie B before coming to Las Vegas, took the job for the same reason Bautista bought the Lights: to be able to work with a blank canvas, building a team and a culture and a vision from scratch.
“You are now looking at a pool of players that is vastly different than the pool I was looking at there. And so you really have to rely on your instincts, on certain metrics and data that you have to use,” he said. “The margin of error is always slim, even in Venezia. You can’t really afford to make major mistakes.
“But here it’s even triple.”
That challenge was made even more difficult by the fact Neglia didn’t start in the job until Feb. 2, 36 days before the regular-season opener. By then, most USL-caliber players already had a place to play, so Neglia and coach Dennis Sanchez had to get creative. They got Valentin Noel, the MVP of last season’s MLS NextPro Cup, on a transfer from Austin FC while Gaoussou Samake joined the Lights after his contract option was declined by D.C. United. Solomon Asante, 34, a two-time league MVP, signed with Las Vegas after Indianapolis allowed him to leave as a free agent while Cuban exile goalkeeper Raiko Arozarena, who played with little distinction in the third tier in Mexico and the U.S., came to the Lights after being released by the Tampa Bay Rowdies.
“I think we did a really good job of being creative and getting some players in that are desirable players,” Neglia said. “But then, of course, there is a good part of the roster that were available free agents. You kind of have to adapt that mentality of misfit toys, right? Where can we get the best of the rest?”
It’s far too early to say how it all will end. But a win Wednesday against a two-time reigning MLS Western Conference champion would certainly be proof that the Lights’ new management is on the right path.
“I’ve been telling people we’re on Page One of a thousand-page book,” Neglia said. “Just playing in this game against this opponent is storybook, right? So if we can go out there and get a win, it would really put a cherry on top of what I think has been a pretty cool three months.”
⚽ You have read the latest installment of On Soccer with Kevin Baxter. The weekly column takes you behind the scenes and shines a spotlight on unique stories. Listen to Baxter on this week’s episode of the “Corner of the Galaxy” podcast.
Sports
Tom Izzo explodes on former Michigan State player in wild scene: ‘What the f— are you doing?’
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Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo has been known to get visibly angry with his players over his years in East Lansing, but what happened Monday night against USC was different.
Izzo let loose his frustration on a former player.
During the Spartans’ blowout over the Trojans, 80-51, Izzo was spotted unloading on former Michigan State center Paul Davis, who played for the team from 2002-06, after he caused a disturbance in the stands.
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Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans reacts to a call during a game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the first half at Pinnacle Bank Arena Jan. 2, 2026, in Lincoln, Neb. (Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)
Referees pointed out Davis, who was a spectator, from his courtside seat after he was among many in the building who disagreed with a call in the second half. Davis stood up and shouted at referee Jeffrey Anderson.
Anderson responded with a loud whistle, stopping play and pointing at Davis. Then, Anderson went over to Izzo to explain what happened, and the 70-year-old coach went ballistic.
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First, he was motioning toward Davis, and it was clear he asked his former center, “What the f— are you doing?”
Davis was met by someone asking him to leave his seat, and that’s when Izzo went nuts. He shouted “Get out of here!” at Davis, who appeared to gesture toward Izzo, perhaps in apology for disturbing the game.
Izzo was asked about Davis’ ejection after the game.
“What he said, he should never say anywhere in the world,” Izzo responded when asked what happened. “That ticked me off. So, just because it’s 25, 20 years later, I’m going to have to call him tomorrow and tell him what I thought of it. And you know what he’ll say? ‘I screwed up, coach. I’m sorry.’”
Izzo quickly clarified that what Davis said “wasn’t something racial” and “it wasn’t something sexual.”
Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo protests a call that benefited the Iowa Hawkeyes during the first half at Jack Breslin Student Events Center Dec. 2, 2025. (Dale Young/Imagn Images)
“It was just the wrong thing to say, and I’ll leave it at that.”
Davis later met with reporters Tuesday, apologizing for his actions.
“I’m not up here to make any excuses. I’m up here to take accountability, to own it,” Davis said. It was a mistake that will never happen again. It was a mistake that’s not me, but, unfortunately, last night it was.”
Izzo said Davis was one of his “favorite guys” during his time playing for the Spartans. He had a breakout sophomore campaign with 15.8 points, 6.2 rebounds and two assists per game in 30 starts for Izzo during the 2003-04 season.
Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans reacts during a game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second half at Pinnacle Bank Arena Jan. 2, 2026, in Lincoln, Neb. (Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)
In his senior year, Davis averaged 17.5 points, a career-high, in 33 games.
He was taken in the second round of the 2006 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers. Davis played just four seasons in the league, his final one with the Washington Wizards.
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MADISON, Wis. — Can a team be in crisis just a handful of games into conference play?
UCLA is testing that possibility given what happened here Tuesday night as part of a larger downward trend.
Lacking one of their top players with guard Skyy Clark sidelined by a hamstring injury, the Bruins also were deficient in many other areas.
Defense. Heart. Toughness. Cohesion. Intelligence.
In a game that the Bruins needed to win to get their season back on track and have any realistic chance at an elite finish in the Big Ten, they fell flat once more.
Another terrible first half led to another failed comeback for UCLA during an 80-72 loss to Wisconsin on Tuesday night at the Kohl Center, leaving the Bruins in search of answers that seem elusive.
There was a dustup with 10 seconds left when UCLA’s Eric Dailey Jr. pushed Wisconsin’s Nolan Winter after absorbing a hard foul, forcing a scrum of players to congregate along the baseline. Winter was assessed a flagrant-1 foul and Dailey a technical foul that was offset by a technical foul on Badgers guard Nick Boyd.
About the only thing to celebrate for the Bruins was not giving up.
Thanks to a flurry of baskets from Dailey and a three-pointer from Trent Perry that broke his team’s 0-for-14 start from long range, UCLA pulled to within 63-56 midway through the second half. Making the Bruins’ rally all the more improbable was that much of it came with leading scorer Tyler Bilodeau on the bench with four fouls.
But Wisconsin countered with five consecutive points and the Bruins (10-5 overall, 2-2 Big Ten) never mounted another threat on the way to a second consecutive loss.
Dailey scored 18 points but missed all five of his three-pointers, fitting for a team that made just one of 17 shots (5.9%) from long range. Bilodeau added 16 points and Perry had 15.
Boyd scored 20 points to lead the Badgers (10-5, 2-2), who won in large part by their volume of three-pointers, making 10 of 30 attempts (33.3%) from beyond the arc.
Unveiling a turnover-choked, defensively challenged performance, UCLA played as if it were trying to top its awful first-half showing against Iowa from three days earlier.
It didn’t help that the Bruins were shorthanded from tipoff.
With Clark unavailable, UCLA coach Mick Cronin turned to Perry and pivoted to a smaller lineup featuring forward Brandon Williams alongside Bilodeau as the big men.
For the opening 10 minutes, it felt like a repeat of Wisconsin’s blowout victory over UCLA during the Big Ten tournament last March. The Badgers made seven of 11 three-pointers on the way to building a 20-point lead midway through the first half as Cronin continually tinkered with his lineup, trying to find a winning combination.
It never came.
He tried backup center Steven Jamerson II for a little more than a minute before yanking him after Jamerson committed a foul. He put in backup guard Jamar Brown and took him out after Brown gave up a basket and fumbled a pass out of bounds for a turnover. Backup guard Eric Freeny got his chance as well and airballed a three-pointer.
Wisconsin surged ahead with an early 13-0 run and nearly matched it with a separate 11-0 push. The Bruins then lost Perry for the rest of the first half after he hit his chin while diving for a loose ball, pounding the court in frustration with a balled fist before holding a towel firmly against his injured chin during a timeout. (He returned in the second half with a heavy bandage.)
Just when it seemed as if things couldn’t get worse, they did. Williams limped off the court with cramps late in the first half and the Bruins failed to box out Wisconsin’s Andrew Rohde on two possessions, leading to a putback and two free throws after he was fouled on another putback attempt.
UCLA almost seemed fortunate to be down only 45-31 by the game’s midpoint, though being on pace to give up 90 points couldn’t have pleased a coach known for defense.
Another comeback that came up short didn’t make things any better.
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Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa open to fresh start elsewhere after disappointing season: ‘That would be dope’
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Tua Tagovailoa appears to be ready to move on from the Miami Dolphins – a feeling that seems mutual between the two sides.
Tagovailoa was benched for the final three games of the season due to poor performance. A day after the Dolphins’ season ended with a 38-10 loss to division rival New England, the sixth-year signal-caller appeared open to the idea of a “fresh start.”
Mike McDaniel speaks with Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) in the fourth quarter of a game against the Buffalo Bills at Hard Rock Stadium on Sept. 25, 2022, in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Megan Briggs/Getty Images)
“That would be dope. I would be good with it,” Tagovailoa said Monday, according to The Palm Beach Post, when asked specifically if he was “hoping for a fresh start.”
When asked by another reporter if he understood “fresh start” as playing “elsewhere,” Tagovailoa reportedly confirmed it.
The remarks came the same day that head coach Mike McDaniel confirmed that the team would be approaching the 2025-2026 season with a competitive mindset for the position.
“In 2026, I think there will be competition for our starting quarterback. What that is and how that looks, there’s a lot that remains to be seen. It’s the most important position on the football field, and you have to make sure you do everything possible to get the best person out there on the field.”
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa runs off the field during the first half of an NFL football game against the New England Patriots in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on Jan. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
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“Who that is – whether they’re in-house or somewhere else, that’s something that we’ll be extremely diligent on,” he continued. “But I know there will be competition for those reins. That much I do know.”
Tagovailoa threw for 2,660 yards with 20 touchdowns this season, but he struggled with accuracy and mobility, throwing a career-high of 15 interceptions. His poor performance comes just one season after signing a four-year, $212.4 million contract extension in July 2024.
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa speaks during a press conference after an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens, Thursday, Oct. 30, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Florida. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
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The Dolphins face a serious decision regarding Tagovailoa, as releasing him next year would result in a $99 million dead cap charge. If the move is designated as a post-June 1 release, those charges would be split over two years, with $67.4 million allocated to the 2026 cap and $31.8 million in 2027.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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