Sports
With teams focusing on JuJu Watkins, Kennedy Smith is USC's March Madness X factor
Kennedy Smith was only 14, just a few games into her freshman season at Etiwanda High, when she first crossed paths on the court with Kiki Iriafen, who played at Harvard-Westlake. Four years later, with both at USC, Iriafen still vividly remembers her first impression.
“I did not like her,” Iriafen said, with a laugh. “She was a pest.”
The two get along great now, as top-line starters for top-seeded USC, which is set to begin its NCAA tournament run with a Saturday afternoon matchup against No. 16 North Carolina Greensboro. What made Smith unbearable on the court then, it turns out, has made her an irreplaceable part of a Trojan lineup that now has serious Final Four aspirations.
“Everything you see from her this year, she’s always been like that,” Iriafen said. “She’s fearless.”
That game against Iriafen, as a freshman, stands out in Stan Delus’ mind in particular. That was when the Etiwanda coach first saw that there was something different about Smith. Up against one of the top players in Southern California, the 14-year old Smith only ratcheted up her intensity, blanketing Iriafen whenever she touched the ball and blocking multiple shots from the much taller senior forward.
“Kennedy went at her — you would have swore she was 7-feet tall,” Delus said. “She wasn’t afraid of the moment. And since then, the moment has never been too big.”
USC is counting on that to be the case in the coming weeks as the stakes continue to ratchet up this March. With opposing teams sure to focus their attention on Iriafen and star sophomore JuJu Watkins, the Trojans need others in their rotation to rise to the occasion in key moments if they hope to make the deep run they know they’re capable of.
USC guard Kennedy Smith celebrates after scoring while being fouled against Ohio State on Feb. 8 at Galen Center.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Doing so inevitably means relying, in a big way, on freshmen without any tournament experience, such as Smith. She’s not the only one with a critical complementary role, either — freshman guards Avery Howell and Kayleigh Heckel have also emerged as staples in the Trojans’ young lineup, averaging 20 and 17 minutes per game, respectively, after coming in as the No. 1 recruiting class in the country last fall.
All three have brought a certain fearlessness to the court as freshmen, whether it be Howell confidently pulling the trigger from deep or Heckel knifing through the lane. None of them, however, have been tested on a stage such as the NCAA tournament, and since last Sunday’s announcement, plenty of prognosticators have pointed to USC’s relative inexperience as reason to doubt the Trojans.
But Smith was raised, from a young age, to weather that sort of crucible on the court. She sharpened her skills by playing in the backyard alongside her older brother, R.J., who now plays at Colorado, and his male friends, none of whom would let up on her account. On travel teams, she always played up at least two age levels.
“I never wanted anyone to take it easy,” Smith said. “I had to prove myself that I could keep up.”
The impact of that basketball upbringing only became more clear to Delus as Smith grew as a player. She excelled, from the start, as an on-ball defender. But she played primarily in the post as a freshman. As years went on, she extended that defensive prowess to the perimeter and her range to the three-point line.
Along the way, she helped lift Etiwanda to consecutive state titles in her junior and senior seasons, averaging over 20 points per game. As a junior, she personally shut down Watkins in her final game at Sierra Canyon, holding her to an uncharacteristic 16-point night. It was another occasion in which the moment never seemed too big.
“There has always been a big, bright light on me and my team,” Smith said.
This season has been no different, as Smith arrived as the crown jewel of the Trojans’ top recruiting class and immediately stepped into the starting lineup. But where Smith started her high school career as the primary option on offense, she’s had to carve out more of a complementary role alongside Watkins and Iriafen, who both dominate the ball.
She’s made settling in look seamless as a freshman. So much so that her monthlong injury absence in November and December was, according to coach Lindsay Gottlieb, a major reason the Trojans were derailed in their first loss to Notre Dame. Last month, after USC beat Ohio State, Buckeyes coach Kevin McGuff declared Smith “the unsung hero for this team.”
But Smith, a self-proclaimed perfectionist, has been hard on herself this season, nonetheless. Nevermind that she’s third on the team in scoring (9.5 points), while emerging as one of the best on-ball defenders in the Big Ten — all as a freshman.
It’s just in her nature, her teammates say.
“She expects greatness out of herself,” guard Talia von Oelhoffen said. “That’s what makes her who she is, what makes her so good.”
And for USC, at the start of a possible tournament run, its fearless freshman is part of why the Final Four feels within reach.
“She’s a huge part of our ability to make a long run now,” Gottlieb said. “But even more so, I think she’s going to be a problem for everyone else in the country for several years.
“Because we think she’s that good.”
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A handful of Olympic participants will be competing where giants once roamed.
A wildlife photographer in Italy happened to come upon one of the oldest and largest known collection of dinosaur footprints at a national park near the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics venue of Bormio, officials said Tuesday. The entrance to the park, where the prints were discovered, is located about a mile from where the Men’s Alpine skiing will be held.
In this photograph taken in September 2025 and released Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, by Stelvio National Park, Late Triassic prosauropod footprints are seen on the slopes of the Fraeel Valley in northern Italy. (Elio Della Ferrera/Stelvio National Park via AP)
The estimated 20,000 footprints are believed to date back about 210 million years to the Triassic Period and made by long-necked bipedal herbivores that were 33 feet long, weighing up to four tons, similar to a Plateosaurus, Milan Natural History Museum paleontologist Cristiano Dal Sasso said.
“This time reality really surpasses fantasy,” Dal Sasso added.
Wildlife photographer Elio Della Ferrera made the discovery at Stelvio National Park near the Swiss border in September. The spot is considered to be a prehistoric coastal area that has never previously yielded dinosaur tracks, according to experts.
AMERICAN FIGURE SKATING STAR ALYSA LIU WINS GOLD AT GRAND PRIX FINAL
This photograph, taken in September 2025 and released Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, by Stelvio National Park, shows a Late Triassic prosauropod footprint discovered in the Fraele Valley in northern Italy. (Elio Della Ferrara/Stelvio National Park via AP)
The location is about 7,900-9,200 feet above sea level on a north-facing wall that is mostly in the shade. Dal Sasso said, adding that the footprints were a bit hard to spot without a very strong lens.
“The huge surprise was not so much in discovering the footprints, but in discovering such a huge quantity,’’ Della Ferrera said. “There are really tens of thousands of prints up there, more or less well-preserved.’’
Though there are no plans as of now to make the footprints accessible to the public, Lombardy regional governor Attilio Fontana hailed the discovery as a “gift for the Olympics.”
Lombardy region governor Attilio Fontana attends a press conference in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, on a discovery of thousands of dinosaur tracks in Lombardy region. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
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The Winter Olympics are set to take place Feb. 6-22.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL
TUESDAY’S RESULTS
BOYS
CITY SECTION
Downtown Magnets 103, Aspire Ollin 12
Sotomayor 67, Maywood CES 28
Stern 35, Rise Kohyang 33
Triumph Charter 68, LA Wilson 51
University Prep Value 66, Animo Venice 52
WISH Academy 79, Alliance Ted Tajima 16
SOUTHERN SECTION
AGBU 63, Newbury Park 51
Arcadia 82, Glendale 34
Baldwin Park 57, Pomona 23
Banning 90, Bethel Christian 26
Big Bear 89, University Prep 45
Calvary Baptist 58, Diamond Bar 57
Chino Hills 78, CSDR 31
Citrus Hill 76, San Gorgonio 30
Corona 58, Granite Hills 17
Crescenta Valley 73, Burbank Burroughs 43
Desert Chapel 69, Weaver 34
Desert Christian Academy 56, Nuview Bridge 19
Eastvale Roosevelt 53, Hesperia 52
Eisenhower 67, Bloomington 52
El Rancho 55, Sierra Vista 52
Elsinore 72, Tahquitz 36
Estancia 68, Lynwood 30
Entrepreneur 72, Crossroads Christian 41
Harvard-Westlake 86, Punahou 42
Hesperia Christian 59, AAE 39
La Palma Kennedy 41, Norwalk 34
Loara 67, Katella 41
Long Beach Cabrillo 74, Lakewood 55
Long Beach Wilson 75, Compton 64
NSLA 52, Cornerstone Christian 33
Oxford Academy 66, CAMS 42
Public Safety 54, Grove School 41
Rancho Alamitos 58, Century 28
Redlands 52, Sultana 51
Rio Hondo Prep 68, United Christian Academy 24
Riverside Notre Dame 55, Kaiser 50
San Bernardino 94, Norco 80
Shadow Hills 60, Yucaipa 52
Summit Leadership Academy 71, PAL Academy 9
Temecula Prep 77, San Jacinto Leadership Academy 43
Temescal Canyon 68, West Valley 52
Tesoro 57, Aliso Niguel 53
Valley Christian Academy 57, San Luis Obispo Classical 27
Viewpoint 74, Firebaugh 39
Villa Park 60, Brea Olinda 49
Webb 64, Santa Ana Valley 36
Western 61, El Modena 34
Westminster La Quinta 53, Santa Ana 39
YULA 61, San Diego Jewish Academy 26
INTERSECTIONAL
Brawley 66, Indio 46
Cathedral 60, Bravo 49
Los Alamitos 73, Torrey Pines 53
Santa Ana Calvary Chapel 53, Huntington Park 30
St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy 65, LA Marshall 59
USC Hybrid 63, Legacy College Prep 13
GIRLS
CITY SECTION
Aspire Ollin 57, Downtown Magnets 12
Lakeview Charter 70, Valor Academy 10
Stern 34, Rise Kohyang 6
Washington 34, Crenshaw 33
SOUTHERN SECTION
Bolsa Grande 21, Capistrano Valley 26
Buena 62, Santa Barbara 20
California Military Institute 29, Santa Rosa Academy 12
Carter 65, Sultana 39
Cate 43, Laguna Blanca 29
Coastal Christian 45, Santa Maria 32
Colton 41, Arroyo Valley 26
Crescenta Valley 55, Burbank Burroughs 47
CSDR 45, Norte Vista 21
Desert Christian Academy 89, Nuview Bridge 23
El Dorado 63, Placentia Valencia 20
El Rancho 40, Diamond Ranch 33
Elsinore 34, Tahquitz 20
Foothill Tech 37, Thacher 22
Garden Grove 46, Orange 32
Grove School 30, Public Safety 14
Harvard-Westlake 48, Campbell Hall 37
Hesperia Christian 51, AAE 21
Hillcrest 53, La Sierra 8
Kaiser 52, Pomona 0
Laguna Beach 52, Dana Hills 33
Long Beach Wilson 70, Compton 32
Lucerne Valley 44, Lakeview Leadership Academy 7
Marlborough 65, Alemany 43
Mayfair 34, Chadwick 32
Monrovia 36, Mayfield 20
North Torrance 59, Palos Verdes 57
Oak Hills 58, Beaumont 32
OCCA 31, Liberty Christian 16
Oxford Academy 50, Western 34
Oxnard 46, San Marcos 30
Redlands 61, Jurupa Hills 39
Rialto 86, Apple Valley 27
Ridgecrest Burroughs 68, Barstow 38
Santa Ana Valley 64, Glenn 6
Shadow Hills 55, Palm Springs 14
Silver Valley 45, Riverside Prep 22
Temecula Prep 45, San Jacinto Leadership Academy 43
Temescal Canyon 85, West Valley 17
University Prep 47, Big Bear 31
Viewpoint 60, Agoura 45
Vistamar 33, Wildwood 14
YULA 51, Milken 50
INTERSECTIONAL
Birmingham 55, Heritage Christian 44
Desert Mirage 46, Borrego Springs 19
SEED: LA 44, Animo Leadership 7
Sun Valley Poly 65, Westridge 9
USC Hybrid 45, Legacy College Prep 4
Whittier 52, Garfield 46
Sports
Trump support drove wedge between former Mets star teammates, says sports radio star Mike Francesa
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New York sports radio icon Mike Francesa claims differing views on President Donald Trump created a divide within the Mets clubhouse.
Francesa said on his podcast Tuesday that a feud between shortstop Francisco Lindor and outfielder Brandon Nimmo, who was recently traded to the Texas Rangers, was ignited by politics. Francesa did not disclose which player supported Trump and which didn’t.
“The Nimmo-Lindor thing, my understanding, was political, had to do with Trump,” Francesa said. “One side liked Trump, one side didn’t like Trump.”
New York Mets’ Francisco Lindor (12) gestures to teammates after hitting an RBI single during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in New York City. (Frank Franklin II/AP Photo)
Francesa added, “So, Trump splitting up between Nimmo and Lindor. That’s my understanding. It started over Trump… As crazy as that sounds, crazier things have happened.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Mets for a response.
DODGERS LAND ALL-STAR CLOSER IN RECORD-BREAKING DEAL AFTER BACK-TO-BACK WORLD SERIES WINS: REPORTS
New York Mets’ Francisco Lindor (12) and Brandon Nimmo (9) celebrate after a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers on June 27, 2023, in New York City. The Mets won 7-2. (Frank Franklin II/AP Photo)
Nimmo was traded to the Rangers on Nov. 23 after waiving the no-trade clause in his 8-year, $162 million contract earlier that month.
The trade of Nimmo has been just one domino in a turbulent offseason for the Mets, which has also seen the departure of two other fan-favorites, first baseman Pete Alonso and closer Edwin Diaz.
All three players had been staples in the Mets’ last two playoff teams in 2022 and 2024, playing together as the team’s core dating back to 2020.
Brandon Nimmo #9 of the New York Mets celebrates an RBI single against the Philadelphia Phillies during the eighth inning in Game One of the Division Series at Citizens Bank Park on Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (Heather Barry/Getty Images)
In return for Nimmo, the Rangers sent second baseman Marcus Semien to the Mets. Nimmo is 32 years old and is coming off a year that saw him hit a career-high in home runs with 25, while Semien is 35 and hit just 15 homers in 2025.
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Many of the MLB’s high-profile free agents have already signed this offseason. The remaining players available include Kyle Tucker, Cody Bellinger, Bo Bichette and Framber Valdez.
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