Ucla Coach Mick Cronin Should Hold Himself Accountable

From Bill Plaschke: It was nan look connected Steven Jamerson II’s face.

That was nan toughest point to watch. That was what seared into nan mind. That’s what made you want to occurrence Mick Cronin connected nan spot.

It was a look of embarrassment. It was a look of confusion. It was nan look of a young man who had conscionable been cruelly pushed astir by personification pinch much power.

Mick Cronin is simply a classical bully, and nan truth that UCLA continues to empower him pinch caller contracts and nary questions is misguided malfeasance.

So, he wins games. He doesn’t triumph capable to compensate for incidents for illustration Tuesday nighttime successful East Lansing, Mich., wherever Cronin became possibly nan first assemblage coach successful history to eject his ain subordinate from nan crippled and bid him to nan locker room successful nan mediate of nan game.

Yes, Cronin holds players accountable. That’s fine, arsenic agelong arsenic he besides holds himself accountable, but that didn’t hap when, aft his squad was beaten by 23 points by Michigan State successful a 2nd consecutive humiliating loss, he publically criticized Jamerson for nan difficult foul that led to nan ejection incident and past wrongly assailed a newsman for allegedly raising his voice during postgame questioning.

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USC men blown retired by Illinois

From Ryan Kartje: Alijah Arenas sank into a folding chair, his look buried successful a towel, his breathing heavy.

For nan past fewer days, smack dab successful nan mediate of his long-awaited breakthrough at USC, Arenas was sick. He’d spent nan past fewer days worn down and missed believe Tuesday, leaving his position for Wednesday night’s captious tilt pinch No. 10 Illinois uncertain until a fewer hours before. But nan Trojans prima freshman refused to beryllium out, resolving alternatively to reliable it retired against a existent Big Ten contender, moreover if he wasn’t astatine 100%.

“That takes existent courage,” USC guardant Jacob Cofie said.

Indeed, it was a noble effort, albeit 1 that meant small by nan clip Arenas collapsed into nan bench, breathless, midway done nan first half Wednesday. By that point, Illinois was already rolling, good connected their measurement to a 101-65 victory that near USC gasping for air.

“It’s beautiful simple,” USC coach Eric Musselman said. “We were not bully capable tonight. We’ve sewage to get amended successful each aspects.”

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USC container score

Big Ten standings

Teoscar Hernández fresh for bounce-back season

From Jack Vita: A slimmer Teoscar Hernández reported to Camelback Ranch this week, consenting to return connected a caller domiciled successful nan Dodgers’ quest for a three-peat.

Hernández acknowledged Tuesday that he played done a nagging near groin wounded past year, which forced him to miss clip early successful nan season.

“I didn’t get backmost successful my health,” Hernández said. “When I sewage backmost from nan injury, I was fighting done it. Obviously, I didn’t opportunity anything. I conscionable wanted to beryllium connected nan section and effort to thief nan team.”

Hernández says he was overweight successful 2025, and took amended attraction of his assemblage this past winter.

“It’s a operation of eating really bully aliases knowing what you’re eating, and moving a small harder than normal,” Hernández said. “But, correct now I’m emotion really good. Back to nan measurement I utilized to be. My full profession I utilized to beryllium 204-205 [lbs.], successful that range. Last year, I was a small complete [that], but I’m backmost to normal correct now.”

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Where River Ryan and Gavin Stone fig successful nan Dodgers’ crowded pitching plans

Galaxy fresh for different play without Riqui Puig

From Kevin Baxter: On Jan. 1, Galaxy coach Greg Vanney sent a matter to his champion player, wishing him a happy caller year. The adjacent time Riqui Puig responded, but his reply didn’t change nan resolutions Vanney had made for 2026.

Puig, who missed each of 2025 because of a torn ACL successful his near knee, told his coach he needed different surgery, 1 that will sideline him this play arsenic well. Yet aft nan daze wore off, Vanney and wide head Will Kuntz decided to instrumentality pinch nan plans they took into nan offseason alternatively than blowing them up because Puig would again beryllium sidelined.

“We wanted to reenforce nan backmost line. We needed to look for a [striker]. We’ve done some of those things successfully,” Vanney said. “The quality is that we don’t person Riqui’s qualities, which I deliberation complete nan people of past twelvemonth we learned a small spot astir ourselves and really to woody pinch it.”

Indeed, aft going winless successful their first 16 games — nan worst commencement ever for a reigning MLS champion — nan Galaxy figured retired really to play without their playmaker successful nan 2nd half, going 7-6-5 successful MLS and beating 3 of Mexico’s apical teams successful nan Leagues Cup.

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This time successful sports history

1928 — Canada wins nan golden badge successful crystal lucky astatine nan Winter Olympics successful St. Moritz, Switzerland. Canada, represented by nan 1926 Toronto University team, receives a bye to nan last round. The Canadians hit Sweden 11-0, Britain 14-0 and Switzerland 13-0.

1955 — Bernie Geoffrion of nan Montreal Canadiens scores 5 goals successful a 10-2 triumph complete nan New York Rangers.

1977 — Rod Gilbert of nan New York Rangers gets his 1,000th constituent pinch a extremity successful a 5-2 nonaccomplishment to nan New York Islanders.

1982 — Atlanta’s 127-122 four-overtime triumph complete Seattle equals nan fourth-longest crippled successful NBA history and nan second-longest since nan institution of nan 24-second clock.

1984 — Phil and Steve Mahre of nan United States go nan first brothers to decorativeness 1-2 successful an Olympic event, nan men’s slalom, astatine nan Winter Games successful Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. The Soviet Union thumps Czechoslovakia 2-0 to triumph nan golden badge successful hockey.

1984 — Cale Yarborough sweeps into nan lead 2 turns earlier nan decorativeness to triumph nan Daytona 500. He becomes nan 2nd driver to triumph consecutive Daytona 500s; Richard Petty was nan other.

1993 — Wendel Suckow edges two-time world champion Georg Hackl of Germany by 0.106 seconds to seizure nan first world luge title badge of immoderate benignant for nan United States.

1994 — Speedskater Bonnie Blair wins nan 4th golden of her Olympic profession pinch her 3rd consecutive 500-meter victory.

2002 — In Salt Lake City, bobsledders Jill Bakken and Vonetta Flowers springiness nan United States 21 medals successful nan Winter Games.

2005 — Lindsay Kennedy becomes nan first female to play successful a Major Indoor Soccer League game. Kennedy, a St. Louis forward, participates successful nan last 76 seconds of Milwaukee’s 7-3 triumph complete nan Steamers astatine Savvis Center.

2005 — Schreiner ends its NCAA-record losing streak astatine 83 games, beating Sul Ross State 75-69 successful a women’s hoops game. It’s nan Division III Mountaineers first triumph since Jan. 17, 2002, erstwhile they besides hit Sul Ross.

2012 — American prima Hannah Kearney’s all-discipline grounds for consecutive FIS World Cup victories ends astatine 16 pinch a semifinal nonaccomplishment successful a dual moguls arena astatine Naeba, Japan. Kearney’s streak began successful Lake Placid, N.Y., connected Jan. 22, 2011.

2012 — Steven Holcomb and brakeman Steve Langton triumph nan two-man bobsled successful Lake Placid, N.Y., nan first clip nan U.S. captures this arena astatine nan world championships.

2014 — Norway wins nan first Olympic mixed relay successful biathlon astatine nan Sochi Games and Ole Einar Bjoerndalen becomes nan astir dressed up Winter Olympian ever pinch 13 medals. Ted Ligety wins nan elephantine slalom pinch a dominating performance, becoming nan first American man to triumph 2 Olympic golden medals successful Alpine skiing.

2017 — Laura Dahlmeier wins nan world title successful nan women’s 12.5-kilometer wide start, becoming nan first to triumph 5 golden medals astatine a azygous biathlon world championship.

2017 — Anthony Davis scores 52 points, 10 much than Wilt Chamberlain’s All-Star grounds that had stood for 55 years. The Western Conference thumps nan Eastern Conference 192-182 successful nan highest-scoring crippled successful convention history.

2021 — In a softening of 4-year WADA prohibition connected Russia from each world sport, Russia to compete nether acronym “ROC” aft sanction of nan Russian Olympic Committee.

Compiled by nan Associated Press

Until adjacent time...

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