The Sports Report: The Lakers are putting their faith in Austin Reaves

Howdy, I’m your host, Iliana Limón Romero, filling in for Houston Mitchell, who was probably busy saving the best seat to watch the Rose Parade. Happy New Year! Let’s get right to the news.

From Dan Woike: The Lakers were again buried under an avalanche of Cleveland Cavaliers three-pointers, the spacing and the gaps on the court pulling the Lakers’ defense to all corners before it eventually snapped under tension.

The result was the same, but the process and team the Cavaliers beat Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena in the final game of 2024 was fundamentally different from the one they blew out on Oct. 30 in Cleveland.

The version of the Lakers that got smoked in Cleveland was the one trying to get the most out of a formula that had shown it has a ceiling, losing to the Denver Nuggets during the previous two postseasons. It was one that hoped a core of LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Austin Reaves and D’Angelo Russell paired with a new coach could find another gear, another level.

This week the Lakers decided that vision wouldn’t end well. This week the Lakers, at the very least, fundamentally changed.

While the team with the NBA’s best record swatted every Lakers push away, usually with some combination of backbreaking threes from Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley or reserve Max Strus, the Lakers showed glimpses of the ways they’ll be different. For better or worse? That remains to be seen.

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Lakers vs. Cavaliers box score

NBA standings

MORE LAKERS

— Hernández: Lakers go all-in on Austin Reaves and will learn whether he can become an all-star

CLIPPERS

From the Associated Press: Victor Wembanyama closed out a historic month with 27 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three blocked shots in 26 minutes, and the San Antonio Spurs rolled to a 122-86 victory over the Clippers on Tuesday.

Wembanyama is the first player in league history with 300 points, 100 rebounds, 50 blocks, 50 assists and 40 three-pointers in a single month.

Keldon Johnson added 17 points, and Stephon Castle had 15 for the Spurs.

L.A. had won three straight, including a win Monday night in New Orleans, but was 11 for 41 shooting threes. James Harden led the Clippers with 17 points while Norman Powell added 15.

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Clippers-Spurs box score

Much is at stake for Ohio State coach Ryan Day, left and Oregon coach Dan Lanning, right, during the Rose Bowl Wednesday.

(Photos by Associated Press)

From Anthony De Leon: The Rose Bowl has a rich history as the pinnacle of college football, hosting legendary championship performances in an iconic venue. From the moment this year’s Rose Bowl matchup was set, the head coaches became the most intriguing storyline of this College Football Playoff quarterfinal.

Although Oregon’s Dan Lanning and Ohio State’s Ryan Day have achieved great success by leading their teams to Pasadena, their paths to this stage have subjected them to intense scrutiny.

Both coaches have worked to downplay the magnitude of the moment — not just the stakes of this game but also the implications for the winner and, even more so, the fallout for the loser.

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MORE ROSE BOWL

— Ohio State vs. Oregon: Three things to watch during the Rose Bowl

DODGERS

Dodger Freddie Freeman hits a walk-off grand slam against the Yankees in Game 1 of the World Series at Dodger Stadium.

(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

From Bill Plaschke: Plenty of memorable moments happened in the world of Los Angeles sports in 2024, from the arrival of Jim Harbaugh to the breakout of JuJu Watkins to…

The kind of an at-bat that every kid that plays baseball dreams of one day having … you tell yourself, all right, bottom of the 10th, bases loaded, World Series, one-run game, Dodgers-Yankees … reality for Freddie Freeman right here …

The 2024 calendar year featured an MLS title for the Galaxy, a No. 1 ranking for UCLA women’s basketball, an Elite Eight appearance for the USC women and..

Taylor the tying run, Edman the winning run … Cortes delivers … Freeman hits a ball, right field …

The Clippers opened the Intuit Dome, LeBron and Bronny James became the first father-son duo to share an NBA court, Mick Cronin consistently lost his mind and …

She is … gone! Gibby, meet Freddie!

Stop. Stop. Whom are we kidding? Every top-10 memorable 2024 Los Angeles sports moment belonged to one team and, as Joe Davis’ iconic call for Fox affirms, those moments were led by one man.

The year belonged to Freddie Freeman and the Dodgers, winners of their seventh World Series championship in Los Angeles history, their eighth in franchise history and their first full-season title in 36 years.

They owned the city, they owned the sport and thus they will own this entire annual top-10 list, populating it with everything from Shohei Ohtani’s rockets to Dave Roberts’ whispers.

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DUCKS

Ducks center Ryan Stromeis is congratulated at the bench after scoring a goal against the New Jersey Devils Tuesday.

(Jayne Kamin-Oncea / Associated Press)

From the Associated Press: Ryan Strome scored the tiebreaking goal with 3:24 to play, and the Ducks blew a two-goal lead in the third period before recovering for a 3-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday.

Strome had a goal and an assist for the Ducks, who have won back-to-back games for only the second time in six weeks. Troy Terry and Robby Fabbri also scored, and Lukas Dostal made 32 saves.

Timo Meier scored the tying goal with 6:40 left for New Jersey, which fell out of the Eastern Conference lead with its second straight loss. Jonas Siegenthaler also scored, and Jacob Markstrom stopped 23 shots.

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Ducks-Devils box score

NHL scores

NHL standings

THIS DATE IN SPORTS

1902 — Michigan beats Stanford 49-0 in the first Rose Bowl. Neil Snow scores four touchdowns in a game that ends with eight minutes to play. The Wolverines earned the nickname as the “Point a Minute” team, having scored 501 points in their ten games. The next Rose Bowl game does not occur until 1916.

1916 — Washington State beats Brown 14-0 in the return of the Rose Bowl. Brown halfback Fritz Pollard, the first African-American to play in the Rose Bowl, gains just 47 yards in the rain-soaked game. After a scoreless first half, Washington State scores on short runs by Ralph Boone and Carl Dietz.

1934 — Columbia upsets Stanford 7-0 in the Rose Bowl when Al Barabas scores in the third quarter on a 17-yard hidden-ball play.

1935 — Bucknell beats Miami 26-0 in the first Orange Bowl.

1935 — Tulane beats Temple 20-14 in the first Sugar Bowl. The Green Wave complete a 14-0 comeback when Temple defender Horace Mowery tips a pass into the direction of Dick Hardy, who takes it in to the end zone.

1961 — The Houston Oilers beat the Los Angeles Chargers 24-16 to win the first AFL Championship.

1961 — Boston Bruins rookie Willie O’Ree, the first black player in NHL history, scores his first goal in a 3-2 win over the Montreal Canadiens at Boston Garden.

1971 — Notre Dame ends Texas’ 30-game winning streak with a 24-11 win in the Cotton Bowl.

1991 — Georgia Tech routs Nebraska 45-21 in the Citrus Bowl to finish as college football’s only unbeaten team (11-0-1).

1992 — Miami beats Nebraska 22-0 in the Orange Bowl, the first shutout of the Cornhuskers since 1973, and finishes with a 12-0 record.

1993 — No. 2 Alabama wins its first national championship in 13 years and deprives Miami of its fifth title as the Crimson Tide defense humbles the No. 1 Hurricanes 34-13 in the Sugar Bowl.

1993 — Florida State beats Nebraska 27-14 in the Orange Bowl to set an NCAA record by winning eight consecutive bowl games.

2000 — Georgia’s Hap Hines kicks a 21-yard field goal in overtime to complete the greatest comeback in bowl history. The Bulldogs pull out a 28-25 victory over Purdue after trailing 25-0 early in the second quarter in the Outback Bowl.

2006 — New England’s Doug Flutie converts the NFL’s first successful drop kick in 64 years during a 28-26 loss to Miami.

2007 — Boise State, after tying the game with seven seconds to go in regulation, stuns No. 7 Oklahoma 43-42 in overtime to win the Fiesta Bowl. The No. 9 Broncos win on Ian Johnson’s 2-point conversion run after receiver Vinny Perretta throws a fourth-down touchdown pass to Derek Schouman.

2008 — Sidney Crosby’s shootout goal gives Pittsburgh a 2-1 win over the Buffalo Sabres in the inaugral outdoor Winter Classic in front of a league-record 71,217 fans. In elements way more suited for football than hockey, Crosby wins the NHL’s second outdoor game — and first in the United States — in the most dramatic of fashion at Ralph Wilson Stadium, home to the NFL’s Buffalo Bills.

2012 — Backup quarterback Matt Flynn throws for a franchise-record six touchdowns to give Green Bay a 45-41 victory over the Detroit Lions.

2014 — Central Florida pulls off one of the biggest upsets of the bowl season by outlasting No. 6 Baylor 52-42 in the Fiesta Bowl. It’s the highest-scoring game in Fiesta Bowl history and second-highest BCS bowl ever.

2015 — Marcus Mariota and Oregon roll past defending national champion Florida State 59-20 to turn the first College Football Playoff semifinal into a Rose Bowl rout.

2015 — Cardale Jones turns in another savvy performance in his second college start and Ezekiel Elliott runs for a Sugar Bowl-record 230 yards, leading Ohio State to a 42-35 upset of top-ranked Alabama in the second semifinal of the College Football Playoff.

2018 — Sony Michel’s 27-yard touchdown run in double overtime gives Georgia a 54-48 win over Oklahoma in a Rose Bowl. It’s the first overtime game in the 104-year history of the Rose Bowl, the highest-scoring Rose Bowl ever and the first College Football Playoff game to go into overtime.

2022 – Chicago Bulls forward DeMar DeRozen becomes first player in NBA history to hit buzzer-beaters on consecutive days; hits 3-pointers to beat Washington Wizards, 120-119 and previous night Indiana Pacers, 108-106.

Compiled by the Associated Press

And finally

Thank you starting 2025 by reading this newsletter. In case you missed it, The Times’ sports staff shared our favorite stories from 2024.