The Sports Report: Another narrow loss for the Clippers

Hi, I’m your host, Houston Mitchell. Let’s get straight to the news.

From Broderick Turner: It was just last week that the Clippers hosted the Phoenix Suns, and just nine days later they played them again in the Intuit Dome.

Before the game, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said there wasn’t much upside to playing a team like the Suns so quickly again, especially one with lethal weapons Kevin Durant and Devin Booker. At least they didn’t have to face Bradley Beal, who didn’t play Thursday because of an injured elbow.

It looked like the Clippers had found an advantage as they jumped on the Suns early, building a 19-point lead in the first quarter that grew to 21 in the third.

However, the Clippers were unable to hold onto the lead and lost 125-119 to the Suns despite five players scoring in double figures.

“We’ve got to continue to get better. We got close games better and just something to keep learning from,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “All five of our games have been close, come down to the wire. We’ve been fortunate to win two of them. But if we win any of those games, we could go 0-5. We could go 5-0. So we just have to stay the course and understand that our margin for air is very small.

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RAMS

From Gary Klein: A week after returning to the Rams lineup in spectacular fashion, star receiver Puka Nacua left practice Thursday with a right knee injury, a team official said.

His status for Friday’s practice and Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks in Seattle is to be determined, the official said.

The setback is the latest issue related to a sprained knee Nacua suffered in a joint practice with the Chargers during training camp.

The 2023 Pro Bowl selection sat out most preseason drills before the opener against the Detroit Lions, but he caught four passes for 35 yards before aggravating the injury in the overtime loss.

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Unexpectedly, Ernest Jones IV gets to show off his linebacker trade against the Rams

From Anthony De Leon: USC freshman edge-rushing duo Kameryn Fountain and Sam Greene have shown why they were recruited to join the Trojans’ defense: getting to the quarterback.

“It’s taken a lot of hard work, a lot of long nights and early mornings,” Greene said. “Doing extra little things just to contribute to the team. That’s all I wanted to do since I signed that paper to come here.”

Both players secured their first collegiate sacks in a decisive win over Rutgers last Saturday.

Fountain pounced early in the second half, while Greene flew past right tackle late in the fourth quarter.

“(I) came off the ball, worked my move, planned it in my head and just executed,” Greene said. “Just going out and playing for my team.”

Greene has jumped at the chance to secure a spot in the defensive rotation and calls the opportunity “a lot of fun.”

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DUCKS

Sidney Crosby scored his second goal of the game 2:35 into overtime as the Pittsburgh Penguins pounced Ducks 2-1 on Thursday night to end a six-game losing streak.

Crosby found himself alone on Lukas Dostal and hit the brakes before putting the puck over the Ducks’ goaltender for the 93rd game-winning goal of his career.

Alex Nedeljkovic made 22 saves for Pittsburgh (4-7-1), who outscored the Ducks (4-4-2) 46-23. Dostal stopped 44 shots to keep the Ducks in it, but it still wasn’t enough.

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THIS DATE IN SPORTS

1913 – Notre Dame faces Army for the first time and comes away with a 35-13 victory behind Gus Dorias’ 14-of-17 passing for 243 yards.

1938 – George Woolf, riding for regular jockey Red Pollard, guides Seabiscuit to a four-length victory over heavily favored American Triple Crown champion War Admiral in the Pimlico Special battle race at Baltimore. A crowd of 40,000 spectators turn out for the winner-take-all race with a purse of $15,000.

1946 – The first NBA game (known as the Basketball Association of America), the New York Knickerbockers beat the Toronto Huskies 68-66 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

1959 – Montreal goaltender Jacques Plante revolutionizes his position – and the sport of hockey – by donning a face mask. Plante is hit in the face with a shot by New York Rangers forward Andy Bathgate at 3:06 of the first period. After receiving stitches to close a gash from the corner of his mouth all the way up through his nostril, Plante returns to the ice wearing a mask. Canadiens win 3-1.

1964 – Cleveland’s Jim Brown rushes for 149 yards and becomes the first player to rush for more than 10,000 yards in a career as the Browns post a 30-17 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Brown with 10,135 yards had 47 games with 100 or more yards rushing.

1966 – The NFL awards a franchise to New Orleans on All Saints Day.

1968 – Detroit pitcher Denny McLain wins the AL Cy Young Award after finishing the season 31-6.

1970 – Mercury Morris of the Miami Dolphins gains 302 yards (89 rushing, 68 receiving and 145 on kickoff returns) in a 35-0 loss to the Baltimore Colts.

1987 – Ibrahin Hussein of Kenya and Priscilla Welch of Great Britain win the men’s and women’s divisions of the New York Marathon, completing the 26.2 miles in 2:11:01 and 2:30:17, respectively.

1996 – Shaquille O’Neil makes his Hollywood debut as the Lakers beat the Phoenix Suns, 96-82 at the Forum; O’Neil scores 23 points and pulls down 14 rebounds in 35 minutes.

1997 – Tom Osborne reaches 250 wins faster than any coach in college football history as Nebraska beats Oklahoma 69-7, the worst loss in Sooners history.

1998 – Steve Young and Jerry Rice combine for their 80th career touchdown in the Niners’ 36-22 loss to the GB Packers at Lambeau Field; eclipsing previous NFL mark held by Miami Dolphins tandem Dan Marino and Mark Clayton.

2000 – Pat Riley wins his 1,000th. coach win as Miami posts its lopsided win in an opener with a 105-79 rout of Orlando. Riley reached the plateau in 1,434 games — fewer than any coach or manager in any sport.

2003 – DeCori Birmingham rushes for 196 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winning score in the seventh overtime, in Arkansas’ 71-63 win over Kentucky. The seven overtimes match the longest game in NCAA history. The Razorbacks also won that game in 2001, beating Mississippi 58-56.

2008 – Michigan’s 48-42 loss at Purdue drops the Wolverines to 2-7, ending Michigan’s 33-game hitting streak. Michigan, secured its first losing season since 1967, also set a school record for losses.

2008 — Stephen F. Austin quarterback Jeremy Moses sets single-game NCAA records with 57 completions and 85 pass attempts in a 34-31 double-overtime loss to Sam Houston State. Moses passes for 501 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions, completing passes to 11 different receivers. The sophomore breaks the previous single-game attempt record of 83 set by Drew Brees at Purdue in 1998. The previous record for completions was 56, set by Jarrod DeGeorgia at then-Division II Wayne State in 1996.

2009 – Meb Keflezighi becomes the first American man in 27 years to win the New York City Marathon. Keflezighi, who moved from his native Eritrea to San Diego when he was in the sixth grade, finishes with a time of 2:09:15 for a personal best.

2015 — Simone Biles collects gold medals nine and 10 on balance beam and floor as the 2015 World Gymnastics Championships draw to a close. Biles breaks the career record for most World Cup gold medals by a female gymnast.

2023 – The Texas Rangers win the first title in franchise history; beat Arizona Diamondbacks 5-0 at Chase Field, Phoenix for 4-1 series win; MVP: Rangers SS Corey Seager; manager Bruce Bochy’s fourth World Series victory.

Prepared by the Associated Press