Ducks stun NHL-leading Jets on Troy Terry’s late goal

• December 19, 2024

ANAHEIM — In their biggest victory of the season to date, the Ducks dominated early and rallied late to beat the NHL-leading Winnipeg Jets, 3-2, on Wednesday night at Honda Center.

The Ducks had won just one of their previous six games while the Jets entered the match with the league’s best point total and best goal differential. That didn’t stop the Ducks from dominating possession, scoring chances and nearly every barometer for most of a game that saw them circle the wagons and surmount a 2-1 deficit with two goals in the final 4:46.

Frank Vatrano scored two goals and assisted on Troy Terry’s game-winner with 24.2 seconds showing on the game clock. Captain Radko Gudas earned assists on both of Vatrano’s goals. Lukáš Dostál had 21 saves and aided a clutch penalty kill shortly before Terry deposited the game-winner as the Ducks won consecutive games for the first time in nearly a month (Nov. 19).

Gabriel Vilardi and Mark Scheifele each scored a goal for Winnipeg. Backup goalie Eric Comrie made 28 saves.

After being hectored for two periods, the more familiar Jets showed up in the closing frame, sustaining pressure early and tilting the ice in their favor early before the Ducks drew even late and then scored in the dying embers of the tilt.

After a monstrous hit by Jacob Trouba helped break up the Jets’ possession, the Ducks went the other way and forechecked aggressively, culminating in Vatrano’s disruption of Haydn Fleury’s pass, which went directly to Terry, who waited out Comrie to sweep in the winner with 24.2 seconds remaining. Terry who had been engaged but not rewarded on the score sheet to that point, has 13 points in his past 11 games.

With 4:46 left in regulation, Vatrano let a shot rip from the blue line that bounced off the ice surface and up into the net. Whether Vatrano called “bank” or not, it was his second goal of the game, ninth of the season and his seventh in his past 11 appearances.

Early in the third period of a tie game, the Ducks weathered a pair of defensive breakdowns thanks to Dostál, but could not survive a third as the Jets took their first lead of the game with 15:47 to play.

Kyle Connor’s intrepid foray began behind his own net and continued as he broke down the Ducks through the neutral zone, skating to the right circle and dishing deftly to Scheifele for a one-timer.

The Ducks’ momentum from the first period carried over into the second but a Ross Johnston roughing penalty opened the door for an equalizer.

Just nine seconds after Johnston was sent to the box for throwing a jab, the NHL’s top-ranked power play knotted the score at 1-1, 24 seconds past the game’s midpoint. Nikolaj Ehlers, who played for the first time since Nov. 29, sent a puck into the crease that first struck Vilardi in the leg and then was easily pushed across the line by the former King, who had gotten early position on Gudas. Vilardi’s 14 goals put him on pace to cruise past his career high of 23.

Seven seconds after Ryan Strome and Jackson LaCombe pieced together the kind of successive-scoring-chance sequence that typified the Ducks’ start to the game but not the season, the Ducks finally broke through. A point shot from Gudas was tipped home by Vatrano to open the scoring.

The first period brought 20 of the best minutes of the Ducks’ season as they registered the first 10 shots on goal of the game and had tripled the Jets’ shot total, 12-4, at the first intermission. Yet either Comrie or the posts flanking him had the answer for all the Ducks’ bids, including three of the frame’s four high-danger chances recorded by Natural Stat Trick.

More to come on this story.

​ Orange County Register 

UNLV outlasts Cal in an LA Bowl that sees both offenses struggle

• December 19, 2024

INGLEWOOD — Cal went into the LA Bowl down its starting and second-string quarterbacks, but fifth-year sophomore CJ Harris stepped in, keeping the Golden Bears afloat through 2½ quarters.

Then, on their third drive of the second half, freshman EJ Caminong took Harris’ place. Harris was seen walking to the locker room with a towel draped over his head. Caminong was unable to build on Harris’ momentum. He committed a turnover on his second drive when he threw a risky backward pass that UNLV recovered and cashed in with a Kylin James 23-yard touchdown run on the following play.

Caminong was unable to led the Golden Bears to any points and a one-point deficit turned into a 24-13 loss.

Harris completed 13 of 20 passes for 109 yards before his departure. Caminong was 6 of 19 and only led the Golden Bears past midfield once.

The UNLV offense looked just as lifeless as Cal (6-7) did under Caminong, but the 24th-ranked Rebels (11-3) capitalized on his turnover and shut out the Golden Bears in the second half.

Hajj-Malik Williams completed just 5 of 18 attempts for 96 yards, but he threw two touchdowns in the first half and UNLV benefited from some special teams sparks.

The Rebels went ahead for good at 14-10 early in the second quarter when Jacob De Jesus took a shovel pass 12 yards and then did a backflip after scoring. The touchdown came a play after a successful fake punt when Marshall Nichols lobbed the ball to Cameron Oliver for a 52-yard gain to the Cal 9.

De Jesus helped his offense throughout with 123 return yards. His 38-yard punt return set the Rebels up for a Caden Chittenden field goal that put the game on ice.

De Jesus’ impact on special teams provided a much-needed spark for an offense that seemed to struggle in the absence of offensive coordinator Brennan Marion.

At the LA Bowl press conference on Tuesday, interim head coach Del Alexander explained that the Rebels were using a collaborative effort over the last week to try to cover for the loss of Marion. That patchwork had its kinks as a UNLV offense that had averaged 36 points per game, rarely strung drives together on Wednesday.

It didn’t help that the Rebels’ leading receiver, Ricky White, who was expected to play, didn’t suit up.

With White in street clothes on the sideline, and Cal leading receiver Nyziah Hunter in the transfer portal, underclassmen stepped up.

In the first quarter, UNLV freshman Kayden McGee hauled in a 49-yard touchdown pass on a post route for the game’s opening touchdown. Then Cal freshman Josiah Martin scored on a fake read-option turned end-around.

Neither McGee nor Martin had scored a touchdown before Wednesday’s game, but each player was heavily involved.

With 5:26 remaining in the second quarter, Harris found Martin on a fourth-and-1 to keep a Cal drive alive. Four plays later, he held onto a pass while surviving a simultaneous collision to set up a first-and-goal at the 4-yard line. The drive concluded with a 30-yard field goal, but wouldn’t have resulted in any points if not for Martin’s reliability.

The emergence of younger players was expected, but with each team having fewer opt-outs than some bowl-bound teams there were still several stars on the field.

Rebels cornerback Jett Elad had 13 total tackles and snagged Caminong’s backward pass, while senior Jackson Woodard had 11 tackles and three pass breakups.

The Rebels’ defense was quick to adjust to the Golden Bears’ quarterback change.

Despite playing without their offensive coordinator and departed head coach, the Rebels scraped together a win to cap their best season (record-wise) since 1984, their first 11-win season as an FBS program, their first bowl game victory since 2000 and their first outside of the Las Vegas Bowl. They will likely be ranked in the final AP Top 25 poll of the season for the first time.

NOTES

UNLV running back Jai’Den Thomas had 18 carries for 72 yards. … Cal’s Ott rushed for 84 yards on 11 carries. … Alexander, an assistant when UNLV last won a bowl game, was the interim head coach after Barry Odom departed for the vacancy at Purdue on Dec. 8. … Dan Mullen, who will take over UNLV’s program next season after being hired last Thursday, was in attendance. … Cal hasn’t had a winning season since 2019.

More to come on this story.

​ Orange County Register 

USC pulls away from CSUN behind sizzling shooting

• December 19, 2024

LOS ANGELES — They had started from two completely different sects of Los Angeles, one a downtrodden program in need of any sort of recruiting facelift, one a top-tier college basketball power with massive resources and little buzz.

And somehow, Andy Newman and Eric Musselman had ended up, in constructing their rosters, in the exact same place.

Second-year Cal State Northridge coach Newman is a “grinder,” as he once described himself to the Southern California News Group at his introductory press conference in April 2023. First-year USC coach Musselman is, too, a 5-foot-7, 60-year-old man who sprints across hardwood for spittle-spraying conversations with referees. Each local program has been molded in their coach’s image. And cosmetically, the two teams that took the Galen Center court on Wednesday night in cardinal-and-white and red-and-black were built in eerily similar fashion: not a player taller than 6-foot-10, founded on small ball, founded on run-and-gun movement that never slows.

And after a valiant first-half performance, a CSUN team built on Newman’s ideas of pace simply found itself outpaced, as an army of USC shooters buried the Matadors in a 90-69 win.

It was one of the best early showings of Musselman’s first season at USC, his Trojans (8-4 overall, 1-1 Big Ten) playing equal parts free and controlled in burying a scorching 12 of 19 shots from behind the arc and committing just nine turnovers. Chibuzo Agbo Jr., a Boise State transfer known for his love of shooting and dislike of not shooting, had 23 points, including five 3-pointers. Point guard Desmond Claude continued a torrid stretch with 21 points and nine assists. And a year after a stunning, landmark victory over UCLA, CSUN couldn’t get over the hump against the region’s other power program, falling to 7-4 (1-1 Big West) in Newman’s second season.

A back-and-forth first half ended appropriately, in a crowd-igniting moment at the buzzer. As Musselman barked at Claude on his way up the court, the point guard having forced a couple of looks as USC’s offense stalled and CSUN roared to a two-point lead, Claude swung a pass to sophomore guard Kevin Patton Jr. The San Diego transfer took one dribble to his left, stepped back, and uncorked an improbable prayer from an acre behind the top of the arc.

Swish. First-half zeroes rang, with USC back ahead by one. The Trojans, suddenly, had second-half momentum, after previously going without a field goal for their final eight – yes, eight – minutes of the first half.

And in a lightning-quick, physical game, bodies hitting the deck for the basketball on one possession as if football linemen diving for a fumble, an emotional Galen Center became USC forward Saint Thomas’ Coliseum in the second half. The fiery Musselman’s program has thrived, during an up-and-down start, when the fiery Thomas has called his own number. For weeks, though, the Northern Colorado transfer had seemed hesitant, too often focused on running offense for others in a five-game streak of single-digit scoring.

“We need him,“ Claude said, after an early December loss to Oregon in which program leader Thomas finished went scoreless. “And we all recognize that. So we just got to get him going, and yeah, just make him more aggressive.”

Three days later, Thomas scored 19 in a road win against Washington. He scored 17 in a subsequent win against Montana State. And he was every bit the inferno USC needed during a 14-point second half on Wednesday, authoring a late 6-0 swing that bent the home crowd’s energy to his very will.

It started with a Thomas 3-pointer with 13:07 left, extending USC’s lead to 57-49. It continued on the other end, Thomas helping force a CSUN travel. The fury in his lungs uncorked, spewing guttural roars at his own home bench, the momentum only building for what would come next: another catch-and-shoot 3-pointer from Thomas to extend USC’s lead to 11.

He backpedaled downcourt, pounding his chest as if trying to break it, yelling in the face of a CSUN ball handler.

A run ballooned from there, with Agbo burying multiple second-half 3-pointers to extend a 20-point lead.

CSUN’s PJ Fuller II, a Washington transfer, finished with 17 points, and star forward Keonte Jones added 17. But it wasn’t nearly enough as USC shot 32 for 39 (82.1%) from the free-throw line and coasted down the stretch.

More to come on this story.

​ Orange County Register 

Newport Beach Christmas boat parade launches with drones and fireworks

• December 19, 2024

The Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade set sail for the holidays on Wednesday, Dec. 18, in the Newport Harbor.

The 116-year-old parade draws hundreds of thousands of spectators along its 14-mile route over five days and also includes pyrotechnics and drone shows. The busiest days for people flooding into the area to watch the parade are Friday and Saturday; it launches at 6:30 p.m. each night through Dec. 22.

Parade organizers say the most popular vantage points are Marina Park, the Balboa Fun Zone and Balboa Island.

“It epitomizes the holiday spirit,” said Steve Rosansky, president of the Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce. “It’s our Newport Beach holiday postcard to the world.”

The Marlu, a 66-foot Galeon 660 yacht that last year won “Best First Time Entry,” will lead off the parade. Another looker to watch for is the Last Hurrah, an 86-foot yacht whose owners spend tens of thousands of dollars each year to decorate, Rosansky said. This year, its theme honors first responders.

And there’s the Mayflower, a 52-foot Hugh Angelman Ketch that, when not in the boat parade, tours people through Newport Harbor, recreating a pirate-themed voyage.

​ Orange County Register 

Orange County scores and player stats for Wednesday, Dec. 18

• December 19, 2024

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Scores and stats from Orange County games on Wednesday, Dec. 18

Click here for details about sending your team’s scores and stats to the Register.

The deadline for submitting information is 10:45 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 p.m. Saturday

WEDNESDAY’S SCORES

BOYS BASKETBALL

NONLEAGUE

Tarkanian Classic-Las Vegas, NV

Crean Lutheran 69, Couer d’Alene/ID 64

GIRLS BASKETBALL

NONLEAGUE

Nike Tournament of Champions- Phoeniz, AZ 

Mater Dei 59, Christ the King/NY 49

Bishop McNamara/MD 70, Sage Hill 44

Hamilton/AZ 53, Villa Park 37

Highland/AZ 58, Huntington Beach 34

BOYS SOCCER

NONLEAGUE

Rancho Alamitos 1, Orange 1

Western 3, Loara 1

Esperanza 0, Katella 0

Garden Grove 3, El Modena 1

Santa Margarita 3, Mission Viejo 1

GIRLS SOCCER

NONLEAGUE

Santa Ana Valley 2, Santa Ana 1

GIRLS WATER POLO

NONLEAGUE

Valencia 9, Estancia 1

La Mirada 12, Kennedy 7

​ Orange County Register 

James Harden giving Clippers big minutes, steady leadership

• December 19, 2024

INGLEWOOD — His brilliantly colored shoes dazzle us. His local charity work touches us. His grooming products consume us. Yet, through all of James Harden’s off-court endeavors, his dynamic basketball skills continue to wow NBA fans.

At 35, Harden isn’t slowing down. Not in business or basketball. Not in his work with overlooked communities or line of beard kits and certainly not in leading the Clippers this season.

With six-time All-Star Kawhi Leonard sidelined with lingering knee issues and nine-time All-Star Paul George gone to the Philadelphia 76ers in free agency, Harden has stepped up as the team’s leader this season. Not only does the former league MVP run the floor, partner with center Ivica Zubac in pick-and-rolls, and ensure balanced passing among the other starters, he is averaging 22.1 points and 8.3 assists in nearly 34 minutes per game this season.

“I make sure I communicate, but not overcommunicate and not overdo it,” said Harden, who re-signed with the team this summer on a two-year, $70 million deal. “When I see opportunities to voice my opinion and lead by example, I will.”

Coach Tyronn Lue said Harden has not only carried the team but made “guys better.”

“He’s scoring the basketball when we need him to, but just all around, he has been doing a great job for us,” Lue said of a player who has led the league in scoring three times. “We need every bit of it.”

Harden put on a vintage display against the Utah Jazz on Monday night, scoring 41 points and handing out six assists while wearing the latest version of his signature Adidas Volume 9 shoes – an eye-catching shiny chrome beauty. It was his second 40-point game this season, having scored 43 against the Washington Wizards last month.

The future Hall of Famer said that his consistently high-level play, especially after 16 years in the league, comes down to balance and doing the right thing every day, not his shoes.

“You take care of your body, you do the things that’s necessary to be out there to play at a high level, whether it’s treatment, weightlifting, then you still got to go out there and do things on the court to make sure your skill set set is where it needs to be,” he said.

“Then you got games, you got practice, you got family time, then you got the business time. So, it’s the balance of what’s important and things like that.”

The 10-time All-Star soon won’t have to do all of the heavy lifting on the court. Leonard participated in his first 5-on-5 full contact practice Wednesday and will accompany the team when the Clippers (15-12) travel to Dallas (17-9) for two games starting Thursday. He has not played in a game since last spring’s first-round playoff series against the Mavericks.

Leonard will not play on this trip, but his return is another indication he is progressing toward a return to the lineup. Lue told reporters that the two-time NBA Finals MVP is “getting more excited” at the prospect of playing again.

“He’s inching his way back towards the court and is taking his time whenever he’s ready,” Harden said. “We’re ready for him.”

Harden began preparing the Clippers during the summer for a season without Leonard, who had an offseason knee procedure that caused lingering inflammation. The veteran guard assumed the leadership role during training camp by working out alongside the other players and organizing a team-bonding softball game.

“During the summer he was working out with the young guys,” Clippers guard Norman Powell said on Draymond Green’s podcast. “We’re doing deep test conditioning. Running up and down the floor, and he’s right along with them. … I think that builds trust, that builds chemistry. Like if James is in here doing this then I have too as well.”

Harden, who continues to climb the NBA’s career lists for scoring (17th through Tuesday), assists (14th) and 3-pointers (2nd), has transferred his leadership role to games as he often pulls aside younger players on the court to share tips borne of experience.

Before the season, Lue called Harden a great leader on and off the floor. “He was in the same situation a lot of times in Houston, so he’s up for a challenge,” Lue said.

Maybe too much. Lue said he constantly reminds Harden that he’s not a young player anymore.

“When you’re playing 35, 36 minutes a night, you got to, as you get older … tailor it back a little bit,” Lue said. “Don’t overwork yourself because it’s a lot of games, a lot of minutes.”

The heavy minutes might be to blame for his career-low 39.1% shooting from the field and 35.3% from 3-point range. He also is turning the ball over 4.5 times per game, prompting Lue to talk to Harden about his shot selection.

“If he has a bad shooting night, the next night he’s probably going to come back and play well,” Lue said. “That’s what good players do. They bounce back. We’ve asked him to do a lot. He’s carried a load offensively, making the right passes, reads and also scoring the basketball. And at 35 years old, that can get tiring. So, we are asking a lot of him.”

CLIPPERS AT MAVERICKS

When: Thursday, 5:30 p.m. PT

Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas

TV/radio: FDSNSC/570 AM

​ Orange County Register 

Woman killed in La Palma when suspect crashes into her car during pursuit, Fullerton police say

• December 19, 2024

A woman was killed in La Palma Wednesday, Dec. 18 following a police pursuit that ended when the fleeing car crashed into the uninvolved woman’s BMW, Fullerton police said in a written statement.

At around 12:45 p.m., a Fullerton Police Department detective saw a man committing a theft at a business in the area of N. Gilbert Street and W. Malvern Avenue. He then fled the scene in a white Nissan Rogue, according to the statement.

Officers attempted to stop the SUV, but the suspect, later identified as Anthony Hanzal, 43, of Anaheim, fled again, and a pursuit ensued.

Hanzal’s SUV was involved in a non-injury hit-and-run near Brookhurst Road and Orangethorpe Avenue, but he continued onto the 91 freeway, police said. Fullerton officers lost sight of the suspect vehicle when it exited at Knott Avenue.

Buena Park officers briefly located the vehicle, but lost sight of it as well. La Palma officers picked up the pursuit near La Palma Avenue and Walker Street.

The pursuit ended when Hanzal’s vehicle crashed into an uninvolved blue BMW in the area of La Palma Ave. and Moody Street, police said. The BMW’s driver, a woman in her 60s, sustained serious injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the statement.

Hanzal was taken to a local hospital for injuries sustained in the collision and will be booked on various charges at Fullerton City Jail, including petty theft, hit-and-run, and felony evading, police said.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Department is investigating the fatal collision, which could result in additional charges.

​ Orange County Register 

Rams QB Matthew Stafford preparing for another round with Aaron Rodgers

• December 19, 2024

LOS ANGELES — A Hail Mary that left the Detroit Lions stunned. A fourth-quarter comeback that came up a touchdown short. Trading touchdowns until a failed two-point conversion ended the Lions’ two-decade-long road losing streak to the Green Bay Packers.

Quarterbacks Matthew Stafford and Aaron Rodgers will face each other again on Sunday when the Rams (8-6) travel east to face the New York Jets (4-10). It will be the 18th meeting between the two, who played for NFC North rivals Detroit and Green Bay, respectively, for much of their careers.

Asked to pick any games that stand out between the two in the series, which Rodgers leads 13-4, none came to mind immediately for Stafford.

“I’ve had too many to even think about, to be honest with you,” Stafford said. “It’s always a good battle.”

Entering this weekend, the two quarterbacks are facing different circumstances.

Rodgers, 41, was traded to the Jets prior to the 2023 season with Super Bowl expectations. But a torn Achilles suffered in Week 1 ended that campaign, and the aftereffects have lingered into 2024. Just now in December is he starting to regain some of the mobility and effectiveness that have defined his career.

But it’s come too late to save the Jets’ season, or the jobs of the head coach, offensive coordinator and general manager who helped orchestrate Rodgers’ arrival in the Tri-State Area.

On the other hand, Stafford, 36, has led the Rams to three straight wins and a 7-2 record since the bye, putting them in position to win the NFC West for the first time since 2021.

“I’m just excited to go out there and play,” Stafford said. “Obviously meaningful football in the month of December is an awesome thing to be a part of. We’ve earned that and we’ve got to continue to earn that opportunity to play games that matter. This just happens to be the next one on the list. Obviously have a ton of respect for Aaron and competed against him a bunch of times in my career. He’s a helluva player and does a great job.”

Whether or not this is the last meeting between Stafford and Rodgers remains to be seen. The latter spent most of his press conference on Wednesday fielding questions about whether or not he would retire after this disappointing Jets season.

Regardless, the two former Super Bowl winners figure to be tied together as players who helped define their generation of quarterbacks.

“The essence of playing quarterback involves so many different things, but you talk about changing arm slots, creating off-schedule, understanding of what are the defensive structures and how do you move and manipulate defenders,” Rams head coach Sean McVay said. “Both of those guys have been doing those types of things at a really high clip. … It’s two greats, two guys that I look at as Hall of Famers.”

NOTES

Rams cornerback Cobie Durant (lung contusion) was medically cleared to return to practice and was a limited participant on Wednesday. McVay said Monday that the starting corner was on track to return against the Jets after a one-game absence.

​ Orange County Register