Clippers fall to surging Lakers as offense sputters

• March 3, 2025

LOS ANGELES — The bad news started hours before Sunday’s game when the Clippers announced that starting forward Derrick Jones Jr. and Ben Simmons weren’t playing. Then, the situation got worse after the opening tip.

Starting Norman Powell, who returned to the court after missing five games because of a balky left knee, headed to the locker room after nine minutes because of a sore right hamstring. He didn’t return.

Guard Kris Dunn, who was coming off a strong defensive performance Sunday against the Lakers, picked up his third foul six minutes into the game. He didn’t play again until the third quarter. Adding to the Clippers’ misery were the number of open-look 3-pointers the Lakers buried; they made seven of their first 10 long-range shots in the first 12 minutes.

If that wasn’t bad enough, the second quarter happened. The Clippers did not score a basket or free throw in the final 7:35 of the first half, putting them into a hole too big to overcome despite some strong play at the end, and they lost to the Lakers 108-102 at Crypto.com Arena.

It was that kind of night again for the Clippers (32-28), who now have lost five of six games since the All-Star break. They couldn’t contain Lakers star Luka Doncic, who scored 29 points on 9-of-17 shooting and had nine assists, six rebounds and two steals.

They gave up 19 points to Dalton Knecht, who made 5 of 8 3-pointers in place of injured Austin Reaves, and another 17 points to the team’s other superstar, LeBron James.

Still, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue took a positive view of the team’s second consecutive loss to the Lakers and third this season. He said he liked the Clippers’ shot selection even if it didn’t result in a score, especially from the perimeter.

The Clippers made 12 of 39 long-range shots and shot 43.7% overall.

“(We took) a lot of good shots that we just didn’t make, and we haven’t been making,” Lue said. “And so just taking shots with confidence, teams are going to leave guys and over help, then we just got to make the right play and trust. I think we’ve been doing that.

“When we’re shooting between 35, 40 3’s, that means we’re sharing the basketball, making the right play, and now we’re just not making shots right now.”

A number of those missed 3’s were crucial down the stretch.

The Clippers had battled back from a 21-point deficit late in the third quarter to pull within five, 93-88, with 7:52 left in the game. After James hit a 3-pointer, Kawhi Leonard missed a 3 that would have kept the margin to single digits.

“I thought we did a good job, but during that stretch where they went up 21, like I said, we missed shots, we didn’t get back in transition,” Lue said. “And then what killed us tonight was the offensive rebounds. We didn’t rebound the basketball. I think we cut the five like six minutes, then you give ’em four offensive rebounds, four chances at it, and LeBron makes a big three. And so those are things we’ve been talking about all season. And what you got to keep grinding with it.”

Yet it was the Lakers who kept grinding and pushed their lead back to 11 on three free throws by Doncic less than two minutes later.

Trailing 105-96, Dunn missed two 23-foot shots sandwiched around Doncic’s fadeaway bank shot as the Lakers led 107-96. The Clippers finally found their stroke, connecting on back-to-back 3-pointers by Bogdan Bogdanovic and Leonard to pull within five at 107-102.

Then it was over. The Clippers missed five more shots before the final buzzer.

“It’s a make or miss league,” James Harden said. “You make shots, you get yourself a chance, you miss shots. It’s a little bit tougher. … you make shots, and it’s a different ball game.”

Lost amid the missed shots and opportunities was the play of Leonard, who had a season-high 33 points and 10 rebounds in 40 minutes.

Dunn added 15 points and four assists, and Ivica Zubac chipped in 12 points and nine rebounds. Harden had another off night, scoring 13 points on 4-of-14 shooting and 2-of-9 from the 3-point range.

​ Orange County Register 

Beloved Big Bear Valley eagles could soon welcome another chick

• March 3, 2025

Big Bear Valley’s beloved eagle pair Jackie and Shadow could be welcoming another chick into their family soon.

Friends of Big Bear Valley announced on social media that one of the eagle pair’s eggs had pipped, or cracked in the hatching process, at 3:09 p.m. on Sunday, March 2. Jackie and Shadow’s last chick, Spirit, pipped exactly three years ago Sunday.

If the hatching process is successful, it may take a day or more for the new chick to fully emerge from its shell.

“Meanwhile, we will remain patient and hold the most positive thoughts,” Friends of Big Bear Valley wrote on Facebook.

For fans of Jackie and Shadow who are waiting with anticipation, the organization has two web cams that broadcast a 24-hour livestream of the eagles’ nest.

In January, Jackie, the female of the pair, delivered three eggs. It was the second consecutive year that Jackie and Shadow had welcomed a three-egg clutch.

Jackie’s eggs have historically hatched 38 to 39 days after they were delivered, according to the Friends of Big Bear Valley.

Followers of the eagle pair and their eggs cheered the news on Sunday.

“Congratulations!” one Facebook user said. “Sending speedy pipping and energy for these three sweet babies to emerge healthy and ready to thrive!”

​ Orange County Register 

Oscars 2025: ‘No Other Land’ filmmakers plead for peace after documentary win

• March 3, 2025

“No Other Land,” a documentary made by a quartet of Israeli and Palestinian activist filmmakers, won the Oscar for best documentary feature at the Academy Awards, leading to one of the most passionate and political speeches of the night.

The film, which examines the forced displacement of Basel Adra, one of the four filmmakers, from his home in the West Bank, has not yet found distribution despite widespread critical acclaim.

“About two months ago, I became a father, and I hope to my daughter, she will not have to live the same life I am now,” Adra said. “Always fearing violence, home demolition, and displacement my community is facing every day.

“We call on the world to take serious actions and to stop the unjust ethnic cleansing,” he said.

His collaborator, Yuval Abraham, who befriended Adra and has helped him fight for his and his community’s rights, said they, along with Hamdan Ballal and Rachel Szor, made “No Other Land” because “together our voices are stronger.”

“There is a different path, a political solution, without ethnic supremacy, with national rights,” Abraham said. “And I have to say the foreign policy in this country is helping to block this path. Why can’t you see that we are intertwined? That my people can be truly safe only if Basal’s people are truly safe.

“There is another way; it’s not too late,” he said.

“Dune 2” later picked up a pair of Oscars in technical categories, winning for best sound and best special effects.

And that wasn’t the only recurring presence by “Dune 2,” as Conan O’Brien brought back the piano-playing sandworm to play harp with the Oscar orchestra. You don’t go to the trouble to make a sandworm costume without making sure to use it at least twice, O’Brien noted.

​ Orange County Register 

Oscars 2025: Zoe Saldana and Paul Tazewell score historic Oscar wins

• March 3, 2025

Zoe Saldana took the Oscar for best supporting actress for her role in “Emilia Perez,” becoming, as she noted in her speech, the first Dominican American actor to win an Academy Award.

“Mami! Mami! My mom is here, my whole family is here,” Saldana cried as she reached the stage to accept the Oscar from Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who won the same honor a year ago. “Thank you to the Academy for recognizing the quiet heroism and the power in a woman like Rita.

“Everything brave, outrageous and good that I’ve ever done in my life is due to you,” Saldana said, speaking of and to her family again. “My grandmother came to this country in 1961. I am a proud child of immigrant parents with dreams and dignity and hard-working hands.

“I am the first American of Dominican origin to accept an Academy Award, and I know I will not be the last,” she said.

“El Mal,” one of Saldana’s songs in “Emilia Perez,” later won the Oscar for best original song.

Moments earlier, Sean Baker won his second Oscar for “Anora,” this one for editing after also winning for best original screenplay.

“I truly appreciate the recognition for this because God, if you saw that footage, I saved this film in the edit, trust me,” said Baker, who in addition to writing and co-producing “Anora” is also its director. “That director should never work again.”

In winning best original screenplay, Baker’s thanks extended to “the sex worker community” – Anora is a dancer in a club. “They have shared their stories. They have shared their life experiences with me over the years. My deepest respect.”

The Oscar for adapted screenplay went to Peter Straughan for writing “Conclave,” while other Oscars in the first half of the show include “Flow,” the first-ever Latvian Oscar nominee, for best animated feature, while Paul Tazewell became the first Black man ever to win the Oscar for costume design for his work on “Wicked.”

The James Bond franchise wasn’t nominated for anything at the Academy Awards, but that didn’t mean our favorite spy didn’t get his moment in the spotlight at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday.

Its producers, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson were presented with the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award at the recent Governors Awards, and after presenter Halle Berry acknowledged them and the other recipients of Governors Awards, the show shifted into a celebration of Bond and the music of the long-running film franchise.

Actress Margaret Qualley of “The Substance,” which moments earlier won the Oscar for best makeup and hair, danced on stage with a troupe of tuxedo-clad 007s before a trio of pop stars took turns in a medley of Bond theme songs.

Blackpink’s Lisa, currently starring in HBO’s “White Lotus,” opened with “Live and Let Die.” She was followed by Doja Cat singing “Diamonds Are Forever.” The tribute wrapped with Raye doing “Skyfall,” which, if we were reviewing this as a concert, would be the standout performance of the whole thing.

​ Orange County Register 

‘No Other Land’ wins Oscar for best documentary

• March 3, 2025

By HANNAH SCHOENBAUM, Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) — “No Other Land,” the story of Palestinian activists fighting to protect their communities from demolition by the Israeli military, won the Oscar for best documentary on Sunday.

The collaboration between Israeli and Palestinian filmmakers follows activist Basel Adra as he risks arrest to document the destruction of his hometown, which Israeli soldiers are tearing down to use as a military training zone, at the southern edge of the West Bank. Adra’s pleas fall on deaf ears until he befriends a Jewish Israeli journalist who helps him amplify his story.

“About two months ago, I became a father, and my hope to my daughter that she will not have to live the same life I’m living now, always fearing settlers, violence, home demolitions and forcible displacements,” said Adra.

“No Other Land” came into the night a top contender after a successful run on the film festival circuit. It did not, however, find a U.S. distributor after being picked up for distribution in 24 countries. For the Oscar, it beat out “Porcelain War,” “Sugarcane,” “Black Box Diaries” and “Soundtrack to a Coup d’État.”

The documentary was filmed over four years between 2019 and 2023, wrapping production days before Hamas launched its deadly Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel that started the war in Gaza.

In the film, Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham embeds in a community fighting displacement, but he faces some pushback from Palestinians who point out his privileges as an Israeli citizen. Adra says he is unable to leave the West Bank and is treated like a criminal, while Abraham can come and go freely.

The film is heavily reliant on camcorder footage from Adra’s personal archive. He captures Israeli soldiers bulldozing the village school and filling water wells with cement to prevent people from rebuilding.

Residents of the small, rugged region of Masafer Yatta band together after Adra films an Israeli soldier shooting a local man who is protesting the demolition of his home. The man becomes paralyzed, and his mother struggles to take care of him while living in a cave.

​ Orange County Register 

JSerra, Santa Margarita and Los Alamitos among home teams in first round of CIF regional boys basketball playoffs

• March 3, 2025

Los Alamitos, JSerra and Santa Margarita have first-round home games Tuesday in the CIF Southern California Regional Division I playoffs

Fairmont Prep, the CIF-SS Division 2AA champion, will play at Carlsbad on Tuesday in a Division I first-round game. CIF-SS Division I champion Los Alamitos is home against Cathedral Catholic in another Division I game Tuesday.

Four other Orange County teams also play Division I first-round games Tuesday.

Pacifica Christian, which lost to Fairmont Prep 64-60 in the CIF-SS 2AA final, plays at Redondo, which was a CIF-SS Open Division playoff team.

Crean Lutheran, which lost to Los Alamitos in the CIF-SS Division 1 semifinals, plays at Mira Costa, which lost to Los Alamitos 63-60 in the CIF-SS Division 1 championship game Saturday.

Santa Margarita, a CIF-SS Open Division team, is at home against Torrey Pines, and JSerra, also a CIF-SS Open Division team, is home against San Marcos.

CIF-SS Division 2A semifinalist Irvine is at Francis Parker of San Diego in the Division II first round Tuesday.

Sage Hill, which lost in the CIF-SS Division 3AA championship game Saturday, is home against Birmingham of the CIF Los Angeles City Section.

CIF-SS Division 4AA champion Santiago is at home Tuesday against Bernstein of the L.A. City Section in a Division IV first-round game.

Pacifica, which lost to Santiago in the CIF-SS 4AA semifinals, is at Maranatha Christian of San Diego in the Division IV first round Tuesday.

Saddleback, a CIF-SS 5A semifinalist, plays at Pacific Ridge of Carlsbad in a Division V first-round game Tuesday.

The CIF Southern California Regional playoffs have four round that runs concurrently with the CIF Northern California Regional playoffs.

Southern California Regional dates are Tuesday for the first round in Divisions I-V and on Wednesday for the first round in the Open Division and in Division VI.

The second round for Divisions I-V is Thursday. The semifinals for all divisions are Saturday, March 8, followed by SoCal Regional championship games on March 11.

All games are to be played at the gyms of the home teams at 7 p.m., including regional championship games.

Southern California Regional champions and Northern California Regional champions meet in the CIF State finals on March 14 and 15 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.

Admission to SoCal Regional games is $5 for children and students and $9 for adults for the first two rounds and the semifinals. Admission for regional finals is $8 for children and students and $12 for adults.

GoFan.co is the exclusive seller of tickets for CIF Southern California Regional basketball.

​ Orange County Register 

‘The Brutalist’ wins Oscar for best original score

• March 3, 2025

By MARIA SHERMAN, Associated Press

First-time Academy Award nominee Daniel Blumberg is now an Oscar winner. He took home the trophy for original score for “The Brutalist” on Sunday.

Blumberg beat Clément Ducol and Camille (“Emilia Pérez”), Kris Bowers (“The Wild Robot”), Volker Bertelmann (“Conclave”) and John Powell and Stephen Schwartz (“Wicked”).

“I’ve been an artist for 20 years now,” Blumberg said in his acceptance speech. “And when I met (director) Brady (Corbet) I met my artistic soulmate.”

Corbet’s “The Brutalist” follows Lázló Tóth, a fictional visionary Hungarian architect who escaped the Holocaust, sailed to the United States to find his American Dream and created the style of architecture the film takes its name from.

When the nominations were announced in January, Blumberg told The Associated Press that he was actually with Corbet when he learned of his first-ever nod. “It’s been quite a surreal day,” he said. The pair shared a hug when the news arrived.

“‘The Brutalist’ was always such an important project for me,” Blumberg continued, describing the team behind it as dedicated to making “something with urgency, to make something with no compromise.”

Earlier in the night, French composer duo Clément Ducol and Camille took home the original song award at the Oscars on Sunday for their track, “El Mal.”

In January, “El Mal” also earned the pair a Golden Globe in the same category.

The musical “Emilia Pérez” is a lot of things — a musical, a transgender parable, endlessly controversial and frequently criticized for its depiction of Mexican culture.

“We are so grateful,” Camille said in her acceptance speech. “We wrote ‘El Mal’ as a song to denounce corruption, and we hope it speaks to the role music and art can play and continue to play as a force of good and progress in the world.”

The award was presented by Mick Jagger. “I wasn’t the first choice,” he joked. “The producers really wanted Bob Dylan to do it.”

Ducol and Camille beat Diane Warren for “The Journey” from “The Six Triple Eight,” Elton John, Bernie Taupin, Brandi Carlile and Andrew Watt for “Never Too Late” from “Elton John: Never Too Late,” and Abraham Alexander, Brandon Marcel and Black Pumas’ Adrian Quesada for “Like A Bird” from “Sing Sing.”

They also beat themselves: Their composition “Mi Camino” from “Emilia Pérez” was also up for the award.

The first-time Oscar nominees had a total of three nominations, including original score, at the 97th Academy Awards.

“You go from anxiety to relief, and you’re filled up with energy and you need that,” Camille told The Associated Press in January, when nominations were announced. “We’ve worked so much, and we’ve worked so much for the campaign … I feel very fulfilled and very happy for all the team.”

Camille said the film’s recognition “represents something very important.”

“It’s a very free, provocative and empathic, compassionate movie. And I really think this is what we need now.”

“It’s totally incredible. I was like, ‘What?’ It’s three nominations. It’s huge,” added Ducol. “We were involved at the beginning of the construction of the story in music … So everything is linked together, is woven together between the script, the screenplay, the songs. And so, we feel like it’s our story, our movie … It’s not just a musical or reflecting a story or reflecting action in the movie. The music and the songs, in this movie, is the script. It is the story.”

​ Orange County Register 

Paul Tazewell becomes first Black man to win an Oscar for best costume design

• March 3, 2025

By JONATHAN LANDRUM Jr., Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Paul Tazewell made history at the Oscars, becoming the first Black man to win best costume design.

Tazewell won for his masterful design work in “Wicked” at the 97th Academy Awards on Sunday. It is his first win and second nomination. He was previously nominated in the category for his work on Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story.”

“I’m the first Black man to receive the costume design award,” he said in his acceptance speech, which was met with a couple standing ovations. “I’m so proud of this.”

Backstage, Tazewell said winning the award is the pinnacle of his career. He said he feels humbled to inspire other Black men aspiring to become costume designers.

“I’ve been designing costumes for over 35 years — that has been on Broadway and now it’s film,” he said. “There was never a Black male designer who I saw that I could follow and see as an inspiration. But to realize now that it’s actually me.”

Before the Oscars, Tazewell won awards at BAFTA, Critics Choice and Costume Designers Guild awards. He’s the second Black person to in the category after Ruth E. Carter made history for her work in 2018 for “Black Panther,” which made her the first African American to win in the category.

Carter became the first Black woman to win two Oscars in 2023.

“She has paved the way for designers of color,” Tazewell said.

In his acceptance speech, Tazewell thanked “Wicked” stars Ariana Grande and Cynthis Erivo.

“To my muses, Cynthia and Ariana and all the other cast,” he said. “Thank you for trusting me with bringing your characters to life. This is everything.”

Tazewell built a legendary career, winning an Emmy in 2018 for his costume work on “The Wiz Live!” and a Tony for “Hamilton.” He worked with Erivo on the 2019 film “Harriet,” which was his first feature film.

Tazewell, who has earned nine Tony nominations, gained notoriety through theater projects such as “The Color Purple,” “In the Heights,” “MJ the Musical,” “Suffs” and “A Streetcar Named Desire.”

​ Orange County Register