Howdy, I’m your host, Austin Knoblauch, filling in for Houston Mitchell. Let’s get right to the news.
From Gary Klein: It’s happening.
Again.
The Rams rebounded from a dismal first half of the season and are making a run for the playoffs.
Again.
Despite a nebulous performance on offense against the San Francisco 49ers, coach Sean McVay’s team is now the one nobody in the NFL wants to play.
Again.
Newsletter
Go beyond the scoreboard
Get the latest on L.A.’s teams in the daily Sports Report newsletter.
Enter email address
Sign Me Up
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
On Thursday night, the Rams defeated the 49ers 12-6 at Levi’s Stadium.
Joshua Karty kicked four field goals, Kyren Williams rushed for 108 yards, and cornerback Darious Williams intercepted a fourth-quarter pass as the Rams improved their record to 8-6.
While it might have been painful to watch, it left the Rams feeling great.
With good reason.
The Rams have won three games in a row for the first time in a season that began with a 1-4 start. They also swept the 49ers for the first time since 2018, when McVay led the Rams to Super Bowl LIII in his second season.
In September, the Rams needed a patented Matthew Stafford fourth-quarter comeback and a last-second field goal by Karty to beat the 49ers 27-24 at SoFi Stadium.
Continue reading here
Rams-49ers box score
NFL standings
ALSO: Rams’ grind-out win over 49ers is a step forward
Enjoying this newsletter? Consider subscribing to the Los Angeles Times
Your support helps us deliver the news that matters most. Become a subscriber.
CHARGERS
Justin Herbert has thrown 335 consecutive passes without an interception, fifth best in NFL history.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: At the mention of his record-setting streak of passes without an interception, Justin Herbert gently knocked on a wooden lectern and smirked. A run like this can always use some superstitious help.
Herbert has thrown 335 consecutive passes without an interception, a Chargers record. Still working toward Aaron Rodgers’ NFL record of 402 consecutive passes, Herbert downplayed his streak, saying it is “probably more luck than anything.”
Coach Jim Harbaugh scoffed at the suggestion.
“Way more skill than luck,” Harbaugh said.
Continue reading here
DODGERS
Dodgers players, from left, Mookie Betts, Chris Taylor, Jack Flaherty, Brusdar Graterol and Freddie Freeman are honored before a Lakers game against the Philadelphia 76ers at Crypto.com Arena on Nov. 8.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
From Mike DiGiovanna: The face of the franchise, Landon Knack is not — that distinction belongs to Dodgers stars Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts and Clayton Kershaw — but the rookie pitcher has been as much, if not more, of a social media presence than his more famous teammates in the weeks since the Dodgers beat the New York Yankees in the World Series.
What Knack, a 27-year-old right-hander from Johnson City, Tenn., described as a “whirlwind” month in the wake of the Nov. 1 downtown parade and Dodger Stadium celebration began with an invitation from the Tennessee Titans to watch their Nov. 10 game against the Chargers from a SoFi Stadium suite.
Knack was at Dodger Stadium with teammates Anthony Banda and Tony Gonsolin for a Thanksgiving turkey giveaway on Nov. 20. He returned to SoFi on Nov. 24, joining Banda and reliever Joe Kelly to show off the World Series trophy before a Sunday Night Football game between the Rams and Philadelphia Eagles.
Continue reading here
ALSO: Join us for our Dodgers Debate live Christmas special on Tuesday. Submit your questions here.
UCLA MEN’S BASKETBALL
Arizona guard Caleb Love, shown leaping in the air while guarding UCLA’s Sebastian Mack last season, is the Wildcats’ sole returning player.
(Jae C. Hong / Associated Press)
From Ben Bolch: Long each other’s biggest basketball rival in the Pac-12, UCLA and Arizona will meet again Saturday at the Footprint Center in Phoenix as newly estranged.
It will be a nonconference game. On a neutral court. In an NBA arena that as of midweek was not sold out.
“The whole thing’s weird,” Bruins coach Mick Cronin said Wednesday of a game that always drew one of the biggest home crowds of the season for each team but is now being staged elsewhere as a name, image and likeness fundraiser. The teams are scheduled to meet again next season at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and in 2027 in Los Angeles at a site to be determined.
Adding to the bizarre-ness is Arizona’s early season stature. The Wildcats (4-4), now members of the Big 12 Conference, fell out of the national rankings last week for the first time since November 2021 and briefly had a losing record for the first time since early in the 2009-10 season.
Continue reading here
LAKERS
Lakers star LeBron James will not play against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night because of foot soreness.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
From Dan Woike: LeBron James, who hasn’t been with the Lakers this week because of “personal reasons,” will miss Friday’s game in Minnesota against the Timberwolves.
Thursday, the team listed him as “out” with left foot soreness, an issue that popped up last week after the Lakers played the Miami Heat. James sat out the team’s win Sunday against Portland.
“For us, we have to be cognizant as we play more and more games, just the cumulative effect of playing a lot minutes,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said after practice Wednesday. “And Sunday, being banged up with the foot thing, it felt like a good opportunity for him to get some rest.”
Continue reading here
NBA scores
NBA standings
BASEBALL
Modesto has fielded a California League team since 1946. Next year will be its farewell season.
(Andy Alfaro/aalfaro@modbee.com/TNS)
From Bill Shaikin: Baseball has struck out in Modesto.
The largest operator of minor league baseball teams bought the Modesto Nuts and plans to move the team to San Bernardino in 2026, the Nuts announced Thursday. Modesto has fielded a California League team since 1946.
The move helps create a mecca of minor league baseball in the Inland Empire, with three California League teams set to play within 25 miles come 2026 — and with all three teams now owned by Diamond Baseball Holdings.
The Dodgers will move their California League affiliate from Rancho Cucamonga to a new $100-million ballpark in Ontario. The Angels, who were affiliated with Rancho Cucamonga from 2001-2010, will return there from San Bernardino.
Continue reading here
HIGH SCHOOLS
Carson Palmer speaks after being added to the Arizona Cardinals ring of honor during a game in September 2019.
(Ross D. Franklin / Associated Press)
From Eric Sondheimer: Carson Palmer, a Heisman Trophy winner and former NFL quarterback, is the new football coach at his alma mater, Santa Margarita High School. Palmer’s hiring was confirmed by the school Thursday.
Palmer was a volunteer coach for the freshman team last season, when his son was playing quarterback.
Santa Margarita ended up 5-7 this season after coach Anthony Rouzier was placed on administrative leave in early October following a locker room incident. Defensive coordinator Steve Fifita served as interim coach.
Continue reading here
KINGS
From the Associated Press: Jack Hughes scored the go-ahead goal and added two assists and the New Jersey Devils ended the Kings’ six-game winning streak with a 3-1 victory on Thursday.
Hughes snapped his 12th goal of the season past Kings goaltender David Rittich with 7:02 left in the third period to give the Devils their first lead. Ondrej Palat and Brett Pesce also scored for New Jersey, which won for the first time in three games.
Kings defenseman Jordan Spence opened the scoring when he fired a one-timer past Jacob Markstrom with 3:19 left in the second. The goal was assisted by New Jersey native Alex Laferriere and Phillip Danault.
Continue reading here
Kings-Devils box score
NHL scores
NHL standings
DUCKS
From the Associated Press: Max Pacioretty had two goals and an assist and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Ducks 3-2 on Thursday night.
William Nylander also scored and John Tavares had two assists for the Maple Leafs, who have won two straight. Anthony Stolarz started in goal and stopped seven before leaving because of a lower-body injury. Joseph Woll took over to start the second period and had 19 saves.
Jackson LaCombe had a goal and an assist, Frank Vatrano also scored and Ryan Strome had two assists for the Ducks in their fifth straight loss. Lukas Dostal finished with 30 saves.
Continue reading here
Ducks-Maple Leafs box score
ALSO: Trevor Zegras to miss six weeks after surgery
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1942 — The Washington Redskins win the NFL Championship with a 14-6 victory over the Chicago Bears.
1958 — Gordie Howe of the Detroit Red Wings scores his 400th NHL goal in a 2-2 tie against the Montreal Canadiens.
1981 — John McEnroe and Roscoe Tanner lead the United States to a 3-1 victory over Argentina in the Davis Cup final.
1983 — Detroit beats Denver 186-184 in triple overtime in the highest-scoring game in NBA history. Isiah Thomas scores 47 and John Long adds 41 for the Pistons. Denver’s Kiki Vandeweghe had 51 points.
1992 — Manon Rheaume becomes the first woman to play in a regular-season professional game when she appears in the Atlanta Knights’ 4-1 loss to Salt Lake City in the International Hockey League.
1995 — Detroit’s Paul Coffey becomes the first NHL defenseman to reach 1,000 career assists, setting up Igor Larionov’s first-period goal in the Red Wings’ 3-1 victory over Chicago.
1997 — Michigan’s Charles Woodson is named the first predominantly defensive player to receive the Heisman Trophy in the 63 years of the award. Woodson and the Wolverines go on to defeat Washington State in the 1998 Rose Bowl, claiming a perfect 12-0 season and a share of the National Championship.
1998 — Gary Anderson kicks six field goals, setting the NFL record with 34 straight without a miss, in Minnesota’s 38-28 victory over Baltimore.
2003 — Mount Union breaks its own NCAA record by winning its 55th consecutive game, beating Bridgewater 66-0 in the NCAA Division III semifinals.
2004 — In Sestriere, Italy, World Cup leader Bode Miller wins a slalom to join Marc Girardelli as the only men to win races in all four disciplines in a season. Miller has won slalom, giant slalom, super-G and downhill races in a span of 16 days.
2007 — Major League Baseball’s Mitchell Report is released, identifying 85 names to differing degrees in the 409-page document. The biggest name linked by former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell to illegal use of steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs is seven-time Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens.
2010 — Minnesota quarterback Brett Favre, 41, is sidelined by a throwing shoulder too damaged for even him to overcome. The injury ends of one of the greatest individual streaks in all of sports. Favre had made 297 consecutive starts over 19 seasons.
2014 — Marcus Mariota wins the Heisman Trophy, becoming the first Oregon player to earn college football’s top individual honor. Mariota accounts for a Pac-12-record 53 touchdowns (38 passing, 14 rushing and one receiving) while directing the Ducks’ warp-speed spread offense, and leading Oregon to a spot in the first College Football Playoff.
2015 – Irishman Conor McGregor knocks out Brazilian Jose Aldo in 13 seconds to win his 1st featherweight title in Las Vegas.
2018 — Dirk Nowitzki takes the court for his record 21st NBA season with the Dallas Mavericks, surpassing Kobe Bryant’s 20 seasons with the LA Lakers.
2022 — Washington Capitals center Alex Ovechkin scores a hat trick in 7-3 away win over Chicago Blackhawks to join Wayne Gretzky & Gordie Howe as the only players in NHL history to score 800 goals.
Compiled by the Associated Press
And finally
It’s every college football fan’s favorite time of the year — transfer portal season! Keep track of the players joining and leaving UCLA and USC in our handy NCAA portal tracker here.
Until next time…
That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at @latimeshouston. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
