The Sports Report: LeBron James gets tossed in wild Lakers victory

Howdy, I’m your host, Houston Mitchell. Let’s get right to the news.

Broderick Turner on the Lakers: Forward LeBron James was called for a flagrant foul 2 for his elbow that bloodied the face of Pistons forward Isaiah Stewart during the third quarter and was ejected from the game before the Lakers rallied from 17 points down for a stirring 121-116 win over Detroit on Sunday night.

Stewart was ejected from the game for escalating things, as he kept running after James on the court, refusing to leave. Stewart was bleeding beneath his right eye after James’ elbow struck him.

Russell Westbrook was given a technical foul for his involvement in the wild scene that took place with 9 minutes and 18 seconds left in the third and the Lakers trailing 78-66.

James, in his second game back after missing eight because of an abdominal strain, left the Little Caesars Arena court with 10 points and five assists.

James declined to speak to the media after the game.

Anthony Davis was a force for the Lakers with 30 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and five blocked shots, carrying a big load to help them break a three-game losing streak. He had a big steal late in the game and made two free throws with 1.1 seconds left to seal the win.

Westbrook was also a force for the Lakers, just missing a triple-double with 26 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds.

CLIPPERS

Thuc Nhi Nguyen on the Clippers: Long arms, a lot of “dumb” practice shots as a kid and a prayer helped Reggie Jackson with an unlikely layup on a daring drive to the hoop.

After he turned over his right shoulder and watched his twisting, up-and-under scoop shot drop through the net late in the Clippers’ 97-91 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday at Staples Center, teammates dropped their jaws. Jackson held out his right hand and stared at it.

The Clippers guard shook off a disappointing performance in Friday’s loss to New Orleans to finish with 23 points and four assists Sunday. Combined with 29 points and six assists from Paul George, the Clippers (10-7) snapped their two-game losing streak while handing the Mavericks (9-7) their third straight loss without star guard Luka Doncic, who has knee and ankle sprains.

Jackson’s turnaround was key for the Clippers, who are undefeated in the seven games in which he has scored 20 or more points.

“For him to step up and be that second scorer behind PG, we need that a lot,” coach Tyronn Lue said. “When he plays well, we play well.”

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CHARGERS

Jeff Miller on the Chargers: Leading by 17 points to start the fourth quarter Sunday night, the Chargers avoided an epic three-phase, five-alarm meltdown to escape with a heart-thumping 41-37 victory over Pittsburgh.

Justin Herbert completed a wildly productive night hit by hitting Mike Williams for a 53-yard touchdown with 2:09 remaining to give the Chargers back the lead they had almost impossibly kicked away.

“It didn’t always go as we scripted it,” safety Derwin James said. “They battled back. They got some momentum. We put the fire out.”

The Steelers scored 27 points in a stretch of barely 10 minutes in the final quarter to take the unlikeliest of leads before Herbert and Williams rescued the win at SoFi Stadium.

The atmosphere inside the Chargers’ home was buzzing and largely leaning toward Pittsburgh, the cheering and towel-waving only growing as the Steelers came roaring back.

“I’m extremely proud of our football team, as proud as I’ve been of our football team the entire year,” coach Brandon Staley said. “That environment was really, really challenging for us.”

Before Herbert and Williams made their late connection, the Chargers had unraveled in the fateful fourth, their offense stalling, their defense unable to make a stop and their special teams having a punt blocked.

Herbert finished 30 for 41 for 382 yards and three touchdowns. He also ran nine times for a career-best 90 yards, continually extending drives and flustering the Steelers.

UCLA BASKETBALL

Natalie Chou scored 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting, IImar’I Thomas added 19 points and No. 20 UCLA pulled away to beat Virginia 69-57.

Jaelynn Penn scored 16 points and joined Chou, Thomas and Dominique Onu with two 3-pointers. The Bruins (3-0) were 9 of 17 behind the arc (53%) and shot 51% overall (25 of 49).

The balanced scoring helped pick up the slack with leading scorer Charisma Osborne (21.5 ppg) out after injuring a foot in the last game. Osborne did not suit up but was walking on the sideline. UCLA was down to seven players for the game and three finished with four fouls.

KINGS

Kyle Capobianco scored with 1:34 remaining in overtime, Karel Vejmelka stopped 37 shots for his first career win and the Arizona Coyotes defeated the Kings 2-1.

Travis Boyd had a goal and an assist for the Coyotes, who have won consecutive games for the first time this season. On Friday night at home, Clayton Keller scored 25 seconds into overtime to give the Coyotes a 2-1 comeback victory over Detroit.

Arizona is 3-0-1 in its last four games.

Brendan Lemieux scored for the Kings, who have lost four straight following a seven-game winning streak. Jonathan Quick had 25 saves.

UCLA FOOTBALL

Thuc Nhi Nguyen on the Bruins: UCLA quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson dominated crosstown rival USC with 349 passing yards and six total touchdowns as the Bruins crushed the Trojans 62-33 at the Coliseum on Saturday.

Here are four takeaways from the game:

What effect will this have on Chip Kelly’s job security?

Fans may still want Kelly out based on his body of work — just 17-25 in his four seasons — but this victory makes it even more difficult for a cash-strapped administration to write a $9-million buyout check. With struggling California coming to the Rose Bowl in the regular-season finale, UCLA (7-4, 5-3 Pac-12) has a chance to finish with its best record since 2015. The Bruins are already going to a bowl for the first time since 2017.

But this was supposed to be the peak of the Kelly era. If this team, which is stacked with 20 returning starters, a three-year starter at quarterback and seniors at every defensive starting position, can only muster nine wins, then a championship is still a far-away dream in Westwood. Saturday’s victory only complicates Kelly’s job status more for athletic director Martin Jarmond.

Click here for the rest of the takeaways.

SOCCER

Kevin Baxter on soccer: On most days, Bruce Arena is among the first to arrive at the New England Revolution’s training center, a 68-acre complex carved out of densely wooded wetlands 30 miles south of Boston.

At 70, Arena is at both the apex and the end of his career. The most successful American soccer coach of all time, he has never had a team perform at a higher level than this season. After turning around more organizations than Lee Iacocca, Arena came out of retirement 2½ years ago to take over a floundering franchise that hadn’t had a winning season in four years and guided it this year to the best regular-season record in MLS history.

When Arena is in the mood, the still early-morning hours — when he has only the soaring pine, birch and oak trees outside his office window for company — offer a chance to reflect on how he got here. The answer, he said, continues to elude him.

“I don’t even know why I took the job, to be honest,” he said on a recent quiet morning. “I did [it] with some reluctance because I wasn’t sure it was the right thing to do.”

There can be no doubt now since this season has provided the only appropriate coda to an unparalleled list of achievements that includes four consecutive NCAA championships at Virginia, 275 wins and five championships in MLS — including three in four years with the Galaxy — and two World Cup appearances and 81 victories with the men’s national team.

Every number is a record, as are the 73 points the Revolution gathered this season, earning Arena his 13th postseason appearance and, almost certainly, his fourth coach of the year award. The only thing missing now is Arena’s sixth league title, which would tie him with the NFL’s Bill Belichick — with whom he also shares a stadium and an owner — for most championships for an active coach in a pro team sport in the U.S.

“Bruce is the most successful coach in the history of the United States. Full stop,” said Sunil Gulati, the only three-term president of the U.S. Soccer Federation and a former FIFA vice president.

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THIS DATE IN SPORTS

1945 — Jim Benton of the Cleveland Rams is the first NFL player to have more than 300 receiving yards in a game. Benton has 10 receptions for 303 yards and a touchdown in a 28-21 victory over the Detroit Lions.

1950 — The Fort Wayne Pistons edge the Minneapolis Lakers 19-18 in the lowest-scoring game in NBA history. John Oldham leads the Pistons with five points and George Mikan had 15 of the Lakers’ points.

1959 — The AFL holds their first player draft. First round choices are Boston, Gerhard Schwedes; Buffalo, Richie Lucas; Dallas, Don Meredith; Denver, Roger LeClerc; Houston, Billy Cannon; Los Angeles, Monty Stickles; Minneapolis, Dale Hackbart; New York, George Izo.

1965 — Muhammad Ali knocks out Floyd Patterson in the 12th round to retain the world heavyweight title in Las Vegas.

1981 — Kellen Winslow of the San Diego Chargers catches five touchdown passes in a 55-21 rout of the Oakland Raiders.

1986 — Mike Tyson becomes the youngest heavyweight champion ever when he knocks out Trevor Berbick in the second round to win the WBC heavyweight title in Las Vegas.

1986 — Wayne Gretzky, playing in his 575th NHL game, scores his 500th goal in the Edmonton Oilers’ 5-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks.

1992 — North Carolina wins its seventh straight Division I women’s soccer title with a 9-1 win over Duke. The Tar Heels also set the record for most goals in a championship game.

1998 — John Elway of the Denver Broncos joins Dan Marino as the only players with 50,000 yards as the Broncos post a 40-14 victory over the Oakland Raiders.

2003 — The Montreal Canadiens beat the Edmonton Oilers 4-3, in the NHL’s first outdoor game. The game marking the 86th anniversary of the founding of the league is played in front of a record crowd of 57,167 at a football arena in Edmonton.

2003 — Utah ends BYU’s NCAA-record streak of 361 consecutive games without being shutout when the Utes beat the Cougars 3-0 in Provo, Utah. Wind and snow limits both offenses. Bryan Borreson’s 41-yard field goal is the all the 9-2 Utes need to clinch the Mountain West conference title. The Cougars had scored in every game dating back to Oct. 3, 1975.

2006 — Teemu Selanne scores his 500th goal in Anaheim’s 3-2 loss to Colorado. Selanne, the 36th player in NHL history to reach the milestone, joins Jari Kurri as the only Finnish-born NHL players to score 500 goals.

2008 — Abilene Christian sets a record for points in an NCAA playoff game, beating West Texas A&M 93-68 in the second round of the Division II playoffs.

2010 — Alex Kovalev records his 1,000th point with a power-play goal midway through the first period of Ottawa’s game against Los Angeles.

2012 — New England embarrasses the New York Jets with a 35-point second quarter in a 49-19 victory to give and Bill Belichick his 200th NFL victory. Belichick is the eighth coach in NFL history with 200 career victories, including the playoffs.

2014 — Samaje Perine of Oklahoma sets the single-game FBS record by rushing for 427 yards in the Sooners’ 44-7 in over Kansas. Perine breaks the single-game FBS record of 408 set by Wisconsin’s Melvin Gordon a week earlier.

2015 — Novak Djokovic wins his fourth straight title at the season-ending ATP finals by beating six-time champion Roger Federer 6-3, 6-4. Djokovic, who won three Grand Slam titles this year and reached the final in the other, caps the best season of his life.

Supplied by the Associated Press

And finally

Teemu Selanne scores his 500th goal. Watch and listen here.