Sorted by date Results 451 - 475 of 522
Last Thursday and Friday evenings were special for me. The 1971-‘72 NBA champion Lakers were honored, first at the Manhattan Beach Marriott Hotel and then at halftime of the Lakers’ game at Staples Center against the Houston Rockets. I was the only writer who covered every game that season, home and away when I worked for the Los Angeles Herald-Examiner. No, the LA Times didn’t send a writer full-time. A documentary about the team, its record 33-game winning streak and Coach Bill Sharman is in...
Wisely, Culver City High schedules challenging non-league baseball games to prepare for the Ocean League. The strategy worked last season when the Centaurs didn’t win the league championship but proceeded to win three playoff games, including two in Orange County. Culver won eight of its first 10 games this season, including a pair of routs over Beverly Hills in league games. Then the Centaurs lost three of four against formidable non-league foes. The losses were 9-6 to Palos Verdes and a d...
Andrew Bynum has been known for erratic behavior throughout his seven years with the Lakers. It appears as if he’s getting worse, and some members of the media and current and former players are wondering if the matter will come to a head before long Quite simply, Bynum is 24, acts younger and tests the Lakers with behavior that could become a serious issue. The subject was addressed Sunday night at Staples Center before the Lakers played the Golden State Warriors. Several of us wondered why the...
In its opening week of Ocean league play the Culver City High baseball team defeated Beverly Hills twice, 15-4 and 3-1. In Tuesday’s game Tyler Mark struck out six batters in four innings before being relieved by Pablo Saucedo. Mark was three-for-three at the plate. Jay Steiner also had three hits and drove in three runs On Thursday, Brian Ibarra pitched five strong innings and Steiner worked the sixth and seventh. Jon Kocker had two hits. George Aceves and Adrian Perez each had won. On S...
We all should have known. The Tim Tebow story which captivated pro football fans last season, had to get to New York. It was a good story in Denver, when the quarterback supposedly lacking skills required to succeed, led the Broncos to a division championship and a first round playoff victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. But, where else but the premier stage of New York would the saga continue? And so it happened when Payton Manning became available and the Broncos decided to gamble that...
Frank McCourt’s eight years as the Dodgers’ owner were filled with unprecedented turmoil. But, like Magic, the saga has come to an end. A group headed by Lakers’ legend Magic Johnson, funded by Mark Walter of Guggenheim Partners and including Stan Kasten, who ran the Atlanta Braves though 14 straight playoff seasons, bought the team and Dodger Stadium Wednesday for $2 billion. The group also includes Peter Gruber, part-owner of the Golden State Warriors. They also paid $150 million for half of t...
The Culver City High baseball team has begun Ocean League play after winning six of eight non-league games. Culver City played at Beverly Hills Tuesday and was scheduled to host the Normans on Thursday, also at 3:15 pm. Culver lost a non-league game to Mira Costa, 7-0, then won a Redondo Tournament game from Palisades, 1-0, In the game against Mira Costa, which has a 4-5 record, Tyler Mark pitched 5 2/3 innings. He left with the bases loaded and reliever Erik Lorin gave up a three-run triple...
When I attended the Lakers’ game against Utah Sunday night I focused on Ramon Sessions, the team’s new point guard. Immediately, he made an impression with his speed. Session’s presence changes the personality of the 2012 Lakers from a slow-moving team to a team that wants to run. He gets the ball upcourt quickly and teammates better keep up. I don’t dispute the fact that the 25-year-old guard is an upgrade from 37-year-old Derek Fisher. But it’s possible the Lakers are going to regret cu...
In Ben Howland’s nine years as the UCLA basketball coach there have been three Final Four appearances. Howland took over a sagging program and restored it better than any of the other men who had tried to follow in the footsteps of the legendary John Wooden. That’s why the current season was so disappointing. Not only did UCLA plunge to a fifth place finish in a very weak Pac-12 Conference it was the subject of a Sports Illustrated article detailing major problems in the program. One jou...
The Culver City High baseball team is highly regarded. The Centaurs were ranked No. 4 in their division in the pre-season CIF poll. They were the only Ocean League team in the top 10. So far, so good for Coach Rick Prieto’s team. Culver began the season with five non-league games in eight days and won the first four before losing to Buena, 4-3. The victories were against Venice (10-3), Roosevelt (7-0), Taft (6-5) and Hueneme (8-0). Senior Tyler Marks and freshman Jay Steiner were the winning p...
The Major League Baseball television network had a show over the weekend rating the top 100 players. Albert Pujols, generally regarded as the sport’s best player over the last 10 years, was only No. 11. Upon seeing that I wondered if an explanation was coming. It was. The explanation was this is their rating as of now, looking ahead to the 2012 season. They believe Pujols will slip as he adjusts to a new team in a new league. Fair enough. But I anxiously watched to see who would rank 1 through 1...
Ryan Braun spoke eloquently for 30 minutes last week, explaining how he had been falsely accused of taking illegal substances that would have resulted in a 50-game suspension. He was passionate about his innocence and quite believable. What a story this has been, the National League’s Most Valuable Player with a spotless past shockingly thrust into the spotlight of an ugly mess. Now his guilty verdict has been overturned, the first time since drug testing became a part of major league b...
As spring training begins the biggest question in major league baseball is a simple one. Were the Angels wise to give Albert Pujols a 10-year, $240 million contract? It’s a fact that Pujols was baseball’s most coveted free agent in this bidding season and it can be argued that he’s been the best player in baseball over the last 10 years. He’s been National League MVP three times and a vital member of two World Series winners. But he’s 33, and how productive will he be in the latter years of...
The season ended for the Culver City High boys basketball team Tuesday night. Coach Jon Chapman said he was concerned when he didn’t see much zip in his players during warm-ups for their second round playoff game against Colony High of Ontario. He had reason to be concerned. The Centaurs fell 28 points behind at halftime. Culver rallied to come within nine points in the fourth quarter but couldn’t come closer. “We made a game of it,” said Chapman. “Near the finish we kept fouling in order to...
Jon Chapman was right. The Culver City High boys basketball coach said he expected the Centaurs to receive a CIF playoff berth even if they didn’t finish in the top three in the Ocean League.. The league gets three automatic playoff berths but there was a possibility of an at-large berth because the league is so highly regarded. By losing its final league game to Beverly Hills, Culver finished in a fourth place tie with Morningside but both teams were given at-large berths. Culver will play a f...
Following a late start due to labor negotiations the National Basketball Association is rapidly approaching mid-season. With only 66 games instead of the standard 82, as we get around 30 it’s already time for my annual halfway evaluation. My first observation is this is the strangest season ever. That’s because of new labor rules which led teams to dump salaries, only one week of training camp, only two exhibition games instead of eight and even elite teams bringing in a batch of new pla...
Chabola to Retire From Teaching Only Plans to Continue As Culver Athletic Director Jerry Chabola, who has been at Culver City High for 22 years, has announced he will retire from teaching classes. Around town, there’s been a misconception that he’s also retiring as athletic director. “That’s not correct,” Chabola told The Observer on Tuesday. “I’m going to be the athletic director, but without the teaching duties I won’t have quite as rigid a schedule. “When I do something I put everything in...
Nearing the end of the regular season, the Culver City High boy’s basketball team helped its chances of reaching the CIF playoffs last week. Coach Jon Chapman’s team defeated Beverly Hills, 87-81 in overtime and Morningside, 62-49, improving its Ocean League record to 3-3. The Centaurs are attempting to finish in the league’s top three, but with at-large berths available might receive a playoff bid even if they finish lower. The CIF has recognized the strength of the Ocean League in recen...
In the 23 years when I traveled with Laker teams I can count on one hand the times we writers socialized with the players. I flew on the team’s charter plane, but it was understood there were strict guidelines when the players would be available for interviews. And I didn’t violate that trust. I don’t travel anymore but I understand the restrictions are even greater now. There’s more media and more need for media control. I recall that once Coach Pat Riley and the four traveling writers (LA Time...
When the Lakers lose three in a row, as they did last week, everyone you know has a theory. I have mine and to me it all comes down to one reality. The roster is deficient. This is not a roster up to Laker standards. The question is why. That’s the question which management will ultimately have to answer. If fans and media members can see it, management certainly can too. What seems to be happening is the Lakers are sacrificing the season in order to position themselves financially for the n...
Our weekly stories in this newspaper usually focus on the Culver City High boys basketball team. There are other sports going on but staff limits and a tight budget make choices necessary. And the reasoning here and at other local papers is that boys basketball draws the most interest. But Friday night I went to the Del Goodyear Gymnasium and watched the Culver City girls play their Ocean League game against Santa Monica prior to the boys game. The Culver girls won, 69-60, improving their record...
When the Culver City High boys basketball team began Ocean League play last week it competed well but came up short twice. Culver lost to Morningside, 66-60 on Wednesday and Santa Monica on Friday, 67-61. The losses left the Centaurs with an 8-9 record. Earlier this season Coach Jon Chapman observed that inexperience would have to be overcome. Forward Aamahd Walker and guard Keilan Horton are superior scorers but a new batch of players lack varsity experience. Against Santa Monica Culver got...
They weren’t available for summer competition and they missed the first eight Culver City High regular season games but four Centaur football players have joined the basketball team. And one, 6-foot-1 Malik Deckard, was a key player last Friday night when Culver overcame a 21-point deficit to win a non-league game from Lynwood, 78-76. Deckard had five assists, four rebounds and three assists He was named Culver’s Player of the Week. “Malik gave us a spark that we really needed,” said Coach J...
The overtime began Sunday in Denver and 15 more minutes of drama seemed likely since the Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers were tied, 23-23. But the overtime lasted just one play. After the Steelers’ kickoff went into te end zone and wasn’t returned, Tim Tebow zipped a pass to Demaryios Thomas and the resulting 80-yard touchdown ended the NFL playoff game. Like many watching on television around America, I was stunned. How fast it ended. How unusual, with the much-maligned Tebow winning the gam...
In all the years I’ve covered the National Basketball Association I’ve never seen anything like this. Neither has anyone else. Prolonged labor negotiations occurred in 1998 but when they ended there wasn’t turmoil. This time, with new rules guiding teams about money, there was utter chaos. Trades and free agent signings were announced every hour all weekend and into the new week. The Lakers thought they had acquired Chris Paul, then found out the deal wasn’t approved. Then the Clippers thought...
