The world of sports is big and busy. It is hard to cover everything as it happens. The AM Sports Rundown summarizes and analyzes the week’s biggest stories that the Sports Desk couldn’t cover. Written by a rotation of talented student sports journalists, a new AM Sports Rundown is published every Friday afternoon on the Annenberg Media website and the Annenberg Media Sports social media accounts.
Milwaukee Brewers sweep the Dodgers in the NLCS
The Milwaukee Brewers swept the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday night to win the National League Championship Series. For the first time in 44 years, the Brewers are headed to baseball’s biggest stage: the World Series.
Milwaukee became the first team in MLB history to reverse a sweep in a best-of-seven series, beating the same opponent who swept them the previous consecutive season, according to Opta Stats.
Pitcher Jacob Misiorowski, nicknamed “The Miz,” set the tone for Milwaukee in Game 1, allowing one run on five hits with five strikeouts and three walks across four 1/3 innings and 94 pitches. Dodgers outfielder Andy Pages drove in Los Angeles’ only run, but Brewers second-baseman Brice Turang tied the game with a solo home run before right-fielder Luis Lara delivered the go-ahead RBI single, 2-1.
Game 2 featured four lead changes, but the Brewers continued to answer every Dodgers run. Brewers catcher William Contreras recorded three run-scoring hits, while Milwaukee’s bullpen retired all 15 batters it faced over the final five innings of the 7- 4 victory.
The series shifted to Los Angeles for Game 3, where the Dodgers briefly took a 2-1 lead in the sixth inning. Brewers first-baseman Jake Bauers responded with a go-ahead two-run homer before center-fielder Garrett Mitchell went deep in the next at-bat, powering Milwaukee to a 6-2 win.
Facing elimination in Game four, the Dodgers’ sleeping giant finally awoke. After Los Angeles considered removing two-way player Shohei Ohtani from the lineup because of his prolonged slump, the four-time MVP blasted a three-run homer to help build a 4-0 lead.The spark was short-lived, however, as Milwaukee erased the deficit. Once again, Mitchell delivered, hitting the go-ahead home run in the sixth to propel the Brewers to a 6-4 comeback victory and complete the four-game sweep.
Bauers was named NLCS MVP after leading Milwaukee with six RBIs and delivering several of the series’ defining at-bats.
At their 2025 World Series championship celebration, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts publicly teased that the Dodgers were working towards the first three-peat in MLB history. This year, the Dodgers continued their streak of the most NLCS appearances (17) and an NLCS victory would have added another pennant to their record-holding 26 National League trophy-case. The Boys in Blue could’ve potentially been on their way to their 26th World Series appearance, but the Brewers’ extended their 103-59 best-record in baseball all the way to the postseason.
With the National League pennant secured, the Brewers now await the winner of the Cleveland Guardians -Tampa Bay Rays American League Championship Series before beginning their pursuit of the franchise’s first World Series championship.
This October, a new WNBA champ will be crowned
The WNBA Finals are set, and it’s a matchup nobody would have expected at the beginning of the season. The fourth-seeded Atlanta Dream, seeking its first championship after three previous Finals appearances (2010, 2011, 2013), will face the No. 2 Golden State Valkyries, a sophomore-season franchise, in a best-of-seven series.
Atlanta is 5-0 this postseason, sweeping the Washington Mystics in the first round and the New York Liberty in the semifinals. Its identity starts with forward Angel Reese, arguably the best postseason performer. The 2026 Defensive Player of the Year led the league with 12.1 rebounds per game and is averaging 18.0 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.2 blocks in her first playoffs, as well as shooting 38.5% from three under Dream head coach Karl Smesko, who’s known for developing long-range shooters.
Reese is also an underrated perimeter defender — with a 6-foot-5 3⁄4 wingspan on a 6-foot-3 frame. She can switch onto quicker guards, give up just enough space to avoid getting blown by and still come away with deflections and steals.
Golden State can win with depth. Forward Gabby Williams, runner-up for Defensive Player of the Year, is the highest scorer left in the Finals at 22.7 points per game, with a 40.5% clip beyond the arc. Guard Tiffany Hayes (13.3 ppg), forwards Kayla Thornton (10.8 ppg) and Cecilia Zandalasini give the Valkyries scoring all over the floor, while center Kiah Stokes is pulling down 9.5 boards on a given night.
Sixth Player of the Year and forward Janelle Salaün is the major X-factor. She hit 7 of 15 threes against Atlanta this season, often popping to the arc when the Dream sat back in drop coverage. The Valkyries also swept the regular-season series 3-0 and hold a massive Ballhalla-sized home-court advantage, with the first two games in the Bay.
Two things could swing the series. First, Golden State’s bench shooting can be explosive or ice cold – it is key for them to find a rhythm and get going. Second, offensive fouls: the Valkyries drew eight in three meetings, and those momentum plays could decide close games.
The sideline matchup is just as compelling: Golden State’s head coach Natalie Nakase and Atlanta’s Smesko are both in their second seasons as head coaches and both have earned the deep trust of their locker rooms.
Tipoff for the first game of the Finals is set for Saturday, at 12:30 p.m. PDT.
UCLA quarterback sidelined with knee injury
UCLA senior quarterback Nico Iamaleava suffered a potentially season-ending injury last Saturday during the Bruins’ 17-15 upset over Oregon. Before the half, Oregon fifth-year defensive lineman Bear Alexander and senior linebacker Jerry Mixon Jr. assisted one another to sack Iamaleava. Post-tackle, Alexander landed a punch in the back of Iamaleava’s head. Despite the late contact, no flag was issued. Iamaleava missed the remainder of the game.
UCLA head coach Bob Chesney detested the play in a postgame press conference, contending that officials should have penalized Alexander in-game. Despite the dissent, Oregon head coach Dan Lanning refused to denounce the play, framing the incident as a “ball shot” gone awry. In a Monday press conference, Lanning expressed sympathy for the Bruins, but shared that he would not seek out further punishment for Alexander.
However, the head shot is not what could end Iamaleava’s season. As Alexander and Mixon completed the tackle, Iamaleava rolled over Mixon, awkwardly landing on his leg. According to Chesney, Iamaleava suffered a knee injury. While the program has not confirmed his recovery timeline, CBS reports that he will miss the remainder of the year.
Iamaleava has been a middling presence in the backfield this year, notching just four passing touchdowns against four interceptions. His QB Rating of 29.1 ranks 128th of 138 FBS teams. Despite this UCLA has gone 5-0 on the season.
Following Iamaleava’s exit Saturday, backup senior quarterback Ty Dieffenbach managed 43 yards and a touchdown in the Bruins’ winning effort. In all likelihood, he will take the helm in the interim. If Iamaleava remains out for the rest of the season, USC will likely face Dieffenbach on rivalry weekend.
UCLA will host Wisconsin this Saturday at 4:30 p.m. PDT at the Rose Bowl Stadium.
Edited by Sammie Vassallo and Adriana Brady