A struggling Russell Westbrook declared "I'm not a quitter" after another night to forget in the Los Angeles Lakers' defeat to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Westbrook has failed to hit the heights since joining the Lakers from the Washington Wizards in August.

The 2017 MVP could only muster a 17-point haul in a heavy 132-111 loss to the Clippers on Thursday and averages just 18.1 points this season.

That is now four successive defeats for the Lakers, who are ninth in the Western Conference at 27-35 as they continue to fall short without the injured Anthony Davis.

Westbrook said he had been dealing with critics since he was born and was involved in a tense exchange with a reporter after the Lakers' latest loss.

But the 33-year-old insists he will not be throwing the towel in.

"My role and what I'm doing has changed every single night, so I'm just trying to figure that out as I'm playing and to be able to benefit and help my team," he said.

"But my expectations are still the same. I'm not a quitter. It's not in my genes. I don't quit, regardless of what the hell is going on. I'm going to fight to the end and if it don't work, that’s cool, too.

"I can live with the results. But I’m never going to give up or give in because of a little struggle that’s happening this time of the year."

Westbrook says he did not sign for the Lakers with the expectation that it would all be plain sailing.

"Expectation? I come into every situation the same," he said. "The last four years I've been on different teams, so my vision of kind of everything is going to be peaches and cream, I don't. 

"That's not life. So for me I come into every situation, start from ground zero and try to figure it out along the way."

Jayson Tatum said having fun was the key to the Boston Celtics' strong form after Thursday's 120-107 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies.

The Celtics moved to 38-27 as Tatum put on a 21-point fourth-quarter blitz, racking up 37 points overall on his 24th birthday.

His stellar showing was key as Grizzlies star Ja Morant impressed again, with 38 points, four rebounds and seven assists.

And Tatum, whose side sit fifth in the Eastern Conference, believes that embracing the fun factor has been crucial to the Celtics' promising season.

“I think watching us now, we play with a lot more passion,” he said. “We just seem like we’re having a lot more fun.

“This is basketball at the end of the day, and it’s supposed to be a lot of fun,” said Tatum. "And we've been having a lot of fun lately.”

Team-mate Al Horford cited the side's solid work on defense as the foundation of their success, with the Celtics boasting a defensive rating of 105.4 – second only to the Golden State Warriors.

However, he conceded there was still work to be done on the offensive front.

“Defensively, I feel like we know who we are,” Horford said. "On offense, I feel like we're continuing to find our identity and how we want to play and what we want to do.

"The more and more you start playing that way, it almost becomes second nature.

"We're not there yet, but I feel like we're making a lot of progress and it's going to be at the point that we're not even thinking about it and we're moving the ball, making the simple reads, and I feel like that's when we'll be at our best.”

Time is ticking down on the 2021-22 Premier League campaign – and indeed on your chances of making up those valuable points in your fantasy football league.

While certain players are a must for any manager with serious prospects of finishing top of the pile (hello, Mohammed Salah), others often go under the radar.

And with a real rarity of all 10 gameweek 28 fixtures taking place across the same weekend – at the time of writing, at least! – it is important you get your selection spot on.

So why not let Stats Perform, led by Opta data, pick out four players – one for each position – that can help propel you up the standings. Come on, trust us.

FRASER FORSTER (Aston Villa v Southampton)

Five games without defeat, including back-to-back victories over Everton and Norwich City at St Mary's, have helped propel Southampton back into the top half of the division.

What makes those successive home wins all the more impressive is that Saints kept two clean sheets, having failed to record a single shutout in their previous 13 league matches.

Forster was in goal for both games and, while he only had to make one save across the 180 minutes, he has prevented the fourth-most goals in the Premier League this term.

Having conceded only 10 times, excluding own goals, from shots worth 13.5 expected goals on target, he has limited opponents to 3.5 goals fewer than expected.

Only Aaron Ramsdale (4.0 goals prevented), David de Gea (7.5) and Jose Sa (7.8) have fared better in that regard in the English top flight this term.

MATT DOHERTY (Tottenham v Everton)

Tottenham may be struggling for consistency, but right wing-back Doherty finally appears to be finding his feet under Antonio Conte – in the league, at least.

The former Wolves defender scored and assisted in the same Premier League game for the first time in Tottenham's most recent outing in the competition against Leeds United.

Doherty now has three goal involvements in his past five league games, also supplying an assist at Leicester City, where he created four chances.

PHILIPPE COUTINHO (Aston Villa v Southampton)

Okay, okay – we know we have already selected Southampton goalkeeper Forster, but hear us out here.

By putting Aston Villa midfielder Coutinho in your side, you are hedging your bets, because if the Villans are to score then they need their Brazilian playmaker on top form.

He has four direct goal involvements in six games since returning to the Premier League in January – only Harry Kane (six) and Bruno Fernandes (seven) can better that return.

That should be of particular concern to Southampton as Coutinho has been involved in as many Premier League goals against them (five – four goals, one assist) as against any other side.

EMMANUEL DENNIS (Watford v Arsenal)

Long gone are the days of Watford being unable to keep a clean sheet for love nor money – the Hornets are now shutout kings under that up-and-coming boss Roy Hodgson.

Well, not quite, but Watford's three Premier League blanks since Hodgson's first game is the joint-most of any side, along with Liverpool, Manchester City and, eh, Burnley.

Now they just need to work on becoming more prolific at the other end of the field, and in Dennis they have a player potentially capable of firing them to safety.

The Nigeria international has scored nine goals and assisted five more in the Premier League this term – only five other players have been directly involved in more.

Ukrainian top seed Elina Svitolina was made to work hard but triumphed in more than two hours against Viktoriya Tomova as she booked her Monterrey Open quarter-final spot on Thursday.

Svitolina won 7-6 (7-3) 3-6 6-2 over the Bulgarian qualifier in two hours and 24 minutes, having trailed 2-0 in the final set, before rattling off the final six games to set up a last-eight meeting with fifth seed Camila Osorio.

The Ukrainian won the title at Monterrey in 2020, with her victory on Thursday maintaining her unbeaten record at the event.

"It was an extremely tough match today," Svitolina said during her on-court post-match interview. "I think Viktoriya played a really good match, and I had to really fight back in the third set to bring back my best game and try to come back in the match.

"In the end, I managed to win six games in a row, so it's a good effort for me. It was an extremely tough first set, second set didn't go my way, and then the third set I was 0-2 down. I was not playing my best, but I was fighting, until the very end.

"And you know, the Ukrainian flag [in the crowd] really helped me today to fight... I was really fighting until the end, and I found my game in the end."

Last week's beaten WTA Abierto Zapopan finalist Marie Bouzkova maintained her good form with a 6-4 6-2 victory over Petra Martic.

Sixth seed Nuria Parrizas-Diaz won 6-4 7-6 (7-2) over Briton Heather Watson, while Wang Qiang defeated Mayar Sherif 6-0 6-7 (2-7) 6-3.

Kevin Durant returned from injury with 31 points but the Brooklyn Nets' struggles continued with a 113-107 defeat to the Miami Heat.

Durant had missed the past 21 games due to an MCL sprain sustained on January 16, with the Nets going 5-16 in his absence, and they led by 16 points in the first half upon his return, but could not sustain it.

The 2014 NBA MVP had a three-point attempt with 57 seconds left which would have put the Nets in the lead but he missed and the Heat scored from the ensuing possession via Bam Adebayo.

Adebayo finished the game with 30 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, while Tyler Herro came off the bench to contribute 27 points, four rebounds and eight assists.

Durant shot 10-of-21 from the field for his 31 points, including two three-pointers, with four rebounds and four assists.

The result leaves the Nets at 32-32 with a .500 record, while the Heat are top of the Eastern Conference with a 42-22 record.

Tatum leads Celtics final-quarter charge

The Boston Celtics continued their strong form as Jayson Tatum scored 21 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter in a 120-107 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies. Ja Morant maintained his own hot streak, with 38 points, four rebounds and seven assists.

Luka Doncic produced a dominant display with 41 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Golden State Warriors for the second time in five days, 122-113. Stephen Curry managed 21 points with nine assists for the Warriors who have lost seven of their past 10 games.

The Chicago Bulls suffered their third straight defeat with Trae Young scored 39 points with 13 assists as the Atlanta Hawks won 130-124.

Struggling Lakers beaten by Clippers

The Los Angeles Lakers slumped to their fourth consecutive loss going down to the Los Angeles Clippers 132-111 after being blown apart in a 40-18 third quarter. LeBron James shot eight-of-18 from the field for his 26 points with four turnovers, while Reggie Jackson scored 36 points for the Clippers.

Kevin Durant ominously said he will "only get better" after he scored 31 points on his return from a 21-game injury lay-off but that was not enough as the Brooklyn Nets lost 113-107 to the Miami Heat.

Brooklyn went 5-16 in Durant's absence, sliding from second in the Eastern Conference to eighth, after he sustained an MCL sprain on January 16.

The Nets led by as many as 16 points in the first half but the Heat fought back to win, with Durant playing 35 minutes on his return, scoring 31 points with four rebounds and four assists.

"I felt great. I'm only going to get better and get more comfortable out there," Durant said during his post-game news conference.

"Take more of the load out there too when I get more games under my belt. I felt solid."

The Nets were missing Kyrie Irving who is unable to play in home games at the Barclays Center due to the New York City vaccination rules, while recruit Ben Simmons is still yet to debut as he builds up his conditioning having not played all season.

Durant played alongside new signings Andre Drummond, Seth Curry and Goran Dragic in the starting line-up for the first time and admitted their cohesion may take time.

"It can take one game, it can take 20 games," he said. "It's a matter of getting out there and seeing what works for us.

"It's not like a certain formula that goes into how you know to build chemistry. It's an organic thing that happens naturally."

The Nets do not have time on their side, with the defeat leaving them at .500 with a 32-32 record having lost three in a row.

"It's to focus on the details every day," Durant said when asked what his short-term focus was. "Obviously winning basketball games, I don’t even need to say that, that's always the goals.

He added: "You've got to give Miami credit. There's no moral victories, but we look at the film, we know how we play, we know what we need to do to win."

Four-time major winner Rory McIlroy leads by two strokes after a first-round 65 that included an eagle at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in Florida on Thursday.

McIlroy made six birdies and an eagle on the 16th hole to card a seven-under-65 with a bogey on the 11th the only blemish on his scorecard.

The Northern Irishman, who made 11 of 14 fairways, leads by two strokes from American trio Beau Hossler, JJ Spaun and Billy Horschel, with a group of six players one further shot back including Sungjae Im and Will Zalatoris.

“This is my fourth start of the calendar year. I’ve had one really good chance to win and probably one other half chance," McIlroy told reporters after day one.

"I feel like I’m playing well enough to have chances to win golf tournaments, but all you can ask of yourself is to keep putting yourself in those positions on Sundays and then you see where your game really is.

“Hopefully, this is another week where I put myself in a position where I can really see where my game is when the pressure is on.”

McIlroy's day was highlighted by his 41-foot putt for eagle on the par-five 16th hole.

"I played the par-fives particularly well, and that was the bulk of the score," said McIlroy who won at Bay Hill in 2018.

"I've said this all along: You can play within yourself here and still shoot a good score, I feel, if you're just disciplined and pick off the birdies where you're supposed to."

McIlroy is one of four players from the PGA Tour's top six, with world number one Jon Rahm struggling with an even round on the opening day - including falling short on a gimme putt - to be seven shots off the pace.

Viktor Hovland carded a three-under-round of 69, while Scottie Scheffler is two under after the first day.

Joaquin described the coming Copa del Rey final as "a beautiful thing" after he helped Real Betis seal a showdown with his old club, Valencia.

Manuel Pellegrini's side drew 1-1 with Rayo Vallecano in Thursday's semi-final second leg to progress to their fifth Copa final with a 3-2 aggregate win.

A stunning free-kick from Bebe looked to have sent the match into extra time, but Borja Iglesias bundled in an injury-time goal for Betis after substitute Joaquin had found Sergio Canales with a throughball.

Valencia had secured their place in the final on Wednesday, Goncalo Guedes' fine strike securing a 1-0 win over Athletic Bilbao and a 2-1 aggregate victory.

Joaquin, who will turn 41 in July this year, will now hope to win the Copa for the third time in his career, having done so with Betis back in 2005 and Valencia three years later.

When asked about the prospect of facing his former side, Joaquin said: "My God, what a beautiful thing.

"We're going to enjoy ourselves because we deserve it. On Sunday, we have a difficult game to keep dreaming of the Champions League.

"I have already won a Copa with Betis and another with Valencia, and I've played a final with Fiorentina [in the Coppa Italia in 2014]."

There were wild celebrations inside and outside the Benito Villamarin, and Joaquin promised he would also honour the occasion – after he had seen his family.

"I'm not going out today," he said. "My wife said to me 'I'll wait for you', so I'll go home... to change. If we're kept here late then I'll have to go in the Betis tracksuit!

"But I want to see my wife and my girls, who have suffered like all Betis fans, and like I did. What a massive joy."

Salomon Rondon scored twice to send Everton into the FA Cup quarter-finals at the expense of non-league Boreham Wood.

Thursday's contest at Goodison Park was preceded by a moving tribute to Ukraine amid the escalating conflict in the country following Russia's invasion last week.

Everton players, including Ukrainian Vitaliy Mykolenko, named captain for the match, came onto the pitch draped in blue-and-yellow national flags. Boreham Wood also bore Ukraine colours along with a shirt carrying Mykolenko's name.

The traditional Z Cars theme that usually accompanies Everton players onto the pitch then changed to John Lennon's Imagine, with the starting line-ups then holding a banner that read 'Imagine all the people, sharing all the world'.

The Premier League club had this week severed ties with three Russian sponsors, each of which is linked with Alisher Usmanov, the club's billionaire backer who has had assets frozen as part of sanctions imposed by the European Union. Usmanov called the action "unfair" and vowed to take legal action.

Boreham Wood have enjoyed a remarkable run in this season's competition, reaching the fifth round without conceding a goal even during qualifying, and they were resolute against Frank Lampard's side for much of the contest.

Rondon, who had earlier missed a clear chance with a header, broke the deadlock after 57 minutes with a near-post finish from Jonjoe Kenny's low cross.

Richarlison had a goal disallowed but Rondon forced a header over the line from an Andros Townsend delivery to settle the match six minutes from time.

Everton will now face Crystal Palace in the quarter-finals this month.

Real Betis will face Valencia in the Copa del Rey final after Manuel Pellegrini's men came through a semi-final against Rayo Vallecano.

Leading 2-1 from the first leg last month thanks to William Carvalho's winner, Betis controlled the second leg at the Benito Villamarin before late drama saw it finish 1-1.

The home side were content to keep possession and ensure Rayo had few chances to threaten, with Nabil Fekir mustering the first meaningful effort on target after 72 minutes had been played.

That was until the 80th minute, when former Manchester United forward Bebe unleashed a spectacular strike from a free-kick to level the aggregate scores.

However, in injury time, Borja Iglesias bundled home the equaliser to secure Betis' 3-2 aggregate win.

Betis saw a five-game unbeaten run end in a derby defeat to Sevilla last weekend, but almost put the tie beyond reasonable doubt after just six minutes, Juanmi seeing his header saved.

Isi Palazon fired narrowly wide for Rayo, and Pathe Ciss missed with a header, but there was little to trouble Betis goalkeeper Claudio Bravo in the first half.

Betis looked the more likely after the restart, with Sergio Canales and Carvalho each blasting shots over before Fekir at last produced an effort on target from inside the box, one that Luca Zidane held comfortably.

Andoni Iraola tried to provoke a late fightback, introducing Bebe from the bench, and he responded just three minutes later with a quite stunning strike from 35 yards out that left Bravo with little chance.

Just as extra time loomed, Betis snatched the decider. Bravo picked out Joaquin with a precise kick, the veteran slid the ball to Canales and, as his effort deflected towards the far post, Borja arrived to turn it home under pressure.

What does it mean? Betis on track for beautiful season

Betis have been a thrilling side to watch this season. They scored 47 times in their first 25 LaLiga games of the season, a figure they have only bettered twice in their history.

What Pellegrini's side showed here was nous and discipline. Although Bebe's stunner unsettled their plans, they responded well with late pressure to force Borja's goal and reach the final for a fifth time.

Hit me Bebe one more time

Bebe has had a penchant for the spectacular during his Rayo career, but did anyone truly see that goal coming?

It was an astonishing attempt, the swerve of the ball leaving Bravo clutching at thin air, and it was a goal worthy of at least forcing the extra 30 minutes.

Joaquin sets up dream date

Joaquin had just nine touches of the ball after coming on in the 82nd minute, but one of them was a perfectly weighted pass to release Canales for the equaliser.

The 40-year-old has won this competition twice before: once for Betis, and once with Valencia. He now has the chance to lift it for a third time, if he can beat his old club.

What's next?

Betis host LaLiga champions Atletico Madrid on Sunday, while Rayo head to Cadiz.

Dayana Yastremska delivered a polished performance as the Ukrainian kept her "very emotional" run going at the Lyon Open.

The 21-year-old broke serve five times on her way to a 6-2 6-3 victory over Spain's Cristina Bucsa in an hour and five minutes, booking a quarter-final place.

Yastremska fled war-ravaged Ukraine last week, along with sister Ivanna, escaping through Romania but leaving their parents behind in Odessa after Russia's invasion began.

The three-time WTA tournament winner has spoken of the decision by her mother to stay with her father, and how that left the sisters tearful and agonising over when the family might be reunited.

Yastremska began her campaign in Lyon with a gruelling three-set win over Ana Bogdan and followed up impressively by sweeping aside Bucsa.

"Today, definitely it was a little bit easier. With my emotions, I could keep them under control, so I'm very happy with that," Yastremska said in an on-court interview, broadcast on Amazon Prime.

"I tried yesterday to recover myself as fast as possible to prepare for my match today. Still, I was very nervous because I wanted to win the match for my country.

"This tournament is very emotional for me, but I'm very happy with the win today. To be honest I'm very happy that I'm here, that I'm in a safe place with my sister."

The former world number 21, now down at 140 in the WTA rankings, was joined in the last eight by Zhang Shuai of China and France's Caroline Garcia.

Also going through to the quarter-finals on Thursday was Vitalia Diatchenko, a Russian playing under a neutral flag this week. She beat Swiss third seed Viktorija Golubic in three sets.

Sergey Bubka has been summoned to Switzerland to lead the Olympic movement's humanitarian response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The pole vault legend, now 58, is president of the Ukrainian National Olympic Committee and considered the best-placed figure to spearhead efforts to help those in need.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is based in the Swiss city of Lausanne, and it is there that plans will be drawn up to support Ukrainian athletes and sport bodies affected directly by the Russian invasion.

IOC president Thomas Bach said in a letter to the Olympic movement that there had been an overwhelming "outpouring of solidarity" from stakeholders towards Ukraine, with efforts already under way to help exiled athletes.

The IOC has created a solidarity fund, and Bach said it was necessary "to increase the assistance already provided, but also ensure that it is coordinated in an effective manner".

This is where Bubka comes in, with Bach "urgently" requesting that the long-time former world record holder and IOC member makes himself available "to coordinate all elements of humanitarian assistance to the Ukrainian Olympic community", including the allocation and distribution of funds raised.

Bach added: "To facilitate this task we will begin collecting information on the whereabouts of these members of the Ukrainian Olympic community as well as ongoing initiatives and support."

According to Ukraine's National Olympic Committee, in a statement issued this week, Bubka stayed in Ukraine after the Russian attack began.

He issued a statement on Tuesday that read: "Thank you for all your supportive messages and calls we received from around the world. Ukraine is grateful to the IOC for its full solidarity as well as to its task force for its communications with the NOC of Ukraine for coordination of humanitarian assistance. The war must stop, peace and humanity must win."