PASADENA, Calif. -- Southern California and UCLA have been on divergent trajectories for nearly two months, so nobody in the chilly Rose Bowl crowd was terribly surprised when the Trojans charged right on through their faltering rivals Saturday night.That didnt make the blowout victory any less sweet for USC, which coolly maintained its LA dominance for another year with a businesslike bashing of the Bruins.Sam Darnold passed for 267 yards and hit DeQuan Hampton for two touchdowns, leading No. 13 USC past UCLA 36-14 in the Los Angeles rivals 86th crosstown showdown.Ronald Jones II rushed for 121 yards and two TDs for the surging Trojans (8-3, 7-2 Pac-12, No. 15 AP), who won their seventh straight game after a dismal start to the season. USC claimed the Victory Bell for the second consecutive year, overcoming Darnolds two early interceptions and eventually taking apart UCLAs solid defense for 527 total yards.Any time you beat a rival team like this, its always fun, USC linebacker Michael Hutchings said. Winning like this, its great for our team morale.The Trojans experienced another victory several hours earlier when they huddled around laptops in the team hotel to watch Utahs loss to Oregon, which kept USC in the Pac-12 South race.A few hours after USC finishes the regular season next Saturday against Notre Dame, the Trojans would claim the division title if the Utes beat No. 12 Colorado, which lost at USC last month.We needed one of those teams to lose to stay alive, and Oregon came through for us, USC coach Clay Helton said. We still need a little help, but now weve set our mark at 7-2.Jordan Lasley caught two first-half touchdown passes from Mike Fafaul for UCLA (4-7, 2-6). After five losses in their last six games, the Bruins are assured their first losing season in coach Jim Moras half-decade in charge.Ten years after UCLA stunned USC 13-9 and knocked Pete Carrolls team out of the national title race, Heltons Trojans calmly beat their rivals for the 14th time in 18 meetings.With both teams wearing their home jerseys in Arroyo Seco, USC extended its longest overall winning streak since Carrolls last conference championship season in 2008.Helton also improved to 2-0 in the crosstown showdown: He got the permanent job last year two days after the Trojans 40-21 victory over the Bruins and Mora, who had won his first three against USC.It was just a really tough and humbling night, Mora said after honoring his seniors before the game. Regardless of how this year has gone, those young men have done some tremendous things here. This was the first game (all season) that weve kind of not been in. Thats disappointing.USC went through the UCLA defense for 326 yards in the first half, just 30 yards shy of the Bruins average yield for entire games this season. The Trojans eventually held the ball for 43:47 and ran 95 plays to UCLAs 51.Darnold provided his usual cocktail of brilliance and exciting flaws, throwing two interceptions in the first half amid a series of stunning athletic runs and throws. The redshirt freshman hasnt lost since his debut start at Utah in September, leading the Trojans back into contention with his freewheeling skills.But the Bruins held an early 14-7 lead. Lasley took a mid-range pass 56 yards for a score in the opening moments, and he beat Adoree Jackson in 1-on-1 coverage early in the second quarter, right after Fabian Moreau returned Darnolds first interception inside the USC 10.When we were down 14-7, it was the same atmosphere, Darnold said. Guys werent going to give up. Its really a shift in culture that you can sense now.TURNING POINTUSC faced a deficit after the first quarter for the first time since its winning streak began, but Jones fixed that with his second TD run, bursting around the end for a spectacular 60-yard score. Hampton then made his first career TD catch with an exceptional 31-yard grab by the seldom-used sophomore.THE TAKEAWAYUCLA: The Bruins have endured a miserable second half after quarterback Josh Rosens season-ending injuries, but the defense has fought in every game. The overmatched offense kept it close early, but a thorough offseason recalibration seems vital.USC: The Trojans just keep getting more dangerous, even if it might be too late to win the Pac-12 South. Along with Jones latest big game, Darnold and Hampton made key plays against a defense that had allowed only eight TD catches all season. And its no surprise that Darnold, the unflappable Orange County native, easily handled the road pressure in his first LA rivalry matchup.POLL IMPLICATIONSFew teams are rolling like the Trojans. USC is likely to remain the nations highest-ranked team with three lossesUP NEXTUCLA: A trip to Berkeley for a rather drab season finale against California.USC: The famed intersectional rivalry game with Notre Dame at the Coliseum on Saturday to wrap up the regular season. Cheap Air Max Free Shipping . -- There were so many positives from the Orlando Magics first victory of the season that it was hard for coach Jacque Vaughn to stop praising his players. Discount Air Max Shoes . Numbers Game examines the deal that sees Michael Del Zotto and Kevin Klein switch places. The Predators Get: D Michael Del Zotto. http://www.cheapairmaxchinadiscount.com/cheap-air-max-97-china-discount-123z.html . 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David Ortiz thanked New York Yankees fans, saying that they pulled the best out of me and even acknowledging a little bit of love for them as he prepares for his final series at Yankee Stadium.But the Boston Red Sox slugger also offered a clear warning -- hes still going to try to hit the ball all the way to the choo choo train, referring to the subway station outside the stadium.Ortiz reflected on his role in the heated rivalry between the Red Sox and Yankees in an open letter published Tuesday on The Players Tribune, saying the intensity of their games brought out the best in him and that he was born to play against the Yankees.Our rivalry with the Yankees made me who I am, Ortiz wrote. The intensity of that competition is what Im gonna miss the most when Im done. I could wake up in the morning and my body could be feeling like s---, but as soon as the bus pulls up to Yankee Stadium and I see that white fence on the upper deck, Im like, Its on.Ortiz, 40, is batting .321 with 37 home runs and 124 RBIs this season, which he says will be his last in the majors. He also said later Tuesday that he has no intention of playing for the Dominican Republic in the upcoming World Baseball Classic.Id probably need 15 months to recover, Ortiz told the media Tuesday. I would love to represent my country, but like I say, Im in a situation where Im trying every day to get ready to play a game. My body is so happy. My body is counting the days.The first-place Red Sox (92-64) clinched a playoff berth last week and are contending for the best record in the American League and home-field advantage throughout the postseason.But the Yankees (80-76) are on the verge of being eliminated from postseason contention, meaning their three-game series starting Tuesday against the Red Sox likely will mark Ortizs final games in the Bronx.It takes me a long time to get my body ready for these games now, he wrote. But I guarantee you this. When our bus pulls up to Yankee Stadium today, Im gonna be ready to go.Ortiz has spent the past 14 seasons with the Red Sox and has been a central figure in their rivalry with the Yankees, most notably in 2004, when he helped Boston erase a 3-0 series deficit in its historic American League Championship Series victory against NNew York.ddddddddddddis success in the Bronx, where he has 31 home runs in 114 regular-season games, has drawn the ire of Yankees fans, who routinely have booed the Dominican slugger. One fan even is attempting to organize a widespread mooning of Ortiz in the series finale Thursday.Let me tell you something, Ortiz wrote. If 50,000 people moon me, I promise you two things. First, Im gonna laugh so hard I might start crying.Then when the tears dry, Im gonna step up to the plate and try to hit the ball all the way to the choo choo train. You gotta be careful. You guys dont have Mariano [Rivera] no more, you know what Im saying?Though he may get booed inside Yankee Stadium, Ortiz said hes beloved on the streets of New York City.People are nice. I rarely bump into anyone trying to carry that out ... Ortiz told the media later Tuesday. People are super nice here. We have a lot of, what, 3 million Dominicans living here in New York. Most of them, I would say, are Yankee fans. I talked about it before, the relationship between Dominicans and New York Yankees. My people, they receive me just like I play for the Yankees. Much love. They know I play for Boston but I still represent with others, a Dominican coming into the stadium doing good things.Ortiz explained that he channels his intensity for games in Yankee Stadium because of his experiences in his native Dominican Republic, where he says the Yankees are extremely popular and New York City is viewed as the American dream.He also professed his appreciation for the rivalry on multiple occasions, writing that the intensity is just not the same against another team.The Red Sox let me be me, Ortiz wrote. You see my beard? The Yankees wouldnt let me have that beard. Id be shaving twice a day. But it goes beyond that. The Red Sox let me say what I feel. They let me be myself. If I was a Yankee, Id be just like my boy, [Derek Jeter].You know, One game at a time.But thats why Im gonna miss this rivalry so much. Because we were perfect opposites. Everything we had in Boston, New York had an answer for it.Information from ESPNs Scott Lauber contributed to this report. 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