KNOCKOUTS | TMK #19

Today, on TMK:

Big men get knocked out, milestone scoring in the NBA, and last-minute goals.

Catch Up:

• 👊 UFC 295: Two Main Events, Two KOs

• 🏀 NBA Quickfire Recap

• ⚽ Top European Football

The Main Events:

• 🏈 NFL Week 10

• ⚽ Top European Football: Chelsea vs Man City

• 🏀 NBA

Extra Time:

• ❓ Sports Trivia

• 🗣️ Quote of the Day

• ⭐ Can’t Miss Moment

• 🧮 Stat of the Day

• 📽️ Video of the Day

👊 UFC 295

Alex Pereira Wins The Light Heavyweight Championship

The Samurai against the Favela Champion. Two of the most composed and calm fighters you’ll ever see before a fight. An intense staredown with neither man breaking eye contact, and a respectful bow. It was on.

The first round was cautious but aggressive. Jiri tried coming forward to potentially take this fight to the ground, where he would be more comfortable. Pereira countered with leg kicks, including one that sent Jiri to the ground. Pereira kicked Procházka’s lead leg multiple times, to the point where he already looked hurt. Eventually, Procházka succeeded in taking Pereira down with a single-leg grab and lift and landed a few ground-and-pound elbows, but Pereira was able to get up just as the round ended. 10-9 Procházka for the takedown and control.

In the second round, Procházka took a more aggressive approach and chased Pereira down, despite already having a bum leg. But just as Procházka was coming in, Pereira caught him with a left hook that dropped him clean to his knees and flash KO’d him. Jiri held on to Pereira's waist and seemed to come back to his senses as Pereira was hammering him with elbows.

Just as Procházka looked like he might be back in it, the referee stopped the fight.

Was it an early stoppage by the ref? Perhaps, as Procházka was still defending and bounced to his feet, seemingly unhurt. But Pereira hurt him badly with the left hook; that much isn’t debatable. Seeing how this fight ended and the fact that Hill the former division champion is still injured, I wouldn’t mind getting a rematch.

With this victory, Pereira is entering legendary territory as only the 9th fighter to win the belt in two different weight classes.

Aspinall KOs Pavlovich For The Interim Heavyweight Title

We knew one thing going into this fight: someone was getting KO’d. We weren’t wrong.

Both men looked like a menace entering the ring, which is precisely what the heavyweight division should be all about. Huge, 120 KG men ready to punch it out. The atmosphere was electric.

The fight started in an unusual manner as both men hugged in the pre-fight staredown as the referee was giving his final notes. I don’t recall seeing two fighters embrace before a championship fight. That’s a new level of respect. Deep down, both of them knew someone wasn’t making it out of the first round.

The fight started with Aspinall working on Pavlovich’s legs, but it took exactly one exchange for Pavlovich to catch Aspinall and wobble him. One punch; one wobble. Aspinall caught himself and steadied the ship, put some distance between himself and Pavlovich, and showed that he could take a punch.

The second exchange ended the fight.

Pavlovich came into Aspinall’s range and was caught with a right hand right above the temple. Pavlovich was already on his way down when Aspinall caught him with another right hand to the temple - and it was game over. It took all of 70 seconds and two exchanges to crown a new Interim heavyweight champion.

Aspinall collapsed to the ground in joy and disbelief at his achievement. He took one punch, delivered two, and is the UFC’s newest interim champion of the world.

🏀 NBA Quickfire Recap

Orlando Magic 112 - 97 Milwaukee Bucks

When you build a team around two players, you run the risk of getting outclassed if one of them sits a game. Lillard has now missed two straight games, and the Bucks were outclassed twice.

This game wasn’t close; Giannis did what he could with 35 points, but the Bucks were lacking in offense and defense. Orlando’s Wagner brothers combined for 43 points and Banchero added 26 to win this game handily.

Boston Celtics 117 - 94 Toronto Raptors

When one team shoots well and the other doesn’t, what we often get is an easy victory - and it doesn’t get much easier than Boston’s win tonight. The Celtics went on a 16-0 run that started late in the first quarter and never looked back.

Brown, Tatum, and Porzingis led the Celtics with 29, 27, and 21, and that was more than enough to outscore a Raptors team led by 17 points from Siakam.

Atlanta Hawks 109 - 117 Miami Heat

Miami’s coaching has always been top 5 in the league, and it often comes through in tough situations like tonight. With Herro out, the Heat have to play without their team leader in scoring for the next few weeks.

Jaime Jaquez Jr., Miami’s first-round pick in the 2023 draft, stepped up with a career-high 20 points. Bam Adebayo was at his best with 26 points and 17 rebounds, and the Heat leaned on its depth to win. Tray Young, coming off a 41-point performance, led the Hawks with 27 points.

Golden State Warriors 110 - 118 Cleveland Cavaliers

Steph Curry scoring 30 points but getting no help at all is becoming a worrying trend for the Warriors. This is not the first time this season that no one has scored more than 15 points for the Warriors except Curry. The Warriors are a good team, but they cannot reliably win like this.

The Cavs have a lot to offer this year if they can stay healthy and build chemistry. They have a superstar in Mitchell (21 points) and a strong supporting cast in Allen, Garland, Mobley, Strus, and LaVert. Enough to win the NBA championship? Maybe not. But they should easily be a playoff team, and they’ve proven it tonight.

⚽ Top European Football

Real Madrid 5 - 1 Valencia CF

Real Madrid scores 5 in a game where Jude Bellingham didn’t even play. Real opened the scoring with a beautiful strike from Carvajal, and Rodrygo and Vini both added a double. Real is built differently this year and despite some inconsistent performance at times, when they put the pedal to the metal, they’re as dangerous as any team in world football.

Wolverhampton 2 - 1 Tottenham Spurs

How the Spurs can play so well but lose from 2 goals in stoppage time is beyond me. The Spurs scored in the 3rd minute and held the advantage throughout the game until the Wolves equalized at the 91’ minute. The Spurs looked like they thought the game was over after a foul on a Wolves player in the 96’ minute, but the Wolves played a quick ball, surprised the defense who had lost focus, and completed the upset.

VfB Stuttgart 2 - 1 Borussia Dortmund

Stuttgart with striker Serhou Guirassy looks like a completely different team. Dortmund took the lead early but Stuttgart was competitive and completely outplayed Dortmund for the vast majority of the match. Guirassy entered the game in the 67’ minutes and scored the winning penalty. Stuttgart will try to continue the run it was on before Guirassy was injured. Looking at how they played yesterday - they very well might.

Reims 0 - 3 Paris Saint-Germain

The score of this match doesn’t tell the whole story. Yes, Killian Mbappe scored a hattrick and was his usual lethal self, but Reims deserved more. Reims was relentless in attack, and Paris’ defense was shaky at best. Only an incredible performance from goalkeeper Donnarumma allowed PSG to keep a clean sheet. Donnarumma made 5 or 6 unbelievable saves during this match, with lightning reflexes and the ability to leap into the air. So much so that he deserved to be the man of the match despite Mbappe’s hattrick.

🏈 NFL WEEK 10

We’re into the double digits weeks; this is when the contenders start to separate themselves from the pretenders.

THE GOOD

Cincinnati Bengals (5-3) - Houston Texans (4-4)

After a tough start to the season, the Bengals look ready to make a push for the AFC North title. They’ve won 4 in a row and QB Joe Burrow has looked like his old self. Star WR Higgins will be out, and WR Chase is questionable to play. These are Burrow’s top two receiving options, which could make it harder for him to find his groove.

The Texans are this season’s surprise; no one expected #2 draft pick QB CJ Stroud to make an impact so quickly, but he has. Stroud is coming off a 470-yard 5-TD game, and you can bet that Cincy has looked deep into the tape to make sure he doesn’t go off on them as well.

Cincy is favored to win this game but CJ Stroud has shown enough magic to have a fair shot at winning this game.

Jacksonville Jaguars (6-2) - San Francisco 49ers (5-3)

The Jacksonville Jaguars are good again! The NFL just feels different when the Jags aren’t a joke. QB Lawrence is on pace to throw for 4000 yards, and both WR Kirk and WR Ridley look like they’ll touch 1000 yards receiving.

The Jaguars are not taken as seriously as the Chiefs or the Ravens, but they are 4-0 against teams with winning records.

The Niners have struggled after starting the season 5-0, but they’ve made moves and the team is getting healthy. This will be the first game featuring the Bosa-Young pass rush duo, and WR Deebo Samuel is coming back from an injury. This should help the 49ers be more competitive than they’ve been recently. This will be a good test for both teams.

Baltimore Ravens (7-2) - Cleveland Browns (5-3)

The Ravens are allowing the least points per game in the NFL, and are coming off a 37-3 victory over the Seahawks. The Ravens seem to be clicking on offense AND defense; QB Lamar Jackson is having an MVP-caliber season so far, and for the first time in ages, the Ravens’ pass rush manages to get to the QB.

The Browns’ defense is coming off a shutout win over the Cardinals, 27-0. They are also allowing the fewest yards per game in the NFL. The Browns’ pass rush and secondary are elite, and the Ravens’ O-line has its work cut out for it trying to handle Miles Garrett. The Brown’s offense, headed by QB Deshaun Watson, can be inconsistent at times and is this team’s weak point so far this season.

This will be a classic, physical, bruising AFC North game, just like we like them.

THE MID

Pittsburgh Steelers (5-3) - Green Bay Packers (3-5)

The Packers haven’t won in Pittsburgh since 1970. The Steelers’ defense somehow finds ways to win and put up points. This isn’t good news for Packers’ QB Love, who is completing less than 60% of his passes and is throwing one interception per game.

Minnesota Vikings (5-4) - New Orleans Saints (5-4)

The Vikings are 5-4 but QB Cousins is out for the season. They won in miracle fashion last week headed by recent transfer QB Dobbs. Opposite him for the Saints, Carr has played relatively well and has thrown for over 300 yards in his past two road games.

Los Angeles Chargers (4-4) - Detroit Lions (6-2)

Every year, the Chargers look like a team that can make noise and go on a run. Every year, that run fails to materialize. Headed by QB Justin Herbert, they have the tools that they need to win games. They just haven’t been able to do it reliably. The Lions are a complete team but can stall on offense, particularly in the red zone. This is a good road test for a still young team.

Seattle Seahawks (5-3) - Washington Commanders (4-5)

Geno Smith looked to have turned his life and career around with the Seahawks, but after a scorching start to the season, he hasn’t looked good in the past 3-4 weeks. He has all the offensive tools to make it work. The Commanders are a weird team; they played two competitive games against the Eagles but also lost to the Bears and Giants. Go figure.

Dallas Cowboys (5-3) - New York Giants (2-7)

This isn’t in the UGLY just because Dallas is playing quite well and NFC East matchups sometimes produce unexpected results. The Giants' defense can be good, but they will be starting an undrafted rookie QB in Tommy DeVito since QB Jones is out for the season. This is a huge trap game for Dallas, as it should be winning easily.

Las Vegas Raiders (4-5) - New York Jets (4-4)

The Raiders looked like a completely different team against the Giants after firing head coach McDaniels last week. Coaches were smiling, players were smoking cigars, and the team’s vibe was as good as it has been recently. Meanwhile, the Jets are coming to Vegas with a fantastic defense but one of the worst offensive lines in the league. If the Raiders pass rush can get through, QB Wilson doesn’t stand much of a chance.

THE UGLY

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-5) - Tennessee Titans (3-5)

The only reason I’d watch this game is to follow the Titans’ QB Will Levis.

Arizona Cardinals (1-8) - Atlanta Falcons (4-5)

The only reason I’d watch this game is because Cardinals QB Kyler Murray is set to play his first game this season following an injury.

New England Patriots (2-7) - Indianapolis Colts (4-5)

I’m struggling to find a reason to watch this game. Maybe to see what the stadium in Frankfurt looks like? Germany deserves better than this.

⚽ Top European Football

Premier League

Chelsea (10) - Manchester City (1)

Last week, Chelsea beat a 9-man Tottenham 4-1. They didn’t win by playing particularly well, but given their disastrous first quarter of the season, I’m sure they were happy to get a W and some points.

Today should be a reality check. If Chelsea can take any points off of Manchester City, I can start to believe they’re turning their season around. Chelsea’s win last time allowed City to grab first place in the Premier League, a position they are used to occupy in recent years. They aren’t likely to give away any points.

Bundesliga

Bayer Leverkusen (1) - Union Berlin (16)

Bayer Levekusen’s turnaround over the past year from a bottom feeder to a contender has been remarkable. They are leading the Bundesliga, an honor usually reserved for Bayern Munich. No one else has won the Bundesliga in 10 years.

As long as Leverkusen holds the top spot, I’ll keep following their progress. Just the thought of challenging Bayern for a historic title is enough to get to me watch the game.

Primeira Liga

Benfica (2) - Sporting Lisbon (1)

Do I usually follow Portuguese football in-depth? Absolutely not. Do I still tune in when the two top teams in the league meet? Sure. You should too. Both teams are playing in Europe this season and can provide a good match.

Sporting has the opportunity to open a 6-point gap with a win.

Eredivisie

Feyenoord Rotterdam (3) - AZ Alkmaar (2)

Portuguese football AND Dutch football? We’re going exotic today.

Feyenoord - AZ has delivered memorable matches in recent years, with both teams trading victories and losses. In a year where perennial Dutch champion Ajax is nowhere to be seen, the Eredivisie’s intensity has gone way up as everyone realizes the opportunity to grab a historic championship. Feyenoord, the reigning champion, is chasing a back-to-back title, something it hasn’t been able to achieve since 1961.

🏀 NBA: 11 Games

Golden State Warriors - Minnesota Timberwolves

Golden State needs to find a way to get someone other than Steph Curry going. The Timberwolves are hitting their stride and look like a playoff team. The Warriors can struggle against size, and the Timberwolves have plenty of it.

Philadelphia 76ers - Indiana Pacers

Two of the best teams this season go head-to-head. The 76ers are 7-1 and haven’t lost since their first game of the season. Maxey and Embiid are the dynamic duo Philly has been waiting for. The Pacers are 6-3 and playing some of the best team basketball in the NBA.

Houston Rockets - Denver Nuggets

The Houston Rockets have a positive record, but are they any good? We’ll find out tonight against a deep Nuggets team that knows how to get the job done. The Rockets will do what they can to contain Jokic.

Phoenix Suns - Oklahoma City Thunder

Will we ever see the Suns at full strength? Booker is out and Beal is questionable, though Beal is likely to see limited minutes. The Thunder are a developing team, and we’ll get a chance to see Holmgren going up against Durant. Can he do as well as Wemby?

Other Games:

New York Knicks - Charlotte Hornets

Brooklyn Nets - Washington Wizards

LA Clippers - Memphis Grizzlies

Chicago Bulls - Detroit Pistons

New Orleans Pelicans - Dallas Mavericks

San Antonio Spurs - Miami Heat

Los Angeles Lakers - Portland Trail Blazers

❓Sports Trivia

Alex Pereira became the 9th fighter to win the UFC belt in two different weight classes. Who was the first one?

🗣️ Quote Of The Day

“If you’re scared to do something, you should f***ing do it”

Tom Aspinall with words of wisdom following his KO victory. He admitted to being as scared as he’d ever been before a fight, having taken it on a 14-day notice.

It worked out well for the UFC’s new heavyweight champion.

⭐ Can’t Miss Moment

Zinchenko’s Karate Goal

If you’ve played any sport you know the itch to take a creative, somewhat wild shot. Zinchenko took his.

🧮 Stat Of The Day

Steph Curry Breaks 22,000 points milestone

Curry is the 36th player in NBA history to reach 22,000 points. Over 10,000 of his points are from three-pointers. The best shooter in NBA history.

📽️ Video of the Day

Draymond Green Gets Ejected; Celebrates

The season hasn’t really started until Green gets ejected. Mitchell and Green got into it, and this video is worth watching for Mitchell’s reaction as Green goes out.

Click HERE to watch on Youtube.

Wrap Up

The UFC delivered another banger yesterday, and we have another day of great football - both kinds - and NBA ahead of us. There’s nothing like a weekend of sports.

Trivia answer: Randy Couture. He won his first HW belt in 1997 and added the LHW belt in 2003.