BREAK OVER | TMK #29

Today, on TMK:

Police violence, Groups of Death, and killer NBA matchups.

Headlines

Catch Up

• ⚽ Euro 2024 Draw Preview

• ⚽ WC 2026 Qualifiers

• 🏀 NBA

The Main Events

• 🏀 NBA

  • Celtics - Bucks

  • Timberwolves - 76ers

  • Suns - Warriors

  • Cavs - Heat

Extra Time:

• ❓ Sports Trivia

• 🗣️ Quote of the Day

• ⭐ Can’t Miss Moment

• 🧮 Stat of the Day

• 📽️ Video of the Day

Argentina def. Brazil 1-0 after a fight breaks out in the stands

• This is Brazil’s first loss EVER at home in World Cup qualifying.

Croatia qualifies for Euro 2024

• Croatia booked its place in the Euro with a 1-0 victory over Armenia.

Lakers, Pacers qualify for NBA in-season tourney ¼ finals

• The Lakers are 4-0, the Pacers 3-0 in the tourney.

LeBron first player in history to reach 39,000 points

• King James’ legend grows. An untouchable record becomes even more ridiculous.

⚽ Euro 2024 Draw Preview

With Croatia’s win, we now have 21 out of 24 teams qualified for the Euro 2024. Let’s have some fun and go over the pots, highlight some anomalies, and dream of groups of death.

Pot 1

Every team in Pot 1 deserves to be there; this is the cream of the crop of European football. The toughest draws are England and France, and the easiest draw is Belgium, but every Pot 1 team should be a favorite to go through.

Pot 2

Hungary and Denmark lead the teams in Pot 2, with Turkey being a dangerous opponent as well. Albania is the easiest draw. Pot 2 is very competitive, with 5 teams finishing top of their qualifying group.

Pot 3

The Netherlands stands out as the best team in Pot 3, and the one you don’t want to see. Croatia, Slovenia, and Slovakia can also play attractive football. Czechia is probably the easiest draw.

Pot 4

The reigning European Champions, Italy, are in Pot 4 - which guarantees a SPICY draw for one of the Pot 1 teams who will have to deal with them as early as the first match. The easiest draw will come from the playoffs, which will be played in March 2024.

The Playoffs

This is seriously THE MOST CONFUSING way UEFA could’ve chosen to make the playoffs and I’m not about to try and explain why specifically these teams are in the running for a Euro 2024 spot.

Teams from each Path will play a semifinal and a final to determine the last 3 teams to qualify for the Euro. The missing teams, Ukraine, Finland, and Iceland, will be drawn into Paths tomorrow.

The Group of Death

The Euro 2024 draw will take place on December 3rd, but we can already play around with potential scenarios.

Any group that includes The Netherlands from Pot 3 and Italy from Pot 4 would be absolutely bonkers. Imagine this group:

France, Denmark, The Netherlands, Italy. Replace France with any Pot 1 team for an alternative group of death that is as scary. Someone will have to get The Netherlands and Italy in their group, but drawing both would be a nightmare.

The Easiest group would be Belgium, Albania, Czechia, and one of the playoff qualifiers.

⚽ World Cup 2026 Qualifiers

Brazil 0-1 Argentina

Let’s start with the fact that this match almost didn’t happen. A brawl erupted in the stands minutes before kickoff, and the Brazilian police showed up in force to replace fan-on-fan violence with police violence. Much better. Messi and Co. returned to the locker rooms and stayed there for over 20 minutes until the tensions calmed down and the game was resumed. Messi called out the Brazilian police on Instagram after the game, calling the violence “unacceptable”.

As for the match itself, Brazil was the more dangerous team for the first 60 minutes but couldn’t convert golden opportunities into goals. They were promptly punished by Otamendi, who towered over Brazil’s defense to head a corner perfectly out of Alisson’s reach.

From there, Argentina looked better, and an underserved straight red for Joelinton sealed the deal with 10 minutes to go.

This is Brazil’s first home loss in the history of World Cup qualifying. They’ve now lost three qualifying matches in a row and only have 7 points from 6 matches.

Uruguay 3-0 Bolivia

South America’s best offense was paired against South America’s worst defense. Could this game end any other way? Uruguay dominated Bolivia thanks to Darwin Nunez's double and a passive Bolivian defense. Not that Bolivia was much more active on offense, as they totaled 0 shots on goal.

Uruguay currently looks like South America’s most dangerous team.

Ecuador 1-0 Chile

Ecuador was the better team and created multiple opportunities to put the game away after going up 1-0 after 20 minutes of play. They weren’t precise enough to convert and were very close to getting punished as the Chileans hit the goalpost in the 88th minute to almost salvage a draw.

Paraguay 0-1 Colombia

Colombia continues its strong run of form but wasn’t sharp enough to win decisively against Paraguay. They’ll be happy with the three points they took thanks to a penalty kick, but I doubt they’ll be happy about the way they played and their lack of precision in front of the Paraguayan goal.

Peru 1-1 Venezuela

Peru finally scored its first goal of the WC 2026 qualifying on a blunder by a Venezuelan defender who completely missed the ball and allowed Yotun to score. This is also Peru’s first point in qualifying and the best game they’ve played so far. Unfortunately for Venezuela, it is dropping points to the team in last place, which you never want to do.

WC 2026 Qualifiers Table, After Matchday 6

🏀 NBA

Philadelphia 76ers 119-122 Cleveland Cavaliers

Seriously, who are these Cavs?

Something is clicking for the Cavs without Donovan Mitchell, who is BY FAR their best player. In his absence, Darius Garland has taken absolute command of the offense and finished with 32 points and 8 assists. Center Jarrett Allen is in the form of his life and added 26 despite going up against Joel Embiid, one of the NBA’s best rim protectors. Max Strus who joined from Miami this offseason added 20, and is having the best season of his career so far.

The Cavs have now won back-to-back games against Denver and Philly - two of the favorites to make it to the NBA finals.

The 76ers played their game, Embiid scored 32 and Maxey 30. It wasn’t an off night for Philly; they played well. The Cavs just made better plays down the stretch.

Atlanta Hawks 152-157 Indiana Pacers

Defense? What’s that?

This is the seventh time in NBA history that teams combined for more than 300 points, and the game didn’t even go to overtime. These are 300 regulation points. The Hawks set a franchise record with 86 first-half points.

Both teams shot 60% from the field and 48% from three. Trae Young led all scorers with 38, and Tyrese Haliburton wasn’t far behind with 37 (and 16 assists!). Buddy Hield started for the first time this season and added 24 points.

Dejounte Murray scored 28 for the Hawks but was called for a crucial offensive foul and missed a layup in the closing moments of the game, allowing the Pacers to complete a 20-point comeback, take the W, and qualify for the quarterfinals of the in-season tournament.

Quick Notes

Orlando Magic 126-107 Toronto Raptors

• Feels like I’m mentioning Paolo Banchero every time the Magic plays. He scored 25 and led Orlando to a 9-5 record to start the season. Schroder led scoring for the Raptors with 24 points.

Phoenix Suns 120-107 Portland Trailblazers

• Kevin Durant and Devin Booker seldom disappoint. They scored 31 and 28 respectively to beat the Trailblazers and go up to 8-6. Jerami Grant led scoring for Portland with 26 but the team isn’t competitive.

Los Angeles Lakers 131-99 Utah Jazz

• LeBron scored only 17 but surpassed 39,000 career points. Anthony Davis led the Lakers with 26 points and Dangelo Russell added 20. Utah had an off-game as Markkanen and Clarkson combined for 17 points, less than what they each average individually this season.

🏀 NBA

There may only be NBA games on the agenda today, but the quality of the games should make up for the lack of sports diversity.

Boston Celtics - Milwaukee Bucks

The #1 team in the Eastern Conference meets the #2 team. What more can you ask for?

The Bucks are riding a 5 game-winning streak, and Giannis and Lillard look more and more comfortable with every game that passes. Boston just completely blew a game against the Hornets, but Tatum is at the top of his game. This matchup may very well be an early-season look at the Eastern Conference Finals.

Orlando Magic - Denver Nuggets

The Magic are one of this season’s surprises and are in fifth place in the East, with a 9-5 record. Paolo Banchero is doing everything in his power to lead the Magic - and it’s working for him.

Denver is in a bit of a weird situation right now, with Jokic limited to 18 and 9 points in his last two games because of foul trouble and an ejection. It’s been a while since we’ve seen the Joker’s power on full display.

Cleveland Cavaliers - Miami Heat

The Donovan Mitchell-less Cavs have just won against the 76ers and the Nuggets. Can they do it again against a Heat team that won 8 of its past 9 games? This matchup has “NBA playoffs first-round” written all over it.

Darius Garland took the lead of this Cavs team and has been very impressive. The Heat won’t have Love and Herro, but Herro is out of his walking boot and is recovering well.

Minnesota Timberwolves - Philadelphia 76ers

The Timberwolves are leading the stacked Western Conference. Their size and speed, embodied by Anthony Edwards and KAT, has been a real problem for teams. Minnesota is undefeated at home and has victories over two of the league’s best teams in the Celtics and Nuggets. They’ll look to add another notch to their belt.

The 76ers are coming off a disappointing loss to the Cavs in which they played well, but the Timberwolves should prove to be a tougher challenge. Embiid will have to contend with KAT and Gobert in the paint. This could be a statement game for the reigning MVP who will be trying to go for back-to-back MVPs.

Phoenix Suns - Golden State Warriors

The Warriors have finally snapped their 6-game losing streak with a W over the Rockets, but still don’t seem to have much to offer aside from Steph Curry, who has been magnificent so far this season. Klay Thompson scored 20 for the first time this season against the Rockets, and the Warriors will need a lot more of that from him to contend this season.

The Suns are riding a 4 game winning streak and Durant and Booker have been cooking together. They are slowly becoming on the court the team they are on paper. KD and Booker play very well off each other and are one of the leagues top duos when healthy.

Los Angeles Lakers - Dallas Mavericks

The 9-6 Lakers meet the 9-5 Mavericks in a game that is too close to call and could be a first-round playoff matchup in the West. LeBron James is still somehow leading the Lakers in scoring with 26 points a game, which is absolutely wild for a player in his 21st season. The issue with the Lakers is that while LeBron is a sure bet, his supporting cast doesn’t always have his back.

The Mavs on the other hand are led by Doncic, who is averaging 30-8-8 and leading the Mavs in every major statistical category. However, despite having Kyrie Irving as their #2, the Mavs have lost every game against teams in playoff positions so far this season. This is their opportunity to show they can also take down potential playoff teams.

Other Games

Charlotte Hornets - Washington Wizards

Atlanta Hawks - Brooklyn Nets

Indiana Pacers - Toronto Raptors

Houston Rockets - Memphis Grizzlies

New Orleans Pelicans - Sacramento Kings

Oklahoma City Thunder - Chicago Bulls

San Antonio Spurs - Los Angeles Clippers

Portland Trail Blazers - Utah Jazz

❓Sports Trivia

The Hawks and Pacers combined for 309 points in an offense-first game. What is the most points two teams ever combined to score, including overtime?

The answer is in the wrap-up.

🗣️ Quote Of The Day

“I think there's a lot of mediocrity in today's NFL. I don't see the excellence that I saw in the past”

NFL legend Tom Brady is NOT holding back.

I get where he’s coming from; the leading passers in the NFL this year are Sam Howell from the Commanders, CJ Stroud, a rookie from the Texans, and Tua Tagovailoa, mostly thanks to Tyreek Hill.

These aren’t the superstars we’re used to seeing leading the NFL.

⭐ Can’t Miss Moment

Otamendi’s Perfect Header Sinks Brazil

Alisson had no chance to get to this one. Brilliant stuff from the 35-year-old veteran defender.

🧮 Stat Of The Day

LeBron James reaches 39,000 career points

The King keeps on going. He is averaging 26 points a game in his 21st season, so barring an injury, we should see the 40,000 points milestone before the season ends.

📽️ Video of the Day

LeBron James Career Highlights

Let’s go crazy today to celebrate the King reaching 39,000 points. Do you have a spare two hours? Enjoy some of the best basketball plays made by one of the best basketball players of all time.

Click HERE to watch on Youtube.

Wrap Up

That’s it! We’re done with the international break, and regular scheduling will resume momentarily. Meanwhile, take a breather and enjoy a full slate of NBA games. See you tomorrow.

❗Trivia answer: The Nuggets and Pistons scored a combined 370 points in a 3OT game in 1983. The game ended 186-184 Pistons.