ERST LESEN! » enough to be asked to come play

Three UFC events in three days! And it starts with UFC Fight Night on Thursday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.The main attraction is a lightweight championship bout between Rafael dos Anjos and Eddie Alvarez. Dos Anjos will be seeking his second title defense. Alvarez is a former Bellator MMA champion with a 2-1 record in the UFC.Lets take a closer look at Thursdays main event. Dont agree with the pick? Let me know on Twitter: @bokamotoESPN.Main eventRafael dos Anjos (25-7) vs. Eddie Alvarez (27-4) UFC lightweight championship Odds: Dos Anjos -330; Alvarez +270When Alvarez has been in a fight, his face tends to show it. When dos Anjos has been in a fight, his opponents face tends to show it.Thats one way to sum up the theme of this 155-pound title fight.Alvarez has a high degree of skill to be in the position hes in, but a major piece of his identity as a fighter is his heart. In short, he tends to get hurt a lot. Dos Anjos, meanwhile, is finally getting recognition for his elite athleticism and, especially lately, has been taking on the reputation of an offensive juggernaut -- one of coach Rafael Cordeiros patent killers.If given the option between Alvarezs heart and RDAs offense -- in a five-round fight -- Im going RDA every time. Which means: If Alvarez is to win a UFC title, he cant afford to take the amount of damage weve grown accustomed to seeing him take.For that reason, I like the fact hes working with boxing coach Mark Henry, a longtime fixture in the camp of Frankie Edgar. Alvarez is small for the lightweight division, but he doesnt always fight like it. He has a similar skill set to Edgars, and if he adds the lateral movement and feints that helped Edgar win the lightweight championship years ago, hell improve his chances against dos Anjos, an ultra-aggressive opponent.Its hard to even recall the old dos Anjos, who went 4-4 in his first eight UFC fights. There was actually a time when labeling dos Anjos something to the effect of a purely jiujitsu, also-ran lightweight would have been more or less agreeable.In 2011, however, dos Anjos moved to the U.S. from Brazil, where Cordeiro began to tap into the then 27-year-olds physical tools. Dos Anjos is now one of the more feared strikers in the game. His left body kick is a game-changer, with the straight left not far behind. He has found a home in smothering longer-distance strikers Donald Cerrone, Anthony Pettis and Nate Diaz. His range awareness is terrific and his power visibly shakes opponents.Dos Anjos is hittable, which is somewhat inevitable given his desire to pressure, and thats really what Alvarez must take advantage of. The Edgar comparison is a simple way to put it and (make of this what you will), Henry literally called out the code instruction of Frankie to Alvarez during his last fight.Alvarez needs to play matador, stay clear of the fence and mix in leg kicks with his combinations to temper down dos Anjos movement and power. In his last two fights, Alvarez took advantage of Gilbert Melendez gassing in Mexico City and somehow managed to stuff a somewhat timid Pettis against the fence in a way we havent seen since Clay Guida wrote that blueprint in 2011. To beat dos Anjos, Alvarez needs to be mobile and always one step ahead in technique.His heart will be a factor, as it always is, but it cant be the factor.Prediction:?Dos Anjos via TKO, second round Steve Bono Jersey . -- Brandon Jennings made the most of his first game with the Detroit Pistons on Sunday night. Custom Patriots T-shirts . The Celtics closed out their first preseason under Stevens on Wednesday night with a 101-97 victory over the Brooklyn Nets, who rested a lot of their lineup including former Celtics Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce. http://www.custompatriotsjersey.com/custom-ben-coates-jersey-large-481f.html . The injury bothered Bledsoe in the Suns victory over the Clippers on Monday and he sat out the teams home loss to Memphis on Thursday night. Monty Stickles Jersey . If ever they start actually putting pictures beside words in the dictionary, the Blue Jays left-handers mug will appear beside “Consistency. Babe Parilli Jersey . That gave fans outside Joe Louis Arena another chance to ask for autographs from the 19-year-old whose stardom in the NHL has arrived earlier than most expected. ORLANDO, Fla. -- David Duval and stepson Nick Karavites shot an 11-under 61 Saturday to take the first-round lead in the PNC Father/Son Challenge.They birdied Nos. 1, 3-7, 13-16 and 18 to open a one-stroke lead over Fred and Taylor Funk in the two-day, 20-team scramble event at Ritz-Carlton Golf Clubs Grande Lakes.To go out and have fun and hit good golf shots, make a couple putts, thats always enjoyable, but its secondary to walking around the golf course with the entire crew, said Duval, who made only one competitive start in 2016 -- missing the cut in the Sanderson Farms Championship.We just scrambled, Karavites added. If I hit a bad shot, he hit a good shot.Team Duval has been preparing for the tournament since receiving an invitation two months ago.Anyone you talk to will tell you that this is the best week of the year, Duval said. If youre fortunate enough to be asked to come play, invited to come play, you dont pass it up.The Funks got off to a fast start with birdies at Nos. 1 and 2 and an eagle at 3, where Taylorr -- a member of the University of Texas golf team -- hit a 3-wood from 265 yards to 30 feet and made the putt.dddddddddddd They added birdies at Nos. 5, 7, 10, 11, 15 and 18 for a 62.Birdie, birdie, eagle start, the elder Funk said. Thats a dream start. We played really good. I counted three really good opportunities that we missed and probably another two that we could have made.The Funks tied for second last year after a one-hole, four-team playoff won by Lanny and Tucker Wadkins.Retief and Leo Goosen, Raymond and Robert Floyd, Stewart and Connor Cink, Bernhard and Christina Langer, and Mark and Shaun OMeara were tied for third at 63.Fan favorites John and Little John Daly shot 64.It was a blast to play, John Daly said. To see a 13-year-old be clutch like that was great when his daddy was all over the place. It was pretty cool.The Wadkins opened with a 66. Jack and Jack Nicklaus II shot 71. ' ' '