This Weekend’s Big Match-Ups

(December 2-5, 2022)
This week is a huge one in the world of sport, with many different teams and players facing potentially legacy-defining games, as various competitions and leagues around the world are getting increasingly dramatic and exciting. The rivalries that we have been seeing so far this season are incredibly fierce, and this round of matchups is no different. So without further ado, let’s get into the top matches coming up this weekend.

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NBA: Milwaukee Bucks vs. Los Angeles Lakers (December 2nd)

Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks have had a stellar start to the season, already in second place in the NBA Eastern Conference and only behind the red-hot Boston Celtics. The Bucks have blown teams away so far this season, and their mix of strong defense mixed with a powerful offensive force in Antetokounmpo and the shooting talents of Grayson Allen and Khris Middleton is serving them well. Milwaukee looks like a real contender to reclaim the title they last won in 2021, and any team coming up against them should be afraid.

This weekend, that team is the stuttering Los Angeles Lakers, who are fresh off a win against the Portland Trailblazers, with legend LeBron James making his return from injury. However, the Lakers are still just 13th in the Western Conference with a record of 8-12, and it doesn’t seem like their problems are anywhere closer to being fixed. James tends to raise his game against the best teams in the league, but the Lakers winning this one would be a real upset.

NBA schedule on TV and stream.

FIFA World Cup: Argentina vs. Australia (December 3rd)

The FIFA World Cup is well underway, and we have finally found out the identities of most of the teams in the round of 16. After a shocking opening loss to Saudi Arabia, Lionel Messi and his Argentina squad bounced back against Mexico and then demolished a poor Poland side to top the tricky Group C and book their spot in the round of 16 against an Australia side that surprised many by qualifying behind France in Group D.

Messi, Angel di Maria, and Rodrigo de Paul have been instrumental in their success over the last two games, and new star Alexis Mac Allister was a revelation in their win over Poland, showing signs that the loss against Saudi Arabia was just a fluke, and that the real Argentina is back. One of the pre-tournament favorites, Argentina will have to be wary of an Australian team that have been defensively resolute and brave in attack, but a loss against a team ranked significantly below them in the FIFA rankings is unimaginable. We shall see how they fare on Saturday.

World Cup 2022 Qatar schedule.

UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Holland (December 3rd)

Before the huge UFC 282 with Jan Blachowitz and Magomed Ankalaev in the main event next week, this weekend sees Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson do battle with the ferocious Kevin Holland to see who rises higher in the welterweight rankings and potentially moves into the top five in the division. Thompson has been a legend of the sport, but at 39, his speed and timing of previous years seems to have fallen off, even though his kicks are still as glorious as ever. Holland, on the other hand, is fresh from a crushing defeat against rising star Khamzat Chimaev, and is looking to bounce back to get his career back on track.

Further down the card, two other welterweight legends meet on Saturday to battle it out, Rafael dos Anjos and Bryan Barberena. Both are well in their 30s now, but they have still managed to keep a great deal of their athleticism and power that they were so famed for a few years ago. It promises to be a hell of a fight.

UFC schedule here.

NFL: Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. New Orleans Saints (December 5th)

Tom Brady’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers faltered last time out, losing in overtime to a resurgent Cleveland Browns team that managed a Brady-esque comeback in the fourth quarter, and then in overtime. The Bucs have still not hit the heights of last season or the season prior, and one wonders how big a chance Brady and Tampa have to cause an upset and go deep in the playoffs this year, let alone win another Super Bowl. The team looks slightly disjointed, and this weekend, they come up against their bogey team.

The New Orleans Saints have consistently been a thorn in Tom Brady’s side, and they meet for the second time this season. The first time they met, Tampa wasn’t even able to score a single point, the first time that had happened to Tom Brady in his whole Bucs career. This matchup should be slightly closer than last time, considering the Bucs’s mini-revival as of late, but it is going to be a tense, feisty clash as it always is between these two huge powerhouses.

NFL schedule on TV and stream.

Author: Dan Anderson