Die Macht » the potential for a thrilling finish. In 45

(SportsNetwork.com) - The Oklahoma City Thunder will try to move closer to the .500 mark when they host the Utah Jazz Friday at Chesapeake Energy Arena. The Thunder have dropped two in a row and are 17-19 on the season. They are coming off Wednesdays 104-83 disaster against the Sacramento Kings and made only 32.6 percent from the field. Kevin Durant scored 24 points and Russell Westbrook had 10. Serge Ibaka recorded a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds, while Reggie Jackson scored 14 points off the bench for Oklahoma City, whose current slide comes on the heels of winning four of five games. We found the good shots but couldnt hit them tonight, Durant said. When you get down 25-7 thats when you start to rush and turn the ball over. So we have to go back to the drawing board and get our next one. Dion Waiters scored four points on 1-of-9 shooting in his debut with Oklahoma City, which acquired him from the Cleveland Cavaliers as part of a three-team deal on Monday. The Kings snapped their 12-game slide to the Thunder. They allowed season lows in points and shooting percentage (32.6). Oklahoma City has won three in a row at home and is 10-7 as the host. Utah started a three-game road swing with a convincing 97-77 victory against the Chicago Bulls two days ago. Derrick Favors scored 14 of his 20 points in the second half and grabbed 11 rebounds, while Gordon Hayward and Trey Burke scored 18 and 17 points, respectively. Trevor Booker delivered 15 points off the bench for the Jazz, winners in seven of the last 11 games. As much as anything, weve had a better focus (of late), said Jazz head coach Quin Snyder. Sometimes weve had it for a quarter and not for the next quarter. We were focused more than not tonight. The Jazz are 7-12 outside Salt Lake City and have won two straight and five of their last seven road bouts. Utah will close the trek Saturday in Houston and have split two matchups with Oklahoma City this season. The Northwest rivals will meet again March 28. The Jazz have lost seven in row and 10 of the last 12 games on the road in this series. Fake NBA Jerseys Online . Just ask last seasons Supporters Shield winners, the New York Red Bulls, who were resoundingly defeated last weekend by a rampant Vancouver Whitecaps in a match which produced two contenders for MLS Goal of the Week from Sebastian Fernandez and Pedro Morales. Fake NBA Jerseys 2019 .75 million contract for the 2014 season and avoided arbitration. The team announced the agreement on Tuesday. http://www.fakenbajerseys.com/ .com) - Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Edwin Encarnacion has been named the American League Player of the Week for the period ending May 11. Fake NBA Jerseys Sale . Paul, MN (SportsNetwork. Fake Nike NBA Jerseys . Jagr had a goal and two assists, Andy Greene scored 43 seconds into overtime and Marek Zidlicky had two goals as the Devils rallied past the Washington Capitals 5-4 Saturday night.Its been a long and, at times, bumpy road back to the UFC for Andrei Arlovski. Following a seven-plus year stint that saw the dangerous striker capture the UFC heavyweight championship, Arlovski opted to part ways with the worlds largest MMA organization after fulfilling his contract in early 2008. His strategy was simple in theory, but tough in execution: dispatch the top heavyweights outside the UFC and return to the negotiating table with increased bargaining power. Arlovskis new beginning got off to a hot start when he picked up consecutive knockout victories over Ben Rothwell and Roy Nelson. Unfortunately for the Belarus native, his plan soon took a sharp nose dive. After a disastrous outing against Fedor Emelianenko in 2009 that saw him swatted out of mid-air like a fly during an ill-fated flying-knee attempt, Arlovski went on to lose his next three fights. In MMA youre often only as good as your last fight and Arlovski had now dropped four straight for the first time in his career. In the eyes of many, The Pit Bull was done. But Arlovskis fortunes would change once more, as he returned to the win column with a TKO victory over Ray Lopez in mid-2011. Since his skid ended hes now netted an impressive 6-1 (1 NC) record and subsequently earned his way back onto the UFC roster. On the cusp of his promotional return, Arlovski said his slump was an important learning experience. “I think everything happens for a reason,” Arlovski said. “Right now I have a lot of energy and fire in my eyes. Im just ready to fight hard and train hard. “If youre on top of the world, you have to train even harder than before because you can lose it in one minute. It was definitely a good life experience for me. Like I said, I have a lot of energy, Im still young and Im ready to start everything from the beginning again. “I knew I was going to be back in the UFC sooner or later. Im very excited its happened now.” Arlovski gets to reintroduce himself to UFC fans when he battles Brendan Schaub on the main card of UFC 174 in Vancouver Saturday. The show will be headlined by a flyweight championship bout between Demetrious Johnson and Ali Bagautinov. Not only does Arlovski have the opportunity to pick up his first win inside the octagon since UFC 82 over six years ago, he also aims to knock off a top-15 ranked heavyweight. With Schaub currently sitting in the No. 14 sppot, Arlovski is determined to send a message to the rest of the weight class.dddddddddddd “Its very important for me to have a very good start in my second debut in the UFC and I will do everything possible to beat Brendan,” Arlovski said. “The best thing about Brendan is that hes in front of me. Hes top 15 and Im not even top 25. So everybody whos in front of me is a very important fight for me.” A win over Schaub will certainly put Arlovski back on track in the ultra-competitive heavyweight division. Though he once wore UFC gold around his waist, hes not about to get ahead of himself. As much as Arlovski would love to fight for a belt again, he admits he has his work cut out for him before he can re-enter the title picture. “One step at a time,” Arlovski said. “I have to face Brendan Schaub and then afterwards its definitely going to be up to the UFC (who I fight next). “(The heavyweight division) was tough then and now its even tougher. Definitely the UFC has the best heavyweights in the world. Its awesome.” As with most heavyweight tilts, Arlovskis bout with Schaub carries the potential for a thrilling finish. In 45 combined fights, the two have only reached the judges scorecards a total of eight times. Though both fighters have excelled at putting opponents away, theyve also suffered their share of knockout losses over the years, causing some to question the strength of their respective chins. Arlovski immediately dismissed the notion, stating that one top fighter can put another to sleep on any given night. “If you land a good right, a good kick, or a good punch in the right place, anybody can be knocked out,” Arlovski said. “I think its all b------- about a weak chin or a glass chin. Its all about landing a hard punch in the right place. Definitely, I wont count on Brendan having a weak chin. “Brendan, hes definitely a very tough fighter. He has good jiu jitsu and is very dangerous on the ground. I just need to be ready.” Though Arlovski carries no illusions about how quickly a fight can turn sour, hes also no stranger to dishing out highlight-reel knockouts. If things go according to plan, hell be adding another to his resume this weekend. “I think its going to be a very exciting fight for the fans,” he said. “Especially for Arlovski fans.” ' ' '