A.J. HOFFMAN

UFC 228 preview: Woodley's return highlights card

UFC 228 preview: Woodley's return highlights card
Tyron Woodley returns to the Octagon. Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

UFC 228 is one of those rare double-title fight cards. Beyond that it is a little sparse on competitive matchups, but there are a few fighters who are definitely worth watching. 

The main event is for the welterweight title, featuring the return of Tyron Woodley. Woodley hasn’t been the most beloved champion, as he has had awkward fights (draws and wins) over Stephen Thompson and Demian Maia. He has gotten away from his power-punching ways and has become more of a counter-striker, which isn’t exactly fan-friendly. His opponent, Darren Till, also holds a win over Thompson. Till’s fight wasn’t much more exciting than Woodley’s fights with Wonderboy. Till’s biggest issue to date has been his inability to make weight. He wasn’t close on the scale in his last fight, and if he misses again, he not only loses his title shot, but also will probably be pushed up to 185 permanently. Till may be the more aggressive of the two fighters, but I think going five rounds after a tough weight cut will be problematic for him. 

The co-main is for the women’s strawweight title. Nicco Montano holds the title, and most people aren’t taking her seriously. She won her title on The Ultimate Fighter, but to her credit, was an underdog in all of her fights on the show. Her opponent, Valentina Schevchenko, is much more experienced, much more successful and has seen significantly better competition. Montano will likely be the biggest underdog champion in UFC history, likely to open up around +850. While that number doesn’t accurately show what a live underdog she can be, I have a hard time seeing her being more than a footnote on a long Schevchenko title run.  

My must-watch fighter on the card is Zabit Magomedsharipov. He has been a force since his arrival on the UFC roster, and was supposed to see an uptick in competition on this card, but Yair Rodriguez pulled out of the fight. He is a high-volume striker who also throws in strong grappling and submissions. There really isn’t much he hasn’t shown to be good at. Instead of Rodriguez, Brandon Davis gets the call. He got to the UFC through Dana White’s Contender Series, and this will already be his fourth fight of 2018. He is aggressive and unafraid, which should lead to, at a minimum, an exciting fight with Magomedsharipov. 

While we are talking about exciting fights, Niko Price and Abdul Razak Alhassan is the top contender for fight of the night. Both men are power punchers and proven finishers. In his last fight, Price finished Randy Brown with hammerfists from his back, easily one of the highlight moments of the year. Alhassan has finished nearly all his fights by first round knockout, though his one loss came when Omari Akhamedov survived that initial flurry. Price has proven hittable, as Alex Morono had him nearly finished in the first round, before eventually getting the knockout himself late. It would shock me if this fight went the distance. 

The prelims feature Tatiana Suarez, Jimmie Rivera, John Dodson and a solid matchup between Aljamain Sterling and Cody Stamann. Texan Geoff Neal also has a spot on the early prelims. 

PREDICTIONS:

Woodley def. Till by DEC

Schevchenko def. Montano by DEC

Magomedsharipov def. Davis by SUB

Kowalkiewicz def. Andrade by DEC

Alhassan def. Price by KO 

Suarez def. Esparza by DEC

Sterling def. Stamman by DEC

Dodson def. Rivera by DEC

Byrd def. Stewart by SUB

C. White def. Sanchez by KO

A. White def. Miller by TKO

Aldana def. Pudilova by DEC

Brooks def. Sanchez by DEC

Neal def. Camacho by DEC

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Thunder defeat the Rockets, 137-128. Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 51 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Houston Rockets 137-128 on Monday night for their 50th win of the season.

Gilgeous-Alexander reached 50 points for the fourth time this season, all in the past seven weeks. The NBA’s scoring leader finished with at least 40 for the ninth time in 2024-25. He made 18 of 30 field goals, went 5 of 9 on 3-pointers and hit all 10 of his free throws.

Jalen Williams added 24 points for the Thunder (50-11).

Cam Whitmore matched career highs with 27 points and 11 rebounds, and Reed Sheppard added a career-best 25 points for the Rockets.

Houston was without injured Alperen Sengun (lower back soreness), Amen Thompson (right shoulder), Dillon Brooks (bruised right knee), Fred VanVleet (strained right ankle) and Tari Eason (lower left leg).

Houston’s largest lead was nine points early in the second quarter, but the Thunder rallied to lead 63-62 at halftime behind 28 points from Gilgeous-Alexander.

Oklahoma City took charge in the third. Gilgeous-Alexander was up to 45 points by the end of the period, and the Thunder led 102-89 heading into the fourth.

Houston made a final push, closing the gap to six before the Thunder regained control. Lu Dort made back-to-back 3-pointers 29 seconds apart, extending Oklahoma City’s lead to 120-106.

Gilgeous-Alexander reached 50 points on a putback with just under three minutes left to give Oklahoma City a 132-120 advantage.

Takeaways

Rockets: Houston played fast but didn’t have the manpower to run with the Thunder, one of the league’s deepest teams.

Thunder: Oklahoma City was aggressive, and it led to the Thunder making 24 of 27 free throws.

Key moment

Dort stole the ball, leading to a fast-break dunk from Gilgeous-Alexander that gave Oklahoma City a 128-117 lead with just under four minutes remaining.

Key stat

Gilgeous-Alexander scored 20 points in the first quarter.

Up next

The Rockets visit Indiana on Tuesday. The Thunder visit Memphis on Wednesday.

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