Washington Informer

Brandywine's Seth Mitchell lost for the first time on Saturday night. Mitchell went down three times in the second round amid several combinations from Johnathon Banks before the bout at Atlantic City's Boardwalk Hall was stopped at 2 minutes 37 seconds.

Mitchell had taken the most punishment of his career when referee Eddie Cotton stepped in to stop the fight. In his 27th professional bout, Mitchell came out surprisingly flat. His journey toward a world championship fight has taken a step back, and at this point, we'll wait to see who the 30-year-old will fight next and when.

In the evening's co-main event to Mitchell vs. Banks, Adrien Broner knocked out Antonio DeMarco in the eighth round to capture the World Boxing Council lightweight championship. The pro boxing card was the first at Boardwalk Hall since Superstorm Sandy hit Atlantic City on October 29.

The first round was primarily spent with Mitchell and Banks feeling out one another. Early in the second round, Banks landed a left uppercut that staggered Mitchell (25-1-1, 19 knockouts). Subsequently, Banks (29-1-1, 19 knockouts) connected with a right jab that inflicted more damage, and soon thereafter Mitchell dropped to the canvas.

An additional jab sent Mitchell to the canvas again, and when he went down for a third time, Cotton intervened and stopped the fight. Banks connected on 25 of 42 power shots while Mitchell landed only 11 of 43, and 29 percent of his overall punches. On the other hand, Banks landed 49 percent of his total 77 punches.

Banks came into the fight with a reputation for being a very good counter puncher. When Mitchell threw a right crossed that missed, Banks landed his first big shot. He quickly threw a left hand that landed on Mitchell's chin in what wound up being the decisive punch of the fight.

A Detroit native, Banks dedicated this fight to Emanuel Steward, the former trainer who died last month of colon cancer, and was outwardly emotional after the win that allowed him to take the North American Boxing Organization title from Mitchell.

Mitchell fought at this same venue nearly seven months ago. In that fight against Chazz Witherspoon, he came close to going down in the first round but came back in the second round before finishing off Witherspoon in the third round for his 10th straight knockout.

As John Wall enters his third year with the Washington Wizards, there is a great deal of optimism surrounding the team. The point guard from Kentucky is the face-of-the-franchise, and along with the newly acquired Nene, is clearly identified as one of the team leaders.

The Wizards selected Wall with the first overall pick in the 2010 draft, and immediately asked him to direct a team that, quite frankly, wasn't very good. However, in spite of the team's lack of success, Wall has continued to develop both as a player and a person.

Wall would be a senior in college right now. The 22-year-old thought this would be the season that would significantly define his career, the season he would prove that he was worthy of being the Wizards' first overall pick.

It could still happen, but the start of Wall's season has been postponed. He is expected to miss the month of November after being diagnosed with the early stages of a stress injury to his left knee cap.

That's all the bad news the Wizards need, a team that hasn't qualified for the playoffs in four-straight years. They've finished each of the last four seasons more than 25 games under .500, including the lockout-shortened season of 2011-12.

But that's not all. Nene, their second-best player, has been sidelined with plantar fasciitis in his left foot. He wasn't able to practice with the team prior to its regular season opener against Cleveland on Tuesday. After being acquired in a trade late last season, Nene played in only 11 games with the Wizards, but that was more than adequate for teammates and coaches to be impressed by his skills and leadership.

The Wizards' preseason has been defined by one mishap after another, from Trevor Booker's nagging left hamstring to Kevin Seraphin's strained right calf to Emeka Okafor's bout with food poisoning. Although none of those are long-term injuries, they've damaged Head Coach Randy Wittman's plans for establishing lineup continuity as the team tries to break the playoff skid.

But, there is a silver lining. Wittman shared this explanation on how the adversity will benefit his team:

"You anticipate that when everyone gets back healthy, that the guys here that have gotten more playing time than they probably would are going to be better prepared to be playing," Wittman said. "You hope when we're all healthy that we're a better team because of this happening."

With the autumn sports landscape in full swing, it's time for sports fans to partake in one of America's great sports traditions. The World Series, sometimes referred to as the "Fall Classic," will get underway on Wednesday night in San Francisco. Here are three aspects of the Series that we should pay special attention to:

Home Field Advantage

Throughout this postseason, the Detroit Tigers have played very well without home field advantage. So the possibility of having to play four games in San Francisco is not a new concept. However, it does pose a unique challenge: In the National League stadium, the designated hitter rule doesn't exist. That could add an automatic out to a lineup that is somewhat top-heavy with Prince Fielder, Austin Jackson, and Miguel Cabrera surrounded by lesser batters. This postseason, designated hitter Delmon Young has four game-winning RBI's, but he may be asked to play in the outfield. Will that compromise the Tigers defensively? Beyond that, Detroit appears to have the bench depth to adjust to National League rules.

Giants' Pitching Staff

The San Francisco Giants will have ace Matt Cain at least twice in this best-of-seven series, and southpaw Barry Zito will start Game 1. Otherwise, manager Bruce Bochy will have some decisions to make regarding the pitching staff. The Giants could also call on Ryan Vogelsong to start Game 3. His last outing was on Sunday in the NLCS against St. Louis. But there are three other pitchers available. Tim Lincecum, who has won two Cy Young Awards, has performed better in relief this postseason. Madison Bumgarner, though he's been the Giants' second-best pitcher in 2012, has shown signs of fatigue in the postseason. And then there's Zito, often maligned for his limited production in spite of his huge contract, who now wants to build off a great Game 5 performance in the NLCS.

Detroit's Ace

Detroit's ace pitcher, Justin Verlander, looms large over this year's World Series. In his three starts this postseason, he has given up just two earned runs and struck out 25 hitters in 24 innings. In each of his postseason starts, he has thrown 121 pitches or more. The advantage that the Giants will have is that Verlander will be pitching on seven days rest which could knock him off his routine. In all likelihood, he will pitch Game 1 and Game 5 and should be available for a relief appearance if necessary in game 7.

Apparently the World Boxing Commission had some bad information about the health of former heavyweight champion Ken Norton. Boxing News has been informed by boxing manager Butch Gottlieb who is close to the Norton family that Norton did not suffer a heart attack and was in the hospital due to complications from a stroke.

"He had a stroke a couple of months ago and he's been back and forth between the hospital and rehab since," said Gottlieb. "He's now in the hospital because he got an infection while he was in rehab so they had put him in the hospital just to keep an eye on it. He's not in delicate condition. He happens to be strong as a horse....Kenny does not speak real good because the stroke paralyzed part of his face, but he's getting better and they expect him to come out of this with minimal problems."

Source:  Boxing News