Canelo Alvarez wins with brutal KO

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Canelo Alvarez, right, throws a punch at James Kirkland at Minute Maid Park. (Troy Taormina, USA TODAY Sports)HOUSTON — Canelo Alvarez gave a partisan crowd of 31,588 at Minute Maid Park much to cheer about Saturday night, knocking out James Kirkland in the third round with a combination of power and punching accuracy that puts the 24-year-old super middleweight back in the mix of the best fighters in the sport.

Coming off a 10-month layoff, Alvarez (45-1-1, 32 KOs) showed no rust, and withstood a first-round pummeling by Kirkland to knock the Texan down once in the first round and twice in the third, the final time knocking him out with a right uppercut at 2:19 of…