#which is like. the goal of seeding is a likely to win opponent vs an unlikely to win one

[beefy-babe-showdown]

I AM THE TRUE MUSCLE WOMEN CONNOISSEUR

IVE BEEN CONSUMING MUSCLE WOMEN MEDIA SINCE I WAS 12! IT WAS MY GAY AWAKENING EVEN, SO I KNOW WHAT IM TALKING ABOUT.

AND I CAN SAY JUST ONE THING

YOU ALL HAVE NO TASTE

A TINY BIT OF CURVE IS NOT TRUE MUSCLE, YOU GUYS PICKED STICK SHE RA OVER NOI? NOI!!!

AND DONT GET ME STARTED ON THE OTHERS!

ALSO IT WAS UNFAIR TO PUT THE TWO SUPERIOR MUSCLE LADIES AGAINST EACH OTHER IN THE FIRST ROUND! Noi vs Barghest.

This is just a joke please don’t come for my fragile ass.

The gay awaking at 12 wasn’t though. Have been a huge pathetic bottom lesbian ever since.

everyone share their gay women muscle connoisseur stats in the comments below and don't forget to like and subscribe

[bongaboi]

Vermont: 2023-24 America East Men's Basketball Champions

The University of Vermont men's basketball team found out in the third game the resolve it possessed — however incalculable it might be to truly measure such a trait.

The Catamounts' roaring comeback vs. Charleston on Nov. 16 at the Myrtle Beach Invitational was the first of five victories this season after trailing by 10 or more points.

"We just knew the kind of guys we had in the locker room, it didn’t matter how far down we were," Vermont junior forward Ileri Ayo-Faleye said. "We had the type of dudes who were going to fight back and never give up."

No deficit too big to overcome. No foe too imposing to handle. Nothing, it seemed, could rattle this year's Catamounts.

And for the third straight March, Vermont's opponent in the America East championship game couldn't break that will. The Catamounts host this day, and own it, annually.

Behind Ayo-Faleye and Shamir Bogues' 94 feet of influence, the top-seeded Catamounts outlasted No. 2 UMass Lowell despite a halftime deficit for a 66-61 victory in the league's title game at sold-out Patrick Gym on Saturday, sealing a championship three-peat and booking yet another berth to the NCAA Tournament.

On a 10-game winning streak, the Catamounts (28-6) join the 2004-05 Vermont squad with three consecutive league tournament titles. The Catamounts, with 11 conference titles to extend their league record, have won five of the last six America East championships.

They'll learn their seed, site and opponent during Selection Sunday on CBS (6 p.m. eastern).

"This group is just so resilient and so tough and these two guys up here epitomize that as much as anybody in our program," 13-year UVM coach John Becker said of Ayo-Faleye and Bogues. "Really, they were the pillars of our program this year. The relentlessness, the athleticism, the instincts with which they play with is breathtaking. They brought so much joy to Catamount Country."

Bogues, a junior transfer guard from Tarleton State, was named the tournament's most outstanding player after collecting 15 points, nine rebounds, three assists, four steals and no turnovers in 32 minutes in Saturday's final. Ayo-Faleye, a second-year transfer from Rhode Island, posted nine points, five boards, four assists, two steals, a trio of blocks and no turnovers in 36 minutes.

"We were down at half and still found a way to win," said Ayo-Faleye, who earned a spot on the all-championship team. "We stayed the course, listened to the coaches, listened to the messaging and just applied it. This time of year it’s all about execution."

Said Bogues: "Our message coming in was to stay together. And that’s what we did today."

TJ Long, also on the all-championship squad, sank four 3-pointers and totaled 14 points and three assists. Fifth-year senior Aaron Deloney added a dozen points thanks to a 7-for-8 effort at the foul line and one game-sealing layup, and Nick Fiorillo added 11 points for the Catamounts.

Cam Morris (17 points, 10 rebounds), Brayden O'Connor (14 points) and Ayinde Hikim (11 points) each reached double figures for Lowell.

Saturday's championship encapsulated much of Vermont's gutsy season. The Catamounts struggled to score around the paint, had stretches of shooting dry spells from their outside threats, and had to work from behind. But like they've done all winter, the Catamounts drummed up answers with elite-level defense and a plenty of timely and much-needed Long 3-pointers.

"Knowing that there is going to be adversity throughout the game, just weathering the storm and being able to come out with the win is the most important thing," Ayo-Faleye said. "Never getting too high or too low, just staying even and knowing that we are going to pull it out."

Vermont's early, 19-11 advantage was wiped out by inefficiency on offense — seven straight missed field goals — and the River Hawks (22-10) not only climbed back into contention but took a 32-29 margin into halftime. A year ago, Lowell also had a slight edge at the break before Vermont pulled away.

"UMass Lowell — give them the credit they deserve. They’ve been a team that’s been nipping at our heels for the last bunch of years," Becker said. "They are tough, they are experienced. They battled and we knew it was going to be a tough game. I have a lot of respect for (coach Pat Duquette) and his program."

In a game that featured 11 lead changes and five ties, Vermont created breathing room with a 13-4 spurt highlighted by a pair of Fiorillo triples and an Ayo-Faleye hook shot for a 60-50 lead with 4:01 left in regulation.

To start the separating run, Fiorillo poured in a 3-pointer following Ayo-Faleye's drive into the paint and kick to the wing. Ayo-Faleye also got a crafty and nimble reserve layup to drop through and Bogues steered in a baseline runner on back-to-back possessions.

Ayo-Faleye's hook shot, though, was the type of offense Vermont had been lacking throughout the year without a true post-up presence. The Catamounts won without that position last year with Robin Duncan and Dylan Penn, and have pulled off a similar scheme with Bogues' skillset.

"I thought he made the biggest play of the game," Becker said of Ayo-Faleye's hook.

The Riverhawks made one last push, uncorking a quick 5-0 spurt to trail 60-55 with 3:29 to go. After Fiorillo's two foul shots and Connor's basket made it a five-point game again, Morris missed both of his free-throw attempts and Deloney, the team leader, soared for the final dagger to secure the Catamounts' three-peat.

Instead of letting the clock tick down, Deloney saw an opening to the basket, and the speedy guard bolted to the hoop for a finish off the glass and 64-57 lead with 43 seconds left.

Counting the championship awarded following the cancellation of the 2020 final due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Deloney is now a four-time America East tournament champion, joining former teammates Ben Shungu and Robin Duncan.

"You just get to see kids grow up. AD is a man now. He was a little kid when he got here," Becker said.

Vermont also pulled off three in a row with three remarkably different squads. The Catamounts reloaded this winter after the graduation of four starters, just like they had to do following the 2021-22 campaign. Their program mission remains in sight: Advance to the second weekend at the NCAA Tournament.

"These guys want to go to the tournament and we want to win. We are trying to get this program to Sweet 16s," Becker said. "We are a national brand, we are nationally relevant. I’m not going to let anyone in this program be comfortable with what we did or done. We want to do the next thing until I run out of goals and then I’ll retire if there’s nothing left to shoot for.

"I’m going to continue to try and dream big here."

[hikorzik]

Alright yesterday me and my friends CUBED using my fresh COMMANDER CUBE that I made!!! And it was... A lot of fun!

It went (first player to play to last) : Brago vs Ghave (me) vs Marchesa vs Halana & Alena. I won!

My friends didn't know the cube's list at all, nor the themes (they didn't wish to be told), and aren't big drafters either.

Big analysis below!

What I get from the draft part is that discovering cards and synergies was fun and engaging, and there were enough cards and strategies that everybody found his niche without stepping on the others' toes. There were still contested cards as several of us drafted some colors (3 on white, 2 on red, 2 on black) but with sufficiently different goals that it still let us get useful cards in our decks. The least contested color was blue (out of 35 blue cards seen, 22 went into a main deck, and only one player had blue), the most was probably red or black (all 4 of us picked red cards at first but only 2 players ended up on red). Black had the least % of card played Maindeck (34 cards seen, 15 maindecked, so 44%). Green had the most % of maindecked cards (31 cards seen, 25 Maindeck, which is 80%). The packs were seeded with 2 legends each, so we saw 24 legends out of 50 total. Out of those 24, NINE were 3 colors, NINE others were 2 colors, one was green, 2 were red, one black, one blue and one white. What I get from this is that I need more 1 colors legends to pad the 3 and 2 colors one out. Indeed, in my cube you can pair mono color legends as though they had partner so I would like more people to put them in the command zone instead. What happened here is 1st pack we opened 4 3 colors legends, I was able to draft Gahiji, Thantis and Ghave and see what colors were open or gave me the best options. I would like the draft to be a little less open to this.

One player had, like me with Ghave, Marchesa from the beginning and went with this plan early, he probably had the best deck. Brago pivoted early second pack. Halana and Alena forced gruul because that is where his heart is, and ended up with a good deck, but probably amongst the weakest overall unless he had very good draws (which he sadly hadn't, even tho he came very close to winning!)

Gameplay wise, the early turns were kind of durdly. 3 colors commanders without a lot of fixing can be hard to bring out on curve, but we kind of managed. Brago and Marchesa went off quickly compared to the 2 other decks, thanks to the great value they were able to leverage. At one point Marchesa was 6/4 haste vigilance deathtouch Trample first strike AND had akki battlesquad on the board which let him come very close to victory! Brago was very close too, generating tons of tokens with cloudpost ranger, deadeye navigator, and being able to recur her interactions with archaeomancer. As for me, I struggled with card draw and was stuck with a very unimpressive board for most of the game. That said, I was able to resolve and keep zulaport cutthroat and cruel celebrant, which my opponents underestimated. I was able to finish off the two giants with repeated sacrifices and keeping removal in hand (contraband livestock and despark). H&A was very close to winning too because he built a threatening board while Brago and Marchesa fought and when Marchesa killed Brago he left himself open to the clapback.

It was a lot of fun and I loved the experience! I am keeping a sheets with stats since I don't get how to make stuff work on cube cobra... Here they are bellow, in all it's frenglish beauty

And here the cube's list!

Thanks for reading ✌️

[gosoccerdawgs]

Dawgs Punch Ticket to State

AAA STATE SECTIONAL at Bearden 2 Science Hill 0

Saturday, May 20, 2023 6:00 pm

Goal-scoring tandem Hayden Tate and Lucas Nordin scored second half goals Saturday as undefeated Bearden put away stubborn Science Hill 2-0 to move one step closer to their goal of a State Championship.

After a sluggish first half by the Bulldogs,Tate scored his season’s 17th goal forty-six seconds into the second period following two nice passes down the left side and across the box from Hamid Djouadi and Nordin. 

The two teams continued to battle for thirty-five minutes when Harrison Schwall capped a strong game with a beautiful touch pass assisting Nordin’s 27th goal of the season for the final 2-0 margin. The play began with yet another pinpoint, left-footed placement into the box from outside back Nic Prins. 

#2 Bearden will now face #1 ranked Brentwood in a battle of unbeatens at the State Tournament in Murfreesboro. The short-sided TSSAA doesn’t seed their brackets, otherwise this matchup would have been slated for the Championship round. Regardless, the Dawgs would most likely have to beat the Bruins at some point to win it all, so they might as well do it in the opening round.  The only common opponent the teams have is Hendersonville, whom Brentwood defeated Saturday 4-0 and earlier 2-0. Bearden beat the Commandoes 3-0 in the BHS Invitational. With the sting of last year’s 4-1 loss to the Bruins in the Final, and finishing second the last two seasons, the Bulldogs should be properly motivated to win it all.

This is Coach Ryan Radcliffe’s fourth consecutive, and sixth overall trip to the State Tournament in his eight seasons leading the Bulldogs (not counting 2020, which was canceled for Covid-19). His stellar record of 11-3 in Murfreesboro, with two Championships, two Runner-Ups, and a Final Four place him among the elite of Tennessee high school soccer coaches.

Goals: HAYDEN TATE (41’ assist-Lucas Nordin, Hamid Djouadi); LUCAS NORDIN (76’ Harrison Schwall).

Shots/Shots-on-goal: BHS 22/9 SH 8/4. Corners: BHS 9 SH 2. Fouls: BHS 8 SH 7. Cards: SH#9 (38’). Conditions: wet grass, light second half shower, sunny with rainbow. Attendance: 409. 

Outside the box...Hardin Valley defeated Dobyns-Bennett 2-1 Saturday night and will play Collierville in Murfreesboro...other matchups: Siegel vs. Station Camp and LeVergne vs. Bartlett...conspicuous in their absence this year is Houston High School of Germantown...Bearden now has 16 total State Tournament appearances on the Boys side, with five Championships. Houston ranks first with 23 appearances and 7 Titles...Woof!

[ledenews]

Wheeling University Men Ready for 'Second Season'

No team wants to back its way into the Mountain East basketball tournament. Nor any tournament for that matter. But that’s just where Wheeling University finds itself tonight when the Cardinals, the No. 10 seed, tip-off against No. 7 Glenville State tonight at 6 p.m. The Cardinals struggled through the 2022-23 season, record-wise, and the regular season finale loss to rival West Liberty left head coach Chris Richardson’s club with a 6-22 record, including 4-18 in the conference. Only the Top 10 teams qualify for the tourney, and the Cards conference record matched that of Frostburg State, which sported a better overall record at 8-20. The main difference, Wheeling bested Frostburg State during both regular season meetings and earned the final spot in the tourney, which got underway earlier today at Wesbanco Arena. It’s not the ideal way to qualify, but Richardson and his players will certainly take it. “We talked about it (Monday) that, at the start of the season,; if you said are you going to be the 10th seed, you’d say no. That’s not your goal,” Richardson said. “But when you start off 0-9 in MEC play, you’ll take getting into the tournament at No. 10. “It’s not exactly the way we drew it up, but our goal is still to win the MEC championship, and like the other (nine) teams, we still have that opportunity.” The season started with two narrow losses to PSAC opponents Cal (Pa.) and Shepherd before Wheeling secured its first win at home against D’Youville College. That came on November 15. The next win? More than a month later against Division III Franciscan University on December 30. The first MEC win came in the first matchup with Frostburg on January 14. It’s not that Wheeling played poorly. In those 22 losses, the margin of defeat was nine points or less 16 times, with 10 of those the Cardinals keeping within five. They played. They competed. They just had trouble closing out games. It could lead to frustration and disappointment in the lockerroom, but Richardson credits his team’s mental makeup and comraderie for persevering through the losing. “It’s difficult,” Richardson said. “It takes a group of young men with special character to get through that, show up, and continue to work hard and stay together. “That’s what they’ve done. They are a tight-knit group and by far has the best chemistry of any team I’ve coached. It carried us through some really tough nights when the ball didn’t bounce our way.” Wheeling University senior and former Wheeling Central standout Brent Price goes up for a shot. A Promising Win Wheeling didn’t have to wait its long for its second conference win which turned out to be its unquestioned biggest win of the season. Rival West Liberty invaded the McDonough Center and came out firing, totaling 52 first half points. Wheeling, however, was dialed in and shot 60 percent from the field in the first half (21-35) to keep pace and lead by two at the half en route to a cherished 114-107 victory. Winning the Battle of Wheeling is always a big night, but given the season’s struggles, it meant all the more, as well as proving to the Cardinals just what they were capable of. Senior John Korte had a monster night vs. the ’Toppers, erupting for a game-high 40 points. Senior and former Wheeling Central product Brent Price backed him with 24 and Marcus Johnson totaled 21 as three Cards eclipsed the 20-point mark. Another former Maroon Knight, freshman Ryan Reasbeck, wasn’t far behind with 17 points. “That win was important for us for a lot of reasons,” Richardson said. “We needed a win. It had been a few games and, No. 2, it shows your players, especially with as many young guys as we have that you’re always preaching about how they are capable of playing. “You see how close you are, and that win drove the point home and validated the process, so to speak. “It gave us a lot of confidence.” The team needed it. After losing a few seniors, headlined by multiple all-conference selection Jordan Reid, the team needed a bit of a new identity, or at minimum, someone to step into the “go-to-guy” position in big moments. Korte, Johnson and Price have stepped in and filled that roll. The former was recently named first team all-MEC after averaging 19.6 points per game, good for third in the MEC, the first WU player named to the first team since 2018. Johnson averaged 17.9 during the regular season, while Price added 13.8 and 6.1 rebounds. “It was interesting because we basically had a new team, with nine freshman, a handful of sophomores, plus John and Brent have been here and played a lot of minutes,” Richardson said. “But now they had to play much larger roles, and that’s exactly what they’ve been doing. “They’ve really embraced their rolls.” Now it’s time to see if the Cards can repeat history. Last season, Wheeling faced, and defeated, Glenville in the first round of the MEC tournament before falling to West Liberty in the next round. Should the Cardinals win tonight, they’d advance to face No. 2 Fairmont State on Friday at noon. The Pioneers bested Wheeling twice this season, but the second game was a 98-95 verdict that the Cardinals were right with Glenville throughout. Top-Ranked Hilltoppers West Liberty again enters the MEC tournament with a No. 1 ranked after winning the regular season crown behind their annually strong performance. This season’s Hilltoppers were led by junior Bryce Butler, who earned first team all-MEC honors as well as being named the conference’s player of the year. He was joined by teammates Malik McKinney and Christian Montague, who were named to the second team. Head coach Ben Howlett’s team waits to find out its opponent for Friday’s quarterfinal round. The Hilltoppers will play the winner of tonight’s night cap between No. 8 Concord and No. 9 Alderson Broaddus. West Liberty finished the regular season 25-3, with its only conference losses being to Wheeling and Fairmont State along with the 91-83 loss to Lubbock Christian. The Hilltoppers were most recently ranked No. 5 in the Division II national poll, with Nova Southeastern earning the top spot with 14 of the 16 first-place votes. No. 2 Northwest Missouri State snagged the other two. Indiana (Pa.) and Point Loma rounded out the top five. Read the full article

[johannstutt413]

(requested by mathmaticalknight) TOURNAMENT ARC

Nearl was in her room, tending to her equipment, when there was a knock on her door. “I wonder who that might be...Maria?”

“Sister!” Blemishine wrapped her arms around Margaret’s neck and pulled her in for a close and loud hug (armor plates). “It took me forever to find someone who knew the way to your place, but you’re actually here!”

“When did you get her, Maria? I thought you and Zofia were still working out the details.”

The other Nearl simply beamed at her. “She said she’d be here soon and that I could go ahead. It’s a good thing I did, too - there are posters all over saying you’re fighting someone today. Is that true?”

“I am, yes,” she confirmed. “The Doctor organized a tourney for Operators in all positions to prove themselves, if they so desire.”

“Are you gonna go easy on them, or is the Radiant Knight going to be fighting in a new venue?” The look on Maria’s face was a blend of concern and excitement - after all, it’s not every day she got to see her sister fight.

The older Nearl thought about it for a moment before going for another hug. “My opponent is my sparring partner, and I know she will be giving this fight her all. It would be a dishonor not to do the same.”

“Then I’ll be watching you from the stands.” She sighed. “Next time I see you, though, can we hug without all this metal in the way?”

“If you’d like, you can come to dinner with me.” Margaret hadn’t had the chance to ‘properly’ introduce her to her girlfriends, after all.

Blemishine nodded. “That sounds good to me...Alright, you need to finish preparing for your fight, so I’m going to find the Doctor. I heard there’s an Engineering Department here, and I want to go talk to them before the match. Good luck!”

“Thank you, Maria.” As the shining knight left, the Radiant Knight returned to her maintenance. “Tonight, however, luck will not be a factor.”

TOURNAMENT ARC: NEARL VS HOSHIGUMA (continuing...sort of from this [I keep forgetting which ships are already established in some of this multiverse soup going on; can’t make it a direct continuation because of the first fic in that two-part series, but Tourney!RI still has a horse triumvirate nonetheless. ANYWAY.])

——–

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, Operators, Staff, and Esteemed Guests! Welcome one and all to the Top Operator Tourney!!! *crowd cheers*

“Thanks, Hung! I love how consistent he is with that...Anyways, hi! You’re probably wondering why we’re here-”

“We should introduce ourselves first, Swire.”

“Good point, good point. Well, I’m Swire, aka Hoshi’s biggest fan, and here with me in the commentator’s booth is Meteor. You’re Nearl’s girlfriend, right?”

“That is why I’m here, yes. I appreciate the Doctor allowing us to do this, especially since you and I don’t talk very often. Do you have the statistics in front of you? My tablet and I are having a fight.”

“Yeah, I’ve got ‘em. *clears throat* So, looking at the numbers, my girl’s got the advantage when it comes to size, experience and stamina, but Nearl is faster, more tactical, AND she’s got some serious Arts at her disposal. Hoshi’s got an uphill battle ahead of her, I say.”

“It’s important to note that Margaret Nearl and Hoshiguma both are in the top three seeds for the Defender bracket - first and third respectively - which means regardless of the apparent discrepancy, both are incredibly skilled combatants. Accounting for the amount of time they spend dueling each other to keep their skills sharp, and I suspect this fight will be much closer than the numbers would imply.”

“I certainly hope so! No offense, but I do want Hoshi to win this - if Nearl loses, you’re still in the tourney, after all.”

“That is true...But we’ll simply have to agree to disagree.”

“Yeah. Well, let’s get to the action!...Also, why did you say her actual name rather than her codename?”

——–

Hoshiguma and Nearl walked into the coliseum, fully prepared for the fight ahead of them. The Oni took up a defensive stance, holding her shield just above the ground and planting her feet. “Well, Marge, today’s the day. Promise you’re not gonna hold back on me?”

“I swear by my honor as a knight: today, I will not stay my hand.” The Kuranta unsheathed her blade, already glowing beneath the bright lights above. “I entrust your life to the Medics of Rhodes Island. Ready?”

“It’s your time, not mine.”

A curious turn of phrase...With that, the fight was on.

Nearl’s first goal was knocking out that shield arm. Fixing amputations was something the Medics could do (at least, Aak and Warfarin could), but ideally she wouldn’t have to do that much damage. She charged forward, feinted going one direction but bounded the opposite way, and swung for her opponent’s arm, lighting up her blade as she did with a dazzling gleam-

-only for Hoshi to pull her arm towards her body, forcing the Knight to clip the shield instead and feel the sting of her opponent’s Thorns. “You’re taking this seriously. Good.”

“Of course I am.” The Kuranta had lost all her forward momentum thanks to the deflection, but that didn’t stop her from spinning around; her next attack was an attempt to knock the Oni’s shield out of the way with her own before landing a sword stroke, once again lighting it up before the attack would land. “Hyah!”

“Good try.” Rather than block the swing, Hoshiguma punched Nearl’s sword arm, taking the blade to her forearm but nevertheless crippling her opponent in the process. The counterattack sent the disarmed warrior backward and left Lungmen’s strongest with a choice: charge forward, get Hannya spinning, and go on the warpath? Stand her ground and do the same?

The Kuranta got to experience the answer firsthand as her opponent began to simultaneously spin her shield and run forward. ‘I can’t let her hit me with that attack, whatever it takes...’ Unfortunately, she didn’t have enough time to get to her feet and get out of the way. There was only one option she could see...

——–

“Alright, she’s getting to her feet; she’s not done yet, but damn Hoshi’s spinning Hannya as fast as she can.”

“Margaret, what are you doing?! Get out of the way!”

“She’s holding her shield up with both hands- wait, that light-”

“Glasses on!” *flash* “...No!”

“There’s no way she’s getting up after that...Aak and Warfarin are making their way out. Hoshi’s tossed Hannya to the side and seems to be trying to help.”

“She’s done enough.”

“Meteor, you’ve seen some of the other fights-”

“They didn’t have my Marg’ret in them...We’re done here, right?”

“Yeah, that’s all she wrote. Everyone at home, have a good night, and we should have FEater and Click back up here next time. Thanks for tuning in!...I’m gonna make sure my co-host doesn’t do something she regrets.”

——–

By the time Meteor had made it to Medical, there was a small group in the waiting room. Platinum and Blemishine were talking cordially, Swire was talking to Ptilopsis at the desk, and Hoshiguma...Hoshiguma was there, in a chair, as stoic as she’d ever seen her.

That stoicism didn’t change when the huntress walked over to her and slapped her across the face.

“Miss Meteor,” Ptilopsis observed from her post; Swire had already turned around after hearing the sound, “violence is not tolerated in the waiting room.”

“It’s alright, Tilly. I deserved it.” The Oni cracked her neck as she looked up at her attacker.

The Kuranta sat down next to her. “At least you agree.”

“I didn’t expect her to try and block me like that,” she continued with a sigh. “The flash actually made it worse for her.”

“Why did she do that? It makes no sense.”

At this point the other two Kuranta in the room walked over; Platinum immediately sat in Meteor’s lap for a chair-hug. “We got here before she did, and they rolled her past us...” There was now a silver-haired puddle in the Sniper’s lap.

“Are all the fights in this tourney like this?” Maria shuddered. “The sport is the same everywhere, I guess.”

“Well, the good news is, Nearl’s Arts were enough to stabilize herself,” Swire reported, joining the group and sitting on the opposite side of Hoshiguma, who immediately set her head on her shoulder.

The huntress, stroking her assassin-girlfriend’s hair, nodded. “Thank you, Swire. I’m sorry we’re meeting like this, Maria.”

“We’ll have a second chance at it when my sister’s back on her-” At that moment, there was the distinctive sound of armor jangling from down the hall. “Eh? One second.”

“It hasn’t been five minutes,” Hoshi muttered as everyone, including herself, stood up.

Sure enough, Blemishine walked around the corner with Nearl’s arm around her shoulder, gear beaten to shit but otherwise okay. “I’m taking her back to her room for a change of clothes, but she and the doctors both said she’s good.”

“Maggie!” Platinum practically became her jacket with that hug. “I’m so glad you’re alright! Even Hoshiguma was worried.”

“I’m not surprised. My training partner proved herself the better fighter today.” The smile the Radiant Knight sent the Oni’s way literally made her take a step back.

Meteor continued the original thread. “You’re feeling alright, though? Does it hurt anywhere?”

“The soreness will remain for a few days, but no lasting damage, certainly.” She looked down at her armor. “Not to my body, at least. Maria, could you help me fix this later this week?”

“Of course I will!” Her sister already had some thoughts on how to stop something like the Spinning Shield of Death from doing so much damage again.

The Feline in the room, glad to hear the all-clear straight from the horse’s mouth, nudged her girlfriend. “Go on, I know you want to say something.”

“I’ll talk to her later.” The Oni picked up her girlfriend. “Let’s go home.”

“Hoshi?” Nearl called out to her, and she froze.

The moneycat in her arms answered for her. “Yes, Nearl? Margaret, more specifically?”

“Either is fine.” Another warm smile. “That was a good fight. Good luck in the rest of the tournament.”

“...Thank you, Maggie. Goodnight, everyone.”

New destination: the bar.

[tracynotabi]

Riptide Day 2 / Undertow

September 11, 2021

D-Day.

Kevin, Ivan, Joey, and I were getting a ride from Spencer, who was also taking Narq to the venue, while Robert and Parker got a ride from someone else. Well, at least we didn’t have to walk to the venue. I didn’t pack sunscreen.

At 9am, about half an hour we were supposed to leave, Kevin gets a stomachache.

Me: He just needs to poop. Spencer: The classic.

We end up going to the lobby to wait for Spencer in Narq, which was fine considering we actually didn’t want Spencer, our ride, waiting for us.

Spencer: Okay, Narq’s just using the bathroom rq lol Me: Is he also having tummy problems Spencer: Nah just bein stoner and forgetting to do stuff lol Me: The classic

We go get Chick-fil-A and I’m sitting underneath the dashboard again by Kevin’s feet. I think the employees were very bewildered, as the woman on the other side of the window did a double take. I would, too, if I saw a smaller-than-average person just hiding underneath the dashboard sipping on a cup of Coke.

Some time after I get to the venue during doubles, I end up talking to Jimmy (j u m), when Kevin comes rushing over to me, a panicked look on his face.

Forgot to mention, but Kevin actually couldn’t get all of his poop out before coming to the venue and now it is back with a vengeance.

He tells me that he’s unable to go to any restroom because there were three stalls in the men’s restroom: two were occupied and one was clogged with poop.

He had tried flushing the poop one but it only made it worse. It just clogged more and the water level rose. If he had sat down and insisted on finishing, his balls would be touching the water and that’s a no-no.

He tried asking the front desk for other restrooms, but he was informed it was the only one. He was desperate and you could just see it in his eyes that he was about to break.

Me, using the big, wrinkly brain that I had, told him to use the women’s restroom. He froze, not even realizing that that was an option.

Now before anyone complains, hear me out.

I would rather be in a restroom with a male in the stall next to me, than exit the restroom and see someone standing outside the men’s restroom trying to wait for a stall with a shit stain in his pants. Excuse the vulgarity, but it’s true.

If you’re ever at one of my tournaments and you need to go and no male restroom is unoccupied, for the love of god, please fucking use the women’s restroom. I do not need this mess on my hands and you best believe I’m shoving myself in the men’s restroom if I gotta fucking go expel unicorns and rainbows.

I go to the restroom with Kevin and stand awkardly on my phone to keep watch, because he didn’t want any of the staff members actually seeing him and risk himself getting kicked out of the venue.

That would’ve been extremely unfortunate.

Luckily, nobody else needed to go use the restroom while Kevin was in there and he was able to safely compete his duty (lol).

If anyone is upset at my suggestion, I’m sorry, but I wasn’t about to not provide such a simple solution for Kevin’s emergency.

Anyway, the tournament start shortly after that.

First match I pay attention to is Kevin vs. Wombat. In my head, I think it’s pools so I shouldn’t worry too much. I try to watch Kevin’s sets, but it makes me physically ill sometimes because my anxiety is wracked up like crazy and I just want to throw up. Many have witnessed me walking away and trying to distract myself multiple times at multiple different tournaments.

It’s like that gory horror movie that you can’t keep looking away from.

Besides knowing that I get sick, I figured it would be fine since I actually enjoy trying to support my boyfriend and watch him come out of pools winners’ side. Not meaning any disrespect by Wombat, by the way. He’s great. Just realistic. It’s like how I expect Kevin to lose to Bob.

Kevin loses Game 1.

Ooh my tummy’s doing barrel rolls like the way Twisty did with that pullout bed. I look away but I’m just so distracted by the crowd noises.

I totally get it, though. Obviously, it’s sick that Wombat’s holding his own against Kevin, who is seed 3 of the tournament. I’d be excited, too, if my friend was making an upset on someone else. But Kevin’s my boyfriend, so obviously, I want him to win.

Kevin barely wins Game 2 and I’m like ooooh boy. My tummy’s going to town and I think I gag a little by how sick I feel. Gotta focus on getting Joey his next match. *deep breaths*

When heartswaptv airs the whole tournament, definitely check out the set. It was really good (as far as I can hear, I couldn’t bring myself to watch the rest of it).

Kevin comes over to me after he’s out of pools and I scold him for making me worried.

AND YOU NOW WHAT HE SAYS?

Kevin: Babe, it’s fine - I almost lost to Zeddy at Redacted City and I got 2nd. I’ll be fine. Me: T____T *incoherent whining noises*

Does Kevin thinks he’s fucking cute for saying that or something? I was not amused.

Since I didn’t have to volunteer TO the entirety of the tournament, I bounced around mingling with other people.

At one point, I get a message from Suvir in our group chat about how he, Sosa, and Narq were planning on coming to visit NorCal. Of course, since Narq was already here, I decided to just go up to him and ask.

Me: So I heard you’re coming to NorCal? Narq: I am? Me: That’s what Suvir said. *shows phone* Narq: I guess I’m going to NorCal!

Suvir: Narq doesn’t actually know. Sosa just said he’d take him with him and said Narq would agree to go because he’s Narq. Me: Oh that makes sense why he had no idea what I was talking about.

It wasn’t until around top bracket did things start to pick up. Not too many spoilers, because (1) no spoilers before they upload the vod and (2) I have a terrible memory when it comes to the matches.

I remember holding up Kevin’s phone to stream to our Discord because we had some non-PM player friends who wanted to see and I think Kevin wanted Thomas (ThundeRzReiGN) to give him some advice throughout the tournament. Not actually coach, but to critique his play.

As more and more top players fell, Kevin made it a goal to do his best not to fall into the landmine that was Losers’. So many heavy hitters were large threats to him: Techboy, Malachi, Akimi, Cloudburst...

Not to say that Winners’ side didn’t have their fair share of monsters: Peter, Parker, Kumatora, Twisty, Nogh, Lunchables...

Kevin’s first match in Top 32 was against Bongo, who people sleep on quite a lot. For those of you that don’t know him, he’s a Captain Falcon from NY who actually beat Kevin at Flex Zone 3 in 2018. Kevin had beaten him at Encore, but it wasn’t easy.

Not to mention Falcon is a pain the butt for Mario. Unfortunately, the match was not recorded (as far as I know), and it was a very exciting match from what I heard. I avoided watching it because based on how long it took, I knew it had to have been a Game 5. During that time, two matches have been finished on “stream.”

Kevin had said his match against Bongo was the toughest one he had - not to discredit his other opponents, of course - but according to him, it was the scariest and closest. Also the threat of being put into Losers so early would’ve made the climb to Top 8 a lot harder.

His overall goal was actually to make Top 8. Despite being a third seed and rank 5, what I’ve noticed about Kevin is that he does have doubts about himself quite often. He’s never complacent in his opponents and worries all the time about being upset and I don’t think anyone puts more pressure on him more than himself.

As I watched my friends progress through bracket, all I can think is there’s not much I can do. I don’t understand the game very much, despite my heavy involvement in the scene. In fact, more often than not, I believe I understand the game the least compared to everyone else.

A tangent from the actual tournament itself is coming, but I think I should address why I’m even in this community:

While everyone loves the game, I love the community behind it. I find it worth it to sit/stand in one location for hours at a time because it allows my friends to enjoy the game they love comfortably without worrying how the tournament is progressing. They can focus on their own growth and passion.

I think what I see is completely different. Like I said, I don’t really understand this game - I can’t differentiate uairs, bairs, d-smashes, etc. I compute it in my head, but can’t visualize it. I don’t recognize most combos - in fact, more often than not, I’m sitting there just staring at the screen kind of blankly. Sometimes, it does make me wonder if I really am part of this community because I don’t really understand the game.

I can’t say I particularly care too much about the game, but I understand how much of an impact it’s made on me and for that, I’m very thankful for this game because it’s led me to some great people.

Back to the actual event and less sap. lol. Is anybody still even reading?

For something put together in a mere two weeks, Trin and their team did an amazing job. Three recording set ups, graphics, a pot, a venue... props to them for gathering the scraps and making a whole out of it. And to think we almost didn’t go.

Madeline (Swanner) ended up coming and it was honestly so good to see her. We aren’t particularly close, but she’s someone I’ve come to care for and just want happiness for her.

Major spoiler, but I don’t think anybody who cares about PM/P+ doesn’t know Kevin won the tournament.

Everyone expected a pop-off, but Kevin just sat there, crying.

I don’t think there’s ever been anything that Kevin has been more passionate about. He loves this game; he loves this community. Never did it ever occur to him that he would win.

I wish I could say more, but honestly, him winning stunned me speechless. And if you didn’t know, the first thing he said after was that he had to call his mother.

His mom is one of his biggest supporters and I love her to death. She has such a huge heart and has never, ever frowned upon Kevin’s love for the game, whole-heartedly supporting it.

I hugged Maddy, because I can’t even imagine how heart-breaking it must be for her to see what could have been on the mainstage. I imagined how much it must’ve hurt her because she just loves the game and the community, but to see it constantly be torn down by Nintendo and her unable to do anything... Give Maddy a hug and thank her if you see her. She deserves the world.

We ended up walking home with PNW, Bob, Mar, Bongo, Cameron (LoyaL), Ivan, and a few others, honestly too dark to completely see and name. It was a very nice night.

We did, however, pass by the rundown house that definitely looked like if we were to talk in there, we’d be killed by the axe murderer that lived there.

Kevin also lagged behind a lot because his phone notifications were going off like crazy and I was worried he was going to just get lost in the darkness or get hit by a car. Stop looking at your phone when you cross the street, dammit.

We got back to our hotel room and ordered pizza - it was bad. God-fucking-dammit, Ohio, why do you suck so much? Kind of a shitty dinner to end the day on, but nothing else was open at 2am. FeelsBadMan.

[tarashima]

Hi this is not meant as hate but what is it exactly that yiu liek about Revolver/ryoken? He's basically as bad as yami marik in dm the way he treated Ghost Girl

His good looks. 

Okay but in all seriousness random anon, there are a lot of reasons why I like Revolver as much as I do, but I would like to address your statement about Yami Malik, which I can only assume is about his duel with Mai? Since you mention Ghost Girl’s duel with Revolver? Because if it is, I would say that the difference between those duels is like night and day. 

Yami Malik’s only goal is to create as much darkness and chaos he possibly can, for the sake of fun (remember he has the mindset of a really angry and psychotic ten-year-old). His duel with Mai was his first chance at being as sadistic as he wanted, and he went full out. He kept degrading her throughout the duel, manipulated her, took away her memories, tortured her without giving her any chance of escaping and was more than willing to kill her off permanently. All because it amused him. 

Now, what does Revolver do to Ghost Girl? 

dorky idiot

He duels her just like he duels everyone; calculating and ruthless. He’s always several steps ahead and fools his opponent into thinking they have the upper hand before crushing them completely unless the opponent thinks several steps ahead as well. Nothing more and nothing less. 

Ghost Girl does end up losing with not so pleasant consequences, but she did have a fair chance to escape the situation throughout the whole duel. All she had to do was win (and without being too biased, Revolver would definitely have kept his promise and let her go, she probably wouldn’t have been able to do much about the data she found anyway). And while she was aware of what a loss meant, she also knew that unless Revolver was stopped it wouldn’t have been permanent. I.e. there was still a chance for her to come back. If Revolver hadn’t been stopped… well, she would’ve been a victim amongst so many others, and it wouldn’t have been anything personal against her. 

Mai? Not so much. Had Yami Malik not been hindered by Jounouchi and Yami, she would’ve been gone for real and Yami Malik made it perfectly clear. Everything he does is to be as cruel towards her as possible. It’s true that she as well had a fair chance of escaping by winning, but throughout the duel, it just got harder and harder to see the possibility of it, especially with all the mental and physical torment that happened around her. And it certainly doesn’t help that she still was on the brink of dying for real afterwards.

The only thing really that Mai and Ghost Girl have in common is that they didn’t have much of a choice in whether they could decline their duels or not. But when Mai gets the worst treatment I’ve ever seen any YGO-girl get in this franchise (until proven otherwise by the spinoffs, I’m gonna go with that statement), Ghost Girl is treated like any other duelist. Revolver looks down on her abilities true, but he looks down on anyone who isn’t Playmaker. And Ghost Girl wouldn’t have been in that situation at all if she hadn’t been snooping around and Revolver caught her doing so (she couldn’t really know what she would find so it’s not like she can be blamed).

Now, I’m not using that as excuses for Revolver’s crimes and actions. But it’s unfair to compare him to Yami Malik when he, while still wrong, has a detailed plan to execute for the sake of humanity’s future. It’s basically “chaos for fun” vs. “the end justifies the means”, and that’s not even close to being the same thing. 

This post is already long enough so I’ll try to keep it shorter to why I like Revolver/Ryouken, especially since I’ve reblogged a lot of posts already about him. 

Short answer: He intrigues me. 

Longer answer: I would like to follow a statement that Revolver is one of the most complex characters Vrains have, and that complexity attracts me in many ways. 

Guilt is definitely the word that describes Ryouken the best, but not because he’s guilty of crimes, but rather what came out of his childhood. He’s always been his father’s loyal son and was way too young to understand the fault in luring 1 child (and most likely the other 5 as well) for his father’s experiment. He only did was he was being told to do. That is the first tragic seeds to the all too high amount of guilt in the present. Yuusaku believes that Ryouken righted that wrong for him personally by being his voice of hope and show a very compassionate side, but Ryouken certainly doesn’t see it that way. And why would he? He’s the culprit, why would being a comforting voice redeem him in any way? And why would that compassionate side still exist in the present? (hint: it does, he’s just completely convinced it doesn’t and doesn’t recognize when he shows it)

I’m using a more correct translation for this screencap

Reporting the incident to the authorities didn’t help with that guilt either since it only took his father away from him, filling him with even more. A guilt that couldn’t possibly get any worse but still was when Kougami returned in comatose. He turned into his father’s loyal soldier at a way too young age and was completely solidified with all the toxic ideas Kougami had while seemingly not caring about if Kougami was even a good father for him or not. And it’s not like Kougami ever cared.

(IhatehimIhatehimIhatehimIhatehim)

So what would even more guilt matter if he was to commit the worst cybercrime in history? Or rather, wouldn’t the guilt for that be easier to endure than the guilt he has for betraying his father? Wouldn’t the Tower of Hanoi be a great enough thing to right that wrong? Probably not and that makes it even sadder. 

The biggest tragedy though is how everyone in the show except for Yuusaku forgets/doesn’t care that Ryouken is a traumatized victim as well, even Ryouken himself. Making him pay for his crimes by judicial means will never be enough for anyone involved and wouldn’t solve anything either. And Ryouken has to not only realise this himself but also choose a path from the self-destruction all his failures have caused, and if he needs help with it (which he definitely does), Yuusaku is the first in line to save him. Yuusaku lives for that goal, and I share the hopes of it with him. Revolver can be redeemed, and the only thing that can prevent that is time running out (or the writers screwing us all over). 

Ryouken’s journey of guilt tugs at my heartstrings and is a story I want and can invest in because I ultimately wish for something better for him. And while it’s infuriating to see little to no progress, it’s also enough for a kind of slow burn that we hate and love and can’t stop following.

On top of all that guilt and tragedy is a cunning and unpredictable duelist. Now, I’m no expert at the card game (I would def call myself a mediocre duelist at most), but Revolver’s deck is the most exciting and still understandable one for me since Kaiba (I’m still not convinced with any other rival/antagonist in the other spinoffs). And just like Kaiba, he’s still an enjoyable overconfident dork. 

I must confess though that I’ve never been able to take his Sniffer Dragons seriously (I blame Shunsuke-san for that). 

If that wasn’t enough, he’s also an entertaining idiot with overdramatic poses and moves á la JJBA as well as having the stupidest ace card (I’m still angry in a weird enjoyable way about Mirror Force). You can pose him like a JJBA character and make him fit right in, just as much as you can take his poses and apply them to any JJBA character with little to no difference.

yes, very terrifying, or not

This still turned longer than I wanted so for that I’m sorry. And believe me, I can still talk way more about Revolver but others have done it well enough already. 

To sum it up a little, Ryouken/Revolver is a multi-layered character and a very unique antagonist for this franchise, and I enjoy it a LOT! 

And… well… he being handsome as fuck irl doesn’t help either, but that’s for another time.

[pleaserelaxfc]

NWSL Thoughts: Week 1

The NWSL's regular season kicks off tonight, and with the group stage of the Challenge Cup finished, maybe we know a little bit more about how things will shape up for these teams than we might have in previous seasons.

This week's games

Angel City vs. Courage (10:30 Fri., CBS Sports Network)

Thorns vs. Current (6:00 Sat., Twitch)

Red Stars vs. Racing (8:00 Sat., Paramount+)

Spirit vs. Reign (5:00 Sun., Paramount+)

Dash vs. Wave (7:00 Sun., Paramount+)

Pride vs. Gotham (7:00 Sun., Paramount+)

Games to Watch

To see a potential Championship preview: Spirit vs. Reign. The Reign finished the Challenge Cup group stage as the top seed overall and will travel to Washington to face last year's NWSL champions, the Spirit, on Sunday; they will face each other again on Wednesday in the Challenge-Cup semi-final. Although the Spirit just managed to scrape their way into the semi-finals as the best second-place team, they were making steady improvements throughout the group stage, and look poised to have another strong season in 2022. At this point, I would expect both of these teams to make the playoffs, fairly comfortably, and even if they don't, at this stage of the season, this is likely to be one of the most high-quality games on this weekend.

To compare apples and oranges: Thorns vs. Current. Both of these teams did fairly well in their group stage matches, but also didn't necessarily face much in the way of strong opposition. Based on those results, I would probably expect both teams to make the regular season playoffs this year, but this game should be informative in terms of how much of their results to this point were their own quality, and how much was based on their opponents' lack of form.

To see a lot of goals: Angel City vs. Courage. Angel City conceded the most goals of any team in the Challenge Cup, and the Courage tied for the most goals scored. With that combination, I wouldn't be surprised to see a lot of goals scored in this game, primarily by the Courage - but Angel City managed to score a few solid goals of their own (and had a few more just barely denied by some of the best goalkeepers in the league), and the Courage are still missing Casey Murphy and Carson Pickett, both key pieces for their back line.

Predictions:

For this week:

Angel City - Courage: Courage wins, 3-1

Thorns - Current: Current wins, 2-1

Red Stars - Racing: Draw, 1-1

Spirit - Reign: Draw, 2-2

Dash - Wave: Wave wins, 1-0

Pride - Gotham: Gotham wins, 2-0

For the season - playoff teams:

Reign - While some of their success in the Challenge Cup so far could be attributable to the two expansion teams in their geographic group, the Reign do seem to have a very solid lineup with a lot of depth, and while they have really solid players, not many of their forwards seem likely to be called up in the July international windows.

Courage - I really don't want to put them here, but I think they have to be toward the top. On paper, heading into the Challenge Cup they were about 99% defenders, but they came out swinging and won half their games, and drew the other half, even before having all of their players ready to go. I think with Kerolin Nicoli, Diana Ordoñez, and Valerie Gauvin on top of Debinha and the Picketts, their ceiling is going to be just as high as it has always been.

Spirit - They've been on a high for a long time, and look ready to keep performing at that level for now, but I think at some point (possibly during the summer international window, if the eight or nine players that have been getting called up regularly do again), they are going to hit a slump. They'll still be good, and they might repeat as Championship winners even, but I don't think they'll manage to win the shield (besides which, a short spell of bad results could be just what they need to power them into peak form just in time for the playoffs).

Current - The Current have shown that they can pull results out even without some of their new stars, and their ability to grind out those wins will be necessary over the full season. Finishing this high will also be pretty dependent on not losing any new players, but most of their tough matchups are saved for July and August, when other teams may be more likely to have players out at international tournaments, and when (hopefully) Sam Mewis and Hailie Mace have returned from their injuries.

Thorns - I don't think the Thorns will do as well as they did last year, but Sophia Smith has shown an incredible improvement in her game, and I think they have done just enough in the midfield, in terms of developing younger players and getting new players, like Sugita, to cling to a spot in the playoffs this year.

Red Stars - I don't know how they are going to do this, but I think they will. Much like the Courage, what looked like it should have been a very weak roster on paper has shown just how much formation matters, and the Red Stars largely held their own throughout the Challenge Cup, even if they didn't move forward.

For the season - non-playoff teams:

Racing - I think Racing just needs a little longer to click, and then they'll be solid. Probably not solid enough for a spot in the playoffs, but much better than what last season's results would suggest. They're a young team, and a lot of their players are still trying to get their legs under them in the professional game, but they seem to have most of the pieces that they need - Lester and Merrick are already going a long way to solidifying the back line, Howell and Demelo are doing pretty well in the midfield, and with McDonald adding some experience to Ekic, Salmon, Kizer, and Davis in the front, they could stay in contention for much longer this season.

Angel City - Although Angel City had a rocky start in the Challenge Cup, an will likely continue to have some difficulties for the first months of the regular season, I think they'll move up the table later in the season when their long-injured defenders return to the game. It won't be enough for a spot in the playoffs, and they will probably still need to make some roster adjustments between this season and next if they want a shot at making the playoffs then, but they won't have a totally atrocious season on the whole. Also, defenses can't hold Christen Press off forever.

Gotham - With Allie Long likely out for the whole season, they don't really have a defensive midfield - the effects of that showed during the Challenge Cup, and it doesn't seem like it's going to change anytime soon. They have excellent defenders, and excellent attacking players (including Kristie Mewis), but they need at least one or two other midfielders to really up their game if they want to finish in playoff position.

Wave - They were built around their defense, but their defense hasn't been all that convincing, conceding eleven goals across the six games of the Challenge Cup. Added to that their somewhat shallow midfield and potential losses in their forward line for the summer international window, and I don't think they'll be able to pull out the results that they need here.

Dash - The Dash just didn't seem to come together at all during the Challenge Cup. They managed a couple of wins, but they also lost a lot of games that they should have won, and they haven't done much to replace the players that they lost in the off-season. Added to that a potential coaching upheaval, and I don't think the Dash will be able to get the results that they need early in the season to finish high.

Pride - Their roster was already in rebuilding mode, and then they lost Marta. Syd Leroux was also out for the end of the Challenge Cup, and it's unclear when she will return, which leaves Darian Jenkins their most dangerous scoring threat for that period. And Jenkins is a huge threat, to be sure, but without much support around her, she can only carry the team so far. Their midfield also doesn't seem to be gelling just yet, although they do have some good pieces there - if Leroux returns quickly, and the midfield figures themselves out, they could finish higher than this, but I think other teams are good enough already that they would be facing an uphill battle anyway.

[tkmedia]

Quarter-finalists stepping into unknown at Wimbledon

Karolina Pliskova and Viktorija Golubic will open play on No 1 Court followed by Karolina Muchova against Angelique Kerber; on Centre Court, the trail-blazing Ons Jabeur faces Aryna Sabalenka before an all-Australian clash between Ash Barty and Ajla Tomljanovic

By Emma Thurston Last Updated: 06/07/21 10:30am

Ons Jabeur is one of six quarter-finalists playing in their first last-eight match at Wimbledon It's women's quarter-finals day at Wimbledon, with players across the draw stepping into the unknown, as eight will become four by close of play at the All England Lawn Tennis Club. As the days have gone by in the women's draw, those tipped as pre-tournament contenders have fallen; from Serena Williams' earliest of exits to Garbine Muguruza being dismissed and Coco Gauff falling in the fourth round.However, prior to the main draw starting, the most commonly discussed topic was the openness of the women's draw. As was the case at Roland Garros, so many had the potential to make deep runs and so many others, had the potential to surprise us all. Now, with just eight left in contention - Ons Jabeur, Aryna Sabalenka, Ashleigh Barty, Ajla Tomljanovic, Karolina Pliskova, Viktorija Golubic, Karolina Muchova and Angelique Kerber - the pressure mounts and many of them are moving into unchartered territory on SW19's grass courts.

Wimbledon 2021: Quater-finalists' previous bests

Wimbledon Championships Any Grand Slam Ons Jabeur Second Round (2018) Quarter-finals (Australian Open 2020) Aryna Sabalenka Second Round (2017) Fourth Roun (Australian Open 2021 and US Open 2018) Ashleigh Barty Fourth Round (2019) Champion (French Open 2019) Ajla Tomljanovic Second Round (2019 and 2015) Fourth Round (French Open 2014) Karolina Pliskova Fourth Round (2019 and 2018) Runner-up (US Open 2016) Viktorija Golubic Third Round (2019) Third Round (Wimbledon 2019) Karolina Muchova Quarter-finalist (2019) Semi-finalist (Australian Open 2021) Angelique Kerber Champion (2018) Champion (Wimbledon 2018, US Open and Australian Open 2016) Of the eight, only Muchova - who is playing in her second Wimbledon quarter-final - and Kerber, the 2018 champion, know what it is like to prepare for this stage of the Championships and beyond.Barty, the world No 1, has never gone beyond the fourth round in London while Sabalenka has finally smashed through her fourth-round glass ceiling. Everywhere you look across the draw there is pressure, but also there are opportunities.

Jabeur is now 10-1 on grass this season and has beaten three major champions in a row - Iga Swiatek, Garbine Muguruza and Venus Williams For Jabeur, the opportunity is the chance to continue blazing a trail for those watching as the first Arab woman to reach the fourth round at Wimbledon. She has already impressed the five-time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams, who she beat 7-5 6-0 in the second round, with her achievements and play."Ons I would say is one of my favourite people on tour, honestly she's just breaking down barriers," Williams said."You're gonna see a whole other generation of women from North Africa coming into tennis. It's going to be all owed to her." Jabeur will now face the big-hitting Sabalenka on Centre Court on Tuesday afternoon. The duo have met twice previously and share the spoils with one victory apiece.Despite Sabelanka taking the most recent meeting in Abu Dhabi, Jabeur is going into the contest with a great deal of belief."My goal is to break this quarter-final and be able to go to the semi and why not the final? I'm enjoying my time here in Wimbledon, enjoying the grass a lot."Actually, I got congratulated by Roger after my match, which was amazing. I think now I'm good in my tennis career ! He was very nice. He took the time to say congrats. That inspires me a lot and gives me the hunger to win more."

Aryna Sabalenka will be playing in a Grand Slam quarter-final for the first time Sabalenka, who knocked out Britain's Katie Boulter earlier in the tournament, overcame Elena Rybakina 6-3 4-6 6-3 in her fourth-round contest.The second seed went into this Grand Slam draw with the unenviable label of being the only player in the top 20 not to have reached a Grand Slam quarter-final. Now, she has finally broke down that barrier and like Jabeur, she is looking for more."I'm really happy, but this is not the final goal for me. I'm happy for now, but tomorrow is another match. I'm trying to stay focused. I'm really happy I finally broke this wall."She has good touch, good serving game, moving well," the second seed added about Jabeur. "I also have a good serve and play aggressive . I'm kind of trying to use my touch also."It's going to be interesting match. It's going to be great battle. I'm really looking forward for this match."

Wimbledon 2021: Women's Quarter-finals

Ons Jabeur (21) vs Aryna Sabalenka (2) Ashleigh Barty (1) vs Ajla Tomljanovic Karolina Pliskova (8) vs Viktorija Golubic Karolina Muchova (19) vs Angelique Kerber (25) Second on Centre Court will be an all-Australian contest between the world No 1 Barty and Tomljanovic.Barty secured her 32nd win of the year in the fourth round, after a tough encounter with the recent French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova.The 7-5 6-3 victory saw the world No 1 come from 3-1 down in the first, and the contest highlighted both her control and form.Tomljanovic's progression into the quarter-finals came in very different circumstances, after Emma Raducanu retired due to medical reasons when the Australian was 6-4 3-0 up late on Monday night."I'm unbelievably proud of myself that I'm here," Tomljanovic said. "I didn't think I would be, in a way. I didn't think these two weeks would be my breakthrough. Now that they are, it's kind of surreal. It just puts everything back into perspective." 🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺Ash Barty and Ajla Tomljanovic will face off in the #Wimbledon quarterfinals.The last time 2 Aussie women met head-to-head in the quarterfinals at any Slam:1980 Wimbledon: Goolagong d. Turnbull, 63 62. pic.twitter.com/DxmxisJNP0— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) July 5, 2021 First on No 1 Court will be Pliskova, the eighth seed, taking on Switzerland's Golubic.Golubic and Pliskova have not faced each other since 2016 and the latter has yet to drop a set at this year's Championships.After overcoming Veronika Kudermetova 11-9 in the decider back in the first round, Golubic has been equally efficient, having won her next three matches in straight sets too.Golubic has won eight of her past nine matches on grass but Pliskova knows how to end an opponent's run, having beaten wildcard Liudmila Samsonova 6-2 6-3 in the fourth round and halted her 10-match streak.Pliskova powered to victory in just 75 minutes and won 83 per cent of points on her first serve, so Golubic will have a good idea of what is coming her way on No 1 Court. The final contest of the day will contain the only former Wimbledon champion left in the draw - Kerber - meeting Muchova.Kerber outplayed Coco Gauff on Monday to win 6-4 6-4 on Centre Court. It is her first return to a Grand Slam quarter-final since her 2018 title run at the All England Club and puts to bed first-round exits at both the Australian Open and French Open this year."I really worked hard in the last few months. Being able now to play matches like this, win close matches, going out there and enjoying it, feeling my tennis, it's always a good sign., she said."Being now in the quarters here again, it's really great. I'm looking forward to the next round."Muchova overcame Paula Badosa in their fourth-round match. She came from a break down in the opening set, and trailed 5-2 in the tie-break, to take it 7-6 (8-6) 6-4. The world No 22 will now try and erase memories of her quarter-final exit to Elina Svitolina two years ago, during her only other appearance at the Championships. In comparison, this year's main draw is Kerber's 13th at the grass-court slam.Don't forget to follow us on skysports.com/tennis, our Twitter account @skysportstennis & Sky Sports - on the go! Available to download now on - iPhone & iPad and Android Read the full article

[junker-town]

What’s at stake for every NBA team the rest of the season

This is what every NBA team is playing for at the end of the regular season.

The end of the NBA’s regular season is typically a time for teams to rest their starters and gear up for either the playoffs or draft lottery. The introduction of the play-in tournament this year has changed that a bit, adding more urgency to the closing stretch of the season as most teams still have something to play for.

The teams that place No. 7 and No. 8 in each conference will still have to earn their way into the playoffs for the first time via the play-in tournament against the No. 9 and No. 10 seeds. There’s also increased competition for the No. 6 seed in each conference, which would mean avoiding the play-in tournament. It’s created a scenario where most games still have meaning in the final stretch of the regular season.

With the season coming to a close and the play-in tournament beginning on May 18, we broke the league into six different tiers. Here’s what every team has to play for before the start of the playoffs.

The tankers

We’re defining teams in this section as anyone currently at least four games out of the play-in tournament. These squads have nothing to play for but ping pong balls, but the lottery will be more meaningful for some of these teams than others. Check out the odds for every lottery slot at Tankathon:

Houston Rockets: This has been a nightmare season for the Rockets in every way, and the team will have enormous stakes attached to its lottery chances at the end of the season. Houston’s 2021 first round pick was sent to Oklahoma City as part of the Russell Westbrook trade, but it’s protected 1-4. The Rockets currently have a two-game cushion for the worst record in the league, and if they end the season that way their pick can’t fall any further than No. 5. Unfortunately for the Rockets, there’s still a 47.9 percent chance the pick lands at No. 5 and therefore coveys to OKC. In that scenario, Houston would Miami’s first round pick.

Minnesota Timberwolves: The Wolves are in a similar situation to the Rockets as one of the league’s worst teams with a chance to losing their pick. The Wolves traded their 2021 first rounder to the Warriors as part of the D’Angelo Russell trade, but it’s protected 1-3. If the Wolves finish the season with the league’s second worst record, they will have a 39.7 percent chance of keeping the pick in the protected range, and a 60.3 percent chance of conveying the pick to Golden State.

Detroit Pistons: The Pistons would love a top pick to pair with their promising three-man rookie class this season. They own their pick.

Orlando Magic: The Magic own their pick, and should finish in the bottom four. Orlando is also rooting against the Bulls: Chicago sent its first round pick in 2021 (and 2023) to the Magic in the Nikola Vucevic trade, but it’s protected 1-4.

Oklahoma City Thunder: The Thunder are tanking as transparently as any team in the league right now by shutting down Al Horford, letting Shai Gilgeous-Alexander slowly recover from plantar fasciitis, and resting Lu Dort regularly. The dream scenario for the Thunder is landing at No. 1 in the lottery with their own pick and the Rockets falling to No. 5, which would then be sent to OKC.

Cleveland Cavaliers: The Cavs own their own pick. If they finish where they’re at now with the league’s sixth worst record, they will have a 37.2 percent chance of jumping into the top-four.

Sacramento Kings: The Kings are set to miss the playoffs for the 15th straight season. If they finish with the league’s seventh worst record, they will have 32 percent chance at a top-four pick. Give De’Aaron Fox and Tyrese Haliburton some help!

Fighting for the play-in tournament

Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images

These teams just a want a chance to prove they deserve to make the playoffs. Each of these teams is fighting for the final spot in the play-in tournament. Remember: the No. 9 and No. 10 seeds will play each other in the play-in tournament, and the winner of that game will face of the winner of the No. 7 seed vs. No. 8 seed game. You can check out the up-to-date standings at NBA.com.

New Orleans Pelicans: The Pelicans chances at the play-in are teetering on the edge: they’re currently 3.5 games behind the Warriors for the No. 10 seed and final spot in the play-in. For as incredible as Zion Williamson has been this season, the Pelicans are likely looking at ending the season hoping for some lottery luck.

Toronto Raptors: This has been a disappointing season for the Raptors, but the play-in tournament is still within reach. Toronto is 1.5 games out of the No. 10 seed in the East with 10 games to play. The Raptors have made the playoffs seven straight years and would certainly be a team no one wants to see in the play-in tournament or the playoffs, should they make it.

Chicago Bulls: Chicago obviously wants to make the play-in tournament after trading its top-four protected first round pick for Vucevic. The worst case scenario for the Bulls — missing the play-in tournament and losing their first round pick to Orlando — is possible, but the team should be getting Zach LaVine back soon from a Covid-related absence (hopefully he’s feeling healthy). The Bulls want to make themselves an appealing destination to future free agents, and making the play-in tournament would be a decent start. How to build the rest of the team around Vooch and LaVine will be the biggest plot of the offseason.

Washington Wizards: The Wizards have been the hottest team in the NBA in April outside of the Knicks. Yes, everything about that last sentence is completely wild. Washington snapped its eight game winning streak against the Spurs earlier this week, but they have a one-game lead for the No. 10 seed with 11 games to play. Wizards fans might have preferred better odds in the lottery than a doomed play-in run, but any team with Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook is going to be hellbent on trying to win.

Fighting for play-in tournament positioning

Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images

Just making the play-in tournament isn’t good enough for everyone: there’s also value to grabbing the No. 7 or No. 8 seed. While the teams that finish No. 8 and No. 9 will immediately play an elimination game to start the tournament, the loser of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 seed game will still a shot to qualify for the playoffs in a game against the 9-10 winner. You can check out the up-to-date standings at NBA.com.

Indiana Pacers: The Pacers just can’t catch a break this season with year-ending injuries to Myles Turner and T.J. Warren, and a nagging back injury for Domantas Sabonis in the second half. Indiana is currently the No. 9 seed and have a two-game lead over Washington and a three-game lead over Chicago for the No. 10 and No. 11 seeds. This Pacers team looked impressive to start the season, but it’s becoming fair to wonder where this core is headed long-term.

Charlotte Hornets: The Hornets’ season can already be called a success for finding a future star in LaMelo Ball and blowing past their preseason expectations. Charlotte has been hanging tough as injuries have piled up over the last month, but Ball, Gordon Hayward, and Malik Monk could all healthy and ready to play in the play-in tournament.

Golden State Warriors: The good news: the Warriors have been on-fire, winning eight of their last 12 games as Stephen Curry has forged his way into the MVP race. The bad news: it’s mostly happened after No. 2 overall draft pick James Wiseman went down with a season-ending torn meniscus. The Warriors have a comfortable 3.5-game lead for the No. 10 spot, and Curry alone makes them a team no opponent will want to face.

Memphis Grizzlies: The Grizzlies have new life with the recent debut of Jaren Jackson Jr, who is playing his first games all season after recovering from a torn meniscus. Ja Morant and Jonas Valanciunas have kept the Griz afloat, while De’Anthony Melton, Kyle Anderson, and Grayson Allen have taken their play to career-best levels. After losing to the Blazers in the play-in game last year, Memphis would like nothing more than to get some real playoff experience for their young players this season.

San Antonio Spurs: After 22 straight playoff appearances under Gregg Popovich, the Spurs have missed the postseason each of the last two years. They are playing to get back to where they belong while Pop, now 72 years old, is still leading the way. Dejounte Murray, Derrick White, Jakob Poeltl, and Keldon Johnson have developed into a solid young core but the Spurs still need a star. San Antonio and Memphis will be jostling for the pivotal No. 8 seed in the West.

Fighting to stay out of the play-in tournament

Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images

The teams in this group have the same list of goals: stay at or above the No. 6 seed to avoid the play-in, get home court advantage, and get a first round matchup they feel confident in. You can check out the up-to-date standings at NBA.com.

Miami Heat: The Heat haven’t felt fully right this year yet coming off a short offseason following last year’s run to the Finals in the bubble. Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo remain an elite 1-2 punch, but it’s the rest of the Heat who have slipped, specifically the shooters. The Heat and Celtics are tied for the last spot out of the play-in tournament right now and still have two games left against each other this year.

Boston Celtics: Boston is another team that hasn’t looked as good as they did last season throughout this year. While Jaylen Brown has leveled up again, Kemba Walker has been slowed down by injuries and Jayson Tatum has had to battle unfortunate side effects of Covid. The Celtics will think they can make a run if they have their full team healthy for the postseason, but they’ll want to avoid the play-in tournament to get there.

Portland Trail Blazers: Portland lost five straight before Tuesday to fall to out of the protected playoff seeds, but they’re only a half-game out of the coveted No. 6 spot. The Blazers’ next five games are on the road in a that will likely determine if they’re safe from the play-in or not. On the plus side, Portland won the first ever play-in game in last year’s bubble, and might have a better chance as the No. 7 seed vs. the Suns than as the No. 6 seed vs. the Clippers.

Atlanta Hawks: The Hawks want to continue to show they’re a franchise on the rise after their torrid second half led by interim coach Nate McMillan. New additions Bogdan Bogdanović and Clint Capela have given Trae Young the veteran help he needs to create a top-10 offense. Atlanta would love to get De’Andre Hunter — who was on the verge of a breakout season before suffering a knee injury — healthy and back in the lineup before the playoffs. Either way, it’s already been a successful season.

New York Knicks: The Knicks are the NBA’s most pleasant surprise, and would be in line to host a first round playoff series if the postseason started today. New York’s nine-game winning streak is over, but the way this team is playing lately feels real. Tom Thibodeau has pushed the defense to elite levels, while Julius Randle’s breakout season has given the Knicks enough to work with offensively even with such poor team-wide shooting. For such a feel-good year, the Knicks would love nothing more than to win a playoff series for only the second time since 2001.

Dallas Mavericks: Luka Doncic didn’t quite live up to his preseason MVP hype, but he’s still been one of the best players in the league and gives Dallas a puncher’s chance in any series. The historically good offense that powered the Mavs last season has been replaced by a unit that barely ranks in the top-10, while the defense has stayed about the same. Doncic will strike fear into the heart of any opponent in the first round, but Dallas still has more work to do before joining the West’s elite tier.

Waiting for the playoffs to show how good they are

Photo by Glenn James/NBAE via Getty Images

These teams all could have been near the top of the conference standings under different circumstances, but they know it’s all about the playoffs anyway. You can check out the up-to-date standings at NBA.com.

Los Angeles Lakers: Anthony Davis is back and LeBron James will be back soon. The Lakers remained elite defensively even without their two superstars, but the offense doesn’t have as much shooting as it did last year. The Lakers have earned the benefit of the doubt to be the favorites to come out of the West, but it feels like they’ll be in for a tougher road this year than what they had to face in the bubble.

Denver Nuggets: Denver was looking significantly better than last year’s team that went to the conference finals before Jamal Murray’s heartbreaking season-ending knee injury. It’s tough to view the Nuggets as a legit title threat without Murray, but they do have a few things going for them: Nikola Jokic is a deserving MVP, Michael Porter Jr. has been incredible as a movement shooter, and Aaron Gordon a big defensive wing who can make an impact on offense with his cutting. This team would be fascinating if only Murray was still around.

Milwaukee Bucks: The Bucks have spent the regular season experimenting with defensive coverages and how to use Giannis Antetokounmpo on offense in ways they didn’t when they blitzed the league the last two regular seasons. The bigger reason for optimism this year is the arrival of Jrue Holiday, who has been excellent in his first season with the team and should be significantly more trustworthy than Milwaukee’s guards in the past. Here’s the scenario to watch for the Bucks: a 3-6 first round matchup with Miami after the Heat stunned them in the bubble last year.

Fighting for the No. 1 seed

Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images

These teams want homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs. The top spot in the East is particularly enticing, because it means you avoid the one of the other two elite teams in the field until the conference finals. You can check out the up-to-date standings at NBA.com.

Los Angeles Clippers: The Clippers will hope a new coach in Ty Lue and another year of experience playing together can get them past their playoff troubles last year. Otherwise, they’ll need to rely on the magic of Playoff Rondo. LA is only two games out of the top seed, but the bigger concern is the matchups they’ll face on their run. The Clippers likely aren’t too scared of the Jazz or Suns, but would want to put off a matchup with the Lakers for as long as possible.

Phoenix Suns: The Suns have become one of the great stories of the season with Chris Paul and Monty Williams revitalizing the franchise. After going 8-0 in the bubble last year but still missing the playoffs for the 10th straight season, the Suns are only a game back of the No. 1 seed with 11 to play. While this season has obviously been a huge success for Phoenix, the playoffs will be the ultimate test to see how close to a championship they really are.

Philadelphia 76ers: The Sixers crumbled in the face of expectations last season, but have looked so much better this year with Daryl Morey and Doc Rivers in charge. Joel Embiid’s MVP caliber season and Ben Simmons’ All-Defensive Team-worthy effort have drawn headlines, but the addition of Seth Curry and the quiet improvement of Shake Milton, Matisse Thybulle, and even Tobias Harris have been nearly as important. Hopefully this season has been an end to the yearly referendum on the long-term viability of an Embiid-Simmons led team, but the Sixers need a deep run to end that talking point.

Brooklyn Nets: The Nets haven’t really been trying for the No. 1 seed as Kevin Durant and James Harden have missed long stretches with injuries, but they have it right now anyway. Getting Harden back into the lineup and Durant fully healthy is the biggest key for the Nets. If they all have all three of their stars, Brooklyn’s level of shot-making is so historic that it feels like only they can stop themselves. This is the favorite in the East, but it would be a lot easier if they didn’t have to go through both Miami and Milwaukee to get there.

Utah Jazz: The Jazz have been the best team in the regular season all year, leading the NBA in both net rating and point differential by more than two full points. It should feels like the Jazz should have been bigger lead for the No. 1 seed, but they still have work to do as they close the regular season. The Jazz are top-five both offensively and defensively, and lead the league in three-point rate while being No. 4 in three-point percentage. Utah won’t be scared of anyone come playoff time after such a dominant season, but it’s inevitable that their playoff performance will be seen as a referendum on how good they really are. For Utah to reach its ceiling, Donovan Mitchell is going to have to push his career-best year to even greater heights.

[highbuttonsports]

Calgary vs Ottawa (2021) flames senators - Bing images

Resilience

Like a bad Vietnam flashback, the Calgary Flames must have been sitting in the dressing room with pools of sweat on floor wondering what just happened after Thursday nights game against the Ottawa Senators. Things couldn’t have gone much worse on a night where optimism was trending up coming into it. After taking 3 of a possible 4 points to the division leading Maple Leafs the previous 2 games in Toronto, the Flames were feeling good about the direction their game was heading. Sure, it wasn’t a perfect couple games by any means but given what transpired Saturday night against the Edmonton Oilers it was a huge improvement. The Oilers took it to the Flames to a tune of 7-1 and handed them, what at the time was thought to be, their worst loss of the season. That loss left everyone frustrated and wondering how to move forward. Well, they answered that by going into Toronto and shutting out the high-powered Leafs 3-0 behind the stellar goaltending of David Rittich. Big Save Dave was pressed into action after starter Jacob Markstrom couldn’t play due to an upper body injury. That remained the case the following game against Toronto, as Rittich and the Flames would try to carry that momentum into it.

Like the previous game, Calgary’s game plan appeared to be focussed on using tight defence to manufacture offence in transition. It was just as successful as they minimized scoring chances even while having to kill too many penalties. A problem they had all season as they have been short handed the 3rd most times in the league. Thanks to a PK that is operating at 80% (13th in the NHL), they were able to kill all 4 Toronto powerplays. That made for 11 straight successful PK’s against them which usually isn’t a good recipe for success especially when facing the 4th best PP. Of course, to have a good PK it usually comes down to the goaltending. Rittich once again closed the door on everything the Leafs threw at him. The Maple Leafs fired 39 shots and he was up to the task on all of them...almost. David was a minute and a half away from his 2nd consecutive shut out versus them when it all fell apart. With a 1-0 lead on a late period Mangiapane goal, Toronto pulled their goalie for an extra attacker. It almost backfired, but half a puck width is what stood between them and a 2-goal victory. The puck hit the post of an empty net and stayed out giving the Leafs hope. That unfortunate event turned into a game tying goal by William Nylander and forced overtime. It was Willy who scored again and won it in the extra frame for Toronto. That was such a disappointing way to end what was a successful 2 games to build off of. Sometimes those losses hurt more than the blowouts because the team was so close to winning. It can truly feel like something was taken from them or they let it slip away. The key is to not dwell on that missed opportunity and instead focus on all the positives that lead to being so close to victory.

Well, maybe the Flames took the sting of that loss with them to Ottawa the following night. In what can only be described as the worst loss of the season, the whole team decided not to show up for the game. At least that’s what it looked like. They seemed to get beat to every loose puck, lose every puck battle, and couldn’t generate any offence whatsoever. Every time they entered the offensive zone they were pressed to boards and unable to get any separation for a meaningful shot. Even David Rittich couldn’t bail them out as he was forced into playing back-to-back games with Markstrom missing another game. On top of that, all the same issues that plagued Calgary before popped up again. They started slow in finding themselves down 2-0 less than 10 minutes into the game as the Sens scored goals in 1:42. The Flames were yet again playing catch up facing a 1st intermission deficit. The shots on goal heavily favoured the Sens too as they held a 13-5 advantage. It was an awful start against what was suppose to be an inferior opponent that struggles to score. Ottawa is 24th in the NHL in goals for per game at 2.59 while they are the worst at giving up goals at 3.86/game. Calgary is actually worse at scoring coming in at 2.44 goals/game. Yet in the views of the hockey world, they are supposed to be the team more poised for success right now. There they were playing comeback hockey though. The Flames came out better to start the 2nd period, with Lucic scoring 1:41 into the period. It was his 1st goal in 9 games as he continues to drag that $5.25 million cap hit around with him. That put them back in the game, but it was short lived. 3 minutes later Lucic got stripped of the puck by Connor Brown to make it a 2-goal hole again. In fact, Lucic was responsible for giving the puck away on all 3 Ottawa goals. That doesn’t take any blame away from the listless effort of the whole team though. At the halfway mark of the game, they had only 6 SOG! It doesn’t matter how many goals the other team scores if you aren’t going to put any pressure on the opposing goalie. Things went from bad to worse from that moment on. The Sens took a 4-1 lead on what appeared to be a shoot in from just over center ice by Erik Brannstrom. At least that’s what Rittich thought. He tried cheating behind the net to intercept it, only to be fooled with a direct shot on net that he was unable to scramble back into position to stop. That was an ugly was the end an ugly night for him. After a coach’s timeout and then a t.v. timeout, Coach Ward mercifully pulled the frustrated tender. After 2 stellar performances Rittich was unable to make up for all the short comings of the team on this night. It was obvious he didn’t take that lightly either, as he could be seen walking down the tunnel towards the dressing room and smashing his stick. That about summed up the mood of the team and any fan watching this debacle. The only positive from this game is back up goalie Artyom Zagidulin got to see his 1st career NHL action. It’s not how he wanted to see it I am sure, but a nice moment for him regardless. He did give up a couple more goals to make it a 6-1 final, but by that point the game was out of hand anyways. Yes, the goaltending was bad giving up 6 goals on 31 shots but there was enough blame to go around. From the goaltending to the D to the forwards, there just wasn’t enough compete all around. There wasn’t any intensity either in what was billed as the meeting of the Tkachuk brothers. The game featured no penalties, which is a rarity in the modern NHL where penalties are assessed for the simple placing of a stick against the arm of the puck carrier. Maybe that’s exactly how Ottawa wanted to play it. Maybe it was the result of the Flames playing their 3rd game in 4 nights. Maybe they took the Senators for granted. Maybe it was just one of those games. Regardless, how they would answer that performance the next game would show what this team really is all about. If they came out flat once again and lost, the vultures would start circling.

It’s odd to say that after 21 games the Flames were at a point where the next game could decide how the next 35 would go, but here they were. Coming off their worst loss of the season, it was about character and resilience. It was about showing the fight the team had left in it. It would be easy to roll over and feel sorry for themselves. It would be easy to look at the standings and see the gap between them and the top as insurmountable. That’s not what a team with the leadership of captain Mark Giordano and Matthew Tkachuk does though. With 3 of the next 4 against the same Sens an opportunity still presented itself to pile up some points and jump back into a playoff spot. The team ahead of them, in the Montreal Canadiens, was having their own set of problems. There was still plenty of time to turn things around and cause havoc in the divisional hierarchy. However, that had to start the next game.

In Ottawa and without top netminder Jacob Markstrom for a 4th straight game, that would be a challenge. They brought him in for situations just like this. To be the guy to stop the bleeding and right a struggling team. With him out, it’s a lot to ask of backup Rittich to be that guy for long stretches. Even though he had shown back in Toronto he could do it, the team needed to come together. As well, Coach Ward decided to shake the lines up to give the players a fresh look and feel. He moved Lindholm from center to the right side of Monahan and Gaudreau. Backlund moved up to the second line between Tkachuk and Mangiapane. And Same Bennett was moved back to his more natural center position with Lucic and Dube. Those moves paid quick dividends as less than 5 mins into the game it was 2-0. They scored those 2 goals in a span of 37 seconds on the backs of goals from Valamaki (1st of the season) and Backlund. That was just the start they needed to gain confidence and quickly put the doubts seeded from last game behind them. They didn’t let up either, extending their lead to 3-1 after 1 period and a 6-2 lead after 2 periods. The newly formed Tkachuk-Backlund-Mangiapane seen this biggest boost in accounting for half of the goals and 7 points between them. With that type of offensive explosion, I expect these lines will carry forward to the next few games at least. The game was never in doubt from the drop of the puck, but even so Rittich was good when he had to be in stopping 31 of 34 shots. There is hope that Markstrom will be back for Mondays rematch the Ottawa, but if not Rittich will certainly be back between the pipes for a fifth straight start.

So, at .500 and 1 point behind the struggling Canadiens, Calgary would love nothing more than to end their 5-game eastern road trip with another win. That would give them a 7 of a possible 10 points on the trip, turning what was a low mark 6-1 loss during it into a success. Such is the highs and lows of an NHL season. The key is not to get too high on the highs and too low on the lows. It is critical for a team to remain even keeled. If they don’t it can unravel pretty quick and a couple losses can turn into a half dozen. Those types of losing streaks must be avoided in a season where the standings can swing dramatically one way or the other. Much like the way the outlook of this Flames team swung from Thursday to Sunday. Where in the former all seemed lost, now in the latter resilience and hope spring forward.

*all stats provided by NHL.com

By: Jaymee Kitchenham

[puclpodcast]

PDL Week 8 Recap

PDL Week 8 Recap

We have a lot to discuss this week from Playoffs to an interview with The Fluffiest Whimsicott so let’s jump right into Week 8,

DEP vs. NYY: 0-1

NWN vs. BFS: 3-0

HEH vs. NJJ: 4-0

COG vs. VAV: 2-0

TOT vs. SLC: 0-3

PIP vs. BAL: 0-2

HFW vs. JAX: 6-0

ITA vs. DCC: 0-3

LOL vs. MID: 0-1

BLP vs. AUK: 1-0

MIL vs. MIN: 3-0

There were a lot a really close games this week. That had a lot of playoff implications but I go into more detail about that below. This was a week of inter-divisional matches with a division game thrown in and it is starting to make things a lot more interesting. I cannot emphasize how important every match is in the rest of the season. There are 22 out of 24 teams that have a path to the playoffs, while for some it is unlikely or requires a specific string of losses and win it is crucial that you bring you A game every week. Worst case it is just as much fun to crush someone’s dreams of playoffs as it is to make them, but first let’s enjoy a nice week off as we have our final bye week of the regular season. This week was a positional week. A lot of teams got some crucial wins and overall showed how week to week, you can be playing a different team. Playing any team that prepares well and plays well is going to be difficult to deal with. There are no free wins in this league every one has to work to earn every win.

Pick’ems

Pick’ems this week has left us with one person at the top and several only a point behind. There really inst much more to say about it other than the picks have been off from perfect so it looks like no one will be shout out again… unless in the last 4 weeks the pickers miraculously do what has not been done since week 1. We will see how it goes in the remaining 4 weeks before the playoff bracket

Trades

We have 3 more weeks to make trades and they are still coming through so lets go over them.

AUK Lucario T2 TOT Diggersby TOT Diggersby T2 AUK Lucario PIP Weezing T4 Free Agent Arbok PIP Gourgeist T5 Free Agent Froslass LOL Scizor T2 SHS Espeon SHS Espeon T3 LOL Scizor

  AUK and TOT traded Lucario for Diggersby respectively. This trade helps both teams as AUK is hoping this trade will help their team as they make a late season playoff push. PIP dropped Weezing and Gourgeist and picked up Arbok and Froslass. I really like this trade since it gives PIP a grounded poison type to absorb toxic spikes as well as a spike setter in Froslass. The last trade of the week was between LOL and SHS. LOL traded Scizor to SHS in hopes that Scizor can help SHS make playoffs. In return LOL gets Espeon doubling up on Psychic types and adding a magic bounce user to their squad.

Playoff Picture

With 4 weeks left lets start looking at playoffs. I’ll be doing a breif overview of how teams can make playoffs but as we get closer I’ll go into more detail. Let’s assume that you need a 7-5 record to hit playoffs so let’s dive into how each team can make playoffs. It is possible for 15 teams to hit the 7-5 benchmark but it would require some crazy scenarios. Realistically 7-5 will probably make it and potentially a 6-6 team or two.

Tiebreakers: 1. Overall Record 2. Win % in Division 3. Head to Head 4. Best Record vs. Common Opponents 5. Strength of Victory 6. Strength of Schedule 7. Coin Flip

Corsola Cola: There are 4 teams that can reach the 7-5 threshold; BFS, NWN, DEP, and VAV. At the current moment NWN has the tie breaker over BFS even though they have the same record and both teams need 2 wins to achieve playoffs. These teams would also need DEP/VAV to lose 1 game to guarentee playoffs as either 1 or 2. It is going to come down to how well these teams battle in the last few weeks to determine who will win the division. DEP and VAV ideally need to win out to hit 7-5.

Green Tauros: COG has clinched a Playoff spot either as 1 or 2 for the division. They can drop 2 of their last 4 games and still get the number 1 spot due to tie breakers. The real race is between SLC and SHS. SHS is 2 games behind and the last game of the regular season is a battle between the two. If SHS can catch up 1 game and be only 1 game down going into the last match of the regular season then the winner will be the #2 seed and the other can make playoffs in Best of the rest.

Corsola Cola: There are 4 teams that can hit the threshold; HFW, PIP, ITA, and BLP. BLP would have to win out vs. the entire division which is no simple task, but possible. HFW needs 1 win to clinch playoffs and they need to have a better record than PIP to win the Divisin since PIP wins the tiebreaker between them. PIP would need 2 wins to hit the goal and ITA needs 3 wins. This division is fairly clean cut. You need to win out.

Rhyhorn Steakhouse: This division is crazy so I saved it for last because there is a lot to go over. Let’s start with the fact that every team can make playoffs some have a tougher road than other. To hit the threshold, AUK needs to win out, DCC and MIN needs to win 2 games, BAL and MIL need 1 more win and MID would have clinched if 7-5 is good enough. In the last 4 weeks everyone in this division has 2 divisional matches and DCC has 4. Every divisional match is going to be crucial in seeding and the out of divisional matches for some are going to be just as tough and crucial since 5 of these teams are within 2 games of each other. There is no way to know how this will turn out just yet but it will be exciting to follow.

Interview with The Fluffiest Whimsicott

This week I’m joined by the Italian Crusader herself, The Fluffiest Whimsicott!

Clod9: Thank you The Fluffiest Whimsicott for joining us this week. Luckily it’s easier to schedule interviews than battles but let’s get started what have been your impressions on the draft league format thus far?

The Fluffiest Whimsicott: Thank you for having me, it’s quite the honor! As for your question… it’s a lot more stressful than I anticipated, although it’s certainly still fun.

C9: How did your draft go in your opinion?

TFW: Uh… extremely well at the beginning, then it was a panicked downward spiral down to the end. I was confident that with 20 people picking before me, my favorite S-Tier, Mega Mawile, would be long gone by the time my turn came around… but nope, Ravioli was still there! I had a loose draft structure to follow him, but as I kept getting sniped and having to go for my second or sometimes third choices, I found myself scrambling… and at the end I emerged from the deep drafting haze in my head holding: a Hail core I wanted and no one else (wisely) did; Minior; and half of my roster having quadruple weaknesses. I still don’t quite know how it happened, but here we are.

C9: With the season half over, how have things gone thus far and how do you think you will fare in the second half?

TFW: Well. As I have just finished my eighth battle, the season is actually two thirds over for me, and… I have a neutral record, 4-4. It’s worse than I had been aiming for, that’s for sure. And with the opponents awaiting me in the last round of battles… let’s just say at this point I would be quite happy to keep it even.

C9: Who are you most looking forward to battling this season? TFW: The battle I was most looking forward to was the one against Geo, because it was the YOU YOU TEE SEE winners showdown. Ironically (and sadly), it was by far my worst battle, with one crucial distraction and a bit of RNG letting Geo grab the tiny millimeter of momentum he needs to bring any match home (it’s Geo, after all, you breathe slightly wrong and he beats you… and sometimes you do everything perfectly and he beats you anyway, because, have I mentioned? It’s Geo).

 C9: I know I’m looking forward to battling you this week 12, It should be a fun time. Now for the flip side is there anyone you are glad you don’t have to face in the regular season? TFW: Mr. Seth. “Stallmaster”. Vilo. I love the guy, but battling him is the utmost torture. (Which I’m sure he’ll take as a compliment, as he should.) And yeah, I’d say I’m looking forward to battling you, too, but you’re decimating our division and I know I’m going to be in a lot of pain in my final week…

 C9: Why did you choose the team name, Italian Azurills? TFW: Ah… as embarrassing as it is, it’s actually a pun! See, soccer is a huge deal in Italy. It’s THE sport here. And the Italian National soccer team is nicknamed “gli Azzurri” (“the Blues”), because their uniform is a nice shade of blue… the exact same shade as Azurill, as it happens. From there, the pun was irresistibly obvious, and the logo followed suit.

C9: Were there any secret techs that you brought for your matchups that you didn’t get to showcase? TFW: Yes. The most prominent is that I once brought Counter Ampharos, against Geo, but then I choked and neglected to click the move. It would have been quite fun.

C9: Who would you say is the mon you are most excited to use on your team this year? TFW: Well, Mega Mawile was the one I was gunning for, obviously. And I am always excited to use Alolan Ninetales, of course, just because it’s the prettiest Pokémon ever.

C9: You are currently on the Bubble for making Playoffs, do you feel the pressure as you prepare for your last couple weeks/ Do you think you will make playoffs?

TFW: At this point, the bubble is about to pop. Had I beaten Bigby, I would have made an honest and confident try for it. As it is, I’m certainly not giving up, but I am trying to keep my expectations realistic. I honestly don’t know if that makes the pressure better or worse…

 C9: Let’s learn about you as a pokemon Fan. When did you start listening to PUCL?

TFW: September 12th, 2014. (Is it weird that I know the date off the top of my head? It probably is.)

C9:What pokemon generation did you start with?

TFW: Pokémon Red, baby! I am ancient, after all.

C9: What is your favorite region?

TFW: Oh, no. Now I have to resist the urge to launch into an essay! Let’s say Alola, Kalos and Hoenn are all very, very pretty and leave it at that.

C9: Who is your favorite pokemon?

TFW: This one is kind of a cheat question, isn’t it? I’ll give you some bonus answers. Besides the obvious Whimsicott, it’s Leafeon and Alolan Ninetales.

C9: If you had to pick: Attack or Special Attack?

TFW: Tough question. Special Attack, just because I much prefer the types that were Special before Gen IV.

C9: What is your battle style:  Stall/Hyper Offense/Bulky Offense/Balance?

TFW: It’s definitely somewhere around Bulky Offense. Balance if I’m having a good day.

C9: Do you prefer Speed or Trick Room?

TFW: Speed all the way. Trick Room just cost me a very important match, after all, so I’m holding a grudge!

C9: What is your favorite Weather; Hail/Sand/Rain or Sun?

TFW: Sun because of SovietThatch and all the Grass types who thrive in it, but honorable mention to the weather that makes Aurora Veil possible and Alolan Ninetales (vaguely) usable.

C9: Electric/Misty/Grassy or Psychic Terrain?

TFW: Psychic Terrain. I know Lele simply could not fit in a Draft League format, but man, I miss my favorite Tapu.

C9: Favorite status to inflict: Sleep/Freeze/Paralysis/Burn or Poison?

TFW: Freeze is convenient, but just too evil. I’ll say Burn, because it whittles things down while also making physical attackers too weak to OHKO my prettiest Pokémon, who are of course also the frailest.

C9: Have you watched the Pokemon anime? If yes, what is your favorite Theme song?

TFW: I watched the first… two seasons, I think? And my favorite theme song is probably… the Italian one. It was very cheery (and cheesy, but aren’t they all?).

C9: Will you be participating in other pucl events like the Summer League?

TFW: I’ve already submitted my application to be a Gym Leader again this year. I hope I get picked, because it was a ton of fun last year, but if I’m not, I’m definitely challenging the Gyms myself! I just love battling and having fun with everyone in the community.

C9: Thank you once again for joining us this week! Good luck in your future battles! That’s all the time we have this week. See y’all again next time!

from PDL Week 8 Recap

[ayyfour-blog]

#Stlrnation- Heinz 57

StlrNation, the Steelers are officially on fire.

After another close one against a subpar opponent, the black and gold squeaked out another victory in the last second with AB’s heroics and a Boz 57 yard Heinz Field record-tying game winning FG. Although the matchups this week didn’t look great on paper, the prime time game on Sunday gave us some drama leading to the Steelers ninth win of the year, keeping pace with the Patriots for a possible #1 seed.

I have a real love-hate relationship watching prime time games to an extent. I love all the attention the game gets. I love the look of the game under the lights, the field is illuminated and glowing as well as the uniforms. The crowd usually is a bit louder at night as well, and you get all day to get tuned up for the big event of the evening. Another thing that goes with the attention and spotlight? Awesome pre-game interviews and segments that are focused on your team. I don’t like watching many pre-game shows because in all honesty, there’s one game and one teams storylines I care about, and I can get that coverage on the radio or online.

Another thing I hate you ask?The seemingly endless wait for the game to begin at 8:30.I want my football and I want it NOW! My patience sometimes comes back to bite me, but in this case I think it’s totally acceptable to demand no more than 1 weeks time between games, ON THE HOUR.

The final thing I’ll cover here in my endless rant is the fact that the games don’t end until close to midnight. Hell, Sundays game was kind of meaningless in the grander scheme, I at one point was even hoping for someone to win, regardless of team, so I could get to bed at a decent hour. This poses a problem when you’re winning, you get a lot of prime time games which means many late nights, long waits, and games that are harder to attend in person.

The greater issue I have is when a team has a winning record, and then is thrust into the prime time game spotlight the next year. In general, this is a good theory and you get some competitive games, however, sometimes teams fall from grace and you get oversaturation of a mediocre yet popular franchise bringing you shitty games to watch where it feels like the storylines of WWE RAW playing out week after week (I’m looking at you, Cowboys).

Phew, thats enough of my rant, back to the game..

The game started off with a TD pass to X-gon-give-it-to-ya Grimble for a 6-0 lead after Boz missed an extra point.he game started off hot and felt like a blowout coming, but then the Packers scored a TD in response and the Steelers and then turned on the afterburner. The Packers scored another TD after intercepting Big Ben, and the feeling turned eerily familiar .I had a feeling this game was going to be a squeaker if we come out with a win. The Steelers eventually got it together in the second with Martavis Bryant scoring a TD and AB catching the tying 2pt conversion before half.

The Packers came out of halftime strong, with Hundley connecting with Davantae Adams from 55 yards out, but I never really lost my faith in the Steelers. Well, until Ben threw another pick. Ben was intercepted in the 3rd for his 2nd of the game, and my confidence in a comeback faltered. Then Packers marched down the field and attempted a Field Goal. That they missed...and then I knew some act of God had just happened that would guarantee victory.

Down 21-14 with a new life, the Steelers went downfield lead by Ben and AB, ending with a Red Zone TD from former to latter. Tied 21-21. Packers punt, then Bell FUMBLES the ball, giving a huge opportunity to Green Bay. Luckily, the Steelers D holds after a second playing of Renegade and the Packers punt it back.

Then, heroics ensued. Bell held onto the ball, making up for his fumble with a couple of key catches to keep the drive moving. And then, Antonio fucking Brown emerged. I hardly recall watching Jerry Rice play, however, I don’t think I’ve seen a receiver so clutch in times of need. Brown scored at 33 yard TD to take the lead 28-21.

The Packers didn’t hesitate to retaliate, with Hundley leading the charge on their own 77 yard Touchdown drive, tying the game at 28.

The Steelers couldn’t muster any offense and the game appeared to be heading into overtime as the Packers had the ball around the 1:20 mark left. Then, TJ Watt sacks Hundley. The Packers next play would have been a safe bet of a run, but no, they try and pass. Unbelievable! Instead of taking your chances in Overtime, the clearly overmatched Packers show they want the win in regulation with a passing play. Granted, it was a screen, but the player heads for the sidelines and gets knocked out of bounds by Shazier, stopping the clock. This left around 40 seconds on the clock and the Steelers with 2 timeouts and 2 downs to defend. Third down? Pass up the middle stopped short of a 1st down by who? Mr clutch Ryan Shazier. With 27 seconds left the Packers have to punt.

The Steelers then resumed their offensive magic, with Antonio grabbing a spectacular sideline catch by both the tips of his fingers and toes, then another right after securing a long-shot of field goal range. From a fridge cold temperature and a Heinz 57 yards out, Chris Boswell connected on the game winner for the second time this year, and the Steelers keep pace with the Patriots for the #1 seed in the AFC playoff race.

Next game up, Monday night vs the Bengals. Try to stay awake and don’t drive yourself nuts waiting for your favorite 4 hours of the week to come, because I’m sure I will.

#herewego

[leagueofawesomedudes]

LOAD 2019

Week 1 Preview

Important: Pick your official team name by 1:00 pm EST this Sunday 9/8/2019.  There are no team name changes after this date this year or you will be charged a $5.00 fine that goes to the winner for the 2019 season.  Jon, new guy, this is the rule.  For everyone else it’s just serving as a reminder…

Alright slap dicks it’s finally that time of the year again to get back to business.  It’s about time that the summer is over and we can finally direct our focus towards the thing that matters most in life and not things like pets’ birthdays, engagements, career advancements, Fortnite championships etc…

Not gonna sit here and bore you with a bunch of talk today since you get that from me in the GroupMe on a daily basis so we’re just gonna jump right into the previews.  I do however want to say I’m glad we’re back and thank you boys for another year of the LOAD.

LETS ABSOLUTELY GO!

Kickers & Defense (Solden) vs Jared Donovan’s Team (Jared, duh)

We’re kickin’ it off with two dudes who are bigger than every girls’ boyfriend.  Bigger egos or bigger shoulders?  I have to hug the wall when I pass them up in the hallway at the office.  Just when you think it’s a sure thing that Jare will take either a Heisman winner or a Brown with his first pick he changes it up and goes with David Johnson. Thanks for always keeping me guessing bb.  Kinsbury’s pretty boy offense is pretty pass heavy so we’ll see if this works out, or if D Johnson is on the trading block week 2.  On the opposite side of the ball Solden’s two top dawgs aside from me include Russ Wilson and Davantea Adams.  These guys should be production machines all year and should carry Solden’s team until he ruins the rest of his roster by himself.  History repeats itself, it’s more inevitable than Thanos. I’m taking Jared this week with big games out of Allen Robinson in 2012 form and DeShaun Watson.

Jared Donovan’s Team > Kickers & Defense

JuJu Kachoo (Pauly) vs The Injured Reserve (Casey)

Paul, what is Kachoo? A Nintendo character?  Idk about that but all I do know is Paul is coming off of a hot streak winning his first fantasy championship and he’s looking to defend the crown in 2091.  I mean 2019. Paul doesn’t know the difference because he’s disleksick and doesn’t know how to spell anywaze.  And Case, good to have you back again brotha.  Your party at your house this summer was an absolute blast and I can’t wait to do it again!  Both of these guys have studs at the WR positions (hmu for trades please) and should be putting up some big numbers this week.  If JuJu can be a legit #1 Paul should look to have himself a good start to the season.  Paul has Julio, JuJu & Crowder while case has OBJ, Robert Woods and Mike Williams. Odell puts up enough numbers this week to makeup for Williams and we will drown ourselves in Jameson Crowder because of it.  Case does have the edge this week due to his superior RBS (Paul seriously let’s trade). Mixon and Freeman help Case change it up and pull out for him this weekend.

The Injured Reserve > JuJu Kachoo

G-reg 3rd leg (Bennett) vs Under the Influwentz (Doug)

Bennett may be the only person I know who can draft Kamara and still have a trash roster.  AB suspended.  You better hope he gets cut and goes to a new team. And Melvin Gordon won’t be playing?  Someone better stop being stubborn and start attempting to make moves mid season.  Looks like your luck has finally run out brotha. On the other side finally, Doug changes the fantasy team name up and it’s a damn good one.  I like it Douglas Fir.  Don’t have to think to hard to do Bennett’s previews this year because he’s finishing 12th.

Bennett don’t come after me when you read this it’s just fantasy dude.

Under the Influwentz > G-Reg 3rd leg

My Quads Are Danger6 (Jon) vs Butker in the Cooper (Dom)

The newcomer to the league and the family Jon vs the always dangerous Dommy Salami.  Two great fantasy names between these two.  I didn’t even realize Jon had Barkley until this moment when I’m looking at his roster.  I had just figured he was talking about his own legs.  Dom with another clever name that he spent a workweek trying to figure out but did achieve his goal by making everyone laugh at it.  Jon coming in guns hot from the get go and having arguably the strongest draft of any team. Saquan obviously puts up monster numbers but he’s stacked at almost every position.  Especially with 6 under center for him.  No surprise here, Dom drafted well once again.  However his team is going to be heavily reliant on if Amari Cooper and Chris Godwin can establish themselves as consistent fantasy contributers.  Wait what? Oh had to look at his flex at the bottom and see that he has Nuke Hopkins there.  That threw me off.  I’d appreciate an explanation for putting him there, but it does look cool.  As long as the roster is healthy it does appear Jon has the best starting roster in the league and will help Dom move to 0 – 1 and to LA afterwards.

My Quads Are Danger6 > Butker in the Cooper

Tony Time (TJ) vs Rooney Tunes (Shawn)

Shaved head Tony is back which means he’s back as a serious contender in fantasy.  And yes there is a direct correlation between the two.  On the other side there’s Shawn…who has to be eager for a bounce back year after a weak showing in 2018.  As long as he doesn’t lose his keys again I expect Shawn to double down on the effort and try to make a push this year.  Even if that means ignoring his future wife on their honeymoon.  Best matchup on the board has to be their defenses in Seattle v Baltimore so you know Paul will be glued to his screen for this one.  Michael Thomas, Tyreek and Josh Jacobs look to put up massive numbers for Tone, even more massive than Tone’s Fortnite kill count while Shawn starts WRs that are borderline nursing home material with Fitzgerald, Edelman & Jeffery.  The RBs will be the deciding factor in this one while James Conner, Tarik Cohen & Phillip Lindsey will allow Shawn to dictate when Tony Time actually begins with Jacobs, Carson & Sanders going for him.  It’s alright Teej you will still bounce back.  Please don’t announce that you’re giving up after week 1 for the second year in a row.  This league needs your personality.

Rooney Tunes > Tony Time

****** Game of the Mother Fuckin’ Week ******

Mahomies Chubbie (Chad) vs Chrsitian McCuri’s

Yup yup HERE WE GO.  Week 1 of the season and we have two heavyweights going at it from the get go like Stipe vs Cormier.  The undisputed, best overall manager, the smartest, and biggest football guys’ guy since the origination of the League Of Awesome Dudes will take on his opponent, Sam.  Sam however once again drafted well and I wouldn’t expect anything less from the co-commish who listens to fantasy podcasts in his sleep with his apple watch and ear pods.  That pretentious freakin’ fuck.  He’s looking to be rumblin’ stumblin’ on the weekends bumblin’ and hopefully not fumblin’ his way back to the championship in ’19.  CMC going to be putting up monster numbers on a weekly basis. Anything otherwise and I’d be shocked about that gym rat, first guy in last guy out, scrappy, football smart, hardworking coach’s son.  Mike Evans still a premier WR in the league, and I honestly won’t even be pissed if Jarvis puts up a 50 burger because that means the boys in orange and brown are gettin’ a dub.  On the other hand, my roster?  No wideouts? No problem.  Bell, Chubb and Mahomes carry the bulk for yours truly and are going to pile it on.  This should be a shootout however I think Sam takes the week 1 matchup.  See ya again in week 12 when our rosters look 80% different and playoff seeding is on the line.

Christian McCuri’s > Mahomies Chubbie

That’s it for this week. Paul, you’ve got the preview for Week 2.

Go Browns.

Long live the LOAD.

Signing Off,

LOAD El Presidente

[junker-town]

The Pac-12 saved its reputation in the men’s NCAA tournament

Who has the best shot at the Final Four?

It was only two short years ago that the Pac-12 was considered perhaps the worst power conference in the history of men’s college basketball. Pac-12 teams were getting pounded by every quality opponent it faced outside of the league and ended the regular season with exactly zero teams ranked in the polls. The Pac-12 was projected to be a one-bid conference for much of the year, but rallied to get three teams into the tournament, none of them seeded better than a No. 9 seed. It finished as the seventh strongest league in the country the, behind the American and Big East, in KenPom’s adjusted efficiency rankings.

Given that the Pac-12’s reputation isn’t any better on the football field, the ‘Conference of Champions’ was becoming much more widely known as a punchline than it was for the number of trophies it was hoisting. That recent history is only part of the reason why the conference’s success in the 2021 men’s NCAA tournament feels so shocking to see.

The Pac-12 is the unquestioned biggest winner of the tournament’s opening weekend. The conference went 9-1 overall through the first two rounds, and each of its five teams in the field earned at least one win. Pac-12 teams weren’t just winning games, they also went 9-1 against the spread. Now the conference will make up a quarter of the Sweet 16 when the round begins on Saturday, with Oregon, USC, UCLA, and Oregon each busting through the bracket.

Here’s how each of the four Pac-12 teams reached the second weekend of the big dance — and where they could go from here.

Oregon Ducks (No. 7 seed)

Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images

How they got here:

Uncontested win over No. 10 seed VCU

Win over No. 2 seed Iowa, 95-80

Faces No. 6 seed USC in Sweet 16

It’s been a hard season for Oregon from the very start. The Ducks lost starting center and former five-star recruit N’Faly Dante to a torn ACL in Dec., had to play half the season without standout guard Will Richardson as he recovered from thumb surgery, and had multiple Covid-related pauses after the season started.

Oregon started to hit its stride once Richardson returned to the lineup in February, and they played their best game of the season at the most opportune time in the round of 32 vs. Iowa. Oregon dropped a season-high 95 points on the Hawkeyes that included 11 three-pointers and 10 dunks. You’d never know who was supposed to be the No. 2 seed with the presumptive national player of the year candidate watching that game.

Oregon’s success starts with Chris Duarte and Richardson in the backcourt. Duarte is a 6’6 wing and native of the Dominican Republic who arrived at Oregon after being named JUCO player of the year at Northwest Florida State College in 2019. Now the 23-year-old is being considered a potential first round pick for his 43 percent three-point shooting (on 138 attempts) and defensive impact. Duarte is also making 63 percent of his two-pointers and shoots 80 percent from the foul line — he’s one of the country’s most efficient shooters any way you look at it. Richardson is also shooting 41 percent from three this year, and handles most of the playmaking burden. This is one of the best backcourts in America.

Without Dante, the Ducks’ entire lineup is listed at either 6’5 or 6’6, with 6’8 wing Chandler Lawson representing the tallest player in their rotation. The lack of size didn’t matter against Iowa’s Luka Garza, the best offensive center in the country. St. John’s transfer LJ Figueroa and Duquesne transfer Eric Williams have done an admirable job on the glass and defending the paint, but the key for Oregon is spreading teams out and beating them on the other end. It’s a strategy that produced some beautiful basketball against Iowa, and could keep them rolling into the Elite Eight.

Oregon State Beavers (No. 12 seed)

Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

How they got here:

Win over Tennessee, 70-56

Win over Oklahoma State, 80-70

Faces No. 8 seed Loyola-Chicago next

By now, Oregon State’s origin story is starting to become widely known. Picked to finish dead last in the Pac-12 in the preseason, the Beavers were a sub-.500 team in the conference for most of the year before catching fire at the end of the season and winning the Pac-12 tournament. If not for Oral Roberts’ run as a No. 15 seed, Oregon State’s success would be the most baffling surprise of the tournament. At the same time, the more you watch the Beavers play, the less this looks like a fluke.

Despite being one of the last 16 teams left standing in college basketball, the Beavers place just No. 50 overall in KenPom’s efficiency rankings with the No. 41 offense and No. 69 defense in America. They share the ball — assisting on 59 percent of their field goals, a top-30 mark in the country — and play slow, which has helped them as an underdog. The Beavers got the benefit of an ultra hot shooting night in their tournament opening upset of Tennessee, but they were still able to beat future No. 1 overall NBA draft pick Cade Cunningham and Oklahoma State on a poor shooting night. The defense has been the key, holding both opponents at or below .90 points per possession in March Madness so far.

Ethan Thompson, son of Beavers assistant coach Stephen Thompson, has been the star of the tournament run so far, dropping 26 points on 15-of-16 shooting from the foul line in the win over OK State. Sophomore 6’3 guard Jarod Lucas is Oregon State’s biggest three-point threat (39 percent from deep), while Nicholls St. transfer Warith Alatishe is a lockdown defensive wing at 6’7. They also have a 7’1 center in Roman Silva who scored 15 points in the win over Tennessee and gives Beavers a matchup nightmare in the middle for whoever they play.

A date with Loyola-Chicago is going to be tough in the Sweet 16, but the way Oregon State is playing right now, there’s no reason to think they can’t compete.

USC Trojans (No. 6 seed)

Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images

How they got here:

Beat Drake, 72-56

Beat Kansas, 85-51

Faces No. 7 seed Oregon in Sweet 16

USC just did the unthinkable and made Kansas — Kansas! — look like a mid-major by routing the Jayhawks before halftime in the round of 32. No, this wasn’t Bill Self’s best team ever, but the dominance that the Trojans displayed in that game should put the rest of the West region on notice. USC has a top-15 offense, a top-five defense, and the single most talented player left standing in the tournament.

Evan Mobley is special, there’s no other way to put it. The 7-foot freshman center is an outrageous defensive talent who can protect the rim or block jump shots with his combination of length (7’5 wingspan) and quickness. He’s also a versatile offensive player who excels as a passer in the pick-and-roll and has enough touch to finish inside or hit a jump shot out to three-point range with some consistency. Mobley is projected the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, and he’s a problem without an answer for every team left standing.

Mobley’s older brother, Isaiah, has also been playing well for the Trojans, hitting 4-of-5 threes in the win against the Jayhawks. Tahj Eaddy has proven to be a tough senior point guard, while Drew Peterson provides some much needed shooting on the wing.

Yes, USC has a freshman superstar, but they’re also playing like more than a one-man show right now. The Trojans beat Oregon in their only meeting this year, but you know the Ducks will be ready for the rematch.

UCLA Bruins (No. 11 seed)

Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images

How they got here:

Beat Michigan state, 86-80 in OT, in the First Four

Beat BYU, 73-62

Beat Abilene Christian, 67-47

Faces No. 2 seed Alabama in Sweet 16

The reasons for optimism ahead of head coach Mick Cronin’s second season in charge at UCLA this year started to fade before the season even began. Top recruit Daishen Nix decided he’d rather play for the G League Ignite. Six games into the year, Chris Smith, arguably the team’s best player, was lost for the year with a torn ACL. Starting center Jalen Hill has also been out since Feb. for personal reasons.

The Bruins just snuck into the tournament, and had to earn their way through the bracket with a First Four game against Michigan State. The Spartans had the Bruins on the ropes, but somehow UCLA came back to win in overtime. Ever since, UCLA has been rolling.

Sophomore wings Johnny Juzang and Jaime Jaquez Jr. have been powering the Bruins on this run. Juzang, a Kentucky transfer, has been the team’s primary scorer in March, averaging 22 points per game and combining for nine three-pointers during the team’s tournament winning streak. Jaquez was sensational in the First Four win over MSU (27 points), and has been providing supplemental scoring punch ever since. Add in Jules Bernard, Tyger Campbell, and Cody Riley, and suddenly the Bruins have a solid five-man lineup that looks like it can compete against anyone in the East region right now.

Facing No. 2 seed Alabama will be an incredible test in the Sweet 16, but the Bruins will have a puncher’s chance.

Which Pac-12 team has the best chance to make the Final Four?

This is a really hard question to answer heading into the Sweet 16, especially because the winner of Oregon vs. USC would have to face a powerhouse Gonzaga team in the Elite Eight. We’ll stack up the Pac-12 teams like this entering the Sweet 16:

4. Oregon Ducks

3. USC Trojans

2. UCLA Bruins

1. Oregon State Beavers

Even if the Pac-12 can’t advance a team to the Final Four, it’s been an amazing run through the tournament for the conference so far. It will be fascinating if any of them are still standing a week from now.