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Who will have more interconference wins?

As we come to the point of the season where each team gets to measure themselves against the opposing conference, the question inevitably arises, which conference is stronger. In season 19, the Big 8 went 35-29 against Great 8 opponents. And it was a harbinger of things to come: 1) They dominated in the All-Star Game, 2) Their representative, Upsyndrome, swept the finals and promoted to D.III, and 3) both the 6th and 7th place teams won their relegation tournaments to avoid demotion.

Will three new Great 8 teams (Valhalla!, Nevada Rocks, and Drunken Clams) tip the scales in their favor? Will the L.A. Killa Beez convert the league's biggest PD into a sweep of interconference play? Last year Practice Makes Perfect's only interconference loss was on the road against the future league champion. Will they repeat their dominance and rack up 8 in the Great 8 column? Will Kung Fu Ninja Pirates continue their streak of forfeits and dig a hole the Big 8 can't dig themselves out of?

Last edited by rhyminsimon at 6/13/2012 4:42:52 PM

Poll:  Which conference will win more games in interconference play in Season 20?

This one was a little tough for me - being from the Big 8 last season, I wanted to vote for the BIG BLUE; I have a feeling the Killa Beez will sweep the great 8, no offense or anything, they are just really good. However, the great 8 looks deeper this season - so I voted for the Big RED Conference.

Last season my team, and the Killa beez had a combined inter-conference record of 14-2 on TIE enthusiasm. The only team that beat me was Winter Heaven Velvets, and that was while I was still tanking games. The only team to beat LA Killa Beez was Practice makes Perfect, but he CT the Killa beez at home.

So I guess we'll see if things have changed. GL fellas.

Update of Interconference Play

After the first round fought on the Great 8's home courts, the Great 8 leads 6-2. Here are the top stories from around the league:

Shock 'em & Rock 'em: Threes by Kosyakov and Langiu Decide Two Close Ones
One point was the margin in contests at both Metropolis and Colorado Falls Forum last night. St. Louis Shock survived a late comeback attempt by Supermen Are Alive. The Shock built a 14-pt lead in the first quarter, but sagged after the half. And with 7 minutes remaining in the fourth, Supermen took their first lead of the game on a dunk from Baader. They continued neck and neck until with 44 seconds left, Nezih made 2 from the line to put Supermen up 6. But quick threes from Kosyakov and Bradinilis erased the deficit. Supermen's Brechenmacher made another dunk to put Supermen up 2, but it would end up being not quite enough. As time expired, league-leading scorer Vasily Kosyakov sent one in from downtown to seal the deal for the Shock.

Nevada Rocks also staved off a late comeback attempt. After amassing a 12-point advantage in the 2nd quarter, the Rocks went cold, allowing NY Liberty to go on a 20-8 run to end the third quarter. The Liberty continued to scrap their way back and finally took the lead with 43 seconds to go on a Xuande layup. The teams traded baskets and the Rocks called time with 28 left. Then they ran a set play to get Langiu an open look and he drained a three to put the Rocks up by two. And with 19 left the Liberty called a TO to get their set play. But it went haywire and PG Gornikowski ended up stranded and had to take a shot. Langiu got a rebound and was immediately hacked. He could only sink one of his two, but it would be enough. The Liberty's guard Brown tried for the three-point play, drawing the foul from Peron, but the shot didn't go down and the game ended with two meaningless free throws.

Top 3 in Each Conference Face Off
Tonight the top three of the Great 8 matched up with teams in the top 3 of the Big 8. Valhalla! (1) extended their winning streak to 7 with a definitive win at home over a strong Murfreesboro (2) team. Their trademark "team first" mentality paid off, with 31 assists, three double-doubles, and 7 players scoring in double digits. And Practice did Make Perfect for PMP (2) as their shooting from the field (48%) and ability to get to the free throw line (drawing 19 fouls and going 16-27) proved to be too much for Ulderico Jazz (3). Winter Haven Velvets (3) made a valiant effort to defend their home court against the L.A. Killa Beez (1), and even led by 4 at the half. But the second half was all Bees. Turnovers and a mediocre 30% shooting made the night a rough one for the home team. And despite their best efforts, they couldn't find an answer to the Bees' high-octane offense.

Cornballers Rebound from Conference Loss
After their last game, a tough loss where Conanan was unable to participate due to undisclosed reasons, the Cornballers hit interconference play with gusto. Conanan put up an impressive stat line, falling only 3 blocks short of a 5 by 5, as he led his team to victory tonight over Illiniwek. And his ability to get to the foul line gave the Cornballers the points they needed to prevail and sealed the deal in the final minutes.

KNP Bus Driver Finally Reads GPS
Aging bus driver and retired sensei, Yuki Nakagura, finally figured out how to use the Garmin, allowing Kung Fu Ninja Pirates to show up at the Anchor Bay Clamshell Arena for tonight's televised game. But 3 weeks off the court was not kind to KNP, and they had the beer guts to prove it. With severely diminished game shape and a decimated roster, they fell prey to the Clams. Clams' PF Louzano had a great night ending up 2 assists away from a triple-double and 2 blocks away from a 5 by 5 in only 28 minutes.

Last edited by rhyminsimon at 6/14/2012 1:55:10 PM

Nice writeup, thanks for putting in the time.

It looks like the Beez are the team to beat this season, but after them you can make an argument that the next four best teams are all from the Great 8. It will be interesting to see if it plays out that way.

Update of Interconference Play

After Saturday's games at Big 8 arenas, the tally still favors the Great 8: 11-5. Top stories from around the league:

Killa Beez Get Stung
The most hated man in L.A. tonight is referee Darius Cotelesse, whose controversial charging call on Karolius Strimaitis with 6 seconds remaining already has its own derisive Facebook page. Instead of trying to force overtime or even sink a 3 to win, the Beez were forced by this call to foul Ulf Olsen in a desperate attempt to get back possession. Seconds later, fans at the Staples Center listened in horror to the "Swish. Swish," of Olsen's two free throws caressing the net. And then they stared at the megatron in disbelief as Stuart Levin's last-second prayer bounced off the rim and time expired.
Their troubles had begun earlier, however, when PRA put together a 16-2 run in the second half of the third quarter fueled by 6 Beez turnovers and 2 fouls. All told, it was the Beez' sloppiness that determined the outcome. Nineteen fouls (even more than their 17 average) handed the game over to a PRA squad hungry to bring their all-time series even at 2.

Magic Upset Liberty
The Magic pulled off a come-from-behind win to put them 2-0 in interconference play thanks to solid play from center, Hugo Camacho, who went nine of nine from the field (including one from downtown) and led the team with 3 steals. Edas Gliznys also gave his second 29-pt effort in a row while dishing out 5 assists and snagging 5 rebounds. Though the Liberty shot out to an early lead, the Magic went on a 18-4 run in the last 7 minutes of the third. And the Liberty's mere 36% shooting would not be able to overcome the deficit.

KNP Shows Up Again
The power of a ninja is that you cannot predict what he will do or where he will surprise you from. Such is the case with the Kung Fu Ninja Pirates, who have begun to field teams for their scheduled contests again. Unfortunately for them, that power was not quite enough to prevent a 57-104 loss to the top-ranked team in the Great 8, Valhalla!.

Last edited by rhyminsimon at 6/17/2012 10:37:32 AM

Update of Interconference Play 3

Tuesday's games saw five more games added to the Great 8 column. They now lead the series 16-8.

Blow-out Tuesday
The peasant horde must have been angry tonight because everybody got torched. Six of the eight games were won by 30 pts or more. And across the league the average point differential was 32 points.

KNP 65 - NEV 111 – While NEV's stars, Langiu and Bojkovski, had their hands full with KNP's Fiolic and Edward, the rest of the team exploded with 4 players scoring 15+ in their victory over the now officially returned KNP.

NYC 46 - WHV 90 – The transfer list had something to do with WHV's absolute domination of NYC. The newly acquired Zanesi scored 26 in his first game in IV.30. And this was NYC's first game without recent transfers, Luther (avg: 17 pt, 3 rb) and Pinto (avg: 8 pt, 15 rb), and their second after selling Xuande (avg: 31 pt, 5 rb, 3 ast).

ILL 68 - VAL 111 – VAL continued to play well as a team, shooting almost 54% from the field, raking in 2 rb and 2 ast for every 1 logged by ILL, and posting 6 players in double digits.

GRE 87 - PRA 125 – PRA sprinted to victory over GRE, behind strong forward play. Duncker and Olsen each put up 24 pts and were supported by double digit totals from 4 of their teammates. Turnovers continue to plague GRE, who are second only to SUP in TO/G. And they gave up 17 in tonight's game.

STL 80 - ADC 117 – Rookie Eddy Wright had a breakout game for ADC, leading the team in four of five statistical categories, in his 48 minutes against STL. Although STL's dynamic duo of Kosyakov and Bradinilis combined for 44 pts, the rest of the team could only muster 36 in the loss to ADC.

LA 109 - SUP 79 – The Killa Beez walked away with the only Big 8 blowout of the night. Their high octane offense exploded out of the blocks and never looked back. McBride, Malone and Machuca combined for 23-31 and 9-13 from downtown for 63 pts. The Beez also made 12 stls and kept a 12TO differential, keeping the ball out of SUP's hands. Although SUP star SF Mashhadi gad a good game (30 pt, 5 rb) it was not nearly enough.

Murfreesboro: +1 to MDef
Despite a heroic effort, the Marin Magic couldn't quite weave their spell around Murfreesboro last night. Gliznys and Cherry combined for 52 from the wings, but 41 pts from the Murfreesboro bench and a 25-RB deficit were too much for the Magic to overcome. And Murfreesboro walked away from this quest having gained an ability point.

Cornballers Edged Out by Jazz
The Cornballers were in the driver's seat for most of their home game last night. They jumped to a 9-0 lead from the start. And although ULD fought their way back, COR held them off and took a slim 1-pt lead into the break. The 2nd period saw the teams go point for point until a Conanan 3 and a Booth FT increased the lead to 3. Early in the 3rd, the Cornballers got their 9pt lead back on another Conanan 3. But Carollo's shooting and passing sparked a 15-2 run that gave the Jazz their first lead with 4 to go in the 3rd. A 11-2 run by the Cornballers to start of the fourth netted a 7-point lead. But 3's from Tondeur and Guaso set up a jumpshot from Lapidot to even the score with 4 min left. The teams traded scores, with Tondeur making a 3-pt play to put the Jazz up and then two Conanan 3's putting the Cornballers up 1 at the minute mark. Unable to score and with fouls to give, the Jazz started hacking. And after 2 fouls, it paid off in a Carollo stl. And then it was COR's turn to foul. But with none to give, they sent Echeverría to the line for 2, to put the Jazz up 1. After a timeout, Conanan went to the well one last time, but it had finally run dry. COR fouled again costing 1 from Carollo. Metcalf missed the tying shot and one more trip to the line for Carollo sealed the deal.

Last edited by rhyminsimon at 6/20/2012 12:19:50 PM

Update of Interconference Play 4

Saturday's games saw the conferences split games for the first time this season. The series now stands at 20-12 in favor of the Great 8.

Top Three in Big 8 Defend Home Court
The L.A. Killa Beez had a dominating night, winning every statistical category (except offensive rebounds), knocking down shots at twice the rate of COR, and shooting an amazing 55% from downtown.

Murfreesboro bested a strong Winter Haven team. The story in each half was Murfreesboro goes up and Velvets come back, but not quite enough. Stradiotto, Godherdzeshvilli, and Hardy led the Mules with double-doubles.

Ulderico Jazz staved off a late surge from the Drunken Clams to win at home. The game was decided on the play of the Jazz’s Lapidot and the Clams’ Campioni. DCA took an early lead in the first and held on until the third, when the Jazz went on a 17-4 run in the first 6 1/2 of the third. During the run, Lapidot lit it up going 5 of 7 with 2 assists, 2 free throws and a rebound. ULD continued to build the spread until with 9 minutes left they led by 11. But the Clams battled back and, with the help of a pair of threes from Christiansson and some Jazz fouls, tied the game with 26 seconds on the clock. But a pair of fouls from Wright and a botched rebound by Stratzalis gave the Jazz a 3 point lead with 10 seconds to go. After a time out, the Clams’ set play gave Campioni a chance for the tying three. But he missed with 4 seconds left. A Lüüs board necessitated yet another Wright foul to stop the clock. But Lapidot sank his two shots to crush any Clams’ hopes of sending it to overtime.

Illiniwek Breaks 3-Game Losing Streak
With strong all-around play, Illiniwek broke their streak and made themselves a team to watch as they vaulted from 6th in the Big 8 to playoff contention. Although NEV took an early lead in the 1st, ILL took a 4-pt lead into the half and never looked back. Three double-doubles and a career-high 34-pt game from JC Duggan were the highlights of a beautiful stat sheet for ILL.

Supermen Are Alive and Kicking
Despite being out-rebounded by 14 and giving up an incredible 34 personal fouls (translating into 48 GRE shots from the line), SUP walked out of the UPS Arena with a slim victory. The outcome of the game was based on the teams’ relative depth. The SUP bench combined for 37 pts, 10 reb, 6 ast, 4 stl, 1 blk. But the GRE bench played a mere 19 minutes in total, leaving their starters gassed and unable to defend the fresh legs facing them. And at the end, when SUP fouls put GRE in a position to force overtime, Mozzarelli’s 3-pt attempt wouldn’t fall.

KNP Still Lagging After Recess
Although they posted their best score since their return, KNP has yet to put together a win. The Marin Magic conjured a 20-pt lead in the first and hung on for the rest by putting up 12 blocks and shooting 51% from the field as a team.

Valhalla and Practice Makes Perfect advance to 10-1
Valhalla! put their winning streak into double digits by coasting over the St. Louis Shock. A 34-pt lead in the third let VAL rest their starters for the whole fourth quarter, which allowed the Shock a modest 9-pt comeback before hitting the showers.

Led by strong play from Andric, who put up 43 points (1 shy of his career high), PRA dominated every statistical category (except steals) in their demolishing of NYC.

New logo, huh? Did you make it?

Yup. I was tired of the Family Guy still with a couple clip-art basketballs stuck on it and a terribly pixelated banner. So I switched it up.

I made it with two photos I found on the interwebs and some Pages/Preview magic. I consider it an upgrade, but we'll see how it fares over time. Whaddya think?

I like it. Has a vintage feel to it. very nice!

Update of Interconference Play 5

Tuesday saw the Great 8 go 5-3 against Big 8 teams to expand its series lead to 25-15.

Illiniwek and the Shock Win on the Road
League-leading scorer, Vasily Kosyakov, put up 43 points and 7 assists in 40 minutes as the Shock rode his performance over the Rocks on the road. St. Loius's forwards, Herman Herring and Corey Gee, also combined for 49 points, 30 rebounds and 10 assists to help in the effort. The Shock opened up a stunning 15-pt lead in the first quarter and never looked back.

Illiniwek edged out the Marin Magic to win their first road game of the season. The Illiniwek starters all scored 16 or more, and Bass, Golek and Legorreta all put up double-doubles. The Magic bench combined for 31 points in an heroic bid to overcome the Illiniwek, who seemed to be on fire all night. But it was Loren Cherry who brought the team back by scoring 16 in the 4th, including a three to create a 105-105 tie with less than a minute left. But the rest of the game was played by the men in stripes. Refs called charging on Toro, which gave Illiniwek possession with 14 seconds left, and a shooting foul on Camacho, which gave Bass two chances to sink the game winning free-throw. And although he only made one, Illiniwek held on and went home with a victory.

Tondeur Scores 55 in Jazz's Road Loss
In a feat he hasn't accomplished since season 11 in Argentina's D4, 34-year-old Fabian Tondeur proved he still has what it takes and passed a half-century at the right hand side of the stat sheet. But his performance was not enough to negate the 28 opportunities the Jazz gave their opponents at the free-throw line. Valhalla! continued its trademark strong team play, with the team's starters all putting up 14+ while the bench added 14 more and 12 rebounds.

New Liberty Star Misses Game
After the mid-season signing of Swiss Shooting Guard, Frédéric Grivot, fans and analysts alike were excited to see how the Liberty performed with his help. But they were disappointed when he did not dress for Tuesday's game. Liberty management has yet to comment on the matter. The Liberty fared poorly without him, shooting only 33% from the field and falling to Supermen Are Alive at Metropolis.

Last edited by rhyminsimon at 6/29/2012 4:52:13 PM