International Basketball Championship 38 - Everything Thread

[Katterimunk]

Matchday 9

Group E
All games held @ Aurora Arena, Inaspolis City

Diarcesia 73–69 Rwekazaland
Valanora 97–63 Kharakia
Pemecutan 86–63 Cardenao

  Group E                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Pemecutan                  9    8   1   724  679  +45    0.889
2 Valanora                   9    6   3   780  628 +152    0.667
3 Rwekazaland                9    6   3   705  680  +25    0.667
4 Cardenao                   9    3   6   691  702  −11    0.333
5 Kharakia                   9    2   7   663  762  −99    0.222
6 Diarcesia                  9    2   7   663  775 −112    0.222

Group F
All games held @ Eclipse Pavillion, Acrehull

Gran Saguaro 87–86 Nordic Airland
Græntfjall 59–67 Sarzonia
Valentine Z 84–71 Benjium

  Group F                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Valentine Z                9    9   0   783  633 +150    1.000
2 Sarzonia                   9    5   4   733  660  +73    0.556
3 Gran Saguaro               9    5   4   702  762  −60    0.556
4 Græntfjall                 9    4   5   749  674  +75    0.444
5 Benjium                    9    3   6   629  730 −101    0.333
6 Nordic Airland             9    1   8   660  797 −137    0.111

Group G
All games held @ Galaxy Arena, Ancehaul

Qubec and Shingoryeo 72–61 Sinyal
Macbon 84–70 Delaclava
Eraman 63–80 Equestria

  Group G                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Qubec and Shingoryeo       9    9   0   783  599 +184    1.000
2 Delaclava                  9    7   2   718  646  +72    0.778
3 Macbon                     9    5   4   680  692  −12    0.556
4 Equestria                  9    4   5   636  667  −31    0.444
5 Eraman                     9    1   8   622  708  −86    0.111
6 Sinyal                     9    1   8   606  733 −127    0.111

Group H
All games held @ Prism Court, Stritstead

Kronbia 80–67 Qasden
Cassadaigua 71–75 Juvencus
Libonesia 75–96 Nova Anglicana

  Group H                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Nova Anglicana             9    9   0   786  619 +167    1.000
2 Juvencus                   9    7   2   724  657  +67    0.778
3 Kronbia                    9    5   4   697  735  −38    0.556
4 Cassadaigua                9    4   5   696  679  +17    0.444
5 Qasden                     9    2   7   654  732  −78    0.222
6 Libonesia                  9    0   9   642  777 −135    0.000

Next Cutoff on 10/07/2023 at 9-11 AM UTC

[South Newlandia]

Cutoff.

Group A
All games held @SkyDome Arena, Cotmond

United States of Devonta 72–70 Atheara
The Jovannic 74–95 Katterimunk
Drawkland 70–81 Hannasea

 Group A                       Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Hannasea                       9    8   1   801  555 +246    0.889
2 Drawkland                      9    6   3   678  645  +33    0.667
3 Katterimunk                    9    5   4   678  732  −54    0.556
4 The Jovannic                   9    4   5   658  706  −48    0.444
5 Atheara                        9    3   6   646  682  −36    0.333
6 United States of Devonta       9    1   8   590  731 −141    0.111

Group B
All games held @Thunderdome Stadium, Ipheburn

The Spartan Dominion 63–79 Abanhfleft
Muralos 62–83 Ko-oren
Kamijiro 84–61 HUElavia

 Group B                       Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Abanhfleft                     9    6   3   704  668  +36    0.667
2 Kamijiro                       9    6   3   668  658  +10    0.667
3 Ko-oren                        9    6   3   709  585 +124    0.667
4 Muralos                        9    5   4   665  642  +23    0.556
5 HUElavia                       9    2   7   625  707  −82    0.222
6 The Spartan Dominion           9    2   7   598  709 −111    0.222

Group C
All games held @Phoenix Arena, Vrord

Chromatika 62–92 Banija
United Adaikes 63–76 Dod Rava
New Dascos 81–65 Poafmersia

 Group C                       Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Banija                         9    9   0   745  611 +134    1.000
2 Chromatika                     9    5   4   697  666  +31    0.556
3 Poafmersia                     9    5   4   654  668  −14    0.556
4 Dod Rava                       9    3   6   627  677  −50    0.333
5 New Dascos                     9    3   6   663  702  −39    0.333
6 United Adaikes                 9    2   7   605  667  −62    0.222

Group D
All games held @Stellar Center, Chedo City

Lisander 84–60 Ealdracaland
Southwest Eastnorth 59–78 Torisakia
Trolleborg 75–92 TJUN-ia

 Group D                       Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 TJUN-ia                        9    8   1   704  572 +132    0.889
2 Trolleborg                     9    6   3   696  630  +66    0.667
3 Lisander                       9    5   4   702  686  +16    0.556
4 Torisakia                      9    4   5   628  682  −54    0.444
5 Ealdracaland                   9    2   7   615  691  −76    0.222
6 Southwest Eastnorth            9    2   7   611  695  −84    0.222

[Kronbia]

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UBT Launched

Launching the Universities Basketball Trophy today, The tournament is the idea of Mr. Omar Valladares, President of the Kronbian basketball Federation (Federacion de baloncesto de Kronbia), to be a tournament for university youth in order to be an opportunity for young basketball players to exchange experiences and consolidate sincere relations between them. It was agreed that Kronbia organize the tournament, where five universities from Kronbia and three universities from Oranjehaven will participate in the tournament.

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The golden twin

The Horacio twins are young players from Nacional University students, a rising talent that went through harsh conditions, as Raymundo and Leonardo were high school students who excelled in basketball, but no one of them were expect to join the university because of their family's financial conditions, where their father works as a plumber and the mother is a waitress in A fast food restaurant, but their distinction in basketball is push Nacional University to offer them a full scholarship to join the university and play in the Falcons team, and after their graduation soon we expect them to appear in the LKB.

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El Libertador Colegio "Sailors" Preparations

The Asociacion Atletica de Universidades de Kronbia Champion this season, El Libertador Colegio "Sailors", joins the Universities Basketball Trophy. The former El Libertador Colegio student and former Costa de Palmeras star, Ernesto Victorino, joined the coaching staff led by Coach Julio Miguel Angel, who will be an important part of team with his professional basketball experience after years of playing in the LKB.

The team includes star players who helped the team achieve the AAUK championship this season, the point guard, Domingo Molinero, and the Power forward, Pedro Ariza, the distinguished duo who starred during the AAUK season and were a direct reason for achieving the title.

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The Kronbia national team News

The Kronbia national team achieves its fifth victory in the IBC over the Qasden national team with a score of [80–67], making the team in third place with a record of 5 wins and 4 defeats.

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[Sarzonia]

Around most of the 38th edition of the International Basketball Championships game, scoreboard watching will be de rigeur.

Several groups still have teams jockeying for positions in the upper bracket of the IBC, but the overwhelming majority of the teams involved will look to take care of business whilst keeping an eye on the matches involving their opponents.

Meanwhile, Sarzonia will have the simplest scenario amongst the teams vying for their place in the knockout rounds. They face Gran Saguaro in their finale with both sides sitting level for runner up position in Group F with 5-4 records. The Stars despatched Græntfjall 67-59, clamping down defensively on the 10th ranked team in the multiverse.

The victory by Sarzonia mathematically eliminated the not-so Super Wolves, as Græntfjall can do no better than finish .500 with a victory over Benjium. The winner of Sarzonia v. Gran Saguaro will go through to the next round as Group F runners up with a record of 6-4.

In the previous meeting between Sarzonia and Gran Saguaro, 30th ranked Gran Saguaro defeated the Stars 88-84. That was why Stars manager Joy Knight kept her starting five on the bench for the bulk of the third quarter and the entire fourth stanza.

"We're going to need all the energy we got," she said. "We're playing for our lives against an opponent who has something to prove." Gran Saguaro won their match against unranked and unfancied Nordic Airland 87-86.

Let's take a look at the remaining groups and find out their knockout round scenarios.

Group A
Hannasea are through as group winners with an 8-1 record. Drawkland (6-3) are one match ahead of host nation Katterimunk, who have collapsed after winning four matches from their first five. They sit at 5-4. Drawkland play 3-6 Atheara whilst Katterimunk get Devonta, fresh off their first victory after eight losses.
Prediction: The Drawks win the second spot

Group B
Three teams are essentially battling for two spots at 6-3 records. Fourth place Muralos are one match in arrears at 5-4. The teams currently in knockout round position with identical 6-3 records (Abanhfleft and Kamijiro) play each other. Ko-oren (6-3) and Muralos face bottom-feeders as they remain in the fight for the next round.
Predictions: Abanhfleft and Ko-oren qualify.

Group C
Banija returned to form after a brief absence to win the group without breaking a sweat. Chromatika and Poafmersia are both battling for runner-up honors at 5-4. The Chromatiks face 3-6 Dod Rava in their group stage finale. Poafmersia will get 2-7 United Adaikes.
Prediction: Chromatika outlast Poafmersia.

Group D
TJUN-ia have wrapped up the group like a Christmas present. Meanwhile, Trolleborg (6-3) are one match ahead of Lisander (5-4) for the second position out of the group. Trolleborg will face a Ealdracaland side they smashed 81-60 last time. Lisander likewise crushed Torisakia, winning 97-65, but Torisakia have played to vastly better form since then, going 3-1 in their last four to improve to 4-5.
Prediction: Trolleborg advance with an easy win.

Group E
Pemecutan have won the group. There's a two-team battle for the second position between Valanora and Rwekazaland, both of whom sit 6'3. Valanora face three-win Cardenao in their last group stage contest. Rwekazaland tip off against Pemecutan.
Prediction: Valanora earn the second spot.

Group F
Sarzonia face Gran Saguaro with the runner-up position up for grabs. Valentine Z won the group. We're not predicting. Don't ask.

Group G
Quebec and Shingoryeo win the group. Former Cyanea neighbours Delaclava are the runner-up.
Prediction: None necessary.

Group H
Nova Anglicana win the group. Juvencus are the runner-up.
Prediction: Really, Columbo?

[TJUN-ia]

After playing a surprisingly tight game against Ealdracaland, the Hoops-Jaguars of TJUN-ia were 7-1 and certainly well-knowledged in their overall position in the tournament and the things they knew they needed to do in order to make sure their asses will be playoffs when all is said and done. We knew that all we needed to do in order to secure both advancement and the group win at that and it was a position that Bao Zhou absolutely loved...but also one he knew they couldn't waste. Dynasties don't wait for things to fall in their lap - everything is earned. He knew his team still had to earn their spot in the Playoffs...so can we get it done?

Everyone knew that our rematch with the Trolls of Trolleborg was going to be an interesting affair, a squabble between one team looking to secure progression and another looking to make this group battle all the more interesting. We knew that Vladimir Finn was going to throw everyone at trying to knock us off our high horse and we knew that we had to withstand a lot of pressure from the opposing team. Ruud Semper and Torstein Hakken were the main contributors of the pressure, throwing down points and shots into the area like it was nobody's business, but Chenrop Rueangthanarot worked his ass off to repel a lot of those efforts and the rest of the team acted in turn, with Margaret Kngwarreye and Mohammad Alawi providing enough fightback and passion to blow away anything that the Trolls could throw at us. In the end, we ended up winning 92-75 - a high-scoring 17-point triumph that confirmed our spot in the Playoffs to come in dramatic fashion.

Our fate is now confirmed but we still have one more game left to go against Southwest Eastnorth as we now focus on seeding. It does feel good to say that, but the job is far from over. GO HOOPS-JAGS!

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SCHEDULE (Group D, Stellar Center, Chedo City, Katterimunk)
MD1: vs Lisander (29) (H) L 67-75 (4th/0-1)
MD2: vs Torisakia (UR) (A) W 92-64 (3rd/1-1)
MD3: vs Ealdracaland (UR) (H) W 80-62 (2nd/2-1)
MD4: vs Trolleborg (13) (H) W 72-66 (1st/3-1)
MD5: vs Southwest Eastnorth (37) (A) W 69-62 (1st/4-1)
MD6: vs Lisander (29) (A) W 77-57 (2nd/5-1)
MD7: vs Torisakia (UR) (H) W 88-52 (1st/6-1)
MD8: vs Ealdracaland (UR) (A) W 67-59 (1st/7-1)
MD9: vs Trolleborg (13) (A) W 92-75 (1st/8-1)
MD10: vs Southwest Eastnorth (37) (H)

[Quebec and Shingoryeo]

Northern Basketball Daily

Quebec and Shingoryeo open to an IBC-38 Bid, but only if there is no suitable bid by deadline

Michele-Jo Berardi

ANSPORTIS, KATTERIMUNK - Basketball Quebec President Alain Kimmirut has suggested Quebec and Shingoryeo is open to hosting the 2062 International Basketball Championships 39 after much consideration.

This follows after months of speculations, which have involved multiple IBO and the BQ sessions about the logistics behind a possible Quebecois bid. This have continued well into ongoing 2060 International Basketball Championships 38 in Katterimunk, where the Grim Reapers stand with a perfect, 9-0 record in the title quest.

The BQ chief suggested that this bid, while under the competition the nation is always open to host, is not a must-have, and that Quebec and Shingoryeo will not bid in case a suitable bid presents themselves by the deadline of the next competition in a year's time. He suggests that the logistical nature of hosting a tournament as massive as the IBC, which have led into challenges faced by multiple nations and their programs in the years following afterwards, is a challenge, but one that no doubt helps to improve the sport's access across the Multiverse.

'Please understand that this is more of a way to promote the dialogue,' Kimmirut said. 'While Quebec and Shingoryeo will be open to hosting the IBC for the sixth time, we will be more than happy for a suitable bidder to come forward instead as well.

'Katterimunk has been doing an outstanding job hosting the tournament for the first time, and with the positive reception of the hosts' hospitality and the logistics behind the competition, what else is to say that others cannot continue this positive trend.'

A perennial powerhouse in international basketball community, even if their first title had only come just two years ago after fifty years of the national team program's participation in the IBC, Quebec and Shingoryeo has hosted five International Basketball Championships in the 17th, 18th, 21st, 33rd and 35th edition.

Traditionally in favour of cohosting arrangements, which it hand done so with ex-Saintland, Sao Jose Guayabal, Drawkland and Bollonich, it was only six years ago when the nation had solo-hosted the tournament in the 35th edition of the tournament.

Held under two-stage format with the first group stages held across the Multiverse in Quebec, Valentine Z, Muralos, Tjorl and Drawkland, the final stages of the competition were in held in Twin Cities, Acadie, where the tournament venues were tested out ahead of the 2056 16th Summer Olympics that were held two months after the competition.

Kimmirut, however, does not specify the proposed format of the bid, citing that this will most likely come down to the 'number of participants for the competition itself', which won't be confirmed until after the deadline for the participants.

'We will wait, because there will be no absolutes when it comes to hosting a competition,' Kimmirut said. 'We will observe the deadline and those who follow the deadline will be there.

'There is always a chance that a new or lesser-proven side could make a difference. Just have a look at Kamjiro who have made absolute difference as relative newcomers on the international stage, and in admirable fashion. So yes, we will look forward to finding a format that will work for everybody regardless of how many teams we get.'

The RQOC spokesperson was unable to be reached on time. It is expected, however, that should the entire competition be hosted in the Calanian nation, the Basketball Quebec will be able to receive an exemption from the traditional 'One Region, One Tournament' rule that the Royal Quebecois Olympic Committee and the Imperial Sporting Council, which oversees Quebec and Shingoryeo national teams in most sports.

[Katterimunk]

Matchday 10

Group E
All games held @ Aurora Arena, Inaspolis City

Rwekazaland 68–91 Pemecutan
Cardenao 57–96 Valanora
Kharakia 68–78 Diarcesia

  Group E                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Pemecutan                 10    9   1   815  747  +68    0.900
2 Valanora                  10    7   3   876  685 +191    0.700
3 Rwekazaland               10    6   4   773  771   +2    0.600
4 Cardenao                  10    3   7   748  798  −50    0.300
5 Diarcesia                 10    3   7   741  843 −102    0.300
6 Kharakia                  10    2   8   731  840 −109    0.200

Group F
All games held @ Eclipse Pavillion, Acrehull

Nordic Airland 59–77 Valentine Z
Benjium 72–77 Græntfjall
Sarzonia 86–78 Gran Saguaro

  Group F                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Valentine Z               10    10   0   860  692 +168    0.900
2 Sarzonia                  10    6   4   819  738  +81    0.600
3 Græntfjall                10    5   5   826  746  +80    0.500
4 Gran Saguaro              10    5   5   780  848  −68    0.500
5 Benjium                   10    3   7   701  807 −106    0.300
6 Nordic Airland            10    1   9   719  874 −155    0.100

Group G
All games held @ Galaxy Arena, Ancehaul

Sinyal 73-73 Eraman (87–80 OT)
Equestria 79–72 Macbon
Delaclava 60–82 Qubec and Shingoryeo

  Group G                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Qubec and Shingoryeo      10   10   0   865  659 +206    1.000
2 Delaclava                 10    7   3   778  728  +50    0.700
3 Macbon                    10    5   5   752  771  −19    0.500
4 Equestria                 10    5   5   715  739  −24    0.500
5 Sinyal                    10    2   8   693  813 −120    0.200
6 Eraman                    10    1   9   702  795  −93    0.100

Group H
All games held @ Prism Court, Stritstead

Qasden 78–86 Libonesia
Nova Anglicana 65–72 Cassadaigua
Juvencus 58–71 Kronbia

  Group H                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Nova Anglicana            10    9   1   851  691 +160    0.900
2 Juvencus                  10    7   3   782  728  +54    0.700
3 Kronbia                   10    6   4   768  793  −25    0.600
4 Cassadaigua               10    5   5   768  744  +24    0.500
5 Qasden                    10    2   8   732  818  −86    0.200
6 Libonesia                 10    1   9   728  855 −127    0.100

End of Group Stage for Groups E through H. We warmly congratulate the 8 qualifiers from these groups, the nations of Pemecutan, Valanora, Valentine Z, Sarzonia, Qubec and Shingoryeo, Delaclava, Nova Anglicana and Juvencus, for qualifying to the knockouts. We also appreciate the hard work put forth by the other 16 teams and wish them luck for the upcoming edition.

Knockouts match-ups will be declared by South Newlandia in their MD 10 post.

[Banija]

Group Winners- Check. But are we contenders or pretenders to bring home a world title in hoops?

KATTERIMUNK- The group stages have gone swimmingly for Banija. We have done lots of things- win close games against bad teams, blowout good teams, win close games against high-quality opposition, and most importantly- gotten out of our group. With one game remaining in group play, the only thing we haven't done across the last nine Matchdays is lost. And of course, there are quite a few asteriks for Banija's 9-0 start in this tournament. In particular, the fact that much of the rest of the group has disappointed mightily. Neither Chromatika nor Poafmersia have performed up to their capabilities, and sit in second place in group play at 5-4, both teams a full four games behind Banija. Nobody has really played well consistently in this group besides Banija, so being at 9-0 isn't exactly a surprise.

What has easily been our most impressive game, of course, was our 30 point win over Chromatika on Matchday 9. They were desperate for a statement win, and we, of course, had already punched our ticket to the next stage- but we wanted to show the world that we were good enough to not only go unbeaten in this group, but win a title. We led literally from the word go- scoring on the game's opening possesion, starting the game with an 11-0 run, and simply never stepping off the gas in what ended up as a 30 point blowout. This, of course, with heavier squad rotation than usual- makes sense, of course, ensure our main players are well-rested for the knockouts. All 12 players on the roster scored at least 4 points, the first time that has ever happened for Banija at an IBC contest.

"This win, over a rival and title contender like Chromatika, shows the potential of Banijan basketball when everything is operating at its highest level." Said the team's head coach, Oscar Laboto. "But look- we all know this. We want to win the group, we want to go unbeaten in group play- but that's not what we came here to do. We've got plenty to clean up, and I would not put us among the favorites." Nothing more tried and true than a coach downplaying their own team while raising their opponents, right? "But we've got one more game to get things cleaned up, before the knockout stages begin. Double elimination, yes- but that means we're going to have to face off against a gauntlet of elite teams in this sport. Let's get one more win, and get there."

Regardless of whether we finish at 10-0 or 9-1, we've seen plenty from this team. The question, naturally, is this- are we contenders? Or Pretenders? Did we feast on a weak group, and a better team, like Hannasea or Quebec, is simply gonna KO us when there are 8 teams left? Or is this team good enough to compete with basketball's current big dogs?

Argument: We are a Contender

The argument that we are a contender rests among a few premises.

#1- We've got a championship level coach. Laboto is an elite head coach, in his own right. He won four titles as an assistant under Isaiah Lavaga, so if there's anyone who's ever been a witness, or participant, in the greatest run that this sport, and Banijan sport in general, has ever seen, it's Oscar Laboto. "Look- you know, considering the success he's had as an assistant, Oscar Laboto most desperately wants to win a world title as a head coach." Said a Banijan sports reporter. "In baseball and in soccer both, we've had multiple coaches win a world title- but not in gridiron or basketball. Laboto, if he can deliver a world title in hoops, really cements his legacy as a great basketball coach. He's not doubted in Banija, of course- but globally, he's more known as Lavaga's assistant. He's shown a proficiency for winning these big games- what can he do when the KOs come?"

#2- We've got a superstar who can take over games. Obasie Khoza is the next in a long line of great, elite Banijan point guards. Akabueze. Amadou Secka. Dudes who have had all sorts of success, and accolades. Khoza can do it all- he can shoot the ball, pass it, play great defense, play for 40 minutes, etc... He's somebody that any basketball coach on earth would want running the point.

#3- We've got a second star who can take over games if the first one gets shut down. You can't be a one man team at this level and hope to get far- we've got to be better than that. On many teams he's played on, however, Philemon Abonyo has been that #1 player. "Remember- Abonyo has been playing with pressure his entire life." Said a TV sports analyst. "#1 player in the country out of high school, helped lead University of Moravica to a national title and a #1 overall seed at the Ultra 64 in NSCAA competition, an absolute baller at the club level as well- rumor has it he wants to go to Cardenao. A true superstar in his own right, he's also capable for going off for 30 on any given night. Perfect combination of size, length, and skill.

Argument: We are a Pretender

#1- We ain't played anybody. Unfortunately, this much is true. Yes, we beat Chromatika twice- but this Chromatika team is certainly not the dangerous Chromatika teams of old. What's broken? It's hard to tell. But you are what your record says you are, and they are at 5-4. Joined by Poafmersia at 5-4, and other teams who didn't do much other than show up at this tournament, Banija's competition has surely been weak. Many fans will say we simply played who was in front of us- we can't control the competition. And in that sense, yes- that's technically true. We don't make the schedule.

On the other hand, we havent' faced elite level competition yet. Will we be ready for a team like TJUN-ia? Or Hannasea? Or Quebec? When we face them in the later stages? Can beat up on the not so great teams, but what will happen to this team when the going gets tough?

#2- This team lacks the depth of our championship teams past. Now, of course, we have as good of a 1-2 punch as anybody has in this tournament- Obasie Khoza and Philemon Abonyo are as good as a duo as anybody has in this sport. But despite having one of the best sixth men in the sport, Tijan Mendy, at our disposal, the team is honestly a little light past our big 2. "The Banijan teams of the past- honestly, we have 5, 6, sometimes even 7 dudes who were just absolutely killing it in league play." The TV analyst said. "Now? Everybody's playing at home- not great, considering the state of domestic basketball in this country. What if Abonyo and Khoza are off- who's gonna step up?"

The role players, of course, have been solid, and more than done their part. But the best teams we are going to face are going to have, 4 or 5 dudes capable of taking over a game. And 4 or 5 dudes who have done so. Can a guy like Sylvester Guwanya or Idi Jula create, take, and/or make big shots when the game is on the line? We simply do not know.

Verdict: We'll find out soon enough

Our final group stage matchup, against New Dascos, will not reveal anything. But when the double elimination knockout stages start- we'll see which arguments win out. Hard to say! But needless to say- this team will surely be one of the most interesting to watch as the margin for error shrinks dramatically in just a few days time.

[South Newlandia]

Cutoff! Time to see who goes to the playoffs.

Group A
All games held @SkyDome Arena, Cotmond

Atheara 67–74 Drawkland
Hannasea 84–61 The Jovannic
Katterimunk 78–68 United States of Devonta

 Group A                       Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Hannasea                      10    9   1   885  616 +269    0.900
2 Drawkland                     10    7   3   752  712  +40    0.700
3 Katterimunk                   10    6   4   756  800  −44    0.600
4 The Jovannic                  10    4   6   719  790  −71    0.400
5 Atheara                       10    3   7   713  756  −43    0.300
6 United States of Devonta      10    1   9   658  809 −151    0.100

Group B
All games held @Thunderdome Stadium, Ipheburn

Abanhfleft 84–73 Kamijiro
HUElavia 55–110 Muralos
Ko-oren 122–62 The Spartan Dominion

 Group B                       Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Ko-oren                       10    7   3   831  647 +184    0.700*
2 Abanhfleft                    10    7   3   788  741  +47    0.700
3 Kamijiro                      10    6   4   741  742   −1    0.600
4 Muralos                       10    6   4   775  697  +78    0.600
5 The Spartan Dominion          10    2   8   660  831 −171    0.200
6 HUElavia                      10    2   8   680  817 −137    0.200
*Ko-oren wins the group on H2H PD (102-82, 67-79)

Group C
All games held @Phoenix Arena, Vrord

Banija 74–59 New Dascos
Poafmersia 92–67 United Adaikes
Dod Rava 66–84 Chromatika

 Group C                       Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 Banija                        10   10   0   819  670 +149    1.000
2 Chromatika                    10    6   4   781  732  +49    0.600*
3 Poafmersia                    10    6   4   746  735  +11    0.600
4 Dod Rava                      10    3   7   693  761  −68    0.300
5 New Dascos                    10    3   7   722  776  −54    0.300
6 United Adaikes                10    2   8   672  759  −87    0.200
*Chromatika advances on H2H PD (81-83, 95-67)

Group D
All games held @Stellar Center, Chedo City

Ealdracaland 78–96 Trolleborg
TJUN-ia 66–65 Southwest Eastnorth
Torisakia 63–62 Lisander

 Group D                       Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
1 TJUN-ia                       10    9   1   770  637 +133    0.900
2 Trolleborg                    10    7   3   792  708  +84    0.700
3 Lisander                      10    5   5   764  749  +15    0.500
4 Torisakia                     10    5   5   691  744  −53    0.500
5 Southwest Eastnorth           10    2   8   676  761  −85    0.200
6 Ealdracaland                  10    2   8   693  787  −94    0.200

Knockout stage seeding:

 Group Winners                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
 1 Quebec and Shingoryeo         10   10   0   865  659 +206    1.000 (G)
 2 Valentine Z                   10   10   0   860  692 +168    1.000 (F)
 3 Banija                        10   10   0   819  670 +149    1.000 (C)
 4 Hannasea                      10    9   1   885  616 +269    0.900 (A)
 5 Nova Anglicana                10    9   1   851  691 +160    0.900 (H)
 6 TJUN-ia                       10    9   1   770  637 +133    0.900 (D)
 7 Pemecutan                     10    9   1   815  747  +68    0.900 (E)
 8 Ko-oren                       10    7   3   831  647 +184    0.700 (B)

 Runners-up                     Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD    Win % 
 9 Valanora                      10    7   3   876  685 +191    0.700 (E)
10 Trolleborg                    10    7   3   792  708  +84    0.700 (D)
11 Juvencus                      10    7   3   782  728  +54    0.700 (H)
12 Delaclava                     10    7   3   778  728  +50    0.700 (G)
13 Abanhfleft                    10    7   3   788  741  +47    0.700 (B)
14 Drawkland                     10    7   3   752  712  +40    0.700 (A)
15 Chromatika                    10    6   4   781  732  +49    0.600 (C)*
16 Sarzonia                      10    6   4   819  738  +81    0.600 (F)
*Sarzonia and Chromatika swapped to avoid a Group Stage rematch between Valentine Z and Sarzonia

Knockout Matchups - Upper Bracket Round of 16
As a reminder, the knockouts are double-elimination!

(1) Quebec and Shingoryeo vs. Sarzonia (16)
@SkyDome Arena

(8) Ko-oren vs. Valanora (9)
@Phoenix Arena

(4) Hannasea vs. Abanhfleft (13)
@Stellar Center

(5) Nova Anglicana vs. Delaclava (12)
@Thunderdome Stadium

(2) Valentine Z vs. Chromatika (15)
@Aurora Arena

(7) Pemecutan vs. Trolleborg (10)
@Eclipse Pavilion

(3) Banija vs. Drawkland (14)
@Prism Court

(6) TJUN-ia vs. Juvencus (11)
@Galaxy Arena

The Upper Bracket Round of 16 will be scorinated by South Newlandia at the regular cutoff on July 13th.

[Ko-oren]

What kind of symbols could you encounter on your visit?

A short history of heraldry in Ko-oren, part 2

Going back to Part one of this series, we've got an idea of the 12 colours used in Ko-orenite heraldry. Now to look at how they fit together to give us an idea of how the business of Recognising Things at a Distance went before modern times.

First: the twelve colours, in one simple view:

############ Red
############ Orange
############ Brown
############ Green
############ Blue
############ Purple
############ Black

############ Yellow
############ Light green
############ Light blue
############ Pink
############ White

With so many colours, it wasn't as easy to recognise things from a distance, especially at night, but it still did the trick. Usually, and this went for cities, towns, regions, and other geographic landmarks, six strips of fabric would be tied to a stick. Horizontal or vertical, it doesn't really matter. The leading principle, as in 'multiversal' heraldry, is to never have two colours next to each other that are in the same dark/light spectrum (in the overview above, the top seven are dark, the bottom five are light). In Ko-orenite heraldry as in multiversal heraldry, skillfully breaking that rule is both an art and gives way to some of the prettiest designs.

There were an incredible amount of shorthands and other rules for these six strips of fabric, though those rules weren't always abided. Green at the top tended to indicate that the place was in or around the capitals, while blue suggested other places on the Bay - colours we still associate with these areas today, and colours that have been co-opted by the political movements from those areas - green from the meritocratic capitals, blue from democratic Aminey.

As a short sidenote, the Yoshiman islands ignored this system entirely, and instead went with geometric shapes painted on shields or flags. We're going to ignore that for now, though Yoshiman places have adopted Ko-oren-style heraldry after joining the country. Here, red or orange at the top are often Yoshiman. Red and orange are sparsely used in Ko-orenite heraldy though both colours have been part of the system since the start.

To give you an idea of how this looked, here's the city of Maethoru (should you still wonder why their sports clubs play in all-green):

####################################
####################################
####################################
####################################
####################################
####################################

There was no minimum or maximum length of these strands, just that all six must be the same length and width. To this day, many (local) festivals joke around with this rule by tying together hundreds of metres of scraps to form kilometre-long city flags. In a smaller form, ribbons and streamers are very simple and useful decorations for clothing, house/building, and hair to show your allegiance - and you probably won't be able to exist in Ko-oren for more than a day or two without seeing this in action. Technically these would all be valid city flags!

[TJUN-ia]

After taking down those Trolls one final time, the Hoops-Jaguars of TJUN-ia were 8-1 and looking like a team that could certainly make some noise in the Playoffs they now knew they were most certainly going to be a part of. Winning that game, convincingly at that, and qualifying for the Playoffs to come was certainly a relief for everyone within the camp. Bao Zhou was certainly happy with this outcome, as you'd expect, but he also knew that when it came to the Playoffs, seeding was going to matter a hell of a lot when it came to determining a team's fate. He wanted his Dynasty as high as possible in the seeding ranks before the madness started...so how did we do?

Our final opponents would, of course, be Southwest Eastnorth - who we only managed to beat by 7 points on MD5. Based on that previous experience, we knew that we were going to be in for a tough old game and that is exactly what we got. No one exactly knows why SWEN, of all teams, seem to perform against us but they certainly would here, with their players actually blocking more shots than we expected and retaliating with full force. Chenrop Rueangthanarot was certainly a busy bee in this game on both sides of the ball and both Margaret Kngwarreye and Mohammad Alawi were almost lost in the dust. But some late defensive pressure from our experienced bench meant that we just scraped by with the 66-65 win. SWEN have certainly given us warnings...and something to think about heading into the realm beyond.

We now go into the unfamiliar territory of a double-elimination bracket, where losing once won't be the end of the world until the very end. All teams will start in the upper bracket, but it will be the kings of both the upper and lower brackets that will fight it out for the IBC crown. With that in mind, we will start off on our quest against the Group H runner-up team in the form of Juvencus and with 2 lives on the board, we hope to keep both of them for as long as possible. Let the games begin. GO HOOPS-JAGS!

---

SCHEDULE (Group D, Stellar Center, Chedo City, Katterimunk)
MD1: vs Lisander (29) (H) L 67-75 (4th/0-1)
MD2: vs Torisakia (UR) (A) W 92-64 (3rd/1-1)
MD3: vs Ealdracaland (UR) (H) W 80-62 (2nd/2-1)
MD4: vs Trolleborg (13) (H) W 72-66 (1st/3-1)
MD5: vs Southwest Eastnorth (37) (A) W 69-62 (1st/4-1)
MD6: vs Lisander (29) (A) W 77-57 (2nd/5-1)
MD7: vs Torisakia (UR) (H) W 88-52 (1st/6-1)
MD8: vs Ealdracaland (UR) (A) W 67-59 (1st/7-1)
MD9: vs Trolleborg (13) (A) W 92-75 (1st/8-1)
MD10: vs Southwest Eastnorth (37) (H) W 66-65 (1st/9-1/+133PD)
--------------------------------
UBRo16: vs Juvencus (17/#11/H2) - Galaxy Arena, Ansportis

[Sarzonia]

If the truest measure of a team is how it responds to adversity, the Sarzonian national basketball team passed its most important test of the group stage.

Sarzonia answered the bell in their group stage finale, defeating Gran Saguaro 86-78 to punch their ticket to the knockout rounds. The team's reward for its troubles? A date with top overall seeds Quebec and Shingoryeo.

The Quebecois are unbeaten and have the best point differential of the three 10-0 sides. Meanwhile, Sarzonia are one of two sides entering the knockout rounds at 6-4, joining Chromatika at the bottom of the Round of Sixteen. Sarzonia earned a better point differential at plus-81 to the Chromatiks' plus-49, but the Stars drew the short straw since Group F winners Valentine Z are the second overall seeds.

The result led manager Joy Knight to reiterate her disappointment with her team's Matchday 2 loss to 50th ranked Benjium, a team that finished 3-7.

"If we'd taken care of business against them in that match," she said. Her voice trailed off, but the implication was clear. If everything else played out the same way, a 7-3 Stars side potentially could have held the 10th seed and a first round matchup against Pemecutan.

"That's no disrespect to Pemecutan. Their 9-1 record speaks for itself," she said. "But a plus-68 point differential means they've had a tougher road to get here."

Speaking of tough roads, after the Stars lost 88-84 to Gran Saguaro on Matchday 5, they were 2-3 and on the outside of the playoff chase. Sarzonia went 4-1 in the second half, losing only to fourth ranked, second seeded Valentine Z and wrapping up a sweep of No. 10 Græntfjall that eliminated the Super Wolves. Including their 93-75 victory over Græntfjall on Matchday 4, Sarzonia have won five of their last seven.

Still, a pessimistic approach would point out that Sarzonia lost both matches to Valentine Z and two matches against lower ranked teams. Guard Mike West took an optimistic approach, pointing out that the Stars beat Græntfjall twice and played Valentine Z closely in their 82-72 defeat.

"We proved we can ball with just about anyone," West said after a match-high 22 points against Gran Saguaro. "We wish we had the losses to Benjium and Gran Saguaro back, but we can't change the past. We can get out there and work our asses off against Quebec and Shingoryeo."

[Drawkland]

DRAWKLAND NATIONAL BASKETBALL TEAM (NET CORPS)

CHAMPIONS, International Basketball Championships 25
Runners-Up, International Basketball Championships 27
CHAMPIONS, International Basketball Championships 28

Name: Net Corps
Colors: Black with Crimson trim
Denonyms: Drawkian or Drawkish, personal preference
TWENTIETH IBC, Rank #14

---

Basketball is an avid sport in Drawkland, with huge cheering crowds and near-constantly playing pep bands the norm. If you've never been to a basketball game in Drawkland, you may want to bring a pair of earplugs. Or two. You'll need them.

As you may notice, the Drawkian team is pretty tall, as far as height goes. This is perfectly natural for Drawkians, as the national height average is 7'5" (they're not related to humans evolutionarily besides the shape and proportions and such). They also may seem like they're "middle-aged," but that's wrong. In fact, most professional Drawkian athletes don't retire until around the age of 50, since the average lifespan is around 150.

After having their best group stage in their history in IBC 24, the Net Corps went on to get annihilated in the Round of 16 for the fifth straight time (once by Royal Kingdom of Quebec, once by Vangaziland, once Abaja, once by Ceni, and once by Banija). Finally, they decided they weren't going to take no for an answer. A decade of playoff disappointment took a heel-turn as the Corps made an unprecedented run to the championship game. Drawkland won the game in convincing fashion to Royal Kingdom of Quebec, and finally claimed the title of IBC Champions.

While they lost in the semifinals of IBC 26 to the team they defeated in the previous semifinals, Newmanistan, they still had the skill to make a deep playoff run. And that they did, by making it to the finals of IBC 27 against Vangaziland. Unfortunately, Vangaziland was the outright better squad and took the series in two straight games. The Net Corps was far from out of the mix, though. Despite the short format and taking a loss in the group stage, Drawkland stormed through the IBC 28 playoffs and defeated Vangaziland by 30 points in the final to capture their second title. Drawkland hoped to go back-to-back with IBC 29, but fell short in overtime to Banija in the semifinals.

The IBC 30 campaign featured a first for the Net Corps ... a quarterfinal loss. This kicked off a new era in Net Corps history, one of floundering in the playoffs. In IBC 31, Drawkland went 2-2 in the second group stage, and had to settle for a "13th place win" against Quebec in the consolation playoffs. IBC 32 was yet another quarterfinal loss, this one against Valanora. Finally, in IBC 33, the Corps did something they hadn't done since their first tournament in IBC 19 ... miss the playoffs entirely. With that, longtime coach Cody Morgan and his staff was shown the door, and the aging Net Corps was collectively given the boot.

Originally, DISC was going to hire a new coach and assemble a new squad from scratch. Then, some "genius" came up with a "better" idea: let the Elite Eleven have a shot! Their IBC 34 campaign went decently. They made it to the playoffs and won a game in the Round of 24 before falling in the next round to Hannasea. Still, their performance was decent enough, and DISC was satisfied. The Elite didn't want to return to a playing position, but a few of them said they'd be willing to stick around as coaches.

The "Elite Eleven as coaches" experiment somehow went better than expected. The new-look Corps didn't have a perfect return cycle, needing last-matchday miracles against Ranoria and Mytanija to advance from the first and second group stages, respectively. The Corps had finally returned to the quarterfinals, thanks in part to the second group stage "skipping" earlier playoff rounds. Once again the Corps would face Hannasea, and once again they would fall, this time by a heartbreaking last-second shot. With their hopes for a surprising playoff push dashed, they slid into 7th place in the classification playoff. All things considered, not a bad performance, but improvement, especially in the group stage, is a necessity going forward. DISC had enough of the Elite Eleven, and kicked them out of the basketball wing of the building.

Now it's a truly new coaching staff. How would they fare in the new age of the Net Corps? Not well. The shortened tournament format meant only 5 games in the group stage, a small sample size. Being mauled by Nova Anglicana's Lions early wasn't a good start, and the group stage ended with a shock upset loss to Tumbra. This caused the Corps to fall to 3rd in the group, where they'd be forced to take on Juvencus in the Round of 24. The new chapter in the Revoda Sea Rivalry ended with another Drawkian W, only to run right back into the Lions in the Round of 16. The Corps kept it closer than their double digit loss in the group stage, but ultimately Nova Anglicana would not be denied. Beating the Corps was just a footnote in the story of the Lions winning it all in IBC 36.

This cycle, the pseudo-rebuild of the Net Corps continues, trying to find a mix of players that combines elite talent with good team chemistry. Theo Gibbs, the captain since the "reboot" of the team roster, has since retired. The captainship has been passed to Danita Hathway, the next-most experienced member of the Corps. The squad is pretty much the same as last cycle. DISC and the Net Corps coaching staff hope to build a solid team culture by keeping a similar squad and allowing more continuity between cycles.

---

---

INTERNATIONAL BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS 38; DRAWKLAND NET CORPS ROSTER

STARTERS

##  Pos   Player              Height   Age   Best Feature
16    C   Neil Gold           8’8”     38    Monopolizes the paint
 8   SF   Danita Hathway (C)  8’0”     40    Great defender
 9   PF   Zoe Sparks*         8’0”     37    Clutch, great shooter
 1   SG   Finn Santana*       7’9”     32    Plays both ends well
25   PG   Leon Claussen*      8’3”     35    Three-point shooting


BENCH

##  Pos   Player              Height   Age   Best Feature
 2    C   Eva Pax             8’7”     39    Excellent passer
 6    C   Bernard Kelley      8’6”     29    Good defender with mobility

21    F   Sara Dickens        7’10”    35    Boards on both ends
 4    F   Anna Calvo          8’3”     37    Consistent shooter
13    F   Mark Wilder         8’4”     39    Cuts to the basket well
24    F   Natalie Endgard*    7'6"     27    Good passing and accuracy

35    G   Mavis Micheli       7’7”     33    Versatile shooter
34    G   Ryker Nolan         7’8”     35    Super accurate midrange
33    G   Catalina Daywasson* 7'4"     28    Great playmaker
11    G   Watt Wiley*         8’6”     36    Perimeter defense

* indicates NSCAA experience
^ indicates Net Corps rookie


COACHING STAFF

Coach Name          Position           Role
Vince Donaldson     Head Coach         Manager, Tactics
Melanie McNabb      Assistant Coach    Offensive Coordinator
Nicholas Bourne     Assistant Coach    Defensive Coordinator
Aidan Romero        Assistant Coach    Scouting, Preparation
Alexia McReynolds   Athletic Trainer   Strength & Conditioning

---

My opponent, if they RP first, may do the following:
Choose my Scorers:                                Yes.
Choose Scoring Events:                            Yes.
Godmod Scoring Events:                            Yes.
RP Injuries to my Players:     Nothing tourney-ending.
Godmod Injuries to my Players: Nothing tourney-ending.
Godmod Other Events:                   Yeah, go ahead.

Style Modifier (for RP): +4

[Kamijiro]

Kamijiro Heading Home

Article by Kaminari Xanthus I, Crown Prince of Kamijiro & Team Captain of the Senior Lightning Basketball Team.

Well, it'd be a lie to say that the Kamijiroans are heading home happy. Finishing third in a group stage in which the top two teams go to the playoffs will always sting a bit. The team knew it would be an uphill battle, being handed an incredibly tough group which featured multiple internationally ranked opponents, including one in the top ten. However, things started very well for the team, going 4-0 to start out, beating higher-ranked teams and securing first in the group. After that, the team went 2-4 and crashed out of the competition. However, the team is more than ready to prove themselves on the world stage at the next tournament. Plenty of memories were made at this tournament in particular, considering it was the debut tournament for the team. The Kamijiroan Basketball Association will resume play once the team has returned home for their domestic squads.

The team cleaned up their locker room shortly after the match and left a thank-you message for the hosts on a whiteboard before packing their things and preparing to return home. Although things ended poorly, the squad all know their best days are ahead, with some bright young prospects on the team preparing to earn their way up into the starting lineup. Glen Richmond Sr., the head coach, has one more tournament left on his contract, meaning the next one could very well be his last if the team fails to qualify again.

In matchday nine, a 23-point win over HUElavia launched the Lightning into second place. Although it was short-lived, the team definitely had hope for qualification before the upcoming matchup against Abanhfleft, needing a win to advance. However, an 11-point loss to the aforementioned Abanhfleft team left the squad with more questions than answers, and disappointment was the only word left for the travelling fans. A quick start to the game for the Lightning was quickly matched and overran by their opponents, which sucked the life out of the Kamijiroans. Please check the official Kamijiroan dispatches page for updated team results and player statistics.

Overall, the team can be relatively happy with how things went. Despite being an unranked, unknown team before the tournament, they made some real noise in the group stage before being overwhelmed by some elite competition. There's always next time!

[Sarzonia]

On the surface, a matchup between the No. 1 overall seed and the 16th seed appears to be an automatic mismatch.

Quebec and Shingoryeo ride in as the second ranked team in the basketball-playing multiverse and are the top overall seeds with a 10-0 group stage record. They enter the knockout stages with a plus-206 point differential that is the best among the three teams without a loss in the International Basketball Championships. Fourth seeded and No. 5-ranked Hannasea are the only team with a better point differential at plus-269, but they're the fourth seeds with their one loss, an 82-70 defeat at the hands of Drawkland. Sarzonia enters this one with a 6-4 record, level with Chromatika for the worst among the Round of 16 sides. Sarzonia's plus-81 point differential is significantly better than Chromatika's plus-49, but sporting tradition dictates that no group stage rematches happen in the opening knockout round. Therefore, Sarzonia are shunted to the 16th seed so they won't get a third meeting with Group F winners Valentine Z.

So let's take a look. Quebec and Shingoryeo obviously have the high basketball pedigree to be the top overall seeds and an unbeaten side, but what of the Stars? Sarzonia entered the competition as the 23rd ranked team in basketball and the third highest ranked team in Group F. Except for Group F and Group E, which saw 20th ranked Pemecutan nudge out No. 18 Cardenao for the knockout stage berth, the rest of the groups all saw their two highest ranked sides advance. Group E may not necessarily count as much of a surprise as only two ranking spots separated the teams, but for Sarzonia to advance, they had to nudge aside 10th ranked Græntfjall to do it, clearly a much more challenging feat on paper.

So how did Sarzonia do it, exactly? They lost by double digits to 50th ranked Benjium to leave them in this position, but they also beat Græntfjall twice in group play. Other than that, they played arguably the most competitive match of any team against Valentine Z in losing by 10 points in the two teams' first meeting. Those facts suggest that Sarzonia might be competitive. One factor that won't be of any significance is the seemingly long-ago rift between Anaia and Atlantian Oceania. Clearly in the case of Sarzonia and Quebec and Shingoryeo, that rift was pretty much non-existent. The remnants of the acrimony between Woodstock and Emberton or Woostock and Jhanna still have ripple effects on relations between Sarzonia and their former regional neighbours, but the same was never true between Woodstock and Joongyeong.

Still, manager Joy Knight has a far more basic concern.

"We're going to have to figure out how to beat them," she said.

[Valanora]

Well, the Dragons only went and did what was needed of them whilst seeing their qualification for the knockouts floundering and failing at the end of the group stage and instead of the team suffering the indignity of returning back to the Empire at the end of the group stage they have been given a second chance. And it's going to have a second chance in the second chance, as the knockouts for this tournament are going to be employing a bit of an unorthodox format in that it will be double elimination, a format that has not been very kind to those from the Empire in the past in other sports but might just yet give them a spark of hope in this tournament. The team now has a small margin for error, the ability to have a night where either their shooting is not at the level expected of them or where they simply run into a team that has become hot at the right time and outplays the Dragons in all phases of the game and takes the victory away from them. That being said, the pressure is still there for perform up to their abilities and not play to the level of the competition, whether that means playing up or down to whomever might be in their way moving forward through this tournament.

Last tournament the Dragons forced their way through all challenges that were brought before them and earned their way into the championship game, where they finally had a challenge that could not be overcome that night. It was supposed to be a breakthrough moment for this team, for the Dragons as a whole whose history in the tournament has constantly be filled with false hope of finally breaking the glass ceiling but then failing to do so when the opportunity presented itself. For the first time in their history, the Dragons have finally broken through the top five ranking that had seemed their bonds for so long, to ever be the fifth ranked team in the IBC and watching as those top four teams constantly were just passing the trophy between themselves and not letting anyone from outside the quartet to have the chance of grasping it. The poor start to the group stage though seemed to have put that all in peril, seemed to derail the Dragons back to that fate and put to bed any dreams of winning a trophy in this sport outside of the regional competition. Thankfully the side turned it around at the death and now move forward with hope renewed that those dreams might yet become a reality.

Awaiting the Dragons to begin this knockout trip is Ko-oren, yes that Ko-oren who seems to travel around and follow the Empire through every sport and haunts the team with their negative stance when it comes to sport in every turn. Despite finishing with the same record as the Dragons, seven wins and three losses, Ko-oren was able to win their group on tiebreaker and is the "weakest" of the group winners. Though they still won their group and that should be a word of caution to the Dragons and that they need not let their feelings about Ko-oren and their citizens approach to sport cloud their judgement in preparing and playing for the game. We know they are going to be difficult to score against but not so more difficult than the teams that the Dragons have already faced. Hans Söderström is going to have the hard job at point guard to find the right play and pass to have the Dragons weave their way through the defense of Ko-oren. Yet this is a team that found their way through the forest of challenges two years ago to reach the Final and has been mostly untouched. If there is a team to do so once more, it is this team, leaning on that experience and run to move forward even if not at their best.

[Banija]

Knockout Stages, here we come- Do-or-Die Basketball(sort of!) comes to the forefront at IBC 38

KATTERIMUNK- Ever since Banija's return to international basketball, there has not been more hype at home around the team than there is now. Mostly, of course, because of our undefeated run through the group stages. Despite, of course, claims about the group being weaker than expected (it was), 10-0 is 10-0. "Look, it's hard to go 10-0 in the group stages of a competition such as this one." Said the team's head coach, Oscar Laboto. "People will talk about how we are Pot 1, favorites, whatever. But you've got to overcome cold shooting nights. Tough moments. Injuries. Foul trouble. But we punched through, did that, and went undefeated. An absolutely excellent performance by the lads all-around- and now, the playoffs are at hand."

Now, the playoffs this year have a slightly different format than previous years. It is double elimination- which means exactly what you think it means. Laboto says that he is a fan of the format, so just one off night won't kill you. "A double elimination format ensures that we get to the core of what we are trying to do- who is the best team." He told reporters. "It's going to be much more of a marathon- you cannot avoid the best of the best in a format such as this one. The knockout stages of a competition are always where the cream of the crop rise, and this is where our goals are accomplished. But as I always say- you don't win a title in a day. We got to take things one day at a time- and right now, our entire focus is on beating Drawkland."

Of course, Drawkland is a tough matchup for any team in a tournament such as this one. A deep basketball tradition, seen in NSCAA competition, has them universally recognize as one of the best college athletics feeder systems in the multiverse in hoops. They've had success on the international stage too, a former champion of this tournament. "Obviously, we can't quite size them up like we want to against some teams." Said the team's point guard, Obasie Khoza. "But it'll be more about our guard play than ever. Ability to play quickly. Nobody's dunking on anyone- in fact, we might get dunked on a few times. But we've got to weather that storm. We may be smaller, but there's a roadmap out there to beat Drawkland, and we've got to follow that roadmap."

The team is paired with the TJUN-ia v. Juvencus matchup- so the winners of these two matchups will play against each other, and presumably, so will the losers. "We want to do our best to get into the upper bracket- if you lose that first game in a tournament like this one, it puts you in an extremely tough position going forward." Said Tijan Mendy, the team's sixth man. "So we've got to win that first game, to keep us in the upper bracket. Keeping the eyes on the prize, and our momentum flowing towards our ultimate goal of winning a world title. We aren't shy about it- but the journey starts with Drawkland today."

Banija v. Drawkland. A long, storied rivalry. Which nation will write the next chapter of this, here at IBC 38?

[Valentine Z]

Part 5 – To the Playoffs, and possibly to the beyond. Also, name a brand as iconic as "KXGHASMSDFI BLEUAHDA".

Chief Aviator Gwen Tracer Hepburn “Fate of Existence and the Omniverse” Ellen Trixie Caitlin Foxworthy Avril Verlene Eveline Celinda Sammy Doris T-Rev Oxton Arielle Lindall Leslie Vitesse Allison was enjoying the attention that she was getting. All these people – at least, these beings that resembled people – seemed to love her quite a fair bit, and totally did not have anything malicious intended for her. That is what Gwen thought, anyway. So far, all they have been doing was to measure her face. "Well I mean, if an AI or a computer made this world, maybe this is where they excelled in?" she thought to herself as a man – in a nicely dressed suit but with buttons not very aligned, went up to her, producing a nice little ruler from his pocket. The ruler in turn have all the markings, but in places that would not make sense, along with the markings themselves not having any rhyme or reason to them. Gwen's first thought was that she was being measured with a logarithmic ruler, like the slide rules from the decades and centuries of old that the Valentians have fondness and respect for. This one, however, was none of those. The man started measuring her face's features, including the distance between her eyes and her nose, her ears, the mouth, and even going as far as the eyelashes. "Okayyyy," she trailed off sheepishly, not as anxious, but even with all of those eternities, having an object very near her eye is still giving her the utmost discomfort. "Nice little ruler, though!" she added on as the measurements are done. Just then, the man backed off, and blended back into the crowd.

He was punching some numbers on his phone, presumably so, as Gwen and the others were in a relatively awkward standoff and silence between each other, just standing around with little to no idea of what to say or to do. Will they even understand her was the question; after all, from what they have been talking or using as a language, Gwen was sure that there was a hint of a coherent language in there, but it was difficult to make off a solid meaning. The remark that she gave to that measuring man also did not elicit much of a reaction from him, so on that front, she was not very sure. A few minutes passed, and then came a convoy, with a car that looked as if it was drawn by out-of-touch billionaire who does not consult their engineer before proceeding to go ahead with the design. She could argue that it looked like a car equivalent of a fashion show whereby the dresses and clothes were not meant to be everyday wear and instead were simply fashion pieces. The car slowly approached her, followed by a group of bodyguards, and Gwen knew for sure that it was going to be a mayor, a president, a CEO, or whoever it is that runs this place. Just then, she got a notification from her space-time-tethered smart device, one that tells of the Gwen's Angels winning all of the 10 matches of the qualifications, and then going to play against Chromatika Penguins. With them being ranked at 10th, and Gwen's Angels at 4th, Gwen did not want to say that it was going to be a piece of cake; complacency kills and defeats. Instead, she simply wished everyone the best of luck and do their best. "Just keep this up, and do what you are doing with these other teams in the qualification sessions! I know winning is not everything, but hey, if we are here and come this far with such amazing results, would be a shame to lose out and kicked out very quickly, ain't it?" she said to the team, as they all nodded and then agreed, all still clearly passionate. "Good! Now we have one more day of R&R compared to the qualis, but remember: Don't get injured!"

She would freeze time, visit them, and tell them the words of encouragement as the manager and captain of the team. With that done, Gwen then went back to the world that she was exploring and soon found out by those beings in that world that she was convinced that an AI created the world. "I was a little disappointed," she remarked softly, "I thought with this being made by the AI – I assume – things weren't as precise as I thought. Like, you would think that these would be easy, but apparently not." With a nod, she watched an elegantly dressed man step out of the car, his face flashing a genuine (and not that creepy) smile as she approached Gwen, with the crowd around her going wild and cheering as the two shook hands and then "tried" to talk. Gwen still could not make out what he was saying, but at the very least, the body language, the gestures, and the fragments of text were enough for her to get the cues. "Helloooo […] Welkome to our city. I am Mr. […] pleazed to met you." She could jump out anytime, but her curiosity is bringing her closer to what this world has. She, of course, took the time to check the failsafes.

[Quebec and Shingoryeo]

Press Conference, before the Grim Reapers' match in Second Round, International Basketball Championships 38 in SkyDome, Cotmond

Top seed, but feeling nowhere like that.

Of course, nobody denied the fact that Kweon Joo-Hyeon, the Grim Reapers' women's coach, had achieved a rare feat. Starting slightly slow but was able to work out their respective kinks and flaws the whole away around, the Reapers were able to finish their group stage undefeated for the second straight season. While holding backbench to Quebec and Shingoryeo's 24-game undefeated streak, this had also meant that the Grim Reapers would finish first overall for the first time in three decades, if not ever, with the Grim Reapers having outlasted Valentine Z on point difference after both finishing 10-0 with Quebec and Shingoryeo short on the same criteria just two years back.

But this didn't mean much when you would look into the Playoff Race, and who you are getting first as an opponent. For last couple of IBCs, especially after having relatively little difficulties in the first-round matchups, the Grim Reapers have walked off on last-minute shots. This didn't differ last cycle when Quebec had to survive a back-and-forth affair against Cardenao, an emerging ally nation of theirs in Anaia, especially a surviving a final-minute scare when the Grim Reapers would walk off lucky winners, 63-62, after a Blake d'Aquino buzzer beater bounced on the rim three times before missing the net. In hindsight the one-point victory would be more than enough, especially as Quebec would beat Banija 88-64, Valentine Z 102-70 and Valanora 84-74 to win their historic first title, but it nonetheless presented a gigantic scare that, had it gone the other way, we would have seen an entirely different IBC title match (and champion) on line.

Now, they had Sarzonia as their second-round opponent in SkyDome, Cotmond. There was an odd history of competition between the Grim Reapers and Sarzonia. For many years the two sides, while having substantial history in other competitions like the World Bowl or the Handbal World Cup, have avoided each other's path. This was mostly the matter of activity and coincidence, especially with Sarzonia's fourpeat years dating over a century ago and Team Quebec's first period of international success - that being IBC 18-21 - in middle of Sarzonia's long time away from international basketball.

But they have faced one another before - thrice, in fact - in recent renditions of this Stars' team. Playing in the halls of then-emerging nation of Graintfjall, Team Quebec had swept Sarzonia on a double-round-robin stage, before winning the third-place match in what was a rare three-time confrontation between two sides of a competition. The youthful core of that team, which had included the likes of Heo Myeong-Yoon, Hazel Hanson-Conavacio, Noah Pantin and Moustapha Niang, have all become key to the current period of success for the Grim Reapers with a quarterfinals, a fourth-place and three third-place finishes before eventually winning it all two years ago on the IBC-37, so there's certain layer of significance attached to the edition and the players.

Now that said, history had meant little. It had been sixteen years had passed since the Grim Reapers have faced the Stars, however, and with most of the stars from the IBC 30 team having retired from their career in professional basketball, let alone the national team, the Grim Reapers' women's coach knew the head-to-head record may as well have been nil-nil. This was the very sentiment she went with on the press conference, as Kweon spoke to the media for the first of three press conferences scheduled. First, one with Grim Reapers men's coach Mirko Lazetic, second the players themselves and the third from Kweon.

'Good afternoon, coach Kweon. This is our pleasure to hear from you ahead of the IBC playoffs,' said Joel McCaul, The Taegukgi's domestic basketball correspondent, in kicking off the press conference. 'This is your first cycle as a Grim Reapers' head coach, but you have had long history after coaching with Allison Dubois for three cycles. How are you feeling right now, after having led one half of the Team Quebec side that has gone second straight cycle undefeated on group stage?

Kweon cleared his throat. 'It's a great thing, that's for sure. Finishing the group stage undefeated and on a solid form, especially without the level of complacency we might sometimes get from our players now and then, so that's even more of a bonus.' He answered. 'But we are still long ways to go, we all know the competition is one made for dynasties and back-to-back champions, and we have not reached anywhere near that level of strength. We are in a very spot regardless, but with the playoff format and the likes of Banija, Valanora and Pemecutan very much in contention, I would like to suggest nothing big until we reach closer to the eventual goal, which is to win the second consecutive IBC title.'

'What are your thoughts on facing Sarzonia in what would be the two sides' matchup for the first time in sixteen years?' asked another reporter, who came from one of more obscure regional outlets in Quebec. 'Does this bring out a separate sense of emotion or two in you?'

'No, it doesn't,' Kweon answered quickly. 'This isn't any different than those we have faced before and will continue to face on second round. Some competitions we will see tougher opponents on paper, others easier, but to me this means little as sixteen years is a long time. Blank space and all that.'

'Thank you, coach Kweon.' Then came forward a veteran reporter by the name of Ludovic Gareau. He was one of the more prominent features there, and Kweon's talked to him several times too. 'From this group of Grim Reapers' women, who do you expect to step up when it matters? This team has no shortage of talent, but with a lot of the Silver Generation of players having retired to the sunset, finding the next generation of players after current group of starters must be on your mind.'

He would think a bit, before answering back. 'I would say Yeom Soo-Jeong,' Kweon said. 'We all know how Christa Kristopoulos has done an outstanding job at wing, and she will be used more, but this is also about the schemes we intend to run and how to bring forward the basketball lot more. Soo-Jeong has enough of toughness, she has strong awareness on both zone defence and offence, and rebounds well. In the playoffs defence is everything, and you need players like her to perform credibly on defence, that's what I hope to emphasise as well.'

[South Newlandia]

Cutoff! Time for the first game of the playoffs.

Upper Bracket Round of 16 Scores
As a reminder, the knockouts are double-elimination!

(1) Quebec and Shingoryeo 83-67 Sarzonia (16)
@SkyDome Arena

(8) Ko-oren 64-74 Valanora (9)
@Phoenix Arena

(4) Hannasea 84-68 Abanhfleft (13)
@Stellar Center

(5) Nova Anglicana 79-69 Delaclava (12)
@Thunderdome Stadium

(2) Valentine Z 79-59 Chromatika (15)
@Aurora Arena

(7) Pemecutan 83-81 Trolleborg (10)
@Eclipse Pavilion

(3) Banija 101-59 Drawkland (14)
@Prism Court

(6) TJUN-ia 93-76 Juvencus (11)
@Galaxy Arena

Upper Bracket Quarterfinal Matchups

(1) Quebec and Shingoryeo vs. Valanora (9)
@Thunderdome Stadium

(4) Hannasea vs. Nova Anglicana (5)
@Galaxy Arena

(2) Valentine Z vs. Pemecutan (7)
@SkyDome Arena

(3) Banija vs. TJUN-ia (6)
@Phoenix Arena

scorinated by South Newlandia, July 15th

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Lower Bracket Round One Matchups

(8) Ko-oren vs. Sarzonia (16)
@Stellar Center

(12) Delaclava vs. Abanhfleft (13)
@Aurora Arena

(10) Trolleborg vs. Chromatika (15)
@Prism Court

(11) Juvencus vs. Drawkland (14)
@Eclipse Pavilion

scorinated by Katerrimunk, July 15th

[Ko-oren]

A short history of heraldry in Ko-oren, part 3

The previous part gave you a small insight into the official - and less official - symbols used in the country. With how important local geography is in Ko-oren, given the patchwork of landscapes and (micro)climates, people generally do feel some connection to the city or region they call home - or once called home, in case of the hundreds of thousands moving across the country for a better fit elsewhere. No matter how toned down or subtle, there are many nods to region or city flags.

What came next?

After significant contact with the rest of the world, and finding out what they use for flags, the Ko-orenites landed on a hybrid system, used sparingly and only for communication across a distance. Borrowing heavily from multiversal flags, and the international code of signals in particular, we adopted the swallowtail flag. Look at the modern day flags for letters 'A' and 'B', and you'll see the connection.

Here, we went with the more international colours and tinctures - red, blue, black, and white and yellow. Green appears infrequently as it may be confused with blue in poor light, but obviously in Ko-oren you'll see some more green involved.

In keeping with Ko-orenite themes, only horizontal bars of colour are used, with up to four bars. They were, at some point, used heavily at sea and on the coast - basically, places where you're likely to have a decent line of sight. The six single-coloured flags were reserved for broad, often used purposes, then the 8 (only colour-tincture combinations) double-coloured flags had the second most important duties, then 48 (colour-tincture-colour or tincture-colour-tincture) triple-coloured flags. The four-bar flags were infrequently used and most ships didn't even carry the components for them - yes, instead of having 100+ flags lying around, captains simply had six top halves and six bottom halves stocked up so they could make the single and double-coloured flags, and if it was a particularly large ship, they would have the 18 components for the triple-coloured ones as well. On the coast, you were more likely to find actual collections of 100+ flags, proper shape and size and all.

An overview of the single-coloured flags:

Flag	Meaning
Red	Distress, help me
Blue	We remain in harbour (as this one can be difficult to spot at sea)/we manoeuvre unpredictably/we manoeuvre slowly
Green	We wish to communicate in more detail, watch me
Yellow	Distress, stay away
White	Negative; we continue on course/we stay away/we travel in a group and/or maintain formation
Black	Affirmative; we approach you/we help you/we can provide (medical) assistance

Next time, we'll look at the story of the torn flag and how we got our coast guard, navy, air force, and service ranks.

[Sarzonia]

Each player sat on the stool in front of their locker in the team's dressing room, staring at the floor long after the final horn sounded in Quebec and Shingoryeo's 83-67 victory over Sarzonia in the first round of the Upper Bracket.

If the Sarzonian national basketball team is going to make a showing for itself, it's going to have no room for error. The Lower Bracket is another name for a lover's bracket, so if Sarzonia drops its next match against eighth seeded Ko-oren, the Stars will be sent packing.

"We did the best we could," guard Mike West said softly, the redness in his eyes still apparent even though they remained downcast. He led Sarzonia with a meagre 13 points on 4-for-19 shooting. He'd started looking to pass more and contribute in other ways until manager Joy Knight told him to keep shooting. He fouled out with 8:14 left in the fourth quarter.

The Stars rallied from a 24-point halftime deficit to cut the margin to six points with 2:31 remaining in the third quarter, but West's fourth foul forced Knight to send Sarzonia's best player to the bench. Quebec then went on an 8-0 run to close out the frame.

Knight sent West back onto the court to begin the fourth quarter and he sized up a wide open 3-pointer. Unfortunately, the ball clanked off the left side of the rim. West hustled after the ball, but bumped into small forward Luigi Tüjângér-Arngna'naaq and was called for his fifth personal foul. West closed his eyes, sighed and slowly trudged back to the bench, feeling for all the world that he took his team's best chance at a comeback with him.

Guard Kent Bradley, who had only attempted two shots, both of which hit iron, stepped into the void created by West's absence, scoring all 11 points in the last eight minutes. Bradley even cut the deficit to nine points with a 3-pointer with 3:39 left in the match. However, the Stars could get no closer.

The eighth seeded, ninth ranked Dragonflies await after their 84-74 loss to nine seeds Valanora. Ko-oren won Group B in a tiebreaker over Abanhfleft with a 7-3 record.

"Our backs are against the wall," Knight said.

[TJUN-ia]

After losing the first game and then running through the rest of them, the Hoops-Jaguars of TJUN-ia would go into the double-elimination playoffs of IBC38 as the #6 seeds after a 9-1 group win. The way this team managed to shrug the opening-day loss away was certainly impressive and a feat that Bao Zhou was certainly happy about, both for his sake and for the sake of TJUN-ian Basketball as a whole, but he also knew that in the long war that was about to be played out, every team had a chance to do something major. The fact everyone has 2 lives now means that losing is not the ultimate eraser that it once was...so how would this affect proceedings? Does this change in mindset, and change in format, bring about more chaos?

Well for us, our first Playoff test would come at the Galaxy Arena in Ansportis against Group H's runner-up in Juvencus, who was ranked #17 before the start of the IBC. Obviously, in this new environment, we were not going to underestimate an opponent by any stretch of the imagination - but we did feel a bit confident in our abilities heading into this 5v5 and that's exactly the mindset we needed. It started off tight but once Chenrop Rueangthanarot started producing the blocks we needed, there was no going back. Jimena Siena and Mohammad Alawi had more and more freedom and once those two start popping off, there is almost nothing you can do to stop them. We continued to push on and while yes, our defence wasn't exactly the best, it was enough to secure the 93-76 and catapult us into the Upper Bracket Quarterfinals. We certainly earned this 17-point win and that was all we needed in the end.

Now then...the time has come to reignite an old rivalry as up next, we must face the #3 seeds at Phoenix Arena in Vrord - Banija. Once upon a time, the Lions were #1 and we were #2 in all of basketball - but then one of the most dominant forces in IBC history left for a little while and allowed us to enter the next IBC as the #1 seeds. Now, we are #6 and they are #7 - and we must fight each other again. Bao Zhou and Oscar Laboto will know each other very well and you can certainly expect the fireworks no matter the final score. Time to settle things again, Banija. Are you ready? GO HOOPS-JAGS!

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SCHEDULE (Group D, Stellar Center, Chedo City, Katterimunk)
MD1: vs Lisander (29) (H) L 67-75 (4th/0-1)
MD2: vs Torisakia (UR) (A) W 92-64 (3rd/1-1)
MD3: vs Ealdracaland (UR) (H) W 80-62 (2nd/2-1)
MD4: vs Trolleborg (13) (H) W 72-66 (1st/3-1)
MD5: vs Southwest Eastnorth (37) (A) W 69-62 (1st/4-1)
MD6: vs Lisander (29) (A) W 77-57 (2nd/5-1)
MD7: vs Torisakia (UR) (H) W 88-52 (1st/6-1)
MD8: vs Ealdracaland (UR) (A) W 67-59 (1st/7-1)
MD9: vs Trolleborg (13) (A) W 92-75 (1st/8-1)
MD10: vs Southwest Eastnorth (37) (H) W 66-65 (1st/9-1/+133PD)
--------------------------------
UBRo16: vs Juvencus (17/#11/H2) - Galaxy Arena, Ansportis W 93-76 (1-0)
UBQF: vs Banija (7/#3/C1) - Phoenix Arena, Vrord

[Valanora]

The Dragons went into their game with Ko-oren knowing what their foe was going to do, Ko-oren has a motis operandi that supersedes any sport and seems as built into their culture as conservationism of nature is into the Vanorian one, one does not do more than necessary on offense and commits whole heartedly to the defensive effort. Ko-oren is not the first, nor do I suspect that they shall be the last, to hold this way of thinking when it comes to sport, it is a particularly somewhat common occurrence in the sport of football that was made famous originally by Rejistania and their "system karela", which has been practiced by many across the eons including notable nations such as Taeshan and South Covello to name a few. In much the same way, the Vanorian approach to sport typically sees a more concentrated effort on what could be considered the "offense" but not through a measure of that might makes right, rather than the pursuit of technical perfect and also in providing a show for which to be enjoyed by those who decide to attend the contest of skill and will that we have come to call sport.

Was it the most clean or dominant of victories that the Dragons could have claimed over their foes of Ko-oren in the round of sixteen? Well no, most games involving Ko-oren are not going to be easy on the eyes nor easy to have been won, they are stiff competition after all and did find a way to win their group while the Dragons were only able to finish in second behind Pemecutan. What the Dragons did have on their side was the experience of last edition, of overcoming adversity that was thought to be beyond their reproach thanks to decades of suffering in the competition. As has been seen in the NSCAA past two or three editions as well as the club tournaments when they were still operational, basketball has seen a spike in popularity and skill. Add in a dash of will and the desire to see ones mistakes made right and you get the right concoction for the Dragons to be made stern as they faced down the defensive forces of Ko-oren and made the shots that they needed to make while stifling the Ko-oren output to a sub forty percent from the field. It was the right combination of just enough shots being made and stops in the defensive end to see the Dragons escape with their ten point victory, nailing their free throws in the final minute to see out any attempt at a late come back by their Anaia opposition.

The slope of difficultly ever rises more steep with each passing round though and a familiar foe approaches the Dragons offering the chance at redemption, that is because the Dragons shall be taking on the number one seed, holders of the trophy, and one of three teams to go unbeaten in the group stage. A rematch of last edition's championship game with Quebec is the Dragons' second foe in the knockout round and it is a nation that across all sports that Vanorians are very used to having to play against. While Ko-oren might be a practitioner of the system karela in their society, Quebec is on the opposite end of the extreme and prefers to indulge in the "system takil" where all effort is thrown recklessly into the offensive part of a sport and any defensive success is merely a byproduct of how well their offense is able to perform. If it be a shootout, then the Dragons should come well prepared, having scored the second most points in the group stage. The Dragons fell at the last time these two teams met up though, at the final hurdle to what had been such a heavy burden over the team for quite some time. While revenge is not a thought oft circulated within Vanorian circles, it might well just be on the white board for the team as they prepare for this huge second knockout round affair.

[Banija]

Part I- Election Basics
Part II- The Issues
Part III- The Parties
Part IV- Election Day

Kabaka - King
Luguba - Queen Consort
Sarauniya - Queen Mother
Isebantu - Crown Prince
Omugabe/Omugaba - Prince/Princess
Omulangira/Kyabazinga - Duke/Duchess
Kagere/Kiweewa - Lord/Lady
Katikkiro - Prime Minister
Waziri - Foreign Minister
Lukiiko- Parliament
Kiongozi- Leader of the Opposition

The Busukuma Post
Covering All of Banija, All of our News, All of the Time

Count Day Live Blog


A woman casts her ballot in Herzegovina City

BUSUKUMA, NATIONAL CAPITOL REGION- We are finally here! It's Count Day. Just yesterday, people were waiting in long lines all across the country to vote. Everybody's voted. We're going to release our exit polls momentarily- what will they say?

Of course, exit polls are not an exact science... Especially with this being the first ever election in the country with a 600 member Lukiiko. But without further ado!

Exit Polls
CRU- 36.0%. 240 seats
PPM- 35.1%- 227 seats
LDA- 14.9%- 77 seats
BPC- 12.5%- 52 seats
Independents- 4 seats

Exit Poll Analysis

Of course, this would give us what would probably be an upset- by the slimmest of margins, the path for a center-right/right-wing coalition government to take power would be clear. A potential PPM/LDA coalition government, with exactly 50.0% of the popular vote in this case, would have 304 seats out of 600- enough for a majority of 8 seats. If the exit polls were exactly correct, the current governing parties would go back to the opposition- even though the CRU would be the largest singular party. They'd technically have a chance to form a government first- but a CRU-LDA coalition would probably be a disaster. The CRU and BPC would combine for 292 seats.

Then, of course, we'd have 4 Independents. That's a hard number. Why? Well, one of them is the Speaker of the House. Non-partisan. Another is the Mkiiko from the Mukegara tribe. But why two more? Well, with the expansion of seats, there are now three Farf-majority seats in the Lukiiko, as opposed to one. The additional two(one in Busukuma, one in Busembe) are expected to be won by 'independent leftists' who are Farf- aka, Farves who are left-wing but oppose the pro-Faroloeran policies of the current left-wing government in Banija.

Of course, these aren't a science. Let's get this show on the road?

Count Day Live Blog

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12:00 PM- Across the country, count centers are beginning to count votes from across the Kingdom. It's Count Day! A uniquely Banijan tradition, as far as we can tell, anyways. Party observers are set everywhere. The beauty of Count Day, of course, is that we won't go deep into the night. We'll be done with the process by about 6 or 7 PM- and then everybody can go on and live their lives- or, if you're the winning party, then you can really throw a banger.

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12:05 PM- Why have Count Day separate from election day? Let's go back all the way to 1905, during Banija's founding Constitutional Convention. Plenty of election rules have changed since then, but this is one that has not. Why did they want counts on separate days? Many politicians at the time felt that ballot counters, who especially then would tend to be senior citizens, would be too tired to start opening and counting ballots the night after voting, after working a 15+ hour shift manning the polls. They felt that with hand-counting, tired workers were much more likely to miscount.

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12:06 PM- Of course, you could chalk it up to Banija's true first set of democratic politicians to simply not wanting to have to stay awake. Banija's first ever Finance Minister is on record during those constitutional conventions saying that "it would be barbaric to expect everyone to stay up until the wee hours to get results." Of course, he was 79. Banija's first politicans were pretty old! And nobody's bothered to change it. Electoral reform rules are generally done on a bipartisan basis in Banija, and simply put, nobody wants to start that fight.

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1:44 PM- We've got our first set of results! Of course, the Mukegara constituency- which has its own Mkiiko. Always an independent, they have thrown out the independent- and elected a person who is, as far as we can tell anyone, a center-right politician. A good sign for the PPM, if they need an additional vote or two if they hope to take over Government?

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1:58 PM- If you are new to the Banijan electoral scene, a short preview for the day ahead. We'll get results rolling in around 4 PM- and we'll probably have a complete count done by 7 or 8 PM tonight- no late nights for anyone! Now, what order do results come in? Usually Busukuma rolls in around 4 PM, and then you have a lot of the West Coast- Moravica, Kitara, and Aksum, roll in during the 5 PM hour. Then, the rest of the country will generally roll in during the 6-7 PM hour.

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2:02 PM- Now, is there anything else to watch for today? No major elections really coming out of anywhere else. For once, it did not align with any regional or major city Mayoral elections. Just national elections!

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2:44 PM- Are there any global consequences for this election? Well, as always- it's hard to say. The Banijan government has taken a hard pro-Farolera stance- so any change in Government could lead to a change in Banijan policies towards Farfadillis. And with Banija involved in what is quickly becoming a diplomatic incident in Anaia, the opinions of a newly formed Lukiiko would matter a lot. But the exit poll margins are razor thin- the ability to have stability and strength in the Lukiiko would certainly be key...

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3:55 PM- The first seat has been called! Unsurprisingly, key Alex Teran ally Ruperto Fôx, a frontbencher in the current government, has been elected with a large majority in the La Olla seat in the nation's capitol. What a rise Ruperto Fôx has had- basically running Farf policy in Banija, even if that's not necessarily something that he wants to be doing. 1-0-0-0 to the CRU- but obviously, we've got a long night ahead.

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4:03 PM- We've got a couple of more seats called from the Banijan capitol. Three more called, to be exact- two of them for the CRU, and one of them for the BPC. But in Southwestern Busukuma, on the outskirts of La Olla, we've got a tight race brewing- too close to call. Closer than we thought, but the anti-Farolera Farf, running against a Faroleran, in this part of Busukuma (still majority-Farf), are running a tight race. We'll keep track.

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4:40 PM- Counting in the nation's capitol has largely finished! We've got one seat left to call, of course- we'll keep checking back for that. But the official seat count for now- 6 to the CRU, 2 to the BPC, 1 to the PPM, and one outstanding- although that is an Independent/CRU marginal. Probably close to what people expected here, although the CRU will be disappointed not to capture more constituency seats. Netting just over 41% of the popular vote in the capitol is not where they want to be- they want to be in the 45-50% range. A 6 point swing towards the BPC, maybe making the governing party nervous?

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5:07 PM- Results are starting to roll in from all across the Banijan west coast. There aren't going to be a lot of 'seat flips', per say- hard when basically all the old constituencies are destroyed, because we increased the number of seats in the Legislature. There are just brand new seats. But incumbents, of course, can still lose. And we have our first! An incumbent CRU Mkiiko, who was in a seat projected to be a marginal within the Askatasuna suburbs, has lost to a LDA challenger. Rise of the right?

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5:18 PM- The PPM is seeing some early signs of success in Moravica. Banija's largest region, and more importantly, the richest region, it has been a bastion of the right as long as electoral politics has existed in Banija. But Moravica surprised many, last time around, by having a slight left-wing swing. The PPM has made it a mission of theirs to return to 'a dominant position' within Moravica, which they are trying to do so. Some good, early signs- up 5-0 early, including some seats projected as marginals in the Herzegovina City suburbs. Back to goernment?

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5:31 PM- And then, Kitara. The ultimate swingiest of swing regions. Only safe seats have been called, no surprises there. But you've got an independent win, in the Farf-majority seat located within Busembe. Another independent leftist, who opposes strongly the pro-Farolera stance of the current government. He, at his own election party, says that the country will "have progressive politics finally" and "stop supporting Alex Teran's terrorizing of Farfadillis."

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5:38 PM- Unsurprisingly, all four party leaders have won their constituencies with huge margins- not exactly a rare thing in a Parliamentary system.

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5:55 PM- With more results set to come from the rest of the country, the PPM might be the favorites right now, even by a slight margin, to be the largest party in the Lukiiko. They've made some big-time gains in Moravica- and, more importantly, the CRU seems to be stagnant right now in a lot of the west. Now, we still have most of the country to go- but we'll see.

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6:07 PM- Results are pouring in from the rest of the country, and quickly. The election results seem to be much tighter- CRU, while struggling out west, is roaring back to life in Hangaza- winning some seats in Banija's second largest region, and one of the swingiest parts of the country.

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6:16 PM- In many countries, center-left parties seriously struggle in their nation's rural areas. But not in Banija- the CRU are very competitive in rural Banija, particularly in Buganda and Bunyoro(not so much in Aksum). The CRU right now seems not only on track to win Bunyoro- but to completely dominant the region. Stunning. They are currently sitting at a higher popular vote share in Bunyoro than they are in their traditional 'home' region, of Ankole. "Is Bunyoro the new bastion of the left?" Some say. It is almost certainly not true, but your eyes do not lie to you- currently at 44% of the popular vote in Bunyoro.

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6:24 PM- We've currently got the PPM and the CRU exactly level, nationally, on constituency seats- 94 to the CRU, and 94 called for the PPM. The election is close- loses in Moravica for CRU are being offset by rather surprising gains out east, in the Bunyoro Region.

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6:32 PM- This might be heading dangerously towards a hung Parliament situation, isn't it? Banija has never had to do a re-run before. But look at the razor-thin margins right now- CRU at 100 seats, PPM at 99, LDA at 56 called, while the BPC sit at 48. A slight center-right advantage, but it seems as if the CRU will finish ahead in the popular vote- we could possibly see territory where neither traditional coalition, either the left-wing CRU/BPC, or the right-wing PPM/LDA, hit 300! The chances of that are slim, are rare- but technically possible. What do we do then?

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6:54 PM- And... The Busukuma Post is officially projecting a hung Parliament. We do not believe either obvious coalition will get to 300 seats- that means we might be about to see an era of horse-trading and politicking in this country that we have never truly seen before...

Constituency Results (+50 seats from the last election)
CRU- 121(+9)
PPM- 117(+26)
BPC- 24(+4)
LDA- 34(+9)
Indys- 4(+2)

Popular Vote- List Distribution
CRU- 35.85%(107 seats + 9 overhang)
PPM- 34.51%(103 seats)
BPC- 12.50%(37 seats)
LDA- 14.82%(44 seats)

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7:10 PM- The official results!

Party	Popular Vote	Popular Vote %	Vote Swing	Last Election Seats	PR Seats	Constituencies	Total Seats	Seat %	Raw Seat Swing
Collective Resistance Union	27,704,835	35.85%	-1.00%	210	116	121	237	39.50%	27
People's Protection Movement	26,670,443	34.51%	1.64%	173	103	117	220	36.67%	47
Banijan People's Congress	9,659,724	12.50%	-0.46%	52	37	24	61	10.17%	9
Latter-Day Alliance	11,456,125	14.82%	-0.74%	63	44	34	78	13.00%	15
Indy/Other	1,796,554	2.32%	2.32%	2	N/A	4	4	0.67%	2

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7:15 PM- It's a tie. Wow. Absolutely stunning. The most shocking set of election results... Maybe that we've ever seen? 4 independents in a 600 person body. It's not literally a tie, but...

Traditional Left-wing coalition: CRU + BPC = 237 + 61 = 298 total seats, out of 600.
Traditional Right-wing coalition: PPM + LDA = 220 + 78 = 298 total seats, out of 600.

So what happens from here? The path to a Government is not obvious.

Well, first, the Kabaka will ask the Katikkiro to form a government. The present one- Xolile Lubalalo. She will have 2 weeks to attempt to form a government. Her options, of course, are limited. She could reach out to those independent leftists, try to get to 300- but getting 300 even, without the Speaker voting, might be too slim of a majority to properly function 300-299. Of course, she could reach out to the Latter-Day Alliance- but considering how right-wing the LDA is, a CRU/LDA government would be chaotic, to say the least.

Lastly, they could reach out to the PPM, for a grand coalition. Now, this is the least likely solution- both parties have repeatedly and consistently ruled out grand coalitions, at all levels. Would party members ever approve one? Seems unlikely.

An election that was supposed to give Banija a new direction, has instead... Given us a path of completely uncertainty. Even potential chaos. We shall see what the future holds for us. The vote counting may be over- but the political season, my friends, has just begun...

Long-Form Election Results. Please go to the tab title "Election Six" to see current election results. Thank you so much!

Other News
- On count day, Banijan hoops utterly demolished Drawkland, by a score of 101-59- invoking shades of the great Banijan teams of the early IBC 30s. Comparisons were made, but Laboto rejected them. "This is its own team, and we did the job today." Yet, it was easily Banija's most impressive performance in the last decade. It got us a spot in the Upper Bracket Quarterfinals, with TJUN-ia on the way.