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Week One Power Rankings - Part One
Welcome to season 58's first official power rankings following games one and two of the regular season. The season has gotten underway with a relatively big bang from several players with seven players averaging at least 25 points, ten of them averaging 60% or higher in field goal percentage, eight players hitting at least 60% from three-point range, 12 players not missing a free throw, five players with at least 31 rebounds, 11 players averaging at least 5 assists per game, and nine players averaging over 25 in efficiency. It looks like we're shaping up to have another defensive battle themed season with only 4 teams allowing more than 100 points per game and only three teams averaging more than 100 points per game. Some of the promotees look really good while some of them look really bad and Tachenko is, as expected, bringing fire from Div II.

My power rankings are based on a combination of average Efficiency Per Game (EFFG) rank and their Opponents EFFG (OPP EFFG). Week one ties are sorted by difference in EFFG and OPP EFFG (ensuing weeks will take into consideration previous week's rankings to sort ties).

1. Tachenko
Ranked 2nd in my preseason rankings, Tachenko has dominated their first two games against admittedly weaker opponents, although Żubr Białystok held their own against them for two quarters Tuesday night. Four of their 5 starters are averaging at least 14 PPG and their fifth starter, SG Harris Stark has only given up 8 points in two games. They lay claim to the highest differential in EFFG, sitting at 69 after two games (nice).

2. Linndale
Ranked 3rd in the preseason, Linndale easily handled their first two opponents of the season, winning both games by over 20 points. While they're only shooting 35% from three, they're tied for the league lead in steals and have given up the least number of turnovers. Their scoring attack, so far, doesn't feature one dominant player, but is evenly spread between three starters and two bench players. It will be interesting to see how they hold up against stiffer competition with a matchup on the road against Philly Dribble next week.

3. Rip City Revival
Jbogroff's team was my number one entering the season, and while their efficiency rankings don't have them there (yet), they've proved their worth with a dominant win over San Dominica and a spectacular 4th quarter come from behind win on the road in the Dribble Bucket against Philly Dribble holding them to 29% 3-point FG shooting. They pulled out the win despite giving up 22 FT makes. Last season's MVP, Nikky Nay Nay, is continuing his dominant work, averaging 25.5 PPG on 60% shooting and a 14.7 Average Rating.

4. Hustlas
Even though Reece was a promotee, not much of a surprise to see them this high in the rankings as they appeared to be well set up to succeed in Div III. Their first two matchups have been against other Div IV promotees, but both 2% and Heaven appear to be relatively overmatched at this level. Hustlas actually are ranked 1st in EFFG and while their OPP EFFG (8th) leaves a little to be desired, they should hold their own relatively well throughout the season. Sirmantas Legkauskas appears to be a legitimate scoring threat, averaging 37 PPG over the first two games to lead the league. Fun fact: Legkauskas holds the Hustlas record for scoring at 67 points, but has routinely scored at least 50 points, hitting that mark 22 times over the last 5 seasons!

Week One Power Rankings - Part Two
5. The Ashkickers
With a preseason ranking of 7th, Tylormade survived an upset scare against thatguy's squad before taking out their frustration with their preseason ranking by demolishing IOWA's Heavenly crew, holding them to only 57 points in 4 quarters. Two of their guards are averaging at least 20 ppg (Sesamo & Gattoni) to lead their attack and they're second in the league in FG% (49.1%). Two relatively easy matchups this next week will keep them close to the top of these rankings come next week.

6. Lion Rebels
The first one loss team in these rankings (ushering in the ire of packer_22, I'm sure), thanks mostly to a weak opponent in their first game and while losing game two, still held up surprisingly well in terms of efficiency (aside from an abysmal fourth quarter in which my team gave up 7 turnovers and shot an abysmal 4-15 from the field, with three of those field goals coming in the final minutes). Definitely still riding the wave of beating up on Carolina Rebels and I'm sure the true Rebels will end up slotted lower on this list in future editions.

7. Philly Dribble
I predict this will be the lowest Phil_Wings will be on this list this season after a home game loss to Rip City which dropped them to 7th in OPPO EFFG and they haven't been quite as efficient on offense this season compared to last, ranked 6th so far. While they had a dominiant game one win, they allowed three of Rip City's players 27 or more EFF with Nikky Nay Nay scoring 26 and PF Fornels scoring 24. They face off against Lion Rebels on Saturday (on the road, but probably a win) before hosting Linndale in a marque matchup. A team that lost only 4 games last season, they could be halfway there after just two weeks this season.

8. Miami Cleo
There's a middle tier of OPP EFFG hovering between 90-106 and Miami is at the top of that tier after two wins. They've got a decent EFFG rating, but if they hope to improve their standing in their conference, they're going to have to continue to win the games they should win and keep the out of reach teams within arms length. If they can avoid getting blown out by the likes of Tachenko, The Ashkickers, and Hustlas, they've got a chance to remain high in these rankings. Either way, after two games, I think they can pencil themselves into a playoff spot in the Great 8, but it will depend on how 2 percent and Beer Bellys fare.

9. The Beer Bellys
thatguy's squad is the highest ranked 0 win squad, beating out the likes of San Dominica and The Lone Wolf who each won a game. This is based primarily on their own EFFG, but once again, their struggles center on their inability to cause opponents to play inefficiently, allowing 117 so far on the season. Their game one loss stings, but their loss to Miami probably hurts worse as it signals a shift back toward Miami who had a somewhat surprising downturn last season. They've given up the 2nd most points on the season so far and this next week doesn't look promising with matchups against current 1 & 3 seeds in the Great 8.

10. San Dominica Warriors
After game one loss to Rip City by 21 points, Coach Stephenson and them boys pulled off the home win, sufficiently stifling Terry Armstead and inducing 5 turnovers from him nd holding him to only 1-5 from the field. Still, they're struggling with OPP EFFG, but have a chance to improve that next week after their Linndale matchup when they host promotee The Lone Wolf. San Dom definitely has a chance to make the playoffs, but his win Tuesday night goes a long way to knocking the Lion Rebels into a potential relegation matchup.

Week One Power Rankings - Part Three
11. The Lone Wolf
Another one of these teams who has a decent EFFG but struggles with OPP EFFG, matching up fairly well with Beer and San Dom. After losing to Philly in game one, they were able to hold off Jean-Louis Fleurent who potentially played in his final Mighty Moose Rockets game on the back of Imanol Fuica who scored 24 points on the night. They're currently giving up 25 assists per game, good for 2nd highest in the league after two games.

12. Żubr Białystok
After faring surprisingly well as a new promotee last season, whitestok's team appears to have taken a slight step back, although there is better competition in the Great 8 this season. They're only scoring 80 PPG while giving up nearly 100, but some of that can be chalked up to having to face Tachenko in Tuesday's game. However, they lost Saturday night to Miami and gave up 39 points to PG D. Santana. If they can improve their EFFG, they'll have a shot to make the playoffs, but they just don't appear to have the firepower to reach that level this season. Two tough matchups loom this next week for them as well.

13. Mighty Moose Rockets
I'm interested to see what Hutch44's strategy will be for the rest of the season if (when?) they finally sell J. Fleurent. They're definitely feeling the loss of Walenty Kofan (who somehow fetched $150k less than their 19-year old MVP potential draftee on the transfer market). Without Fleurent (and potentially David Charles and Giorgio Chiodarelli), they'll be flush with cash, but well below the player salary floor, with their next highest paid player being backup Roosevelt Heard at $10k. Unless they replace them with quality veterans, I'd say they'll definitely relegate. I'm hoping we see some quality minitures from 49-year old Center Wade Johnson who was drafted clear back in season 26

14. 2 percent
Star Center David Wilmink made his Div III debut for Ray Tuesday night and immediately showed his prowess on the boards and currently leads the league in DR/game. But it wasn't enough against the Hustlas as they fell by 11 points. A tough matchup against Ashkickers is enroute before a show me game against Miami on the road. Janusz Gołas has proven fruitful averaging 24 ppg and ranks 8th in pts in our division. I don't think they're this bad, but a game against Tachenko will do that to most everyone.

15. Carolina Rebels
Daisy Merollin's squad is only averaging 64.5 PPG so far but also faced stiff competition in their first to matchups. They get a chance on Saturday to put a win on the board traveling to lonewolf8's Den, but turn around and face Rip City at home the following game. They don't have the worst OPP EFFG (13th) but their own EFFG leaves a lot to be desired (48.5). I think they're probably better than our divisions worst three teams last season, but this season is going to be a slog for them unless they have some coinage in the coffers to improve their on court production.

16. Is This Heaven?
This certainly appears to be hell for IOWA as they struggled in their first two games. Their $118k roster salary isn't nearly enough to try to matchup with teams in this division and on top of that, their 2nd best player is injured heading into week 2's slate of nightmare games for them. Here's hoping they've got something up their sleeve to make their games contestable.

Good luck in the cup tonight! Looks like several wins in BBM last night for our group - nice work! Looking like it should be matchups against unranked teams tonight, so here's to the 2nd round and an easy $50k.

Grrrrr, I really need Talman to get in shape. He is new to the team this season. Hopefully he can get there so that he can finally start contributing. Needed him that last game and he really disappointed. Hopefully we can recover quickly and prepare for our next matchup.

We had a bit of looming money crunch, and we had the depth to make the moves. We'll be on the lookout as always to add talent, but we fully expect the team to continue being the pesky overachievers that we have always been. Janis Julins will once again become the starting point guard; he was the starter before we acquired Lagorce a few seasons ago. Urban's replacement isn't so cut and dried; the plan was Kevin Jung would be used and would grow into the role over the course of the season. With the injury to Mikhail Klimenkov, we have some mixing and matching to consider.

We're gonna have to get through this. I have a plan I don't want to disrupt...

Hustlas just added another point guard to their depth chart as they try and figure out the team that will be fielded for the season to try and stay competitive. He will be the new starting shooting guard, at least for the next matchup. With this addition, Jurriaan Martens has been relegated to third string, though still a very capable player. But with all the other new guards aging and losing skill, it was a good move. Hustlas are still trying to add more depth but money is very tight.

Day 3 (Saturday 6 August 2022) : Performances by (https://www.buzzer-manager.com)

Night results
San Dominica Warriors 62 - Linndale 80
Philly Dribble 95 - Lion Rebels 83
Mighty Moose Rockets 35 - Rip City Revival 144
Carolina Rebels 101 - The Lone Wolf 86
The Ashkickers 122 - 2 percent 94
Miami Cleo 71 - Is This Heaven? 59
Tachenko 98 - The Beer Bellys 110
Hustlas 94 - Żubr Białystok 97

Best collective performance of the evening
Points : 144 : Rip City Revival
Rebounds : 73 : Is This Heaven?
Assists : 38 : Rip City Revival
Steals : 14 : Rip City Revival
Block Shots : 14 : Rip City Revival

Personal best performances of the evening
Points : 39 : K. Huk (Hustlas)
Rebounds : 18 : G. Pullen (Tachenko), P. Baker (Is This Heaven?), A. Coronado (Linndale)
Assists : 8 : L. Rojas (The Ashkickers)
Steals : 6 : N. Neochoritis (Rip City Revival)
Block Shots : 6 : P. Cheatle (Miami Cleo)

Top 5 of the evening
Point Guard : L. Rojas (The Ashkickers) (24 Points, 3 Rebounds, 8 Assists, 1 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 28
Shooting Guard : N. Neochoritis (Rip City Revival) (16 Points, 1 Rebounds, 1 Assists, 6 Steals, 4 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 23
Small Forward : R. Tobin (Tachenko) (32 Points, 5 Rebounds, 2 Assists, 0 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 25
Power Forward : A. Coronado (Linndale) (21 Points, 18 Rebounds, 1 Assists, 1 Steals, 1 Block Shots), F. Fornels (Rip City Revival) (21 Points, 16 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 1 Steals, 3 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 40
Center : F. Matković (Rip City Revival) (27 Points, 11 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 1 Steals, 1 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 40

MVP of the evening
A. Coronado (Linndale) (21 Points, 18 Rebounds, 1 Assists, 1 Steals, 1 Block Shots), F. Matković (Rip City Revival) (27 Points, 11 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 1 Steals, 1 Block Shots), F. Fornels (Rip City Revival) (21 Points, 16 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 1 Steals, 3 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 40

The bad performance of the evening
E. Albright (Mighty Moose Rockets) (4 Points, 0 Rebounds, 0 Assists, 2 Steals, 1 Block Shots), : Efficiency : -21

All kinds of statistics
The player who forgot to remove his mittens : R. Heard (Mighty Moose Rockets), E. Albright (Mighty Moose Rockets) : 7 Turnovers

Player targeted by the referees : E. Albright (Mighty Moose Rockets) : 6 Personnal Fouls

The iron-man : G. Locus (Miami Cleo), K. McNulty (Mighty Moose Rockets), A. Albrecht (Mighty Moose Rockets), R. Heard (Mighty Moose Rockets), H. Espinosa (Carolina Rebels), L. Arevalo (Carolina Rebels), K. Brown (Lion Rebels), M. Carrillo (Lion Rebels), S. Hatch (Żubr Białystok), H. Griffin (2 percent), T. Ogata (2 percent) : 48 Minutes

The shooter : K. Huk (Hustlas), H. Griffin (2 percent) : 6 Three points

The best performer : P. Fasselli (Philly Dribble) : Rating : 16.5

The worst performer : K. McNulty (Mighty Moose Rockets) : Rating : 4.5

Week Two First Half Recap/Second Half Preview
Couple of surprising games on Saturday night, with Żubr Białystok upsetting Hustlas at home, Carolina Rebels finding their groove against The Lone Wolf and The Beer Bellys outpacing Tachenko. The biggest unsurprise comes from Mighty Moose Rockets officially tanking hard, scoring only 35 points in their matchup on the road against Rip City.

Outstanding Saturday Numbers
- Is This Heaven? pulling down 73 rebounds (14 more than points scored) against Miami Cleo (two more than Miami's points scored!).
- Żubr took a 17 point lead into half time, only to find themselves only up 2 after the third period, but held off Hustlas PG Krzysztof Huk's 39 points and 6 3-pointers.
- Carolina Rebels jumped out to a 12 point lead and never looked back, restraining The Lone Wolf's SF Nicola Mezzalira as their only real scorer (Mezzalira is also top 5 in points and PPG).
- thatguy's Beer Bellys held Tachenko to only 13 points in the third period at home. While Tachenko had three players score at least 21 points, they seemed to take the most advantage when PG Ignacio "The Nasty" Avellanda, a 37-year old Spaniard, was on the floor - he had a +19 point differential in 29 minutes on the floor taking advantage of 39-year old Croatian PG Cico Kallay.
- MMR only played four players Saturday night, which allowed 8 of Rip City's 10 players to score in double digits, with only one of those players have a positive point differential under +50 (+47). Woof.

Week 2 Second Half Preview
2 percent vs. Miami Cleo: Upstart Miami (still undefeated) hosts defeated 2 percent in what could be an easy matchup. Interestingly, Miami is averaging three points less per game than 2 percent, but they stand 31 points apart in point differential, with Miami's defense outshining their opponents so far this season.
2 percent 84 - Miami 100

Linndale vs. Philly Dribble
Matchup of the Night! Historically, Home Teams have won out in well met match ups, and I think the same will happen tonight for Philly Dribble, but you can't write off Speedtraps' squad.
Linndale 85 - Philly 87

Lion Rebels vs. Mighty Moose Rockets
Fire sale alert! I decided I wasn't going to be able to progress much further with my two young guards than I already am. After losing (again) to Philly, I've gone into rebuilding mode as well, but should still have enough to stave off the tanking Moose Rockets.
Lion Rebels 105 - MMR 74

Is This Heaven? vs. Tachenko
Still no movement from the 2nd lowest salaried team in the league, so I can't see them winning, on the road against a fuming Tachenko crew.
Is This Heaven? 71- Tachenko 103

Rip City Revival vs. Carolina Rebels
Carolina has to be happy to have gotten a 1 in the win column, but it might be a while until they get a two there, especially facing what might be the #1 team in the league tonight.
Rip City Revival 105 - Carolina Rebels 72

Żubr Białystok vs. The Ashkickers
Tylormade finds himself thrust to the top of the Great 8 and while whitestok's group had a great win Saturday, it looks to be a tough matchup tonight.
Żubr Białystok 85 - Ashkickers 106

The Lone Wolf vs. San Dominica Warriors
San Dom's had a tough schedule to start, but should find some comfortability at home hosting lonewolf8's crew. With only one real scorer they've got a shot, but a slim one on the road.
The Lone Wolf 88 - San Dom 89

The Beer Bellys vs. Hustlas
Coming off an exciting home win, thatguy has to feel good, but I predict Reece's squad takes it to them tonight.
The Beer Bellys 98 - Hustlas 103

Good luck tonight!

Day 4 (Tuesday 9 August 2022) : Performances by (https://www.buzzer-manager.com)

Night results
Linndale 72 - Philly Dribble 106
Lion Rebels 146 - Mighty Moose Rockets 65
Rip City Revival 116 - Carolina Rebels 65
The Lone Wolf 42 - San Dominica Warriors 103
2 percent 71 - Miami Cleo 100
Is This Heaven? 67 - Tachenko 87
The Beer Bellys 92 - Hustlas 101
Żubr Białystok 80 - The Ashkickers 106

Best collective performance of the evening
Points : 146 : Lion Rebels
Rebounds : 65 : San Dominica Warriors, Lion Rebels
Assists : 41 : Lion Rebels
Steals : 13 : Rip City Revival
Block Shots : 11 : Tachenko

Personal best performances of the evening
Points : 38 : T. Medina (Lion Rebels)
Rebounds : 24 : T. Armstead (Lion Rebels), N. Samuk (Hustlas)
Assists : 9 : T. Armstead (Lion Rebels)
Steals : 4 : F. Carrillo (Lion Rebels), P. Mari Acuña (2 percent)
Block Shots : 3 : A. Gallucci (Miami Cleo), A. Parrish (San Dominica Warriors), Y. Semiramis (The Beer Bellys), D. Wilmink (2 percent)

Top 5 of the evening
Point Guard : W. Graf (Miami Cleo) (29 Points, 3 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 3 Steals, 0 Block Shots), R. Sedonio (Lion Rebels) (22 Points, 1 Rebounds, 8 Assists, 1 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 29
Shooting Guard : V. Sesamo (The Ashkickers) (36 Points, 3 Rebounds, 2 Assists, 1 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 32
Small Forward : L. Baião (San Dominica Warriors) (24 Points, 9 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 0 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 26
Power Forward : T. Medina (Lion Rebels) (38 Points, 11 Rebounds, 5 Assists, 1 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 44
Center : T. Armstead (Lion Rebels) (20 Points, 24 Rebounds, 9 Assists, 0 Steals, 1 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 50

MVP of the evening
T. Armstead (Lion Rebels) (20 Points, 24 Rebounds, 9 Assists, 0 Steals, 1 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 50

The bad performance of the evening
N. Mezzalira (The Lone Wolf) (11 Points, 7 Rebounds, 0 Assists, 0 Steals, 1 Block Shots) : Efficiency : -7

All kinds of statistics
The player who forgot to remove his mittens : B. George (Carolina Rebels) : 7 Turnovers

Player targeted by the referees : T. Medina (Lion Rebels), M. Grimm (Żubr Białystok), I. Fuica (The Lone Wolf), I. Avellaneda (The Beer Bellys) : 6 Personnal Fouls

The iron-man : A. Gallucci (Miami Cleo), A. Albrecht (Mighty Moose Rockets), K. McNulty (Mighty Moose Rockets), E. Albright (Mighty Moose Rockets), J. Cadelago (Mighty Moose Rockets), B. George (Carolina Rebels), T. Plummer (Carolina Rebels), Y. Delagnès (Żubr Białystok), P. Mari Acuña (2 percent), D. Wilmink (2 percent) : 48 Minutes

The shooter : L. Baião (San Dominica Warriors) : 5 Three points

The best performer : R. Mason (Tachenko), A. Coronado (Linndale), T. Armstead (Lion Rebels) : Rating : 16.5

The worst performer : D. Harden (Lion Rebels) : Rating : 4.0