The Bulgarian Brothers – A College Hoops 2K8 & NBA 2K20 Dynasty

[RolePlayer]

Great win for the Red Flash, that 4/5 duo of Thompson and Akindale is going to be a problem for opposing teams all year

[studbucket]

Quote: Originally Posted by marshdaddy

Love the start to the campaign. Would love to see SFU and LMU face off in the post-season, beyond just the Derby

Man, I've really wanted that as well. I was hoping they could face off in a pre-season tournament, but CHoops 2K8 is designed that only 1 user-controlled team can enter a specific tourney. I tried in year 1 and it kicked my other team out of the tournament.

Maybe they can end up in the same conference somehow soon. That would be great.

Quote: Originally Posted by RolePlayer

Great win for the Red Flash, that 4/5 duo of Thompson and Akindale is going to be a problem for opposing teams all year

Yeah, they complement each other well. Akindele has great size and Thompson has skill and can play up to the 5 when needed. Dinko can roll out a lineup with nobody shorter than 6'6" and cause real problems for other teams.

[Dawgfan1]

Congrats to Dinko for win #100! Hopefully he can make a good run this year and continue to raise his coaching profile. Although it'd be a few years at least until Duquesne opens up (if they still suck), maybe another good opportunity will open up.

Seeing the results of March Madness so far, I couldn't help but think about this legacy. Stetson making the tourney for the first time ever, and Duquesne making it for the first time since 1977 AND getting a win?! In-universe Duquesne could learn a lot from real-life Duquesne.

[studbucket]

Quote: Originally Posted by Dawgfan1

Congrats to Dinko for win #100! Hopefully he can make a good run this year and continue to raise his coaching profile. Although it'd be a few years at least until Duquesne opens up (if they still suck), maybe another good opportunity will open up. Seeing the results of March Madness so far, I couldn't help but think about this legacy. Stetson making the tourney for the first time ever, and Duquesne making it for the first time since 1977 AND getting a win?! In-universe Duquesne could learn a lot from real-life Duquesne.

Thanks Dawgfan, good to see you around here again. I appreciate you checking in.

Dinko is definitely 3+ years away from getting that Duquesne job. Pope is a decent coach, they have the reigning freshman of the year, and it took the 5+ years to fire Dambrot, who did terrible there.

He's probably happy to stay at St. Francis, but maybe something else would present itself. Maybe Pitt? We'll see where life takes him.

I can't help but think of my fake universe as well as I've watched Stetson get stomped but saw a fun Duquesne team last night. We were just missing SFU (Wagner represented the NEC).

[Hellisan]

I've started at the bottom and am super impressed with the setup, the back story, and how everything ties in with Pittsburgh, all the games that will be played against meaningful opponents, etc. Not having followed a basketball dynasty before, I'm excited to see what storylines pop up because I know they'll be done well, really have enjoyed the detail that you include. I notice you skip over a few games here and there which I think is smart given there are two teams. You mentioned that this dynasty is your - I think you said pride and joy, but either way... What about it (without giving anything away) has been the most enjoyable part for you?

[studbucket]

Quote: Originally Posted by Hellisan

I've started at the bottom and am super impressed with the setup, the back story, and how everything ties in with Pittsburgh, all the games that will be played against meaningful opponents, etc. Not having followed a basketball dynasty before, I'm excited to see what storylines pop up because I know they'll be done well, really have enjoyed the detail that you include. I notice you skip over a few games here and there which I think is smart given there are two teams. You mentioned that this dynasty is your - I think you said pride and joy, but either way... What about it (without giving anything away) has been the most enjoyable part for you?

Great to see you here! This was a fun surprise on a Thursday night. I know how long it takes to catch up on one of these from the beginning, so I appreciate you doing so.

I've found my favorite stories around here have been in the basketball and football sections. The longest running and deepest ones have historically been in football (think Deegeezy in Big Easy) but I do think that there is more creativity in some of the basketball dynasties. A couple of the active ones you see here (and some inactive ones from Trekfan) are pretty great.

If I didn't sim most of the games, I'd go crazy. It takes me long enough as is I try to report out the score of every one one of my teams' games, but I only play about a third of the games and I try to make them meaningful games in some way.

I probably did say "pride and joy" - which now sounds silly since I have an awesome wife and 2 kids, but I do sure love this story and am not tired of it at all. I often spend time daydreaming about what big school the brothers could end up at or how the NBA will turn out.

So my most enjoyable part is probably two things that complement each other well.

1. I love the universe building. The College Hoops game builds its own stories if you look closely enough, and by bringing those players into the NBA and also giving the brothers storylines, it makes it all feel more real and alive. It's not just a report out on some box scores, but it's a family affair.
2. I love that I don't have full control. Sure, I do 32-team control in NBA 2K, but I have "closed legacy" in College Hoops and cannot force myself to any team. The game decides what jobs are offered to me. That offered great drama with Duquesne not offering Dinko a job even though it probably made sense. This gives just enough uncertainty and drama for me to be excited and tell stories. Plus I sim enough games that sometimes I lose ones I really should have won (like last year's NEC tournament).

I have zero connection to Pittsburgh, Bulgaria, St. Francis, or Stetson, but because of this story I now feel an affinity for all of them. It's neat.

Go Hawkeyes!

[studbucket]

Oggy's first played game at LMU (against his boys at Stetson) coming up soon. Writing it up now.

On the NBA front, I only have 5 teams left to move over. I am working on the Trail Blazers now, then have the Warriors, Wizards, Honu, and SuperSonics.

[studbucket]

Oggy welcomes a familiar set of faces to Los Angeles as his former players and recruits come to town to take on his new team. Both coach and his former players were very motivated to win this game, but that didn’t get in the way of some friendly conversations, high fives, and hugs before the game. Everyone was happy to see each other again, and the game was going to be a fun one. Not only were they familiar foes but they were well-matched, at least on paper.

When it came to results, things weren’t quite so even. Stetson was 0-2 on the season with a 74-58 loss to Pacific and a bad 81-67 loss to Oggy’s former school Northern Colorado. Herbert Nashif had 21 points but only grabbed 2 boards, showing a possible problem spot for Oggy to solve. Oggy’s recruits, who are now seniors for UNC, Tim Martin (PG, 69 ovr) and Fernando Santos (SG, 72 ovr) combined for 35 points for the Bears.

After two games Lions are only shooting 25% from three and star guard Immanuel Kahrimanovic is only 25% from the field this season. They desperately need their shots to start falling if Oggy doesn’t want this to be a season from hell.

The Hatters are 3-2 so far this year with wins over Auburn, Alabama A&M, and Coastal Carolina. Both losses are very respectable, coming to good UConn and San Francisco teams. They are led, not surprisingly, by the trio of Arnaud Dahi, Lennox Evertsen, and Ray Rowe. All three are scoring around 13 points per game and Dahi is shooting 61% from the floor and dropped 30 points in the season opener.

Dahi, Alvin Causey, and Marko “Spicy K” Nevill are all nursing minor injuries but look like they’ll play. Oggy recruit and freshman Jasper Boythe (PF, 74 ovr) looks quite good and has slotted into the starting lineup alongside Dahi, Evertsen, Causey, and Rowe. He is filling the void left by Brendon Pocius. Freshman Delbert Schneider (PF, 72 ovr) is one of the key bench players, along with Nevill and Brandin Mulic and Neil Mobley. This Stetson team has very good size and is going to present a tough challenge for LMU.

Things started off positively for Loyola Marymount. They forced Jasper Boythe to pick up 2 fouls in the first minute and then managed to get out to a 13-10 lead in the first few minutes. LMU had already made it to the charity stripe for 6 free throws and Herbert Nashif had 6 points and Evertsen had scored 6 for the visitors.

However, after a few turnovers and Hatters breakaways, the Lions found themselves going from up 5 to down 2 and Oggy called timeout. It didn’t help.

Loyola Marymount was missing every deep shot they took and fell behind 25-17. Their defense was OK, but they needed to start scoring again. Oggy called timeout again, trying to get things organized. This time it did help.

Skip Salow scored 2 straight baskets at the rim, followed by Nashif throwing down 2 powerful dunks and then picking up his third foul of the game. With Nashif on the bench now and Kahrimanovic bricking everything, Salow picked up the slack and made the game 30-30 with 2:22 left in the half. Shane Havens called timeout for the Hatters to regroup them.

It worked and Stetson went on an 8-2 run before the Lions were able to rally back and make it 42-39 at halftime. It was a high-scoring and fun affair for the fans, just how Oggy likes it.

Both teams were a rough 1-7 from deep in the first half, but managed to still put up points. Stetson was led by the trio of Evertson, Dahi, and Mulic as all 3 had 7 points. Skip Salow and Herbert Nashif both had 9 points for the Lions. There were a lot fouls however, with Nashif (3), Kahrimanovic, (2), and Christensen (2) in trouble for LMU while Stetson had Evertsen (2), Boythe (2), and Rowe (2) in trouble.

In the second half, Stetson changed in two ways: they stopped pressing and starting making shots. This took them out to an 11 point lead as the Lions struggled to score and they stayed ahead the whole rest of the game. It was an 85-73 final and Oggy’s old team fairly whooped his new team. From top-to-bottom the Hatters were involved and Oggy deserves a lot of credit for the roster he built. Unfortunately, he’s now dealing with a new roster and this one has a lot more problems.

Immanuel Kahrimanovic threw down a monster dunk in the last minute of the game, but it was meaningless when it came to the outcome.

Arnuad Dahi finished with 18, 6 assists, 3 steals. Ray Rowe had 14 points and 10 boards and Lennox Evertsen had 16 points.

For Loyola Marymount, Herbert Nashif had 19 points, Kahrimanovic managed to finally start scoring in the second half and finished with 17 points. Reid Christensen had 15 points and 8 boards as well. The Lions only shot 17% from three and will need to do much better if they want to win some games.

Around the NCAA

• St. Francis played 2 games recently, winning both.
  • They beat Columbia 68-50. Vern Quick led the way with 16 points.
  • Win over Drake 77-62. Vern Quick dropped 23 and it was a rebound-fest as Quick, Diakite, Thompson, and Akindele all had 7 boards.
• #4 North Carolina lost their first game of the season to Furman 73-64.
• #5 Marquette is 2-1 with a loss to South Carolina, 83-67.
• Murray State’s Rick Soson (C, 77 ovr) is averaging 37.5 points per game in this young season.

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