#GenshinImpact #Sumeru
New York Liberty: 2024 WNBA Champions
The long wait for the Liberty is over.
After 28 years and five previous Finals appearances, New York are now champions.
In front of a raucous Brooklyn crowd at the Barclays Center, the Liberty defeated a relentless Minnesota Lynx team 67-62 in overtime in a winner-take-all Game 5 of the Finals.
It wasn’t so joyful for the Lynx, as a debatable foul decision left the team’s head coach, Cheryl Reeve, fuming after the final whistle.
With the Lynx up 60-58 and under six seconds remaining in regulation, officials whistled a foul on Minnesota’s Alanna Smith on Liberty forward Breanna Stewart. The two-time league MVP was driving to the hoop and appeared to have minimal contact with Smith as she took a shot.
The Lynx challenged the call, but the decision was upheld after a video review.
“I’m sorry but that wasn’t a foul! Let the damn players dictate the outcome of a close battled tested game,” NBA superstar LeBron James posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Reeve said the call “decided the game,” adding the game – and WNBA championship – was “stolen from us.”
“The officials during the game should have a third party because that was not a foul. That call should have been reversed on that challenge,” she told reporters.
“I know all the headlines will be ‘Reeve Cries Foul.’ Bring it on, right. Bring it on,” Reeve said. “Because this sh*t was stolen from us. Bring it on.”
When asked about Reeve’s complaints, Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello told reporters that she respected both her counterpart and the entire Lynx team.
“I thought they were pretty fair,” she said laughing, when asked what she thought about the officials. “I have so much respect for Cheryl and I have so much respect for that Minnesota Lynx team because, man, it was ugly, but we found a way to win.”
Brondello had been highly critical of the officiating after a Game 4 Liberty loss that forced the title decider.
The face of the NY franchise still needed to come up big to force overtime.
Without Stewart, the Lynx may have found themselves dancing to their famed celebratory “Electric Slide” at the buzzer had it not been for two-time Finals MVP.
Stewart stood at the free throw line with nerves of steel-like composure and calmly stroked both charity stripe buckets like no one was watching.
Nyara Sabally was New York’s unexpected star.
Coming into Sunday, she averaged 2.8 points per game in the Finals but came alive to score a crucial 13 points in Game 5.
The former Oregon star made an impact beyond her unforeseen offensive impact. She grabbed seven rebounds and had a key block in OT, stuffing Lynx star Napheesa Collier at the hoop when Minnesota attempted to tie the game late.
The rejection was not lost on anyone after the game. After all, Collier led the WNBA playoffs in points, rebounds, blocks, and steals.
Her teammate Stewart praised Sabally after the game.
“We were trying to do whatever we could. We needed, like a spark and she was that. She continued to trust the process and we are so proud of Ny. So proud,” she said.
How valuable was the German national team member? The typical roleplayer was often matched up to guard Collier and played the entire overtime session.
“That’s what I’ve been working for my all my career - moments like these,” she said after the game during the trophy presentation.
“And to be able to come in here and do this in a Game 5 at home, it just means the world.”
The new star then hugged her sister as tears started to well up in her eyes.
Regardless of the foul controversy, Stewart was a force on the boards, grabbing 15 rebounds to go with her 13 points.
The Liberty’s other big star, Sabrina Ionescu, struggled mightily in the game, scoring just five points on 1-of-19 shooting.
New York’s Jonquel Jones was named the Finals MVP.
The Bahamian was steady Sunday while her teammates couldn’t find their rhythm.
She scored 12 points in two quarters, nearly half of the Liberty’s production. Jones finished with 17 points and six rebounds.
Jones was modest after being handed the prestigious award and the crowd shouting ‘MVP.’
“None of this happens without my teammates and without the people that have poured into me,” she said while acknowledging her mother, her fiancé and others.
The Lynx were up 34-27 at the half. If not for Jones, NY would have been in serious trouble.
The Liberty started stone cold with the Lynx opening the game on a 6-0 run. Jones finally hit a bucket to settle New York’s nerves.
Collier started hot with slashing moves to the basket for several lay-ins. After a Collier bucket to stretch the lead to 19-10 in the first quarter, Brondello called a timeout to stop the momentum. Collier finished the opening quarter with 8 points and a game-high 22 points overall.
With the Lynx up 10, Stewart finally scored her first points in the second quarter.
Despite her shooting woes, Ionescu never relented and dished out key assists.
After the Lynx emerged from their locker room cold, the former University of Oregon guard found Sabally for back-to-back buckets - the second of which put the Liberty up 40-38 and the team’s first lead.
Ionescu was pumped up after the moment – flexing as the buoyant Brooklyn crowd showered her with support.
After the win, Ionescu gave credit to her team.
“[I] just did whatever it took to win. [I] believed in my teammates, believed in this entire organization. It takes everyone; you don’t do this alone.
“God, we did it in New York,” she screamed, much to the delight of the fans.
Those same supporters have a parade to attend.
After the Liberty’s 3-2 series win, New York City Mayor Eric Adams posted on social media that “City Hall and other city buildings will be lit up seafoam in their honor. But that’s not all. We’re throwing these incredible athletes a parade to celebrate all their hard work this season.”
The first WNBA Championship in franchise history will get a ticker tape parade, which is set to start at 10 a.m. ET Thursday.
Organizers said the procession will begin at Battery Park and run north through lower Broadway’s so-called “Canyon of Heroes.”
Following the parade, City Hall will host a ceremony before the team hosts a fan event at Barclays Center that night.
Brisbane Lions: 2024 AFL Premiers
THESE will forever be Brisbane's kings of the pride.
After last year's heartbreak, a 0-3 start to the season, five season-ending knee reconstructions, missing out on the top four, three finals on the road, a semi-final win for the ages and storylines everywhere you looked, Brisbane is the premier for 2024 after a Toyota AFL Grand Final dismantling of Sydney.
In the redemption cup – the Lions looking to go one better than their four-point loss to Collingwood and Sydney hoping to overturn its disastrous 2022 decider – it was Chris Fagan's men who saluted by 60 points in an MCG masterclass in front of 100,013 fans.
The 18.12 (120) to 9.6 (60) win delivered the Lions their first flag since 2003 and 12th through its Fitzroy history as Fagan lifted the cup in his eighth season at the helm.
This was a rough welcome to the jungle for the Swans – everywhere Sydney turned, Brisbane was there. Every way the Swans looked, the Lions had them covered.
It would have been a terrible case of deja vu for the Swans, with the club now losing its past four Grand Finals since 2012. Three of them have been thrashings.
Where to start with Brisbane's band of heroes? It was a Lions' share: Lachie Neale, carrying an ankle injury, was sensational as he saluted with a flag in his third Grand Final attempt with 34 disposals and nine clearances.
Kai Lohmann lit the fuse early and finished with four and Callum Ah Chee kept the flame alive throughout with four majors. Will Ashcroft, having missed last year's decider with his knee injury, was superb and showed again he is a champion in the making with 30 disposals and a goal. Joe Daniher is considering retirement but showed he is at the top of his game, with only inaccuracy potentially costing him a Norm Smith Medal.
But where the Lions were hot, Sydney brought the cold. It was difficult to find a winner for the Swans, who had their star-studded midfield nullified, their forward line shut down and their back half picked apart.
Katy Perry started the day with a roar, but the Lions added a mighty to it. Sydney struck first with the opening two goals, the first from Will Hayward and the second a superb snap from Tom Papley. But that mini lead didn't quite sum up the contest after the Lions' early inaccuracy.
Lohmann quickly changed that. The eye-catching Lion kicked their first, and then their second a minute later on his left foot to give Brisbane the energy it needed, his tongue-out celebration a spirit boost to match his side's ascendancy.
They continued to control the play with their uncontested marking game as Hugh McCluggage cruised into a third goal, with the gun midfielder tallying nine opening-quarter disposals.
James Rowbottom's long set shot was a steadier for the Swans, who were preferring their shorter forward targets than their key position options, but Charlie Cameron's snap from the boundary – and subsequent bow to the crowd – restored Brisbane's eight-point lead at the first change.
Brisbane's premiership was won in an exhilarating second quarter. The Lions kicked seven goals to one for the term and they came from everywhere as the Swans, for the second time in three years, were pounded.
Lohmann kicked his third from the pocket, Cameron spotted Daniher cleverly for another, Ah Chee's brilliant finals series continued with two for the term, Jarrod Berry capitalised on Nick Blakey's turnover to slot a long goal and Eric Hipwood kicked one of the great Grand Final goals from the boundary line after dodging Dane Rampe, slotting the goal and reprising three-time Lions premiership star Jason Akermanis' pseudo shocked celebration afterwards.
When Logan Morris booted their 11th, the Lions had leapt to a 46-point lead for half-time as their youth, speed and hardened run into the flag decider proved beneficial.
Where the Lions' big names and lesser lights all stood up – from first-year player Morris to champion two-time Brownlow medallist Neale – Sydney couldn't find a winner as its midfield was battered, its defence under siege and forward line ineffective.
Party time started early as Neale continued to dominate the midfield battle in the third quarter, with Daniher also showing up the Swans defence. If it is to be Daniher's last game of an enigmatic career – the 30-year-old is weighing his future – then he went out on a high, kicking 2.4 but proving pivotal to the Lions.
His forward presence, as well as important around-the-ground ruck efforts, helped a fleet of smaller Lions capitalise time after time.
Lions fans spent most of the second half rejoicing, as more highlights came their way: the Cam Rayner hanger, Ah Chee enjoying a day out, one last Lohmann flying grab and, of course, a Daniher left-foot snap to close things out. The pride of Brisbane town – and beyond.
SYDNEY 3.1 4.3 5.4 9.6 (60)
BRISBANE 4.3 11.7 16.11 18.12 (120)
GOALS
Sydney: Parker 3, Warner, Rowbottom, Papley, Heeney, Hayward, Fox
Brisbane: Lohmann 4, Ah Chee 4, Morris 2, Daniher 2, Rayner, McCluggage, Hipwood, Cameron, Berry, Ashcroft
INJURIES
Sydney: McDonald (ankle)
Brisbane: Nil
SUBSTITUTES
Sydney: Braeden Campbell (replaced Logan McDonald in the third quarter)
Brisbane: Conor McKenna (replaced Logan Morris in the final quarter)
Crowd: 100,013 at the MCG
Patrick Cripps: 2024 AFL Brownlow Medal Winner
CARLTON captain Patrick Cripps has won the 2024 Brownlow Medal with a record tally, becoming the 17th player in VFL/AFL history to win the prestigious award multiple times after adding to his 2022 triumph in an historic count on Monday night.
Cripps, who was in the medal-winning position from round six, polled an incredible 45 votes to win from Collingwood superstar Nick Daicos on 38, with the Magpies' brilliant onballer also breaking the previous record of 36.
Cripps was confirmed as the winner at round 21, polling three votes against Collingwood to ensure he could not be passed. When Daicos polled two votes in round 22, Cripps was declared the outright winner with two rounds to go.
It was an historic night as Carlton's inspirational leader smashed through the 40-vote mark and broke the previous record jointly held by Port Adelaide midfielder Ollie Wines (2021) and Richmond champion and 2017 winner Dustin Martin.
Port Adelaide midfielder Zak Butters (29, Fremantle vice-captain Caleb Serong (28), and Greater Western Sydney midfielder Tom Green (27) rounded out the top five, with Sydney's ineligible superstar Isaac Heeney polling 28 votes.
It was Cripps who always had their measure, however, after establishing an eight-vote lead at round 16 and leaning on a strong finish to the season to see off the charging Daicos, who polled in a record 10 consecutive games from round eight to 18.
Cripps joined champion midfielders Chris Judd and Greg Williams as dual medallists to have represented Carlton, but he became the first to win two Brownlow Medals as a Blue.
The crowning night capped off an outstanding season for the 29-year-old, who played every game and averaged 28.8 disposals, 8.0 clearances, 15.7 contested possessions, and 4.8 inside 50s, earning All Australian selection for the fourth time.
The 29-year-old accepted his medal from coach and 2006 winner Michael Voss and spoke about growing up in Northampton in Western Australia, looking up to West Coast superstars Ben Cousins and Chris Judd and dreaming of joining them as a Brownlow Medal winner.
"They probably inspired me to chase my dream, and now I'm in a position to inspire other young kids, and I don't take that lightly," Cripps said.
"I'm just someone who wants to chase my dreams and I love doing it. Now I know the impact I've had on young kids coming through, it's pretty special.
"All kids out there, or anyone in general, if you get after it in life and have a dream and work hard at it, you can do amazing things. Life is short, so get after it."
Cripps also paid tribute to the support of his wife Monique after the couple became parents to daughter Koda this year, with the midfielder happy and settled off the field in his 11th season.
He said his parents, Brad and Cath, had instilled great values in him that he carried still after being drafted with pick No.13 in the 2013 National Draft.
Last year's medallist Lachie Neale was considered a contender to go back-to-back but never got on a roll, finishing on 22 votes as he prepares for Saturday's Grand Final.
Heeney, who was ineligible to win after being suspended for striking in round 17, was atop the leaderboard for five weeks during the first half of the season but only polled seven votes after round 10.
Heeney and well ahead of Daicos (four) and Neale (two), who were expected to start slowly.
Daicos was entering a five-game block of outstanding form, however, and emerged with 13 of a possible 15 votes, rising to third with 17 votes to put himself back in the race.
Cripps was shaping as unstoppable, however, having kept his tally ticking over with three best afield matches to secure an outright lead after round 12 with 22 votes.
He was never headed from there, polling the maximum three votes six more times in the last 10 games to win in commanding style.
2024 Brownlow Medal, Top 10
Patrick Cripps - 45
Nick Daicos - 38
Zak Butters - 29
Caleb Serong - 28
Isaac Heeney* - 28
Tom Green - 27
Adam Treloar - 26
Errol Gulden - 25
Matt Rowell - 25
Jai Newcombe - 24
Be The Gift The Keeps That On Giving! Long Beach Gives 2024 Gaming Showcase
#FFXIV #LongBeachGives #GenshinImpact #ZenlessZoneZero #HonkaiStarRail
Genshin Impact: Genshin Misadventures - Natlan Nationals, Day 2.
#GenshinImpact #Natlan #Mualani #Kachina
A Genshin Finally Could Rant by Cyrus John
Before all this "Genshin finally could" dies down before their irredeemable community creates a new mess and all players forget about Liu Wei's crying apology and promise in the livestream...
Let this miserable, stinky yapping post reflect a mirror to the history of Genshin and Honkai past from a guy who likes to pretend that someone actually cares that he's been playing MiHoYo games for 11 years and have a superiority complex thinking he has a better knowledge of Honkai story simply because he's old that he deserves to be patronized (because I am.)
Genshin was a game that was supposed to have a relation with Honkai lore from that one Weibo post MiHoYo had made when asking the Honkai community what name is suited for this new game. Which in turn they had agreed all upon to name it Original God. Which probably a decision of the devs, and the comments are just inspiration.
At the beginning, all of their beta testers are of course their community that they built, and when it was released, the best supporters of their game are the Honkai community who are happy to point out references that are similar to them, theory craft during those years where Honkai lore is too fragmented and scarce to connect so they try to make sense something in Genshin to apply it in Honkaiverse, which can be found in Nagazora arc with Dvalin as easter egg.
Honkai community are very welcoming at the beginning for new players and new community since it's the first large game to be outside Honkai IP yet seem to have similar elements in Honkai in terms of writing (Venti is the very first to be an obvious reference)
That's until the landslide success of MiHoYo in Genshin that 10cent had negotiate of trying to buy MiHoYo. They refused a behemoth company that swallows every indie developers or aspiring game companies into their company and those who don't want their IP to be bought will be tormented by their best keyboard puppies filling their hate comment qouta until they are forced to shut their company, be bought or sue 10cent which 10cent are willing to entertain with how huge they are and their CCP as backing to punish them with massive compensation loss so they can't dare to fight anymore.
And unfortunately for them, MiHoYo had already secured a success that 10cent can't no longer afford to chew. MiHoYo can now challenge their reign so if they can't buy them any longer, it's time to use their arsenal for the better.
Tencent keyboard puppies did their job when they made HI3 players hate Genshin with that stupid youtube bait war that even involves Arknights, and with that, MiHoYo and their other games had been subjected to hate all because of 10cent dogs inside Genshin.
Instead of a uniform and shared community filled with pointing references and enjoyment, things shifted for the worse and the old fanbase from MiHoYo became annoyed from the ignorance and pointless repetition of misinformation from Genshin.
With something so simple misunderstanding that they try to keep correcting and boast until it reaches the snapping point.
[Insert Genshin reference "from Genshin Impact?"]
[Genshin reference but "insert a characteristic or color difference]
[OMG a Genshin character but insert different characteristics]
[Archons>Herrschers]
These silly little comments that the Honkai community tried to keep correcting are enough to set them into a seething rage against the obnoxious normies who can't correct their information. It wasn't instant, it was a gradual change until they realized that there's no point arguing with people who keep repeating the same things, same power arguments endlessly.
At first those comments are actually from ignorants, until some saw that it triggers Honkai community, until it turned into fun, until it turned to full bloodbath YouTube, with all the discussions of who's stronger, who's referenced who, to the point that the triggered Honkai community are just being lead to ridiculous idiotic comments that Genshin was released first and Honkai copied them.
Added with the unfortunate year of 2020 where westoids in twitter brought their attitude and idiocracy, that's all the reason they need on why the Honkai community should hate Genshin and changed their attitude towards it.
10cent bots successfully weaponized hate make rift between the close community before.
But it wasn't enough, it's good to involve other communities such as Arknights as well, the youtube account named "Laurent" becomes a massive troll master that also successfully baited Arknights community into hating Genshin.
But the effect instead is Honkai community having the closest relationship with Genshin was subjected to ridicule and hate from other communities as well while also trying to separate themselves from the heights and lights that the obnoxious Genshin community reached.
As long as they are made by the same company, they both deserve getting hate.
The hot shit mess of Inazuma, justifying the content leak culture, Cai Haoyu's stingy handling of Genshin in terms of rewarding it's players turned their hate to Honkai for receiving better rewards and them treating the company as an investment under the argument of: "We made your company successful and earn millions so we should be treated better than your dead game"
Which in turn Honkai players retaliated for their demanding attitude, and then turned into them being called white knights which triggers them again.
Until the fated day of 1st anniversary, which cemented themselves as the punching bag and the most hated and toxic gacha community to ever exist.
It's that day where the relationship between the two could never be mended again. All because they refused to gatekeep and ignore.
It's easier to hate than to gatekeep or to ignore.
Gatekeeping in their arguments means that people just don't want to bring new players to MiHoYo for them to profit if that's their attitude. They don't want that, so instead, they endured this massive ridicule.
Ignoring in their arguments means that if no one gives them attention, they will stop all their misinformations. Tough luck, people cares about the game's reputation as a fan, people's patience and pretend ignore have limits. Once it reaches the maximum endurance, people will snap to defend and clean their game's name as those misinformation will only be used by content creators to create dramas, and give the game a bad perspective which in turn will trigger the community again because of the false knowledge a newbie said.
Few good apples in the Genshin community are hard to pick, it's easy to generalize the hate than to nitpick defiining what's a good Genshin player or not.
10cent was not successful in their plan, but the damage they left was irreversible, and even becomes worse when they brought CCP into gaming.
MiHoYo being forced to be part of CCP.
CCP forever changing their videogames with "chinese representation", "no Japanese VA in their CN server", "time limit in the game screen" and so on.
The longer they keep hating, the Honkai community ultimately changes and becomes as toxic and as idiot as the thing they hated the most.
As I said repeatedly years ago, 2021 until early 2023 is the most toxic, garbage, and retarded the Honkai community had become. Elysian Realm which is a masterful great arc has been ruined by misinformation and hatred brought by the same people who would look at CN spoilers with MTL translations and think they already knew the full story and hate the shit out of it and completely silent when their story is completely wrong.
The Honkai community who were before, filled with old school otakus that can outBlue the Archives with how much lolis there are in the game (Sin Mal supremacy)
From Honkai community that enhance their immersion by lore crafting and having PhD in scifi and philosophy to make the scene more impactful and depressing, hating the writers gor making them cry and hostage them with sweet rewards each episodes.
From depressed and proud community seeing the peak growth of their protagonist from Everlasting Flames and funding a academy in China to horny brainlets after Elysia and Morbius was released.
And now, to pretentious, legally blind, media illiterates. Zero logic and rationality in the things they hate.
It's also only at this quarantine frame that Honkai community ruined themselves and got divided from the inside.
CN servers from being well respected and the most active in making efforts to make great contents to share to others, until people realized they are just a bunch of cry babies crying over playable males and being such an incel cucks that they tried to assassinate MiHoYo CEOs by going at their entrance (no one got hurt as they saw him immediately) simply because their supposed Chinese figure character twerked towards the westerners and not to them.
Global servers from being absolute normal fucking people who understands internet media culture nuances to being absolute retarded, including the fact that the westoid twitter attitude (of putting rights over pixels than actually to real victims suffering) infected the otaku culture and them sucking the cock of CN when the discussion is about playable males despite hating them for taking their anniversary rewards like a bunch of cucks.
SEA server from... Having full of great artists dating their Seele Dakimuras inside cafes while their fans keep reusing their arts and memes for decades like a recycled condom even if it's no longer relevant at the course of the current story to... Still the same attitude I guess?
When HSR was revealed, it brought massive hypes, albeit lowkey hate since it is a turn based game.
But when most saw in CBT that their gacha and equipments follows Genshin's constellation and relics, having "Honkai" in it's name no longer matters as it is just a damn Genshin to them.
And during the release, you already know the game's own drama with Genshin.
Dr. Ratio is one and the one that popularized "Genshin could never"
Honkai community nowadays, their hate are no longer as intense as before since everything about it became a part of the community subculture to hate towards them and stereotype against them which turns it from big deal to hate from before, to normal thing to hate. But their idiocracy, pretentiousness, and illiteracy had become so common that discussing actual lores and power scaling no longer holds value with how much they overestimate their favorite Honkai characters that they even force it here in HSR.
Evidently with Welt. Welt is very humble, smart, heroic yet blindly follows someone's legacy that he doesn't even care if the people besides him cry after he's gone as long as the world is safe. But the community gives him ridiculous claims that the memes about him being "Gojo" is just a reflection of how the community wants to see him and not how he actually is.
And with that, concludes the relationship of Honkai and Genshin and how Genshin changed the 11 year old game community within just 4 years.
I've been a watcher, since the beginning of times and until now, I've seen shits that shits and hits that hits.
I religiously love Honkai from the games and community or else, I won't sacrifice half of my life that I lived, playing this game.
I love the game
I love the unbelievable philosophy of the story
I love the discussions made in the community
I love the company's visions towards this series
I love the pioneers that visions the game
I love the improvements it took in it's journey
I have something that I hated in the game
I hate the lackluster writing they made towards the end
I hate the community so much
I hate some of the choices the company had made
I hated the direction of their choices that leads to this point
I dislike the changes they made that took things more tedious
Yet here I am still, loving the game. Knowing it's best and absolute worst and disgusting qualities yet can't help to still keep playing it.
If that isn't love, then I'm just an idiot. Which I am.
I have superiority complex forged by time, I am as idiot as rabid dog if I see stupid and pretentious little shits that talks about things they don't have the full knowledge about and be smug about it.
Genshin lives in the house of my mind that pays the rent with my hatred.
Yet I yearn for great conversations to find the feel of joy seeing others appreciate my thoughts from the discussions I made, from the clever writings in the game that the writers cooked. Old thematic writings of MiHoYo spilling in their new stories as a thought foundation that could never be remove in the game's ultimate nature and message that some people might not realized but I do.
And I want the people to keep remembering the roots and origin of this game even with the countless change of the people that played it.
Penacony might be a philosophy yapping fest for others, but for a old idiot like me, it's like a love letter sent from Taisho era that collected all of the reference as much as they can to complete a brief story reimagining their masterful themes and the convey the same messages I cried back in days with new faces to love and follow.
"As long as you remember, this story will forever remain."
Sorry about that, just ignore this attention seeker idiot with his cringe writing and obviously triggered post.
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