What’s at stake?
Heading into the Western Conference Finals in San Jose, everything is on the line, and time is running out. At the conclusion of the tournament, the top 2 men’s and top 2 women’s teams in the West will be advancing to compete for the Championship in DC.
The points for finishing this week are as follows:
1st place – 19
2nd place – 11
3rd place – 5
4th place – 2
With the standings from week 1 set, a couple of interesting dynamics come into play.
The men’s Rocky Mountain Experts and women’s Northern Loonies are in a prime position to advance to the finals due to winning the conference kickoff in Minnesota. If either team wins 1 of 2 games in San Jose, they have their plane ticket booked to DC. However, failing to secure 3rd place leaves the door wide open for the lower seeds to sneak in.
For the men’s and women’s Golden State Retrievers, the picture is accessible. Both Retrievers’ teams were devastated by the final plays in Minneapolis, narrowly missing out on the top seed. However, winning their semi-final matches in front of a raucous home crowd at Paypal Park will put Golden State in the driver’s seat. A repeat of either Minneapolis final will result in both those teams going through. However, the Retrievers will be left at the altar if they finish in second place behind the 3-seed and the top seed finishes 3rd.
For the remaining four teams – the mission is clear. Just. Win. Baby. A Bay Area tournament win is the only reliable way for these teams to extend their season and keep their Championship dreams alive.
Interestingly, the fourth-seeded Rhinos x Loggerheads men and Experts women also have a backdoor option that would see them advance without winning it all. The Conference Finals semi-draw put the teams together that had yet to play each other. As such, a scenario exists in which finishing second to the Minnesota champions (men’s Experts, women’s Loonies) would result in clinching a berth in DC.
One thing is for certain – there is no need for tiebreakers! We did the math so you wouldn’t have to. See below for a summary of the best possible outcomes.
Points Awarded
Best Possible Results in Order of Performance
