One of the greatest regional rivalries in Super Smash Bros. Melee has reached a fever pitch, and it will all go down this Saturday at Blood for Blood in San Francisco, California.Since the earliest days of competitive Melee, Southern California and Northern California have been at each others throats. California is by far the most developed region, with more top players coming out of the state than any other part of the world. And after what has been a bitter back-and-forth, each side will be giving it their all this weekend for pride and bragging rights.But the rivalry goes much deeper, and to get a better understanding, ESPN reached out to tournament organizer Arian Blur Fathieh of Twitch to get a history lesson in California Smash.For years, SoCal had been the dominant region within California Melee. Every time NorCal would come down to play at a regional or major SoCal event, theyd lose in dramatic fashion, said Blur.But over the years, as the rivalry developed, NorCal players started turning the tides. With the rise of PewFat [Counter Logic Gamings Kevin PewPewU Toy and Zachary SFAT Cordoni], that dynamic has slowly shifted, he continued.It was at Super Smash Sundays last year in Azusa, California that, according to Blur, NorCal was able to come down to SoCal and not only take the entire event, but have both their players in Grand Finals, taunting on Fountain of Dreams.The disrespect was too much for Blur and the rest of the SoCal crew. SoCal decided to host a special edition of their premier local series, SSS [Super Smash Sundays], in NorCal, in an attempt to redeem themselves with a win on NorCal soil, said Blur.As for the tournament itself, none of the top five players in Melee -- the five gods -- will be in attendance. Its not too surprising, as only one of the top five is from California. But the tournament will still be stacked with premier talent.Going in, the top ranked player will be G2s Weston Westballz Dennis, the highly technical Falco main from SoCal. Hes had a strong year so far, with many top-ten placings, but hasnt been able to sink a first place finish at a major yet. His most immediate competition from NorCal will be Winterfoxs DaJuan Shroomed McDaniel, who has beaten him in two out of two sets so far this year.Some fan favorite players will also be competing, like SoCal players Joey Lucky Aldama of Selfless Gaming and Johnny S2J Kim of Tempo Storm.Only one top player outside of California will be flying in and hoping to throw a wrench in the SoCal/NorCal rivalry. Ryan The Moon Coker-Welch, the number-one ranked player from New York, has been jumping the ranks recently. After a nailbiter of a set against Cloud9s Joseph Mang0 Marquez at The Big House 6 last weekend, The Moon has proven that he should not be slept on.In doubles, SoCal will have an achilles heel in facing CLGs Fox/Marth duo PewFat. The pair has been playing Melee together since middle school, and has proven time and time again that synergy is just as if not more essential than raw talent when playing two versus two.Considering Blood for Blood is hosted by SoCal, even on NorCal turf, it really is SoCals tournament to lose. But after such an embarrassing loss suffered last year, the pressure will be on to strike a powerful answering blow.Soccer Jerseys China . Then the Pacers gave Oladipo and his Orlando teammates the cold shoulder. Paul Georges buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter spurred a 21-4 run, finally sending Indiana past the Magic 97-87 in a tougher-than-expected opening night matchup. Wholesale Soccer Jerseys Authentic . 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American Matt Kuchar, ahead by two strokes with four to play and even with Scott with one to go, double-bogeyed the 18th after taking two shots to get out of a bunker.Mohammad Ashrafuls ban from professional cricket will be partially lifted on August 13, allowing him to resume playing at the domestic level in Bangladesh. However, the former Bangladesh captain, who has served three years of his suspension for involvement in match-fixing and spot-fixing in the 2013 Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), will only be eligible to play international cricket from 2018. *BCB cricket operations chairman Akram Khan later confirmed that Ashraful would not be allowed to play the BPL for another to years. Ashraful can play domestic cricket but not franchise-based T20 tournament for the next two years, Akram said.In 2014, Ashrafuls initial eight-year ban was reduced to five years, with two years suspended subject to his participation in a BCB or ICC anti-corruption education and training programme. Accordingly, Ashraful took part in an anti-corruption programme and, during the 2015 BPL, appeared in awareness videos shown to players and officials.A BCB press release in September 2014 had stated that upon production of a certificate of good conduct from the ICC, he will be eligible to return to cricket on or about August 13, 2016. Once the ICC issuess the certificate, it is understood that Ashraful will be allowed to resume first-class domestic cricket in Bangladesh as well as non-first-class domestic cricket in other ICC members jurisdictions from August 13.ddddddddddddCB chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury said the board was seeking clarification from the ICC on what types of domestic tournaments Ashraful would be eligible to participate in. On whether Ashraful would be able to play franchise-based domestic tournaments in Bangladesh, Chowdhury said, We have sent a letter to the ICC regarding Ashrafuls issue and we will get to know about the details by Sunday. There are a few aspects which we need to know.The BPLs anti-corruption tribunal had, in June 2014, banned Ashraful for eight years and fined him Tk 10 lakh (USD12,500 approx). In September that year, the ban was reduced to five years, with the last two of those years a suspended sentence. The BCB and ICC unsuccessfully appealed against the ban reduction.*1120 GMT August 14, 2016. The story was updated with Akram Khans quote. ' ' '
