The rulebook is written by reading the game as built — real zones, actions, costs and endings.
Build your roster, generate Momentum, and score points while disrupting your opponent before they reach 21 or regulation ends.
You win immediately when your Score reaches 21. If the game reaches turn 50 first, the player with the higher Score wins. The game ends immediately when either condition occurs.
You need two Starting Roster decks, one for each player, and one shared Recruiting Deck. Each player has a hidden Roster Deck, a Hand, a public On Court area, and a public Bench discard pile. Together, you use a shared Recruiting Board for Recruiting Deck cards.
Each player has a public Score counter starting at 0, a Hustle counter starting at 0, and a Momentum counter starting at 0. Hustle and Momentum are resources that reset to 0 each turn. Momentum cannot exceed 12; Score cannot exceed 21.
This is a two-player game. Shuffle each Starting Roster and place it as that player’s Roster Deck. Shuffle the Recruiting Deck and place it beside the Recruiting Board. Each player draws five cards from their Roster Deck.
The Recruiting Board begins with no cards because the setup instructions do not fill it. It refills after an action, up to five cards, as long as cards remain in the Recruiting Deck. Set every player’s Score, Hustle, and Momentum to 0. The game lasts no more than 50 turns.
Your turn has two phases: Possession, then End of Possession.
At the start of your Possession, reset your Hustle and Momentum to 0. Permanent cards on your On Court area then provide their start-of-turn effects. During Possession, you may take any number of available actions in any order, including playing cards, buying cards, shooting, stealing, and ending the phase.
To play a card, play a card from your Hand to your On Court area and pay its Hustle cost. Starting Roster cards have no cost. A Recruiting Deck card’s cost is printed on the card. Resolve its effect when you play it. For example, Ball Handler gives you 2 Hustle, while Open Look gives you 2 Momentum. A Permanent card stays On Court instead of being discarded during cleanup.
To buy from the Recruiting Board, pay the card’s printed Hustle cost and take that card from the Board. Place the purchased card in your Bench. The Board refills after the action, up to five cards if possible.
To Shoot a Two, you must have at least 3 Momentum. Spend 3 Momentum and add 2 points to your Score.
To Steal Momentum, you must have at least 1 Momentum. Spend 1 Momentum and reduce your opponent’s Momentum by 2. Momentum cannot go below 0.
When you finish taking actions, end Possession. During End of Possession, discard every card in your Hand to your Bench. Discard every card in your On Court area except cards marked Permanent. Keep Permanent cards On Court. Then draw five cards from your Roster Deck for your next Possession.
| Action | Cost | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Play a card | Printed Hustle cost | Put a Hand card On Court and resolve its effect |
| Buy from the Recruiting Board | Printed Hustle cost | Put a Board card in your Bench |
| Shoot a Two | 3 Momentum | Add 2 to your Score |
| Steal Momentum | 1 Momentum | Subtract 2 from your opponent’s Momentum |
| End Possession | None | Begin cleanup and draw five cards |
Unit cards are players and one-use possession tools. They normally go from your Hand to On Court, resolve their effects, and are discarded at the end of Possession. Examples include Ball Handler, Open Look, Fast Break, and Timeout.
Structure cards are lasting tactical cards. A Structure marked Permanent remains On Court during cleanup. Coach's Clipboard gives you 1 Hustle at the start of each turn. Rim Protector gives you 1 Momentum at the start of each turn. Their printed Health values are present on the cards, but no rule in this game changes or uses that Health.
The Starting Roster contains five Ball Handler cards and five Open Look cards. The Recruiting Deck contains Floor General, Fast Break, Three Point Specialist, Sixth Player, Defensive Stop, Coach's Clipboard, Rim Protector, and Timeout.
You start with Ball Handler, Open Look, Fast Break, and two other cards. You play Ball Handler for no Hustle and gain 2 Hustle. You play Open Look and gain 2 Momentum, then play Fast Break by paying 3 Hustle to gain 4 more Momentum. You now have 6 Momentum, so you spend 3 to Shoot a Two and raise your Score by 2. You could spend 1 Momentum to Steal Momentum, but instead you end Possession, discard your non-Permanent cards, and draw five new cards.
The Recruiting Board refills after actions, up to five cards. If the Recruiting Deck runs out, it stops refilling; it does not create replacement cards. If your Roster Deck runs out, you draw only the cards available, and the rules provide no reshuffle.
Your Hand and Bench are separate: buying a card puts it in the Bench, while cleanup moves used cards to the Bench. Your On Court cards remain public, as do both players’ counters.
A player reaching 21 wins before any later action or cleanup occurs. At turn 50, the player with the highest Score wins immediately. No additional tie-break rule is provided for equal Scores at the turn limit.