2006–07 British Basketball League season

2006–2007 British Basketball League season
League British Basketball League
Sport Basketball
Roll of Honour
BBL champions Guildford Heat
Play-off's champions Newcastle Eagles
BBL Cup champions Guildford Heat
BBL Trophy champions Plymouth Raiders

The 2006–07 season, the 20th since its establishment of the British Basketball League, started on 29 September 2006 when reigning champions Newcastle Eagles began with an 85–83 loss away to Sheffield Sharks.

Ten teams took to the field this season, including two new franchises to the BBL, London United and the Worcester Wolves, who both moved up from the English Basketball League during summer 2006.[1] The new additions were brought in after three teams withdrew from the League before the start of the season. Brighton Bears and London Towers both took the decision to "park" their respective franchises and take a one-year break[2][3][4] whilst Birmingham Bullets also decided to sit out due to a lack of suitable home venues available[5] and have since gone into liquidation.[6]

Teams

Team City/Area Arena Capacity Last season
Chester Jets Chester Northgate Arena 1,000 7th
Guildford Heat Guildford Guildford Spectrum 1,100 5th
Leicester Riders Leicester John Sanford Centre 800 6th
London United London SPACe 600 New
Milton Keynes Lions Milton Keynes Bletchley Centre 800 10th
Newcastle Eagles Newcastle upon Tyne Metro Radio Arena 6,500 1st
Plymouth Raiders Plymouth Plymouth Pavilions 1,480 9th
Scottish Rocks Glasgow Braehead Arena 4,000 2nd
Sheffield Sharks Sheffield English Institute of Sport 1,200 3rd
Worcester Wolves Worcester University of Worcester 600 New

Notable occurrences

  • Following on from Brighton and Birmingham's decision to withdraw from the league, London Towers announced they were to be the third, and most high-profile team to sit out the upcoming season.[7]
  • London United and Worcester Wolves were both elected from the English Basketball League to replace the three departed teams, and to keep franchises in the major markets of London and the Midlands.[8]
  • A£2.5 million sponsorship deal was agreed on 22 September 2006, between the BBL and national broadcaster MKTV, including primetime TV coverage of 40 live games per season,[9] high-profile sponsorship and a National Community Development Programme.
  • Molten, the world's leading manufacturer of inflatable sports balls, signed a ball sponsorship with the BBL worth £150,000 prior to the season opening. The new GG7 ball was unveiled on 25 September as the official match ball for the next three seasons.
  • New league franchise Worcester Wolves record their first ever BBL win on 7 October, an 82–79 home victory against Chester Jets.
  • The BBL Cup final took place at the National Indoor Arena, in Birmingham on 7 January 2007, and saw Guildford Heat claim their first Championship since foundation 18 months previous, with an 81–78 win against Scottish Rocks. The game was the first ever BBL match to be broadcast live over the internet, reaching a potentially worldwide audience.
  • Plymouth Raiders also won their first silverware since stepping-up to the BBL, with a 74–65 win in the BBL Trophy final against holders Newcastle Eagles on 4 March. Held at Newcastle's Metro Radio Arena, the game was the first to be broadcast live on national television in over four years, as part of the sponsorship agreement with MKTV.
  • Leicester Riders guard, and former Los Angeles Lakers star Steve Bucknall, as well as Guildford star Chad McKnight both test positive for marijuana and are each handed a three-month suspension. However, the story only comes to public attention several months later.[10]
  • Chester Jets owner and head coach Mike Burton announced prior to their season finale that he would be retiring from the franchise at the end of the season. Burton's announcement, after 19 years at the helm, put serious doubts of the clubs' future.[11]
  • Despite leading the League for most of the season, Guildford's one point 90–91 loss away to Scottish Rocks on 1 April, ensured that the title race went down to the wire, and only a final day 114–85 win at home to Chester Jets on 8 April guaranteed the 2007 League crown would belong to the Heat.
  • Newcastle, playing in front of their home fans at the Metro Radio Arena on 29 April, were victorious against a resilient Scottish Rocks in the climax to the BBL Finals Weekend and the BBL season, as they claimed their third consecutive Playoff Championship with a 95–82 win.

BBL championship (Tier 1)

Final standings

TeamPtsPldWLPercentage
1. Guildford Heat 58362970.806
2. Sheffield Sharks 56362880.778
3. Newcastle Eagles 503625110.694
4. Scottish Rocks 443622140.611
5. Plymouth Raiders 403620160.556
6. Milton Keynes Lions 363618180.500
7. Leicester Riders 263613230.361
8. London United 223611250.306
9. Chester Jets 203610160.278
10. Worcester Wolves 8364320.111
= League winners
= Qualified for the Play-offs

The Play-offs

Quarter-finals Semi-finals Final
         
1 Guildford Heat 71
8 London United 68
1 Guildford Heat 71
4 Scottish Rocks 78
4 Scottish Rocks 83
5 Plymouth Raiders 77
4 Scottish Rocks 82
3 Newcastle Eagles 95
2 Sheffield Sharks 89
7 Leicester Riders 71
2 Sheffield Sharks 73
3 Newcastle Eagles 83
3 Newcastle Eagles 110
6 Milton Keynes Lions 84

Quarter-finals

15 April 2007
Scottish Rocks 83–77 Plymouth Raiders

Semi-finals

Third-place game

Final

29 April 2007
Newcastle Eagles 95–82 Scottish Rocks
Scoring by quarter: 30–23, 17–21, 23–17, 25–21
Pts: Olu Babalola 23, Tony Dorsey 18, Andrew Bridge 17, Shawan Robinson 16, Fab Flournoy 8, Jeremy Hyatt 6, Darius Defoe 5 Pts: Robert Yanders 26, Sterling Davis 16, Maurice Hampton 16, Moritz Wohlers 10, Chris Anrin 5, Gareth Murray 4, Julius Joseph 4

EBL National League Division 1 (Tier 2)

Final standings

TeamPtsPldWL
1. Worthing Thunder 4222211
2. Reading Rockets 3822193
3. Manchester Magic 3422175
4. London Leopards 2622139
5. PAWS London Capital 2622139
6. West Hertfordshire Warriors 22221111
7. City of Sheffield Arrows 22221111
8. Solent Stars 1422715
9. Coventry Crusaders 1222616
10. King's Lynn Fury 1022517
11. Teesside Mohawks 1022517
12. Northampton Neptunes 826418
= League winners
= Qualified for the Play-offs

EBL National League Division 2 (Tier 3)

Final standings

TeamPtsPldWL
1. Derby Trailblazers 3822193
2. Bristol Academy Flyers 3822193
3. Taunton Tigers 3022157
4. Team Northumbria 2822148
5. Newi Nets 24221210
6. Leicester Warriors 22221111
7. Birmingham Aston Athletics 22221111
8. Tamar Valley Cannons 20221012
9. Kent Crusaders 1422715
10. Plymouth Raiders B 1222616
11. Mansfield Express 1022517
12. Liverpool Basketball Club 622319
= League winners
= Qualified for the Play-offs

BBL Cup

This season's edition of the BBL Cup saw the two lowest seeds from the previous season's League rankings face off with the BBL's two newest additions – London United and Worcester Wolves – in the first round. As expected, the experience of Milton Keynes and Plymouth paid off and both teams advanced to the quarter-finals to join the rest of their league rivals in the last eight. In the clash of the round, eventual winners Guildford Heat saw off the Plymouth Raiders in a tie dominated by the shooting of Chad McKnight, who posted 39 points for the Heat.

The Semi-finals saw the leagues four strongest teams drawn against each other, but while Guildford easily dispatched the visiting Sheffield Sharks, the Cup holders Newcastle Eagles, were defeated by the Scottish Rocks, where Rocks' Robert Yanders netted a game-high 23 points.

In only their second season since establishment, Guildford's success story continued when they scooped their first piece of silverware with an 82–79 victory in the Cup Final against the Rocks. Heat's star guard Brian Dux was named as MVP scoring 21 points on the way to victory.

First round

Quarter-finals

12 November 2006
Scottish Rocks 84–79 Chester Jets

Semi-finals

10 December 2006
Scottish Rocks 94–69 Newcastle Eagles

Final

7 January 2007
Guildford Heat 82–79 Scottish Rocks
Scoring by quarter: 16–27, 26–9, 15–7, 25–36
Pts: Brian Dux 21, Chad McKnight 20, Dean Williams 10, Dan Wardrope 7, Mike Martin 7, Rod Wellington 7, Daniel Gilbert 6, Chris Brown 3 Pts: Sterling Davis 21, Maurice Hampton 19, Rob Yanders 18, Julius Joseph 9, Moritz Wohlers 7, Hugo Sterk 4

BBL Trophy

Due to the lack of teams competing in this season's Championship, the BBL Trophy featured all 10 BBL teams plus six invited teams, four from the English Basketball League (Coventry Crusaders, London Leopards, Reading Rockets and Worthing Thunder) and two from the Scottish Basketball League (Edinburgh Kings and Troon Tornadoes). The First round saw all 16 teams divided into four regionalised groups with the top finishing team advancing to the Semi-finals.

Group stage

Semi-finals

Final

4 March 2007
Newcastle Eagles 65–74 Plymouth Raiders
Scoring by quarter: 18–21, 17–19, 10–18, 20–16
Pts: Tony Dorsey 20, Shawan Robinson 15, Fab Flournoy 12, Olu Babalola 11, TJ Walker 3, Darius Defoe 2 Pts: Carlton Aaron 25, Gaylon Moore 17, Gavin Love 11, Andrew Lasker 10, DeAntoine Beasley 8, Allister Gall 3

Statistics leaders

CategoryPlayerStat
Points per gameUnited States Jazwyn Cowan (Chester Jets)23.07
Rebounds per gameUnited States Carlton Aaron (Plymouth Raiders)12.43
Assists per gameUnited States TJ Walker (Newcastle Eagles)5.86
Steals per gameUnited States Maurice Hampton (Scottish Rocks)2.86
Blocks per gameBarbados Andrew Alleyne (Leicester Riders)1.36
Field goal percentageUnited Kingdom Darius Defoe (Newcastle Eagles)60.00%
Free throw percentageUnited Kingdom Dan Wardrope (Guildford Heat)86.19%
Three-point field goal percentageNigeria Belgium Hugo Sterk (Scottish Rocks)44.00%

Monthly awards

MonthCoachPlayer
OctoberUnited States Tom Hancock (Milton Keynes Lions)United States United Kingdom Tony Windless (Milton Keynes Lions)
NovemberUnited Kingdom Peter Scantlebury MBE (Sheffield Sharks)United States Carlton Aaron (Plymouth Raiders)
DecemberUnited Kingdom Paul James (Guildford Heat)United States Jazwyn Cowan (Chester Jets)
JanuaryUnited States United Kingdom Fabulous Flournoy (Newcastle Eagles)United States Jeff Bonds (Sheffield Sharks)
FebruaryUnited Kingdom Peter Scantlebury MBE (Sheffield Sharks)United Kingdom Tarick Johnson (London United)
MarchGermany Thorsten Leibenath (Scottish Rocks)United States Daniel Gilbert (Guildford Heat)

Seasonal awards

References

  1. ↑ Andrew Shields (2006). "Towards 2012". Time Out. Archived from the original on 12 January 2012. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  2. ↑ Rob Dugdale (31 July 2006). "Towers owner to suspend franchise for new season". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 24 March 2007.
  3. ↑ Andrew Shields (2006). "Towards 2012". Time Out. Archived from the original on 12 January 2012. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  4. ↑ http://www.brightonbears.com/
  5. ↑ BBC Sport (26 July 2006). "Birmingham will miss BBL season". BBC. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  6. ↑ BBC Stoke and Staffordshire (7 January 2010). "Team Birmingham Bullets basketball club move to Fenton". BBC. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  7. ↑ Rob Dugdale (31 July 2006). "Towers owner to suspend franchise for new season". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 24 March 2007.
  8. ↑ Andrew Shields (2006). "Towards 2012". Time Out. Archived from the original on 12 January 2012. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  9. ↑ BBC (21 September 2006). "BBL signs up with new broadcaster". BBC Sport. Retrieved 9 April 2007.
  10. ↑ Richard Taylor (24 March 2007). "BBL kept in the dark on positive drug test". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 24 March 2007.
  11. ↑ Richard Taylor (7 April 2007). "Jets' future in doubt after Burton quits". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 7 April 2007.
Preceded by
2005–06 season		 BBL seasons
2006–07		 Succeeded by
2007–08 season
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