Near East B.C.

A.O. Near East B.C. is one of the oldest professional basketball clubs in Greece. The basketball club was founded in 1927. The team is located in Kaisariani, which is a suburb of the city of Athens. Near East's home arena, Near East Indoor Arena, is located only about 2 miles from the downtown center of Athens. It takes its name from the Near East Foundation.

Near East
LeaguesGreek A2 League
Greek Cup
Founded1927
History1927 – present
ArenaNear East Indoor Arena
(capacity: 1,300)
LocationKaisariani, Athens, Greece
Team colorsRed and white
         
Head coachTolis Karnesis
Championships1 Greek Championship
(1936)
1 Greek 2nd Division
(1998)
WebsiteEurobasket.com

History

Early history

Near East B.C. was one of the teams that participated in the first Pan-Hellenic Basketball tournament, which took place in Thessaloniki, Greece. In 1936, Near East B.C. won its first official Greek League championship, by defeating the University of Athens basketball team in Thessaloniki. To this day, this is still the only Greek national campionship the club has won. In 1937, Near East B.C. finished second in the Greek League championship, as the University of Athens basketball club defeated them in the championship's final.

Recent history

In more recent times, the Near East basketball team struggled to hold on to its position in the top-tier-level league in Greece, the first division Greek Basket League. In 1998, the team won the top Greek pro league's second division championship, the Greek A2 League. The team participated in the European-wide 3rd-tier-level FIBA Korać Cup, in the years 2000 and 2001. In 2002, the team competed in the Greek first division, for the last time in recent years.

Near East B.C. in international competitions
Main article: Near East B.C. in international competitions

Championships

Notable players

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationality not displayed.

Head coaches
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.