2006–07 British Basketball League season

March 2012 April 2016 2006–07 BBL season British Basketball League Basketball Roll of Honour BBL Guildford Heat Play-off's Newcastle Eagles BBL Cup Guildford Heat BBL Trophy Plymouth Raiders List of British Basketball League seasons British Basketball League 2005–06 2007–08 The 2006–07 BBL 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.Andrew Shields Towards 2012 http://www.timeout.com/london/sport/features/2158/Basketball-towards_2012.html 2006 9 November 2010 Time Out dead https://web.archive.org/web/20120112004038/http://www.timeout.com/london/sport/features/2158/Basketball-towards_2012.html 12 January 2012 dmy 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 decided to "park" their respective franchises and take a one-year break Rob Dugdale Towers owner to suspend franchise for new season https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2006/jul/31/gdnsport3.sport 24 March 2007 The Guardian London 31 July 2006Andrew Shields Towards 2012 http://www.timeout.com/london/sport/features/2158/Basketball-towards_2012.html 2006 9 November 2010 Time Out dead https://web.archive.org/web/20120112004038/http://www.timeout.com/london/sport/features/2158/Basketball-towards_2012.html 12 January 2012 dmy http://www.brightonbears.com/ Archived copy 9 November 2010 1 January 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20110101110402/http://www.brightonbears.com/ dead whilst Birmingham Bullets also decided to sit out due to a lack of suitable home venues available BBC Sport Birmingham will miss BBL season https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/basketball/5217982.stm 9 November 2010 BBC 26 July 2006 and have since gone into liquidation. BBC Stoke and Staffordshire Team Birmingham Bullets basketball club move to Fenton https://news.bbc.co.uk/local/stoke/hi/things_to_do/newsid_8444000/8444310.stm 9 November 2010 BBC 7 January 2010 Teams United Kingdom right 250 Locations of the 2006–07 BBL teams United Kingdom 53.196 -2.890 Jets left United Kingdom 51.24844 -0.56288 Heat left United Kingdom 52.62973 -1.13897 Riders right United Kingdom 51.5304 0.0784 United right United Kingdom 51.997121 -0.723289 Lions right United Kingdom 54.963889 -1.623333 Eagles bottom United Kingdom 50.368889 -4.15 Raiders right United Kingdom 55.868494 -4.294044 Rocks left United Kingdom 53.398333 -1.424444 Sharks right United Kingdom 52.19123 -2.222231 Wolves left TeamCity/AreaArenaCapacityLast 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. Rob Dugdale Towers owner to suspend franchise for new season https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2006/jul/31/gdnsport3.sport 24 March 2007 The Guardian London 31 July 2006 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.Andrew Shields Towards 2012 http://www.timeout.com/london/sport/features/2158/Basketball-towards_2012.html 2006 9 November 2010 Time Out dead https://web.archive.org/web/20120112004038/http://www.timeout.com/london/sport/features/2158/Basketball-towards_2012.html 12 January 2012 dmy 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, BBC BBL signs up with new broadcaster https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/basketball/5368682.stm 9 April 2007 BBC Sport 21 September 2006 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.Richard Taylor BBL kept in the dark on positive drug test http://sport.independent.co.uk/general/article2388307.ece 24 March 2007 The Independent London 24 March 2007 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20070930181403/http://sport.independent.co.uk/general/article2388307.ece 30 September 2007 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.Richard Taylor Jets' future in doubt after Burton quits http://sport.independent.co.uk/general/article2430098.ece 7 April 2007 The Independent London 7 April 2007 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20070930181024/http://sport.independent.co.uk/general/article2430098.ece 30 September 2007 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 PosTeamPldWL%Pts1Guildford Heat362970.806582Sheffield Sharks362880.778563Newcastle Eagles3625110.694504Scottish Rocks3622140.611445Plymouth Raiders3620160.556406Milton Keynes Lions3618180.500367Leicester Riders3613230.361268London United3611250.306229Chester Jets3610260.2782010Worcester Wolves364320.1118 = League winners = Qualified for the play-offs Playoffs Quarter-finals Semi-finals Final 1 Guildford Heat 71 8 London United 68 4 Scottish Rocks 83 5 Plymouth Raiders 77 2 Sheffield Sharks 89 7 Leicester Riders 71 3 Newcastle Eagles 110 6 Milton Keynes Lions 84 1 Guildford Heat 71 4 Scottish Rocks 78 2 Sheffield Sharks 73 3 Newcastle Eagles 83 4 Scottish Rocks 82 3 Newcastle Eagles 95 Quarter-finals #eee 13 April 2007 Sheffield Sharks 89 71 Leicester Riders English Institute of Sport, Sheffield 15 April 2007 Guildford Heat 71 68 London United Guildford Spectrum, Guildford #eee 15 April 2007 Scottish Rocks 83 77 Plymouth Raiders Braehead Arena, Glasgow 17 April 2007 Newcastle Eagles 110 84 Milton Keynes Lions Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle upon Tyne Semi-finals #eee 28 April 2007 Guildford Heat 71 78 Scottish Rocks Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle upon Tyne 28 April 2007 Sheffield Sharks 73 83 Newcastle Eagles Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle upon Tyne Third-place game #eee 29 April 2007 Guildford Heat 97 105 Sheffield Sharks Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle upon Tyne Final #eee 29 April 2007 Report Newcastle Eagles 95 82 30–23 17–21 23–17 25–21 Scottish Rocks Olu Babalola 23, Tony Dorsey 18, Andrew Bridge 17, Shawan Robinson 16, Fab Flournoy 8, Jeremy Hyatt 6, Darius Defoe 5 Robert Yanders 26, Sterling Davis 16, Maurice Hampton 16, Moritz Wohlers 10, Chris Anrin 5, Gareth Murray 4, Julius Joseph 4 Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle upon Tyne National League Division 1 (Tier 2) Final standings PosTeamPldWL%Pts1 Worthing Thunder 22 21 1 0.955422 Reading Rockets 22 19 3 0.86438 3 Manchester Magic 22 17 5 0.77334 4 London Leopards 22 13 9 0.59126 5 PAWS London Capital 22 13 9 0.59126 6 West Hertfordshire Warriors 22 11 11 0.50022 7 City of Sheffield Arrows 22 11 11 0.50022 8 Solent Stars 22 7 15 0.31814 9 Coventry Crusaders 22 6 16 0.27312 10 King's Lynn Fury 22 5 17 0.22710 11 Teesside Mohawks 22 5 17 0.22710 12 Northampton Neptunes 22 4 18 0.1828 = League winners = Qualified for the play-offs National League Division 2 (Tier 3) Final standings PosTeamPldWL%Pts1 Derby Trailblazers 22 19 3 0.864382 Bristol Academy Flyers 22 19 3 0.86438 3 Taunton Tigers 22 15 7 0.68230 4 Team Northumbria 22 14 8 0.63628 5 Newi Nets 22 12 10 0.54524 6 Leicester Warriors 22 11 11 0.50022 7 Birmingham Aston Athletics 22 11 11 0.50022 8 Tamar Valley Cannons 22 10 12 0.45520 9 Kent Crusaders 22 7 15 0.31814 10 Plymouth Raiders II 22 6 16 0.27312 11 Mansfield Express 22 5 17 0.22710 12 Liverpool 22 3 19 0.1366 = 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 league's 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 #eee 20 October 2006 Milton Keynes Lions 83 70 Worcester Wolves Bletchley Centre, Milton Keynes 22 October 2006 Plymouth Raiders 79 74 London United Plymouth Pavilions, Plymouth Quarter-finals #eee 5 November 2006 Newcastle Eagles 100 74 Milton Keynes Lions Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle upon Tyne 10 November 2006 Sheffield Sharks 76 64 Leicester Riders English Institute of Sport, Sheffield #eee 25 November 2006 Guildford Heat 95 88 Plymouth Raiders Guildford Spectrum, Guildford 12 November 2006 Scottish Rocks 84 79 Chester Jets Braehead Arena, Glasgow Semi-finals #eee 3 December 2006 Guildford Heat 87 81 Sheffield Sharks Guildford Spectrum, Guildford 10 December 2006 Scottish Rocks 94 69 Newcastle Eagles Braehead Arena, Glasgow Final #eee 7 January 2007 Report Guildford Heat 82 79 16–27 26–9 15–7 25–36 Scottish Rocks Brian Dux 21, Chad McKnight 20, Dean Williams 10, Dan Wardrope 7, Mike Martin 7, Rod Wellington 7, Daniel Gilbert 6, Chris Brown 3 Sterling Davis 21, Maurice Hampton 19, Rob Yanders 18, Julius Joseph 9, Moritz Wohlers 7, Hugo Sterk 4 National Indoor Arena, Birmingham 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 Northern Group 1 TeamPtsPldWLPercent1.Newcastle Eagles63301.0002.Scottish Rocks43210.6663.Edinburgh Kings23120.3334.Troon Tornadoes03030.000 Southern Group 1 TeamPtsPldWLPercent1.Leicester Riders43210.6662.London United43210.6663.Milton Keynes Lions43210.6664.London Leopards03030.000 Northern Group 2 TeamPtsPldWLPercent1.Sheffield Sharks63301.0002.Chester Jets23120.3333.Coventry Crusaders23120.3334.Worcester Wolves23120.333 Southern Group 2 TeamPtsPldWLPercent1.Plymouth Raiders63301.0002.Guildford Heat43210.6663.Worthing Thunder23120.3334.Reading Rockets03030.000 Semi-finals #eee 9 February 2007 Plymouth Raiders 83 64 Leicester Riders Plymouth Pavilions, Plymouth 11 February 2007 Sheffield Sharks 55 58 Newcastle Eagles Ponds Forge, Sheffield Final #eee 4 March 2007 Report Newcastle Eagles 65 74 18–21 17–19 10–18 20–16 Plymouth Raiders Tony Dorsey 20, Shawan Robinson 15, Fab Flournoy 12, Olu Babalola 11, TJ Walker 3, Darius Defoe 2 Carlton Aaron 25, Gaylon Moore 17, Gavin Love 11, Andrew Lasker 10, DeAntoine Beasley 8, Allister Gall 3 Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle upon Tyne Statistics leaders CategoryPlayerStatPoints per gameUSA Jazwyn Cowan (Chester Jets) 23.07Rebounds per game USA Carlton Aaron (Plymouth Raiders) 12.43Assists per game USA TJ Walker (Newcastle Eagles) 5.86Steals per game USA Maurice Hampton (Scottish Rocks) 2.86Blocks per game Barbados Andrew Alleyne (Leicester Riders) 1.36Field goal percentage UK Darius Defoe (Newcastle Eagles) 60.00%Free throw percentage UK Dan Wardrope (Guildford Heat) 86.19%Three-point field goal percentage Nigeria Belgium Hugo Sterk (Scottish Rocks) 44.00% Monthly awards MonthCoachPlayerOctoberUSA Tom Hancock (Milton Keynes Lions) USA UK Tony Windless (Milton Keynes Lions)November UK Peter Scantlebury MBE (Sheffield Sharks) USA Carlton Aaron (Plymouth Raiders)December UK Paul James (Guildford Heat) USA Jazwyn Cowan (Chester Jets)January USA UK Fabulous Flournoy (Newcastle Eagles) USA Jeff Bonds (Sheffield Sharks)February UK Peter Scantlebury MBE (Sheffield Sharks) UK Tarick Johnson (London United)March Germany Thorsten Leibenath (Scottish Rocks) USA Daniel Gilbert (Guildford Heat) Seasonal awards Most Valuable Player: Brian Dux (Guildford Heat) and Jeff Bonds (Sheffield Sharks) Coach of the Year: Paul James (Guildford Heat) All-Star First Team: Jeff Bonds (Sheffield Sharks) Brian Dux (Guildford Heat) Mike Martin (Guildford Heat) Carlton Aaron (Plymouth Raiders) Robert Yanders (Scottish Rocks) All-Star Second Team: Blake Shelton (Sheffield Sharks) Jazwyn Cowan (Chester Jets) Sterling Davis (Scottish Rocks) Tarick Johnson (London United) Fabulous Flournoy (Newcastle Eagles) References 2005–06 season 2007–08 season BBL seasons 2006–07 Category:British Basketball League seasons 1 British