British Basketball League 2006-07

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BBL seasons
2007-08 • 2006-07 • 2005-06
2004-05 • 2003-04 • 2002-03
2001-02 • 2000-01 • 1999-00
1998-99 • 1997-98 • 1996-97
1995-96 • 1994-95 • 1993-94
1992-93 • 1991-92 • 1990-91
1989-90 • 1988-89 • 1987-88

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

There are 10 teams are taking 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 the summer of 2006.

The new additions were brought in after three teams withdrew from the League before the start of the season. Brighton Bears and London Towers are both taking a "one year break" [1] while Birmingham Bullets have since gone into liquidation.

Contents

[edit] Notable occurences

  • 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.
  • 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.
  • A £2.5 million sponsorship deal was agreed on September 22, 2006, between the BBL and national broadcaster MKTV, including primetime TV coverage of 40 live games per season [2], 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 September 25 as the official matchball for the next three seasons.
  • New league franchise Worcester Wolves record their first ever BBL win on October 7, a 82-79 home victory against Chester Jets.
  • The BBL Cup final took place at the National Indoor Arena, in Birmingham on January 7, 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 March 4. 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 [3].
  • 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 [4].
  • Despite leading the League for most of the season, Guildford's one point 90-91 loss away to Scottish Rocks on April 1, ensured that the title race went down to the wire, and only a final day 114-85 win at home to Chester Jets on April 8 guaranteed the 2007 League crown would belong to the Heat.
  • Newcastle, playing in front of their home fans at the Metro Radio Arena on April 29, were victorious against a resiliant 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.

[edit] BBL Championship

[edit] Final standings

Team Pts Pld W L Percentage
1. Guildford Heat 58 36 29 7 0.806
2. Sheffield Sharks 56 36 28 8 0.778
3. Newcastle Eagles 50 36 25 11 0.694
4. Scottish Rocks 44 36 22 14 0.611
5. Plymouth Raiders 40 36 20 16 0.556
6. Milton Keynes Lions 36 36 18 18 0.500
7. Leicester Riders 26 36 13 23 0.361
8. London United 22 36 11 25 0.306
9. Chester Jets 20 36 10 16 0.278
10. Worcester Wolves 8 36 4 32 0.111

[edit] Playoffs

  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  

[edit] Quarter-finals

[edit] Semi-finals

[edit] Third-place final

[edit] Final

[edit] BBL Cup

The 2006-07 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 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 thrilling 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 easily crushed by the mighty Scottish Rocks, where Rocks' Robert Yanders netted a game-high 23 points.

[edit] First Round

[edit] Quarter-finals

[edit] Semi-finals

[edit] Final

[edit] BBL Trophy

[edit] Group Stage

Northern Group 1

Team Pts Pld W L Percent
1.Newcastle Eagles 6 3 3 0 1.000
2.Scottish Rocks 4 3 2 1 0.666
3.Edinburgh Kings 2 3 1 2 0.333
4.Troon Tornadoes 0 3 0 3 0.000

Northern Group 2

Team Pts Pld W L Percent
1.Sheffield Sharks 6 3 3 0 1.000
2.Chester Jets 2 3 1 2 0.333
3.Coventry Crusaders 2 3 1 2 0.333
4.Worcester Wolves 2 3 1 2 0.333

Southern Group 1

Team Pts Pld W L Percent
1.Leicester Riders 4 3 2 1 0.666
2.London United 4 3 2 1 0.666
3.Milton Keynes Lions 4 3 2 1 0.666
4.London Leopards 0 3 0 3 0.000

Southern Group 2

Team Pts Pld W L Percent
1.Plymouth Raiders 6 3 3 0 1.000
2.Guildford Heat 4 3 2 1 0.666
3.Worthing Thunder 2 3 1 2 0.333
4.Reading Rockets 0 3 0 3 0.000

[edit] Semi-finals

[edit] Final

[edit] Stats leaders

Category Player Stat
Points per game Flag of the United States Jazwyn Cowan (Chester) 23.07
Rebounds per game Flag of the United States Carlton Aaron (Plymouth) 12.43
Assists per game Flag of the United States TJ Walker (Newcastle) 5.86
Steals per game Flag of the United States Maurice Hampton (Scots Rocks) 2.86
Blocks per game Flag of Barbados Andrew Alleyne (Leicester) 1.36
Field goal percentage Flag of the United Kingdom Darius Defoe (Newcastle) 60.00%
Free throw percentage Flag of the United Kingdom Dan Wardrope (Guildford) 86.19%
Three-point field goal percentage Flag of Nigeria Flag of Belgium Hugo Sterk (Scots Rocks) 44.00%

[edit] Monthly awards

Month Coach Player
October Flag of the United States Tom Hancock (Milton Keynes) Flag of the United States Flag of the United Kingdom Tony Windless (Milton Keynes)
November Flag of the United Kingdom Peter Scantlebury MBE (Sheffield) Flag of the United States Carlton Aaron (Plymouth)
December Flag of the United Kingdom Paul James (Guildford) Flag of the United States Jazwyn Cowan (Chester)
January Flag of the United States Flag of the United Kingdom Fabulous Flournoy (Newcastle) Flag of the United States Jeff Bonds (Sheffield)
February Flag of the United Kingdom Peter Scantlebury MBE (Sheffield) Flag of the United Kingdom Tarick Johnson (London)
March Flag of Germany Thorsten Leibenath (Scots Rocks) Flag of the United States Daniel Gilbert (Guildford)

[edit] Seasonal awards

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Rob Dugdale (2006). Towers owner to suspend franchise for new season. The Guardian. Retrieved on 2007-03-24.
  2. ^ BBC (2006). BBL signs up with new broadcaster. BBC Sport. Retrieved on 2007-04-09.
  3. ^ Richard Taylor (2007). BBL kept in the dark on positive drug test. The Independent. Retrieved on 2007-03-24.
  4. ^ Richard Taylor (2007). Jets' future in doubt after Burton quits. The Independent. Retrieved on 2007-04-07.
Preceded by
2005-06 BBL season		 BBL seasons
2006-07		 Succeeded by
2007-08 BBL season

Birmingham Panthers | Cheshire Jets | Everton Tigers | Guildford Heat | Leicester Riders | London Capital | Milton Keynes Lions | Newcastle Eagles | Plymouth Raiders | Scottish Rocks | Sheffield Sharks | Worcester Wolves

Inactive team: London United | Future team: Brighton Cougars