2005–06 NBL season
| 2005–06 NBL season | |
|---|---|
| League | National Basketball League |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration |
2 September 2005 – February 2006 8 – 16 February 2006 (Finals) 24 – 28 February 2006 (Grand Finals) |
| Number of teams | 11 |
| TV partner(s) | Fox Sports |
| Regular season | |
| Top seed | Melbourne Tigers |
| Season MVP | Chris Anstey |
| Finals | |
| Champions | Melbourne Tigers |
| Runners-up | Sydney Kings |
| Finals MVP | Chris Anstey |
The 2005–06 NBL season was the 28th season of competition since its establishment in 1979. A total of 11 teams contested the league.
Regular season
The home and away season took place over 23 rounds between 2 September 2005 and February 2006 with finals starting 8 February 2006 until 16 February 2006 and grand final on 24 February 2006 until 28 February 2006.
Ladder
This is the ladder at the end of season, before the finals. In all, 176 games were played, 32 for each team. The top 8 teams qualified for the finals series.
| Team | Pld | Won | Lost | Last 5 | Streak | Home | Away | % Pts | % Won | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Melbourne Tigers | 37 | 30 | 7 | 5-0 | W7 | 17-1 | 13-6 | 110 | 81 |
| 2 | Sydney Kings | 37 | 28 | 9 | 2-3 | L3 | 16-3 | 12-6 | 110 | 75 |
| 3 | Wollongong Hawks | 33 | 28 | 9 | 2-3 | L1 | 12-5 | 7-9 | 103 | 57 |
| 4 | Adelaide 36ers | 33 | 19 | 14 | 1-4 | L4 | 14-3 | 5-11 | 98 | 57 |
| 5 | Cairns Taipans | 36 | 20 | 16 | 4-1 | L2 | 13-5 | 7-11 | 102 | 55 |
| 6 | Brisbane Bullets | 33 | 17 | 16 | 4-1 | L1 | 12-5 | 5-11 | 102 | 51 |
| 7 | Perth Wildcats | 36 | 18 | 18 | 3-2 | L2 | 10-7 | 8-11 | 101 | 50 |
| 8 | Hunter Pirates | 33 | 13 | 20 | 1-4 | L2 | 8-8 | 5-12 | 94 | 39 |
| 9 | Townsville Crocodiles | 32 | 9 | 23 | 1-4 | L3 | 7-9 | 2-14 | 94 | 28 |
| 10 | New Zealand Breakers | 32 | 9 | 23 | 3-2 | L2 | 6-10 | 3-13 | 91 | 28 |
| 11 | West Sydney Razorbacks | 32 | 5 | 27 | 1-4 | L3 | 4-12 | 1-15 | 90 | 15 |
Finals Series
Quarter Finals
The quarter finals were played over 4 days. The first two teams automatically went ahead to the semi finals. The winner of Game 1 went on to play the 3rd placed team, while the winner of Game 2 went on to play the 4th placed team.
| Date | Home team | Score | Away team | Venue | Crowd | Box Score | Report |
| 8 February | Brisbane Bullets | 91–96 | Perth Wildcats | Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre | box score | report | |
| 9 February | Cairns Taipans | 88–80 | Hunter Pirates | Cairns Convention Centre | 4,726 | box score | report |
| 10 February | Wollongong Hawks | 101–121 | Perth Wildcats | WIN Entertainment Centre | 3,345 | box score | report |
| 11 February | Adelaide 36ers | 103–106 (OT) | Cairns Taipans | Adelaide Arena | box score | report |
Semi Finals
The semi finals took place in a best of 3 series. But, both teams that advanced through to the Grand Final didn't need the 3rd game, winning 2-0.
| Date | Home team | Score | Away team | Venue | Crowd | Box Score | Report |
| 14 February | Melbourne Tigers | 94–78 | Perth Wildcats | State Netball and Hockey Centre | 3,107 | box score | report |
| 15 February | Sydney Kings | 112–87 | Cairns Taipans | Sydney Entertainment Centre | 3,192 | box score | report |
| 16 February | Perth Wildcats | 101–106 | Melbourne Tigers | Challenge Stadium | 4,400 | box score | report |
| 17 February | Cairns Taipans | 82–84 | Sydney Kings | Cairns Convention Centre | box score | report |
Grand Final
The Melbourne Tigers beat the Sydney Kings 3-0 in the best of 5 series. Two of these games were played at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, while one was played at Melbourne's home ground, State Netball and Hockey Centre. (best-of-three series)
| Date | Home team | Score | Away team | Venue | Crowd | Box Score | Report |
| 24 February | Sydney Kings | 93–100 | Melbourne Tigers | Sydney Entertainment Centre | 5,890 | box score | report |
| 26 February | Melbourne Tigers | 103–99 | Sydney Kings | State Netball and Hockey Centre | box score | report | |
| 28 February | Sydney Kings | 83–88 | Melbourne Tigers | Sydney Entertainment Centre | 5,561 | box score | report |
Awards
The MVP was awarded to Chris Anstey of the Melbourne Tigers.
The Grand Final MVP was also awarded to Chris Anstey.
The Coach of the Year went to Alan Westover of the Melbourne Tigers who coached the team to the title.
The Rookie of the Year went to Mark Worthington of the Sydney Kings.
All NBL Team
| # | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| PG | Brett Maher | Adelaide 36ers |
| SG | C. J. Bruton | Sydney Kings |
| SF | Cortez Groves | Wollongong Hawks |
| PF | Larry Abney | Townsville Crocodiles |
| C | Chris Anstey | Melbourne Tigers |