Australian Basketball Association

The Australian Basketball Association (ABA) was a semi-professional basketball competition in Australia. The competition had five leagues under its banner during the 2000s operating as conferences: South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL), Queensland Basketball League (QBL), Central Australian Basketball League (Central ABL), Big V and Waratah League. The ABA's roots can be traced back as far as 1965 and operated under many different names and structures until 2008.

Australian Basketball Association (ABA)
FormerlySouth Eastern Basketball League
1981–1987
South East Australian Basketball League
1988–1991
Continental Basketball Association
1992–1998
Australian Basketball Association
1999–2008
SportBasketball
Founded1981
First season1981
Ceased2008
CountryAustralia
ContinentFIBA Oceania (Oceania)
Level on pyramid2
Related
competitions
Big V
Central ABL
QBL
SEABL
Waratah League

History

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In 1965, the South Eastern Conference (SEC) was established. The SEC continued until 1971 when the Australian Club Championships gained pre-eminence.[1][2] The Australian Club Championships ceased operations after 1980 due to the rise of Australia's first truly national competition, the National Basketball League (NBL).[1][3]

In 1981, the SEC was reborn as the South Eastern Basketball League (SEBL).[1][3] The competition was known as SEBL for seven seasons until being officially known as the South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL) from 1988 to 1991.[4] The competition became known as the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), and in 1994 it merged with the Queensland Basketball League (QBL) to grow to three conferences: North, South and East.[1] In 1998, the CBA saw further expansion with the inclusion of a Central Conference from South Australia.[1]

The CBA was restructured as the Australian Basketball Association (ABA) in 1999,[5] and over the next two years, the Big V from Victoria (2000) and the Waratah League from New South Wales (2001) joined the ABA.[1]

Starting in 2002, the champions of each of the six conferences and a number of wildcard entries competed at the annual ABA National Finals.[1] A brand change saw the Australian Club Championships (ACC) operate as the national finals series in 2007 and 2008.[6]

The ABA and ACC was abandoned following the 2008 season, resulting in the SEABL, QBL, Central ABL, Big V and Waratah League continuing on as independent leagues.[6]

List of National champions

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Teams Win Loss Total Year(s) won Year(s) lost
Ballarat Miners 3 3 6 1989, 1994, 1995 1990, 1991, 1992
Cairns Marlins 3 2 5 1998, 2004, 2007 1994, 1997
Geelong Cats/Supercats 3 0 3 1981, 1999, 2006
Bulleen Boomers 2 3 5 1984, 1990 1983, 1985, 1988
Bendigo Braves 2 1 3 1988, 2005 1989
Hobart Chargers 2 1 3 2000, 2002 2008
Frankston Bears/Blues 1 3 4 1982 1981, 1995, 1998
Kilsyth Cobras 1 2 3 1985 1999, 2000
Sydney City Slickers/Sydney City Comets/Sydney Comets 1 2 3 1992 1986, 2005
Melbourne Tigers 1 1 2 1983 1982
Newcastle Hunters 1 1 2 1986 1987
Knox Raiders 1 1 2 1991 1996
North-West Tasmania Originals/Thunder 1 1 2 1996 2004
Adelaide Buffalos 1 0 1 1987
North East Melbourne Arrows 1 0 1 1993
Suncoast Clippers 1 0 1 1997
Mount Gambier Pioneers 1 0 1 2003
Rockhampton Rockets 1 0 1 2008
Dandenong Rangers 0 2 2 2006, 2007
Chelsea Gulls 0 1 1 1984
Murray Bridge Bullets 0 1 1 1993
Australian Institute of Sport 0 1 1 2002

Women

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Teams Win Loss Total Year(s) won Year(s) lost
Bayside/Frankston Blues 3 3 6 1993, 1997, 2004 1991, 1992, 1994
Knox Raiders 3 2 5 1992, 1994, 1996 1998, 2005
Bendigo Braves 2 1 3 2000, 2003 2006
Townsville Sunbirds/Flames 2 1 3 2007, 2008 1997
Dandenong Rangers 2 0 2 1990, 1991
Kilsyth Cobras 2 0 2 1998, 2002
Ballarat Miners 2 0 2 2005, 2006
Launceston Tornadoes 1 1 2 1995 1996
Southern Districts Spartans 1 0 1 1999
Sturt Sabres 0 2 2 1990, 2002
Broadmeadows Broncos 0 1 1 1993
Adelaide Opals 0 1 1 1995
Norwood Flames 0 1 1 1999
Nunawading Spectres 0 1 1 2000
Forestville Eagles 0 1 1 2003
North Adelaide Rockets 0 1 1 2004
Hume City Broncos 0 1 1 2007
Sydney Comets 0 1 1 2008

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g "History of the ABA". ABABasketball.net.au. Archived from the original on 19 March 2012.
  2. ^ "2007 ABA Media Guide" (PDF). ABABasketball.net.au. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 September 2007.
  3. ^ a b "FLASHBACK 21: SEBL Finals, Sept.20, 1986". BotiNagy.com. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  4. ^ "HISTORIC MOVE FOR AUSTRALIAN BASKETBALL". Basketball.net.au. 16 December 2014. Archived from the original on 23 January 2015. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  5. ^ "Basketball Australia Annual Report 1998" (PDF). Basketball Australia. p. 28 (36). Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 March 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2017.
  6. ^ a b "ACC National Finals 2009 and onwards". Basketball Queensland. 26 November 2008. Archived from the original on 20 January 2022. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
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