1998–99 British Basketball League season
Introduction The '''1998–99 BBL season''' was the 12th season of the British Basketball League, known as the Budweiser Basketball League for sponsorship reasons, since its establishment in 1987.The regular season commenced on September 12, 1998, and ended on April 4, 1999, with a total of 13 teams competing, playing 36 games each. The post-season Play-offs began on April 9 and culminated in the end-of-season finale on May 2 at Wembley Arena.Start-up franchise Edinburgh Rocks became the League's newest member following their addition as the 14th franchise during the pre-season and the first Scottish team to appear in the top-flight since Glasgow Rangers' participation in the 1988–89 season. The League membership was reduced to 13 teams shortly after following the merger of the London Towers and Crystal Palace franchises, whilst another notable change was the uprooting of Watford Royals, who moved to the Bletchley Centre in Milton Keynes to become the Milton Keynes Lions.Sheffield Sharks were a dominant force throughout the season, winning the Sainsbury's Classic Cola Cup whilst storming the Budweiser League and taking the Championship to complete the "Double". The campaign came down to a memorable final game where Sharks claimed the title from rivals Manchester Giants with the last shot of the game, winning 85–87 to take the crown. Their successful run fell short in the play-offs however, managing only a third-placed finish thus allowing a new-look London Towers to claim the title. Manchester Giants also ended a decade-long drought of silverware with their win in the uni-ball Trophy.No teams participated in European competition after Birmingham Bullets and Greater London Leopards both declined to compete in the Saporta Cup.
Notable occurrences * Edinburgh Rocks were officially announced as the League's newest franchise on 4 June 1998 – though the Rocks nickname was revealed at a later date – with former NBA player Jim Brandon signed as the team's head coach. * The London Towers and Crystal Palace teams merged their organisations during the close-season, with the new franchise continuing to use the London Towers branding and utilising the home venues of both clubs, Crystal Palace National Sports Centre and Wembley Arena for home games. * Watford Royals owner Vince Macaulay announced on 19 June that he was moving the franchise to Milton Keynes due to a lack of suitable venues for home games in Watford, after plans for a new 3,000-capacity arena in Watford, to be built in partnership with Watford F.C., fell through. * The Budweiser League game between Chester Jets and Derby Storm on 31 January 1999 was abandoned after 30 seconds due to a court invasion from both sets of players following a fight between Chester's Sean Hartley and Derby's England international Yorick Williams. Media reports claim it was the most serious incident in the history of competitive basketball in Britain. Four players were initially ejected from the game, including Williams and Hartley, whilst Chester physio Alison Troughtman was taken to hospital, suffering from a suspected broken-jaw. It was later announced that Williams was suspended for the remainder of the regular season, whilst Derby's Rico Alderson was banned until the following season. * The Southern All-Stars were victorious in the annual '''All-Star Game''' against their Northern rivals, with a 156–158 win at Newcastle Arena on February 27.Edinburgh's Ted Berry was the game-high scorer with 29 points and was named as the games Most Valuable Player. * Manchester Giants claimed their first piece of silverware in franchise history after defeating Derby in the uni-ball Trophy Final on 13 March. Giants won 90–69, and the 21-point gap between the two teams was the biggest winning margin in the event's history. * Furthering their ongoing disciplinary issues, it was revealed in April that Derby Storm's American player Maurice Robinson was issued with a one-year suspension for failing to supply a complete urine sample during a Sports Council doping control test. * The '''Budweiser League''' came down to a memorable final game between title-chasing rivals Sheffield Sharks and Manchester Giants in-front of more than 11,000 fans at the MEN Arena. With both teams tied on points at the top of the League table, and tied at 85–85 with just 3.5 seconds left in the game, Terrell Myers took the pass and his 18 ft buzzer-beating jump-shot claimed the title for Sheffield. * London Towers were crowned as '''Budweiser League Play-off''' champions on 2 May, after defeating Thames Valley Tigers 82–71 at Wembley Arena. Towers' Malcolm Leak lead the game's scoring, posting 20 points. * Nottingham-based businessman Craig Bown purchased the Birmingham Bullets franchise at the end of the season for a reported six-figure sum.
Budweiser League Championship (Tier 1) === Final standings ===PosTeamPldWL%Pts1  Sheffield Sharks 36  31  5 0.861'''62'''2  Manchester Giants 36  30  6 0.833'''60''' 3  London Towers 36  24  12 0.667'''48''' 4  Thames Valley Tigers 36  22  14 0.611'''44''' 5  Newcastle Eagles 36  21  15 0.583'''42''' 6  Derby Storm 36  21  15 0.583'''42'''  7  Birmingham Bullets 36  21  15 0.583'''42'''8  Greater London Leopards 36  19  17 0.527'''38''' 9  Edinburgh Rocks 36  12  24 0.333'''24''' 10  Milton Keynes Lions 36  10  26 0.278'''20''' 11  Chester Jets 36  10  26 0.278'''20''' 12  Leicester Riders 36  9  27 0.250'''18'''  13  Worthing Bears 36  4  32 0.111'''8'''   = League winners  = Qualified for the play-offs=== Playoffs ======= Quarter-finals ===='''(1) Sheffield Sharks vs. (8) Greater London Leopards''''''(2) Manchester Giants vs. (7) Birmingham Bullets''''''(3) London Towers vs. (5) Newcastle Eagles''''''(4) Thames Valley Tigers vs. (6) Derby Storm'''==== Semi-finals ======== Third-place game ======== Final ====
National League Division 1 (Tier 2) === Final standings ===PosTeamPldWL%Pts1  Solent Stars * 26  21  5 0.808'''42'''2  Plymouth Raiders 26  21  5 0.808'''42''' 3  Guildford Pumas 26  19  7 0.731'''38''' 4  Teesside Mohawks 26  19  7 0.731'''38''' 5  London Towers II 26  17  9 0.654'''34''' 6  Mid-Sussex Magic 26  16  10 0.615'''32'''7  Cardiff Clippers 26  14  12 0.538'''28''' 8  Coventry Crusaders 26  12  14 0.463'''24''' 9  Westminster Warriors 26  9  17 0.346'''18''' 10  Stevenage Rebels 26  9  17 0.346'''18''' 11  Oxford Devils 26  9  17 0.346'''18''' 12  Solihull Chiefs 26  7  19 0.269'''14'''  13  Cardiff Phoenix 26  6  20 0.231'''12''' 14  Brixton TopCats 26  2  24 0.077'''4'''   = League winners  = Qualified for the play-offsChampions by virtue of head-to-head record*===Playoffs==='''Quarter-finals''''''Semi-finals''''''Final'''
National League Division 2 (Tier 3) === Final standings ===PosTeamPldWL%Pts1  Birmingham Bullets II 26  22  4 0.846'''44'''2  Taunton Tigers 26  21  5 0.808'''42''' 3  City of Manchester Attitude 26  18  8 0.693'''36''' 4  Reading Rockets 26  17  9 0.654'''34''' 5  Liverpool Atac 26  16  10 0.615'''32''' 6  Chessington Wildcats 26  16  10 0.615'''32'''7  Northampton 89ers 26  15  11 0.577'''30''' 8  Wandsworth Bulls 26  12  14 0.463'''24''' 9  Flintshire Flyers 26  12  14 0.463'''24''' 10  Slough Chargers 26  8  18 0.308'''16''' 11  Swindon Sonics 26  7  19 0.269'''14''' 12  Bournemouth Dolphins 26  7  19 0.269'''14'''  13  Portsmouth Pirates 26  5  21 0.192'''10''' 14  Thames Valley Tigers II 26  5  21 0.192'''10'''   = League winners  = Qualified for the play-offs===Playoffs==='''Quarter-finals''''''Semi-finals''''''Final'''
National League Division 3 (Tier 4) === Final standings ===PosTeamPldWL%Pts1  Kingston upon Hull Icebergs 20  18  2 0.900'''36'''2  North London Lords 20  17  3 0.850'''34''' 3  NW London Wolverines 20  12  8 0.600'''24''' 4  Barking & Dag. Erkenwald 20  12  8 0.600'''24''' 5  Mansfield Express 20  11  9 0.550'''22''' 6  Ware Fire 20  11  9 0.550'''22'''7  Derbyshire Arrows 20  9  11 0.450'''18''' 8  Cambridge 20  8  12 0.400'''16''' 9  Stoke Stealers 20  6  14 0.300'''12''' 10  Sutton 20  4  16 0.200'''8''' 11  Doncaster Eagles 20  2  18 0.100'''4'''   = League winners  = Qualified for the play-offs===Playoffs==='''Quarter-finals''''''Semi-finals''''''Final'''
Sainsbury's Classic Cola National Cup === Last 16 === Team 1 Team 2 Score Teesside Mohawks  Sheffield Sharks  83-91 Derby Storm  Worthing Bears  103-82 Manchester Giants  Edinburgh Rocks  90-70 Thames Valley Tigers  London Towers  95-83 Plymouth Raiders  Greater London Leopards  68-100 Stevenage Rebels  Birmingham Bullets  63-106 Leicester Riders  Chester Jets  89-92 Newcastle Eagles  Milton Keynes Lions  77-69=== Quarter-finals === Team 1 Team 2 Score Sheffield Sharks  Derby Storm  87-76 Manchester Giants  Thames Valley Tigers  87-100 Greater London Leopards  Birmingham Bullets  90-88 Chester Jets  Newcastle Eagles  72-93=== Semi-finals === Team 1 Team 2 Score Sheffield Sharks  Thames Valley Tigers  78-66 Greater London Leopards  Newcastle Eagles  98-95 OT=== Final ===
uni-ball Trophy === Group stage ==='''Group A'''TeamPtsPldWLPercent1. '''Sheffield Sharks''''''12'''7610.8572. '''Derby Storm''''''10'''7520.7143. '''Manchester Giants''''''10'''7520.7144. '''Chester Jets''''''8'''7430.5715. '''Leicester Riders''''''8'''7430.5716.Milton Keynes Lions'''2'''7160.1427.Worthing Bears'''0'''7070.000'''Group B'''TeamPtsPldWLPercent1. '''London Towers''''''8'''4401.0002. '''Birmingham Bullets''''''6'''4310.7503. '''Newcastle Eagles''''''4'''4220.5004.Greater London Leopards'''2'''4130.2505.Edinburgh Rocks'''0'''4040.000=== Quarter-finals ====== Semi-finals ==='''Derby Storm vs. Leicester Riders''''''Sheffield Sharks vs. Manchester Giants'''=== Final ===
Dairylea Dunkers All-Star Game +'''Northern All-Stars'''Player Team  Tony Dorsey Manchester Giants  Terrell Myers  Sheffield Sharks  Billy Singleton  Leicester Riders  Nick Browning  Chester Jets  Ralph Blalock  Newcastle Eagles  JaRon Boone  Leicester Riders  Wilbur Johnson  Sheffield Sharks  Travis Conlon  Sheffield Sharks  Tony Holley  Manchester Giants  Ted Berry  Edinburgh Rocks  Chris Flite  Newcastle Eagles  Corey Jackson  Newcastle Eagles Coach  Nick Nurse  Manchester Giants+'''Southern All-Stars'''Player Team  John McCord  Thames Valley Tigers  Jon Gaines  Worthing Bears  Nigel Lloyd  Birmingham Bullets   Tony Windless  Milton Keynes Lions   Jason Siemon  Thames Valley Tigers  Reggie Kirk  Birmingham Bullets  Casey Arena  Thames Valley Tigers  Danny Lewis  London Towers  Malcolm Leak  London Towers  Robert Youngblood  Greater London Leopards  Eric Burks  Greater London Leopards  Dwayne Morton  London Towers Coach  Billy Mims  Greater London Leopards
Statistics leaders CategoryPlayerStatPoints per game John White (Manchester Giants)   26.09Rebounds per game  Rico Alderson (Derby Storm)   11.84Assists per game  Prentice McGruder (Chester Jets)  8.38Steals per game  Casey Arena (Thames Valley Tigers)  3.34Blocks per game  James Doyle (Leicester Riders)  2.56
Seasonal awards * '''Most Valuable Player:''' Terrell Myers (Sheffield Sharks)* '''Coach of the Year:''' Chris Finch (Sheffield Sharks)* '''All-Star First Team:'''** Terrell Myers (Sheffield Sharks)** John White (Manchester Giants)** Tony Dorsey (Manchester Giants)** John McCord (Thames Valley Tigers)** Nigel Lloyd (Birmingham Bullets)* '''All-Star Second Team:'''** Tim Moore (Greater London Leopards)** Travis Conlan (Sheffield Sharks)** Ralph Blalock (Newcastle Eagles)** Casey Arena (Thames Valley Tigers)** Danny Lewis (London Towers)
References