1998–99 British Basketball League season

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The 1998–1999 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.[1]

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 teams head coach.[2]
  • 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.[3]
  • 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,[4] after plans for a new 3,000-capacity arena in Watford, to be built in partnership with Watford F.C., fell through.[5]
  • 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.[6][7] 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.[8] 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.[9]
  • 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.[10]
  • 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.[11]
  • 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.[12]
  • 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.[13]
  • 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 games scoring, posting 20 points.[14]
  • Nottingham-based businessman Craig Bown purchased the Birmingham Bullets franchise at the end of the season for a reported six-figure sum.[15]

Budweiser League Championship

Final standings

Team Pts Pld W L Percentage
1. Sheffield Sharks 62 36 31 5 0.861
2. Manchester Giants 60 36 30 6 0.833
3. London Towers 48 36 24 12 0.666
4. Thames Valley Tigers 44 36 22 14 0.611
5. Newcastle Eagles 42 36 21 15 0.583
6. Derby Storm 42 36 21 15 0.583
7. Birmingham Bullets 42 36 21 15 0.583
8. Greater London Leopards 38 36 19 17 0.527
9. Edinburgh Rocks 24 36 12 24 0.333
10. Milton Keynes Lions 20 36 10 26 0.277
11. Chester Jets 20 36 10 26 0.277
12. Leicester Riders 18 36 9 27 0.250
13. Worthing Bears 8 36 4 32 0.111
= League winners
= Qualified for the Play-offs

The Play-offs

Quarter-finals

(1) Sheffield Sharks vs. (8) Greater London Leopards

April 11, 1999
Greater London Leopards 83–76 Sheffield Sharks
Brentwood Centre, Brentwood
April 14, 1999
Sheffield Sharks 100–82 Greater London Leopards
April 16, 1999
Sheffield Sharks 75–68 Greater London Leopards
Sheffield wins series, 2–1

(2) Manchester Giants vs. (7) Birmingham Bullets

April 11, 1999
Birmingham Bullets 82–74 Manchester Giants
April 15, 1999
Manchester Giants 78–71 Birmingham Bullets
April 17, 1999
Manchester Giants 90–77 Birmingham Bullets
Manchester wins series, 2–1

(3) London Towers vs. (5) Newcastle Eagles

April 9, 1999
Newcastle Eagles 78–76 London Towers
April 15, 1999
London Towers 91–76 Newcastle Eagles
April 17, 1999
London Towers 87–68 Newcastle Eagles
London wins series, 2–1

(4) Thames Valley Tigers vs. (6) Derby Storm

April 10, 1999
Derby Storm 87–91 Thames Valley Tigers
April 14, 1999
Thames Valley Tigers 114–93 Derby Storm
Thames Valley wins series, 2–0

Semi-finals

May 1, 1999
Sheffield Sharks 78–85 London Towers
May 1, 1999
Manchester Giants 76–79 Thames Valley Tigers

Third-place game

May 2, 1999
Sheffield Sharks 98–88 Manchester Giants

Final

May 2, 1999
6.30pm GMT
London Towers 82–71 Thames Valley Tigers
Pts: Malcolm Leak,20 Pts: Bryan Balser, 22

uni-ball Trophy

Group stage

Group A

Team Pts Pld W L Percent
1.Sheffield Sharks 12 7 6 1 0.857
2.Derby Storm 10 7 5 2 0.714
3.Manchester Giants 10 7 5 2 0.714
4.Chester Jets 8 7 4 3 0.571
5.Leicester Riders 8 7 4 3 0.571
6.Milton Keynes Lions 2 7 1 6 0.142
7.Worthing Bears 0 7 0 7 0.000

Group B

Team Pts Pld W L Percent
1.London Towers 8 4 4 0 1.000
2.Birmingham Bullets 6 4 3 1 0.750
3.Newcastle Eagles 4 4 2 2 0.500
4.Greater London Leopards 2 4 1 3 0.250
5.Edinburgh Rocks 0 4 0 4 0.000

Quarter-finals

January 27, 1999
Birmingham Bullets 62–96 Manchester Giants
January 27, 1999
Derby Storm 109–102 Newcastle Eagles
January 27, 1999
London Towers 61–62 Leicester Riders
January 27, 1999
Sheffield Sharks 82–75 Chester Jets

Semi-finals

Derby Storm vs. Leicester Riders

February 10, 1999
Derby Storm 88–75 Leicester Riders
February 18, 1999
Leicester Riders 93–90 Derby Storm
Derby wins on aggregate, 178–168

Sheffield Sharks vs. Manchester Giants

February 10, 1999
Sheffield Sharks 77–81 Manchester Giants
February 17, 1999
Manchester Giants 93–88 Sheffield Sharks
Manchester wins on aggregate, 174–165

Final

March 13, 1999
7.00pm GMT
Derby Storm 69–90 Manchester Giants
Pts: Joel Burns, 20 Pts: Tony Dorsey, 28

Dairylea Dunkers All-Star Game

February 27, 1999
7.05pm GMT
Northern All-Stars 156–158 Southern All-Stars
Pts: Ted Berry, 29 Pts: Malcolm Leak/Jason Siemon, 24

Statistics leaders

Category Player Stat
Points per game United States John White (Manchester Giants) 26.09
Rebounds per game United States Rico Alderson (Derby Storm) 11.84
Assists per game United States Prentice McGruder (Chester Jets) 8.38
Steals per game United States Casey Arena (Thames Valley Tigers) 3.34
Blocks per game United States James Doyle (Leicester Riders) 2.56

Seasonal awards

References

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Preceded by BBL seasons
1998–99		 Succeeded by
1999–2000 season
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