Arena Capacity 2,000 Team colors Red, Blue and White | Main sponsor McDonald's Founded 1982 | |
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Leagues VBA (1977–1980)SEBL (1981)NBL (1982–1996)CBA/ABA (1997–2001)SEABL (2002–present) History Geelong Cats1981–1987Geelong Supercats1988–present Profiles | ||
The Geelong Supercats are a basketball team based in Geelong, Victoria that currently plays in the South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL) and previously played in the National Basketball League (NBL). Established in 1977, Geelong basketball has always had teams competing in Victorian competitions. Geelong also has a women's team that competes in the women's SEABL and won a Big V title in 2010.
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NBL years
After winning the South Eastern Basketball League (SEBL) championship in 1981, Geelong entered the National Basketball League for the 1982 season. Dubbed the Cinderella side of the NBL, Geelong almost set a new record for the number of successive wins. NBL Coach of the Year, Cal Bruton, revved up the Cats for 13 straight wins, falling by a game to equal St Kilda's record of 14 straight in the NBL inaugural year. The Cats finished second on the ladder after the preliminary rounds and eventually lost the grand final to the West Adelaide Bearcats 80 to 74 after trailing by 22 points.
The club was one of the dominant forces in the NBL competition over the next two years, finishing on top of the NBL's Western Division both years, however the NBL title continued to elude the Cats. The club suffered at the hands of ownership problems during the latter part of the 1980s to the extent that a mass exodus of players at the end of 1987 contributed to a winless season in 1988 – the same year the club changed its name from the Cats to the Supercats. At the end of the 1988 season, a group of local business men fought together to save the club and as a result were granted a license to ensure Geelong's ongoing participation in the NBL.
With stability restored, respected names such as Barnes, Heal and Bateman were signed up as the club began its resurrection. It didn't take long for the Supercats to get back into the NBL finals with a top three finish in 1991. Unfortunately another exodus at the end of the 1991 season resulted in the club plummeting down the ladder, again finishing last in 1992. During the mid-1990s, the club was never able to rekindle the success of the previous seasons. Ultimately, the clubs license was sold back to the NBL at the end of the 1996 season. After 15 years and 388 NBL games, the city of Geelong no longer had a representative in the premier basketball competition in Australia.
Post-NBL
At the time of the clubs departure from the NBL in 1996, the Geelong Amateur Basketball Association was fielding a strong all Geelong based team in the Victorian Basketball League competition. This presented the opportunity for Geelong to continue its presence in a National competition by applying for entry into the Continental Basketball Association (later known as the ABA). The Supercats joined the CBA for the 1997 season, but their first season back was one of mixed success with the club finishing just outside a finals berth with a 12 win 12 loss record. During the 1998 season, the club took another step forward by finishing the season with a 23-8 win/loss record and came runners-up to Hobart for the South Conference title. The second-place finish entitled the club to participate in the National Final series where it lost to eventual champions Cairns in the semi-finals.
The 1999 season was a memorable one. The year commenced with a victory in the “Win Challenge” preseason tournament, which followed by a first-place finish in the South Conference with a 22 win 8 loss record. A Rodney Walker tip in on the buzzer resulted in a 82-81 victory over Nunawading in the South Conference final. In the National Series, wins against Cairns (94-93) and the AIS (101-92) were followed by a showdown in the National final against Kilsyth in Canberra. A blistering third quarter (27-7) resulted in the Supercats cruising to its second National championship by defeating Kilsyth 98-78. The Supercats have since gone on to win four more SEABL Conference titles (2005, 2006, 2007 and 2010), while also winning their third National championship in 2006, and winning the overall SEABL championship in 2010.