| 1985 Great Taste Coffee Makers season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Baby Dalupan |
| Owner(s) | CFC Corporation |
| Open Conference results | |
| Record | 17–7 (70.8%) |
| Place | 1st |
| Playoff finish | Champion |
| All Filipino Conference results | |
| Record | 15–5 (75%) |
| Place | 1st |
| Playoff finish | Champion |
| Reinforced Conference results | |
| Record | 12–15 (44.4%) |
| Place | 4th |
| Playoff finish | Semifinals |
| Great Taste Coffee Makers seasons | |
The 1985 Great Taste Coffee Makers season was the 11th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
| Players Added | Signed | Former team |
| Abe King | Off-season | Gold Eagle |
| Willie Pearson | Crispa (disbanded) | |
| Teddy Alfarero Rookie, originally drafted by Gold Eagle | N/A | |
| Lawrence Merced Rookie | ||
| Oliver Dalman | June 1985 | Country Fair Hotdogs |
The Great Taste Coffee Makers have emerged as the new dynasty in winning their third straight PBA crown with a 4-2 series win over Magnolia Ice Cream. The title playoffs where Great Taste were prohibitive picks to win easily have turned out to be the toughest. The series are tied at two games apiece before Great Taste scored runaway victories in Games five and six.
The defending All-Filipino champions went on to play surprise finalist and first-year ballclub Shell Azodrin in the All-Filipino finals. The Coffee Makers easily won the first two games but the Bugbusters extended the series by winning the third game by one point. Great Taste won their fourth straight title on August 20, routing Shell Azodrin, 110-91, in Game four for a 3-1 series victory.
On March 19, Great Taste point guard Ricardo Brown played in his first game in the 1985 season upon returning from an extended furlough in the US. The Coffee Makers will also have a new import Joe Binion (3rd round pick by San Antonio Spurs in the 1984 NBA draft), who will make his debut against Magnolia when Great Taste management decided to send home Napoleon Johnson after four games.
In the Third Conference, Great Taste played their last two games in the first round of eliminations without an import when their original choice Wally Rank refused to play after four appearances unless he was paid in advance. Rank was replaced by Michael Britt, who also saw action for four games before Great Taste had to settled for a former Seattle Supersonic Cory Blackwell. [1]
March 3: With 15,000 fans who filled the new venue ULTRA to the rafters on opening day twinbill, Great Taste hammered out a 102-99 victory over Ginebra San Miguel in the nightcap. Import Napoleon Johnson scored 39 points while transferees Abe King and Willie Pearson proved their worth with 17 and 16 points respectively. The Coffee Makers played without Ricardo Brown, Frankie Lim and Jaime Manansala.
November 3: Great Taste keeps its grandslam hopes alive with a 99-95 win over Magnolia in the sudden-death playoff for the last berth in the semifinal round, despite being handicapped with import Cory Blackwell still not in tip-top condition and only saw action briefly in the first half. Abe King topscored for Great Taste with 28 points.
November 17: In the last game of the semifinal playdate, both Great Taste and Ginebra toted a 2-3 won-loss card and needed a win to stay on track for a finals berth. Great Taste prevailed over Ginebra in the knockout match, 138-130. Ricardo Brown knocked in 39 points, Cory Blackwell had 33 points and Jaime Manansala added 29 markers. [2]
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| Name | Conference | No. | Pos. | Ht. | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Napoleon Johnson | Open Conference | 00 | Center | 6"9' | GSU |
| Joe Binion | 30 | Center-Forward | 6"8' | North Carolina A&T | |
| Wally Rank | Reinforced Conference | 21 | Forward | 6"5' | SJSU |
| Michael Britt | 21 | Forward | 6"5' | UDC | |
| Cory Blackwell | 30 | Forward | 6"5' | UW-Madison |
The Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots, or simply known as the Magnolia Hotshots, are a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association. The team is owned by San Miguel Food and Beverage, Inc., a subsidiary of San Miguel Corporation (SMC). The team is one of three PBA ball clubs currently owned by the SMC group of companies, along with Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and the San Miguel Beermen. They have 14 PBA championships, tied with the Alaska Aces for the third-most overall.
The Alaska Aces were a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association since 1986 under the ownership of Alaska Milk Corporation (AMC) and the owner of 14 PBA championships, tied with the Magnolia Hotshots for the third-most titles overall. They are one of the most popular teams in the league and the Philippines.
In the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), the Grand Slam is the achievement of winning all three conference championships (tournaments) in a single season. As of 2020, this has been accomplished five times by four teams and four coaches since the league's inception in 1975.
The 1983 PBA season was the 9th season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1985 PBA season was the 11th season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1986 PBA season was the 12th season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1987 PBA season was the 13th season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The Great Taste Coffee Makers were a basketball team that played in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) from 1975 to 1992. It was one of the founding members of the PBA, the Asia's first and oldest professional league. The franchise was owned by CFC Corporation and named after its brand of instant coffee, Great Taste Coffee. The franchise also played under other CFC brands such as N-Rich, Presto and Tivoli.
The 1987 Ginebra San Miguel season was the 9th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1985 PBA All-Filipino Conference finals was the best-of-5 basketball championship series of the 1985 PBA All-Filipino Conference, and the conclusion of the conference playoffs. The Great Taste Coffee Makers and Shell Azodrin Bugbusters played for the 31st championship contested by the league.
The 1987 San Miguel Beermen season was the 13th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). The team was known as Magnolia Ice Cream Makers in the first two conferences.
The 1987 Tanduay Rhum Makers season was the 13th and final season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1987 Great Taste Coffee Makers season was the 13th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Known as Great Taste Instant Milk in the Reinforced Conference.
The 1987 PBA All-Filipino Conference finals was the best-of-5 basketball championship series of the 1987 PBA All-Filipino Conference, and the conclusion of the conference playoffs. The Great Taste Coffee Makers and Hills Bros. Coffee Kings played for the 37th championship contested by the league.
The 1985 Ginebra San Miguel season was the seventh season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1986 Tanduay Rhum Makers season was the 12th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1985 Magnolia Ice Cream Makers season was the 11th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Known as Magnolia Quench Plus in the Reinforced Conference.
The 1988 Presto Ice Cream Makers season was the 14th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Formerly known as Great Taste Milkmasters in the first two conferences.
The 1985 PBA Open Conference finals was the best-of-7 basketball championship series of the 1985 PBA Open Conference, and the conclusion of the conference playoffs. The Great Taste Coffee Makers and Magnolia Ice Cream Makers played for the 30th championship contested by the league.
The PBA Open Conference was a tournament held during a Philippine Basketball Association season from 1977-1983 and 1985-1989.
