East Coast Basketball League

Last updated

East Coast Basketball League (ECBL)
ECBL basketball logo.jpeg
Sport Basketball
FoundedJune 2014
First season2015
No. of teams21
Country United States
Continent FIBA Americas (Americas)
Most recent
champion(s)		 Carolina Thunder (South)
Hartford Shockers (Mid Atlantic)
(2023)
Most titlesSix (PrimeTime Players)
Official website EastCoastBasketballLeague.org

East Coast Basketball League (ECBL) is a men's professional basketball minor league in the United States that began play in March 2015. The league is centered in the Carolinas with teams also in Georgia, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Massachusetts.

Contents

History

Five teams (Carolina Gladiators, Fayetteville Crossover, PrimeTime Players, Queen City Express, South Carolina All-Stars) [1] in the ECBL previously played in the Tobacco Road Basketball League. The teams broke away from the TRBL due to changes in the league format. [2]

On August 16, 2014, the ECBL announced the addition of the Fort Gordon Eagles. A military team, the Eagles also compete in the Southeast Military Athletics Conference (SEMAC) from October to February.

Former American Basketball Association team Savannah Storm were admitted to enter the ECBL for Season 1. They would be joined by Columbia Crusaders, Gastonia Crowns and High Point Hawks to round out the 10-team circuit.

The first-ever ECBL Championship was won by PrimeTime Players, 130–113 over the Fayetteville Crossover. The final was played on June 27, 2015, in Fort Mill, South Carolina and streamed live online. Former Catawba College forward Donald Rutherford [3] scored 34 points while grabbing 16 rebounds for PrimeTime and was named game MVP.

Four new teams joined the ECBL for the 2016 season: expansion teams Carolina MPact, Petersburg Revolution, RDU Raptors and Winston-Salem Certified (formerly of the TRBL).

Expansion into Charlotte was announced on April 8, 2016, with the addition of Charlotte Golden Bulls. [4]

At the August 2016 AGM, league board of directors unanimously accepted the expansion application of the Florence Wildcats for 2017. [5] Two teams also announced name changes: Peterburg Cavaliers (formerly Revolution) and North Carolina Coyotes (formerly RDU Raptors).

League owners approved the expansion application of the Carolina Thunder for 2017. The Thunder began as a travel team playing a league schedule on the road. A second travel team, Hickory Hoyas, were added to the schedule before the season opener.

Prior to the 2021 season the league added seven teams to form the new Mid-Atlantic Conference. Teams included Fredericksburg Grizzlies, Hub City Hogs, Philly Cannons, Philly Raiders, Plaistow Shockers, Red Rose Thunder and Western Mass Zombies.

Teams

Mid-Atlantic ConferenceCityArenaFoundedFirst ECBL

season

Hartford Shockers Hartford, Connecticut East Catholic High School 20192021
Philly Raiders Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Germantown Academy 20192021
Northern ConferenceCityArenaFoundedFirst ECBL

season

Carolina Chosen Lions Rocky Mount, North Carolina Rocky Mount Prep20182019
Fayetteville Panthers Fayetteville, North Carolina Highland Presbyterian Church Rec Center20182019
Hickory Hoyas Hickory, North Carolina Newton Conover Middle School20162017
North Carolina Capitals Raleigh, North Carolina Garner Road Community Center20202021
Petersburg Cavaliers Petersburg, Virginia Richard Bland College 20152016
Rowan County Bulls Cleveland, North Carolina Fifteen Sports Athletic Center20172018
Winston-Salem Wolves Winston-Salem, North Carolina Forsyth Country Day Childress Center 20182019
Southern ConferenceCityArenaFoundedFirst ECBL

season

Carolina Crusaders Columbia, South Carolina Glenforest School20142015
Carolina Thunder Hartsville, South Carolina Coach D.B. Thomas Sports Center20152017
Charlotte Tribe Charlotte, North Carolina Mountain Island Fitness20172018
Garden City Magic Augusta, Georgia Episcopal Day School20192021
Gastonia Snipers Gastonia, North Carolina Fort Mill Community Center20182019
PrimeTime Players Fort Mill, South Carolina Legion Collegiate Academy19912015
South Carolina Upstate Redhawks Greenville, South Carolina Greenville First Baptist20142015

Former teams

Champions

SeasonChampionRunner-upResult
2015 PrimeTime Players Fayetteville Crossover 130-113 [6] [7]
2016 PrimeTime Players Fayetteville Crossover 119-100
2017 PrimeTime Players Carolina Thunder123-105
2018 PrimeTime Players Hickory Hoyas134-118
2019 PrimeTime Players Winston-Salem Wolves103-99
2020none (season suspended due to COVID-19)------
2021: South

2021: Mid-Atlantic

 PrimeTime Players

Western Mass Zombies

North Carolina Coyotes

Hub City Hogs

130-128

122-117 (OT)

2022: South

2022: Mid-Atlantic

Petersburg Cavaliers

Hartford Shockers

Carolina Crusaders

Hub City Hogs

134-124

125-114

2023: South

2023: Mid-Atlantic

Carolina Thunder

Hartford Shockers

Petersburg Cavaliers

The DC Heat

126-102

134-120

ECBL Super Cup

Winners of the ECBL Mid-Atlantic and ECBL South.

ECBL Super Cup
YearWinnerRunner-upResultLocation
2021 PrimeTime Players Western Mass Zombies133-129 [8] Combine Academy, Lincolnton, North Carolina
2022 Hartford Shockers Petersburg Cavaliers130-110Hartford, CT

References

  1. ↑ "New East Coast Basketball League Created In Aftermath of Significant TRBL Changes". USBasket. July 23, 2014.
  2. ↑ "East Coast Basketball League to Begin Play in 2015". ECBL. July 4, 2014. Archived from the original on November 7, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Four Recieve[sic] Post-Season All-SAC Honors in Men's Basketball". Catawba College Athletics. March 5, 2010. Archived from the original on October 15, 2011.
  4. ↑ "ECBL Add Charlotte Golden Bulls For 2017". USbasket. April 8, 2016.
  5. ↑ "Florence Wildcats Newest Addition To ECBL". USbasket. August 25, 2016.
  6. ↑ "PrimeTime Players Win Inaugural ECBL Title". USBasket. July 2, 2015.
  7. ↑ "It's PrimeTime for hoops in Fort Mill". The Herald. April 4, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Bracey, Booker lead PrimeTime Players to Super Cup victory". USBasket. June 27, 2021. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021.
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