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Louisville Colonels (PBLA) were a team in the Professional Basketball League of America, and the first professional basketball team to play in Louisville, Kentucky.
There were 16 teams in the PBLA when it began play in 1947. The Colonels' first game, on October 30, 1947, was a 57–36 loss on the road to the Springfield Squires. The team's November 1, 1947 home opener was a 51–49 loss to the New Orleans Hurricanes. November 6, 1947 saw the team's first win, a 57–49 win at home against the Grand Rapids Rangers. The very next day Louisville played in Chicago, Illinois and managed a 60–48 win against the Omaha Tomahawks; the game would prove to be the franchise's final victory.
The Colonels, competing in the PBLA's Northern Division, finished with a record of 2 wins and 4 losses, five games behind the first place Chicago Gears. The entire league did not make it through the entire season, folding in 1948 due to competition from the Basketball Association of America, the National Basketball League and the American Basketball League.
Professional basketball returned to Louisville two years later with the Louisville Alumnites of the National Professional Basketball League.
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Louisville, Kentucky had two professional American football teams in the National Football League: the Louisville Breckenridges from 1921 to 1924 and the Louisville Colonels in 1926.
The Utah Stars were an American Basketball Association (ABA) team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. Under head coach Bill Sharman the Stars were the first major professional basketball team to use a pre-game shootaround.
The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association (ABA) for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky Colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of any franchise in the league's history, but the team did not join the National Basketball Association (NBA) in the 1976 ABA–NBA merger. The downtown Louisville Convention Center was the Colonels' original venue for the first three seasons before moving to Freedom Hall for the remaining seasons, beginning with the 1970–71 schedule.
The 2005 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 65 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 15, 2005, and ended with the championship game on April 4 at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis.
Freedom Hall is a multi-purpose arena in Louisville, Kentucky, on the grounds of the Kentucky Exposition Center, which is owned by the Commonwealth of Kentucky. It is best known for its use as a basketball arena, previously serving as the home of the University of Louisville Cardinals and, since November 2020, as the home of the Bellarmine University Knights. It has hosted Kiss, Chicago, AC/DC, WWE events, Mötley Crüe, Elvis Presley, The Doors, Janis Joplin, Creed, Led Zeppelin, Van Halen and many more. As well as the Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team from 1956 to 2010, the arena’s tenants included the Kentucky Colonels of the American Basketball Association from 1970 until the ABA-NBA merger in June 1976, and the Louisville Cardinals women's team from its inception in 1975 to 2010. The Kentucky Stickhorses of the North American Lacrosse League used Freedom Hall from 2011 until the team folded in 2013. From 2015 to 2019 it has hosted the VEX Robotics Competition World Championship Finals yearly in mid-April.
Daniel Paul Issel is an American former professional basketball player and coach. An outstanding collegian at the University of Kentucky, Issel was twice named an All-American en route to a school-record 25.7 points per game for his career. The American Basketball Association Rookie of the Year in 1971, he was a six-time ABA All-Star and a one-time NBA All-Star.
Sports in Louisville, Kentucky include amateur and professional sports in baseball, football, basketball, horse racing, horse shows, ice hockey, soccer and lacrosse. The city of Louisville and the Louisville metropolitan area have a sporting history from the mid-19th century to the present day.
Louisville Gardens is a multi-purpose, 6,000-seat arena, in Louisville, Kentucky, that opened in 1905, as the Jefferson County Armory. It celebrated its 100th anniversary as former city mayor Jerry Abramson's official "Family-Friendly New Years Eve" celebration location. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
The following are the baseball events of the year 1934 throughout the world.
The following are the baseball events of the year 1886 throughout the world.
The Louisville Cardinals football team represents the University of Louisville in the sport of American football. The Cardinals compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and compete in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Chicago American Gears were a National Basketball League (NBL) team who played from 1944 to 1947. The team also played in the Professional Basketball League of America (PBLA) in 1947–48 after leaving the NBL.
The U.S. State of Kentucky is currently home to two professional soccer teams: Louisville City FC, which plays in the USL Championship, and Racing Louisville FC, which plays in the NWSL. Kentucky has had professional sports teams in its past, such as the Louisville Brecks/Colonels of the NFL in the early 1920s.
Leroy Harry Edwards, nicknamed "Cowboy" and "Lefty", was one of the greatest basketball players of his era. He was an NCAA All-American at the University of Kentucky and also one of the most lauded professional players in the United States' National Basketball League's history.
The Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team is an American college basketball team that represents the University of Kentucky. Kentucky is the most successful NCAA Division I basketball program in history in terms of all-time winning percentage (.765) and is 2nd in all-time wins. The Wildcats are currently coached by John Calipari.
Louisville Alumnites were a team in the National Professional Basketball League (1950-1951), based in Louisville, Kentucky.
The 1974–75 American Basketball Association season saw the Kentucky Colonels, led by Dan Issel, Artis Gilmore, Louie Dampier and coach Hubie Brown, win the 1975 ABA Championship.
The 1997–98 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team were coached by Tubby Smith. He was in his first season as head coach after taking over from Rick Pitino. The team finished the season with a 29–4 record and won the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship over the Utah Utes, 78–69.
The Louisville Colonels were a Major League Baseball team in the American Association and National League from 1882 to 1899.
Samuel Chestley Smith Sr. was an American professional basketball player who played four seasons in the American Basketball Association (ABA). He played for the Minnesota Muskies, Kentucky Colonels, and Utah Stars from 1967 to 1971. Prior to turning professional, he was noted for being one of the first three African American basketball players at the University of Louisville. He later transferred to Kentucky Wesleyan College and helped the school win its first NCAA Division II championship in 1966.