The Women's Basketball Association (WBA or WWBA) was the first women's professional basketball summer league, operating from 1992 to 1995. The league was called the WWBA and WBA for the first All-Star tour in 1992, before settling on WBA. The pioneer league was formed in 1992 by Lightning N Mitchell and played three full seasons from 1993 to 1995. [1] [2]
The WBA played a 15-game schedule, and games were broadcast on Liberty Sports of Dallas. The All-Star games were also televised on Fox Sports. Kansas Jayhawks All-American Geri "Kay-Kay" Hart and Robelyn "Robbie" Garcia announced the game on Fox Radio and Nancy Lieberman was the TV announcer for the 1995 All-Star game. [3] The team was featured on the cover of the Star Magazine, an arts publication run by the Kansas City Star from 1924 until the late 1990s. [4] [5] USA Today did a story on the Kansas City Mustangs coached by Joe C. Meriweather, and included a full-team picture. [5]
The WBA played three full seasons, with plans to play as a 12-team league in 1997, but disbanded before the season began. When Fox Sports purchased Liberty Sports and the WBA, they dissolved the league shortly after and sold off the franchising rights. The league was the first American professional women's basketball league to be successful as a summer league, like their counterpart WNBA. [6]
Guard Laurie Byrd played for the WWBA, WBA, American Basketball League and WNBA. [7]
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MVP: Sarah Campbell
WBA 1st Round Playoffs
Missouri 2–1 over Iowa
Iowa 119, Missouri 103
Missouri 98, Iowa 93
Missouri 117, Iowa 112 (OT)
Kansas 2–0 over Oklahoma
Kansas 92, Oklahoma 77
Kansas 114, Oklahoma 64
Nebraska 2–0 over Illinois
Nebraska 166, Illinois 129
Nebraska 127, Illinois 115
WBA 2nd Round Playoffs
Kansas 2–0 over Missouri
Kansas 121, Missouri 97
Kansas 109, Missouri 99
1993 WBA Championship (best-of five)
Kansas 3–1 over Nebraska
Kansas 125, Nebraska 119
Nebraska 118, Kansas 100
Kansas 111, Nebraska 96
First WBA Championship: Kansas 100, Nebraska 98
MVP: Robelyn "Robbie" Garcia
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MVP: Evette Ott, Sarah Campbell
WBA 1st Round Playoffs
Memphis 2–0 over St. Louis
Memphis 126, St. Louis 111
Memphis 122, St. Louis 110
Indiana 2–0 over Oklahoma
Indiana 107, Oklahoma 91
Indiana 103, Oklahoma 91
WBA 2nd Round Playoffs (Best out of 2 or the total number of points score in 2 games)
Memphis won series in Points (195–185)
Kansas City 98, Memphis 94
Memphis 101, Kansas City 87
Nebraska won series by winning 2–0 over Indiana
Nebraska 99, Indiana 89
Nebraska 91, Indiana 87
1994 WBA Championship (best-of five)
Nebraska 3–2 over Memphis
Memphis 102, Nebraska 101
Nebraska 123, Memphis 108
Memphis 138, Nebraska 128
Nebraska 111, Memphis 101
Nebraska 103, Memphis 101
MVP: Maurtice (Tice) Ivy
MVP: Evette Ott, Sarah Campbell
1995 Last WBA Championship Game
Chicago 107, St. Louis 96
Co-MVP: Diana Vines & Petra Jackson
Diana Lorena Taurasi is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).
Tamika Devonne Catchings is an American retired professional basketball player who played her entire 15-year career for the Indiana Fever of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Catchings has won a WNBA championship (2012), WNBA Most Valuable Player Award (2011), WNBA Finals MVP Award (2012), five WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Awards, four Olympic gold medals, the WNBA Rookie of the Year Award (2002), and an NCAA championship with the University of Tennessee Lady Vols (1998). She is one of only 11 women to receive an Olympic gold medal, an NCAA Championship, a FIBA World Cup gold and a WNBA Championship. She has also been selected to ten WNBA All-Star teams, 12 All-WNBA teams, 12 All-Defensive teams and led the league in steals eight times. In 2011, Catchings was voted in by fans as one of the WNBA's Top 15 Players of All Time, and would be named to two more all-time WNBA teams, the WNBA Top 20@20 in 2016 and The W25 in 2021.
Yolanda Evette Griffith is an American professional basketball hall of fame player who played in both the ABL and WNBA. A former WNBA MVP, she is considered one of the greatest rebounders and defensive players in the history of Women's Basketball. She last played in the WNBA as a member of the Indiana Fever. In 2011, she was voted in by fans as one of the top 15 players in WNBA history. She is sometimes called by her nicknames: "Yo" and "Yo-Yo". Since retiring from the professional ranks, Griffith was as assistant coach at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She is currently an assistant coach with the Boston College Eagles. Griffith was inducted into the 2014 Women's Basketball Hall of Fame's class on her first year of eligibility.
Crystal LaTresa Robinson is an American basketball coach and former player. She grew up in Atoka, Oklahoma, and first garnered national recognition during her collegiate career at Southeastern Oklahoma State University. Professionally, Robinson played for the Colorado Xplosion of the ABL before playing in the WNBA for the New York Liberty and Washington Mystics.
The 1988 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. The 50th annual edition of the tournament began on March 17, 1988, and ended with the championship game on April 4 returning to Kansas City for the 10th time. A total of 63 games were played.
The following are the basketball events of the year 2005 throughout the world.
The following are the basketball events of the year 2004 throughout the world.
The following are the basketball events of the year 2002 throughout the world.
The following are the basketball events of the year 2000 throughout the world.
The following are the basketball events of the year 2006 throughout the world.
The following are the basketball events of the year 1998 throughout the world.
The following are the basketball events of the year 1997 throughout the world.
The Kansas City metropolitan area has a long history of sports, which has included national championship teams and championship title events.
Bally Sports Midwest is an American regional sports network owned by Diamond Sports Group, a joint venture between Sinclair Broadcast Group and Entertainment Studios, and operates as an affiliate of Bally Sports. The channel broadcasts regional event coverage of sports teams throughout the Midwestern United States, most prominently, professional sports teams based in St. Louis, Missouri.
The following are the basketball events of the year 2008 throughout the world.
The Big 12 Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year is an award given to the Big 12 Conference's most outstanding player. The award was first given following the 1996–97 season, the first year of conference competition but three years after the conference's official formation. It is selected by the league's head coaches, who are not allowed to vote for their own players. Kansas has had the most individual winners of the award with 12.
The following are the basketball events of the year 2010 throughout the world.
The Women's Basketball Development Association (WBDA) is a professional development female basketball league.
Robelyn Annette Garcia is a former collegiate All-American and professional All-Star basketball player. She was the Big Six Championship Game MVP on the Kansas Crusaders of the Women's Basketball Association (WBA). Garcia was inducted into the Black Archives of Mid-America WBA Hall of Fame on February 22, 2020. Robelyn, nicknamed "Robbie" by her junior college coach, also led the nation in scoring while playing at Dodge City Community College where she was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame.
Aliyah Boston is an American professional basketball power forward and center for the Indiana Fever of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). She was named 2023 WNBA Rookie of the Year in a unanimous vote and the AP Rookie of the Year. She played college basketball at the University of South Carolina.