2011–12 NBL season
| 2011–12 NBL season | |
|---|---|
 | |
| League | National Basketball League |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration |
7 October 2011 – 25 March 2012 30 March 2011 – 7 April 2012 (Semi-Finals) 12 – 24 April 2012 (Grand Finals) |
| Number of teams | 9 |
| TV partner(s) |
FIBA TV (online) |
| Regular season | |
| Top seed | New Zealand Breakers |
| Season MVP | Kevin Lisch |
| Finals | |
| Champions | New Zealand Breakers |
| Runners-up | Perth Wildcats |
| Finals MVP | C. J. Bruton |
The 2011–12 NBL season was the 34th season of competition since its establishment in 1979. A total of nine teams contested the league. The regular season was played between 7 October 2011 and 25 March 2012, followed by a post-season involving the top four in April 2012. The schedule was announced on 19 May 2011.[1] The New Zealand Breakers successfully defended their 2010–11 title.
Broadcast rights were held by free-to-air network Channel Ten and its digital sports sister station One, in the second year of a five-year deal, through to the 2014–15 season. In New Zealand, Sky Sport once again provided coverage.
Sponsorship included iiNet entering its second and penultimate year as league naming rights sponsor and Centrebet in the final year as the official sports betting partner. Spalding provided equipment including the official game ball, with AND1 supplying team apparel and New Era headwear.
Pre-season
NBL Sunshine State Challenge, a round robin competition with a final series, involving all nine sides, was held between September 22–24, 2011 in Rockhampton, Ipswich, on the Gold Coast and Brisbane. Perth Wildcats were pre-season champions for the second year in a row.
New Zealand Breakers pre-season
15 September 2011 |
| New Zealand Breakers 78, Wollongong Hawks 70 |
Claudelands Arena, Hamilton Attendance: 3,200 |
Gold Coast Blaze pre-season
23 August 2011 |
| Gold Coast Blaze 73, Melbourne Tigers 84 |
USQ Clive Berghofer Recreation Centre, Toowoomba |
Cairns Taipans pre-season
17 August 2011 |
| Cairns Taipans 84, University of Texas at San Antonio 58 |
Bendigo Bank Basketball Stadium, Cairns |
2011 China Intercontinental Club Championship
Final
Sydney Kings pre-season
Melbourne Tigers pre-season
Wollongong Hawks pre-season
Perth Wildcats pre-season
2011 Cable Beach Invitational
Perth vs. Singapore cancelled due to poor condition of the outdoor court.
Townsville Crocodiles pre-season
Adelaide 36ers pre-season
2011 NBL Sunshine State Challenge
Finals
Perth Wildcats win Sunshine State Challenge.
Regular season
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
Round 11
Round 12
Round 13
Round 14
Round 15
Round 16
Round 17
Round 18
Round 19
Round 20
Round 21
Round 22
Round 23
Round 24
Round 25
Ladder
| # | Team | Pld | W | L | Last 5 | Streak | Home | Away | For | Against | % | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Zealand Breakers | 28 | 21 | 7 | 4-1 | L1 | 13-1 | 8-6 | 2,382 | 2,177 | 109.42% | 75.00% |
| 2 | Perth Wildcats | 28 | 19 | 9 | 3-2 | W3 | 10-4 | 9-5 | 2,434 | 2,171 | 112.11% | 67.86% |
| 3 | Gold Coast Blaze | 28 | 17 | 11 | 3-2 | W2 | 10-4 | 7-7 | 2,387 | 2,253 | 105.95% | 60.71% |
| 4 | Townsville Crocodiles | 28 | 15 | 13 | 2-3 | L2 | 11-3 | 4-10 | 2,213 | 2,210 | 100.14% | 53.37% |
| 5 | Cairns Taipans | 28 | 15 | 13 | 2-3 | W1 | 9-5 | 6-8 | 2,025 | 2,107 | 96.11% | 53.37% |
| 6 | Melbourne Tigers | 28 | 11 | 17 | 1-4 | L3 | 7-7 | 4-10 | 2,156 | 2,239 | 96.29% | 39.29% |
| 7 | Sydney Kings | 28 | 11 | 17 | 2-3 | L1 | 5-9 | 6-8 | 2,279 | 2,423 | 94.06% | 39.29% |
| 8 | Wollongong Hawks | 28 | 9 | 19 | 3-2 | W3 | 4-10 | 5-9 | 2,093 | 2,232 | 93.77% | 32.14% |
| 9 | Adelaide 36ers | 28 | 8 | 20 | 1-4 | L4 | 4-10 | 4-10 | 2,297 | 2,454 | 93.60% | 28.57% |
Ladder Progression
- Numbers highlighted in green indicate that the team finished the round inside the top four.
- Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the team finished first on the ladder in that round.
- Numbers highlighted in red indicates the team finished last place on the ladder in that round.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adelaide 36ers | 9 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | |
| Cairns Taipans | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | |
| Gold Coast Blaze | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | |
| Melbourne Tigers | 3 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | |
| New Zealand Breakers | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| Perth Wildcats | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
| Sydney Kings | 6 | 9 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | |
| Townsville Crocodiles | 5 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | |
| Wollongong Hawks | 8 | 5 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 |
Finals Series
The 2011–12 National Basketball League Finals were played between 30 March 2012 and 25 April 2012, consisting of two best-of-three semi-final and final series, where the higher seed hosted the first and third games.
Playoff Seedings
The NBL tie-breaker system as outlined in the NBL Rules and Regulations states that in the case of an identical win-loss record, the results in games played between the two teams will determine order of seeding.
Under this system, Cairns did not qualify for the playoffs by equalling Townsville's win-loss record, as the latter held advantage in the tiebreaker (2-2, +51 points).
Playoff Bracket
| Semi-finals | Grand Final | |||||||||||
| 1 | New Zealand Breakers | 82 | 94 | 97 | ||||||||
| 4 | Townsville Crocodiles | 99 | 83 | 80 | ||||||||
| 1 | New Zealand Breakers | 104 | 86 | 79 | ||||||||
| 2 | Perth Wildcats | 98 | 87 | 73 | ||||||||
| 2 | Perth Wildcats | 85 | 70 | 88 | ||||||||
| 3 | Gold Coast Blaze | 70 | 72 | 67 | ||||||||
Semi Finals
Grand Final
Season statistics
Statistics leaders
| Category | Player | Games played | Totals | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points per game | Kevin Lisch (Perth Wildcats) | 28 | 493 | 17.6 |
| Rebounds per game | Julian Khazzouh (Sydney Kings) | 26 | 281 | 10.8 |
| Assists per game | Cedric Jackson (New Zealand Breakers) | 27 | 173 | 6.4 |
| Steals per game | Cedric Jackson (New Zealand Breakers) | 27 | 67 | 2.5 |
| Blocks per game | Julian Khazzouh (Sydney Kings) | 26 | 54 | 2.1 |
| Field goal percentage | Diamon Simpson (Adelaide 36ers) | 27 | 155-262 | 59.2% |
| Three-point field goal percentage | Oscar Forman (Wollongong Hawks) | 28 | 64-125 | 51.2% |
| Free throw percentage | Aaron Bruce (Sydney Kings) | 17 | 63-70 | 90.0% |
Note: regular season only
Top 10 Attendances
| Attendance | Round | Date | Home | Score | Away | Venue | Weekday | Time of Day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9,258 | GF | 24 April 2012 | New Zealand Breakers | 79-73 | Perth Wildcats | Vector Arena | Tuesday | Night |
| 9,125 | GF | 12 April 2012 | New Zealand Breakers | 104-98 | Perth Wildcats | Vector Arena | Thursday | Night |
| 8,146 | SF | 30 March 2012 | New Zealand Breakers | 82-99 | Townsville Crocodiles | Vector Arena | Friday | Night |
| 7,979 | 17 | 27 January 2012 | New Zealand Breakers | 93-64 | Sydney Kings | Vector Arena | Friday | Night |
| 7,532 | 16 | 20 January 2012 | Sydney Kings | 75-76 | Perth Wildcats | Sydney Entertainment Centre | Friday | Night |
| 7,500 | SF | 7 April 2012 | New Zealand Breakers | 97-80 | Townsville Crocodiles | Vector Arena | Saturday | Night |
| 7,282 | 25 | 24 March 2012 | Sydney Kings | 75-76 | Wollongong Hawks | Sydney Entertainment Centre | Saturday | Night |
| 6,900 | 4 | 28 October 2011 | New Zealand Breakers | 97-80 | Sydney Kings | Vector Arena | Friday | Night |
| 6,194 | 14 | 7 January 2012 | Adelaide 36ers | 67-72 | Cairns Taipans | Adelaide Arena | Saturday | Night |
| 6,175 | 7 | 19 November 2011 | Adelaide 36ers | 95-89 | Melbourne Tigers | Adelaide Arena | Saturday | Night |
Awards
Player of the Week
Player of the Month
| Round | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| October | Kevin Lisch | Perth Wildcats |
| November | Adris Deleon | Gold Coast Blaze |
| December | Cameron Tragardh | Melbourne Tigers |
| January | Jesse Wagstaff | Perth Wildcats |
| February | Cedric Jackson | New Zealand Breakers |
Coach of the Month
| Round | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| October | Andrej Lemanis | New Zealand Breakers |
| November | Joey Wright | Gold Coast Blaze |
| December | Andrej Lemanis | New Zealand Breakers |
| January | Rob Beveridge | Perth Wildcats |
| February | Aaron Fearne | Cairns Taipans |
The end-of-season awards ceremony was held in the Palladium Room at Crown Casino in Melbourne on Monday, 26 March 2012:
Season
- Most Valuable Player (Andrew Gaze Trophy): Kevin Lisch, Perth Wildcats
- Rookie of the Year: Anatoly Bose, Sydney Kings
- Best Defensive Player: Damian Martin, Perth Wildcats
- Best Sixth Man: Jesse Wagstaff, Perth Wildcats
- Most Improved Player: Daniel Johnson, Adelaide 36ers
- Coach of the Year (Lindsay Gaze Trophy): Andrej Lemanis, New Zealand Breakers
- Referee of the Year: Michael Aylen
- All-NBL First Team:
- All-NBL Second Team:
- Jamar Wilson - Cairns Taipans
- Adam Gibson - Gold Coast Blaze
- Cameron Tragardh - Melbourne Tigers
- Gary Wilkinson - New Zealand Breakers
- Peter Crawford - Townsville Crocodiles
- All-NBL Third Team:
Finals
- Grand Final Series MVP (Larry Sengstock Medal): C. J. Bruton, New Zealand Breakers
References
- ↑ "National Basketball League: 2011/12 Season Fixture". NBL.com.au. 19 May 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
| ||||||