2015–16 NBL season
The 2015–16 NBL season was the 38th season of competition since its establishment in 1979. A total of eight teams contested the league. The regular season was played between 7 October 2015 and 14 February 2016, followed by a post-season featuring the top four in late February and March 2016.
2015–16 NBL season | |
---|---|
League | National Basketball League |
Sport | Basketball |
Duration | October 2015–February 2016 |
Number of teams | 8 |
TV partner(s) |
|
Regular season | |
Top seed | Melbourne United |
Season MVP | Kevin Lisch (Illawarra) |
Top scorer | Jerome Randle (Adelaide) |
Finals | |
Champions | Perth Wildcats (7th title) |
Runners-up | New Zealand Breakers |
Finals MVP | Damian Martin (Perth) |
During the off-season the Wollongong Hawks reverted to their original name Illawarra Hawks which was last used in 1998.
Australian broadcast rights to the season are held by Fox Sports, in the first year of a five-year deal, with one game per week simulcast on the Nine Network. In New Zealand Sky Sport are the official league broadcaster.
Pre-season
2015 NBL Pre-Season Blitz
A pre-season tournament featuring all eight teams was held on 24–27 September 2015 at Townsville RSL Stadium, Townsville. The winner will receive the third annual Loggins-Bruton Cup.
23 September 2015 |
Townsville Crocodiles 75, New Zealand Breakers 79 |
Townsville RSL Stadium, Townsville |
Melbourne United are pre-season champions.
Regular season
Round 1
Fox Sports |
7 October 2015 |
Adelaide 36ers 90, New Zealand Breakers 71 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 4,520 |
Fox Sports |
10 October 2015 |
Adelaide 36ers 66, Perth Wildcats 79 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 4,612 |
11 October 2015 |
New Zealand Breakers 89, Townsville Crocodiles 81 |
Vector Arena, Auckland Attendance: 5,294 |
Fox Sports |
11 October 2015 |
Melbourne United 93, Illawarra Hawks 81 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: 7,009 |
Round 2
Fox Sports |
14 October 2015 |
Illawarra Hawks 96, New Zealand Breakers 75 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: 2,524 |
Fox Sports |
16 October 2015 |
Melbourne United 84, Adelaide 36ers 75 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: 5,243 |
Round 3
21 October 2015 |
New Zealand Breakers 74, Sydney Kings 64 |
North Shore Events Centre, Auckland Attendance: 3,357 |
Fox Sports |
21 October 2015 |
Melbourne United 93, Townsville Crocodiles 62 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: TBA |
Fox Sports |
22 October 2015 |
Adelaide 36ers 88, Cairns Taipans 79 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 3,895 |
Fox Sports |
24 October 2015 |
Melbourne United 89, Cairns Taipans 80 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: TBA |
Fox Sports |
25 October 2015 |
Illawarra Hawks 99, Perth Wildcats 106 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
Round 4
Fox Sports |
29 October 2015 |
Melbourne United 75, Perth Wildcats 73 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: 4,822 |
Fox Sports |
31 October 2015 |
Adelaide 36ers 101, Cairns Taipans 104 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: TBA |
Fox Sports |
1 November 2015 |
Melbourne United 96, Sydney Kings 82 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: 8,464 |
Round 5
5 November 2015 |
New Zealand Breakers 98, Adelaide 36ers 88 |
North Shore Events Centre, Auckland Attendance: 3,170 |
Fox Sports |
6 November 2015 |
Illawarra Hawks 96, Cairns Taipans 88 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
Fox Sports |
7 November 2015 |
Adelaide 36ers 99, Sydney Kings 98 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 5,460 |
Fox Sports |
8 November 2015 |
Melbourne United 87, New Zealand Breakers 86 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: 9,020 |
Round 6
Fox Sports |
11 November 2015 |
Illawarra Hawks 96, Perth Wildcats 99 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
Fox Sports |
14 November 2015 |
Adelaide 36ers 89, Townsville Crocodiles 65 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 5,975 |
Round 7
Fox Sports |
18 November 2015 |
Adelaide 36ers 88, Perth Wildcats 94 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 4,590 |
Fox Sports |
20 November 2015 |
Melbourne United 78, Townsville Crocodiles 82 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: 6,288 |
Fox Sports |
21 November 2015 |
Adelaide 36ers 89, Illawarra Hawks 77 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 5,569 |
Round 8
Fox Sports |
25 November 2015 |
Illawarra Hawks 96, Sydney Kings 90 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
Fox Sports |
28 November 2015 |
Illawarra Hawks 108, Townsville Crocodiles 70 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
Round 9
2 December 2015 |
New Zealand Breakers 99, Perth Wildcats 78 |
North Shore Events Centre, Auckland Attendance: TBA |
Fox Sports |
3 December 2015 |
Illawarra Hawks 102, Melbourne United 87 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
Fox Sports |
6 December 2015 |
Melbourne United 89, Adelaide 36ers 86 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: 9,399 |
Round 10
Fox Sports |
9 December 2015 |
Illawarra Hawks 97, Cairns Taipans 82 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
Fox Sports |
12 December 2015 |
Adelaide 36ers 76, Townsville Crocodiles 66 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 5,638 |
Round 11
Fox Sports |
16 December 2015 |
Melbourne United 81, Sydney Kings 96 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: 7,344 |
Fox Sports |
18 December 2015 |
Illawarra Hawks 102, Sydney Kings 83 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
Round 12
Fox Sports |
23 December 2015 |
Adelaide 36ers 91, Melbourne United 81 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 7,641 |
Fox Sports |
27 December 2015 |
Melbourne United 92, Perth Wildcats 87 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: 10,200 |
Round 13
Round 14
8 January 2016 |
New Zealand Breakers 81, Adelaide 36ers 87 |
North Shore Events Centre, Auckland Attendance: 3,951 |
Round 15
Fox Sports |
14 January 2016 |
Illawarra Hawks 87, New Zealand Breakers 69 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: 3,308 |
17 January 2016 |
New Zealand Breakers 96, Illawarra Hawks 103 (2OT) |
Vector Arena, Auckland Attendance: TBA |
Round 16
Fox Sports |
20 January 2016 |
Adelaide 36ers 96, Sydney Kings 89 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 6,980 |
Fox Sports |
22 January 2016 |
Adelaide 36ers 90, Melbourne United 81 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 6,950 |
Round 17
Fox Sports |
28 January 2016 |
Illawarra Hawks 104, Adelaide 36ers 97 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
29 January 2016 |
New Zealand Breakers 77, Townsville Crocodiles 74 |
Vector Arena, Auckland Attendance: 5,562 |
Fox Sports |
30 January 2016 |
Adelaide 36ers 104, Illawarra Hawks 90 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 7,493 |
Round 18
Fox Sports |
3 February 2016 |
Adelaide 36ers 84, New Zealand Breakers 106 |
Titanium Security Arena, Adelaide Attendance: 5,308 |
Fox Sports |
4 February 2016 |
Illawarra Hawks 73, Melbourne United 80 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
Fox Sports |
6 February 2016 |
Illawarra Hawks 104, Townsville Crocodiles 97 (OT) |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
7 February 2016 |
New Zealand Breakers 85, Cairns Taipans 74 |
North Shore Events Centre, Auckland Attendance: TBA |
Round 19
12 February 2016 |
New Zealand Breakers 100, Melbourne United 63 |
North Shore Events Centre, Auckland Attendance: TBA |
Fox Sports |
12 February 2016 |
Illawarra Hawks 106, Adelaide 36ers 95 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
Fox Sports |
14 February 2016 |
Melbourne United 68, New Zealand Breakers 70 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: 10,200 |
Ladder
# | Team | Pld | Won | Lost | Last 5 | Streak | Home | Away | For | Against | % Pts | % Won |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Melbourne United | 28 | 18 | 10 | 2-3 | L2 | 11-3 | 7-7 | 2,384 | 2,342 | 101.79% | 64.29% |
2 | Perth Wildcats | 28 | 18 | 10 | 3-2 | W1 | 12-2 | 6-8 | 2,391 | 2,266 | 105.52% | 64.29% |
3 | Illawarra Hawks | 28 | 17 | 11 | 3-2 | W2 | 11-3 | 6-8 | 2,637 | 2,486 | 106.07% | 60.71% |
4 | New Zealand Breakers | 28 | 16 | 12 | 5-0 | W5 | 11-3 | 5-9 | 2,357 | 2,282 | 103.29% | 57.14% |
5 | Adelaide 36ers | 28 | 14 | 14 | 1-4 | L4 | 10-4 | 4-10 | 2,495 | 2,500 | 99.80% | 50.00% |
6 | Cairns Taipans | 28 | 12 | 16 | 2-3 | L2 | 11-3 | 1-13 | 2,238 | 2,354 | 95.07% | 42.86% |
7 | Townsville Crocodiles | 28 | 11 | 17 | 3-2 | W2 | 8-6 | 3-11 | 2,271 | 2,390 | 95.02% | 39.29% |
8 | Sydney Kings | 28 | 6 | 22 | 1-4 | L1 | 5-9 | 1-13 | 2,416 | 2,569 | 94.04% | 21.43% |
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 teams will determine order of seeding.
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 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Adelaide 36ers | 4 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | |
Cairns Taipans | 6 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | |
Illawarra Hawks | 7 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | |
Melbourne United | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
New Zealand Breakers | 5 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | |
Perth Wildcats | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
Sydney Kings | 1 | 5 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | |
Townsville Crocodiles | 8 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
Finals Series
The 2015–16 National Basketball League Finals were played in late February and March 2016, consisting of two best-of-three semi-final and final series, where the higher seed hosts the first and third games.
Playoff Seedings
- Melbourne United
- Perth Wildcats
- Illawarra Hawks
- New Zealand Breakers
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 teams will determine order of seeding.
Playoff bracket
Semi-finals | Grand Final | ||||||||||||
1 | Melbourne United | 82 | 78 | X | |||||||||
4 | New Zealand Breakers | 91 | 91 | X | |||||||||
2 | Perth Wildcats | 82 | 68 | 75 | |||||||||
4 | New Zealand Breakers | 76 | 72 | 52 | |||||||||
2 | Perth Wildcats | 80 | 87 | 89 | |||||||||
3 | Illawarra Hawks | 68 | 104 | 74 | |||||||||
Semi-finals
Fox Sports |
18 February 2016 |
Melbourne United 82, New Zealand Breakers 91 |
Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: 5,532 |
Fox Sports |
21 February 2016 |
Illawarra Hawks 104, Perth Wildcats 87 |
WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong Attendance: TBA |
Grand Final
4 March 2016 |
New Zealand Breakers 72, Perth Wildcats 68 |
North Shore Events Centre, Auckland Attendance: TBA |
Awards
Player of the Month
Month | Player | Team |
---|---|---|
October | Chris Goulding | Melbourne United |
November | Corey Webster | New Zealand Breakers |
December | Kevin Lisch | Illawarra Hawks |
January | Jerome Randle | Adelaide 36ers |
February | Cedric Jackson | New Zealand Breakers |
Coach of the Month
Month | Player | Team |
---|---|---|
October | Dean Demopoulos | Melbourne United |
November | Dean Vickerman | New Zealand Breakers |
December | Rob Beveridge | Illawarra Hawks |
January | Joey Wright | Adelaide 36ers |
February | Dean Vickerman | New Zealand Breakers |
Pre-season
- Most Valuable Player (Ray Borner Medal): Stephen Holt, Melbourne United & Markel Starks, Cairns Taipans
Season
- Most Valuable Player (Andrew Gaze Trophy): Kevin Lisch, Illawarra Hawks[1]
- Rookie of the Year: Nick Kay, Townsville Crocodiles[2]
- Best Defensive Player: Kevin Lisch, Illawarra Hawks[3]
- Best Sixth Man: Hakim Warrick, Melbourne United[4]
- Most Improved Player: Clint Steindl, Townsville Crocodiles[5]
- Coach of the Year (Lindsay Gaze Trophy): Shawn Dennis, Townsville Crocodiles[6]
- Referee of the Year: Vaughan Mayberry[7]
- All-NBL First Team:
- Jerome Randle – Adelaide 36ers[8]
- Kevin Lisch – Illawarra Hawks
- Chris Goulding – Melbourne United
- Daniel Kickert – Melbourne United
- Andrew Ogilvy – Illawarra Hawks
- All-NBL Second Team:
- Stephen Holt – Melbourne United
- Corey Webster – New Zealand Breakers
- Kirk Penney – Illawarra Hawks
- Matthew Knight – Perth Wildcats
- Daniel Johnson – Adelaide 36ers
Finals
- Grand Final Series MVP (Larry Sengstock Medal): Damian Martin, Perth Wildcats
References
- KEVIN LISCH AWARDED ULTIMATE PRIZE OF MVP
- CROCS YOUNG GUN NICK KAY WINS ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
- LISCH DETHRONES MARTIN FOR BEST DEFENSIVE PLAYER
- NBA VETERAN HAKIM WARRICK WINS BEST SIXTH MAN
- STEINDL TAKES OUT MOST IMPROVED HONOUR
- SHAWN DENNIS REWARDED WITH COACH OF THE YEAR
- 2015/16 REFEREE OF THE YEAR – VAUGHAN MAYBERRY
- RANDLE, LISCH HEADLINE ALL-NBL TEAMS