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So now we are past the all-star week and coming towards the end of the cup, it's time to start looking at the leagues. Its safe to say that this season is looking pretty interesting.

The EBBL is looking really competitive, especially in the Great 8 with the top 4 teams all within 1 win of each other. Vecx and js8 are looking pretty solid and a fight for home court will be interesting towards the end of the season. Not only is it looking interesting at the top, the battle for relegation playoffs is getting juicy with all but 3 teams still in with a chance at making the playoffs.

Division 2 is looking very tasty this season, with no teams currently having a better record than 13-2 and quite a few teams on 12-3. It makes for an unpredictable playoffs with no obvious winners. Plus with the final promotion spot going to the best number 1 seed, final record could prove very important.

I'm looking forward to following the leagues down the stretch with 7 games to go!

Congratulations to Vecx on winning the cup! He is now a 10 time cup winner! Can he now go on to win the double as well?!

An impressive win for Vecx over Optic Fibres this week puts him in a strong position for the playoffs as he is now likely to have home court for every round. There is also a interesting battle for the 3rd and 4th seed in the EBBL Big 8 with Arsenal and LIDL Tallfella on 10-7, Bromley on 9-8 and Cambois Donkeys on 8-9. Over on the Great 8 there is a 3 way tie for the 1st seed with Hope Springs, Stinkilemons and London Whales on 11-6 records, and the are closely followed by Durham Wasps on 10-7.Don't write out Los Mikitos as well as they are only 2 games behind on 8-9.

All 4 division 2 leagues are looking very tasty as well. 5 teams currently sit with 15-2 records with 5 teams on 14-3 and 6 teams on 13-4. The fight for playoff home court is going to be very close in the final 5 games! The best ranked 1 seed is guaranteed promotion to the EBBL so a big prize is on offer for the team that can clinch the best record!

Thanks dude, the congrats means a lot to me. EBBL is one heck of a tough league these days.

Congrats mate!

The post-season is upon us and the playoffs this year look very interesting!

EBBL
The EBBL this season has been very close all season. The Great 8 conference playoff situation has seen the top 4 teams within 1 game for most of the season. Hope Springs managed to come out on top of the Great 8 due to their +224 PD, ahead of London Whales who also finished with a 15-7 record. Last year’s runners up Durham Wasps finish 3rd and Stinkilemons 4th both with 14-8 records.

The first match up is between two teams that have never managed to win the EBBL title, Hope Springs and Stinkilemons. Stinkilemons came closest in season 39 as they were runners up. Hope Springs have enjoyed a quick rise in the EBBL ranks as this is only their second season in the top division, losing in the first-round last season. Hope Springs recently beat Stinkilemons 127-125 in an OT classic! Hopefully we can enjoy another classic in their 1st round matchup.

London Whales will look towards home-grown talent as England national squad members Dexter Barral and Kenny MacLaverty, who were both drafted by the Whales, lead the line. MacLaverty finished 2nd in scoring this season with 21.7ppg ahead of Stinkilemons’ Dallis Brona who finished 3rd with 21.2ppg. London Whales defeated Durham in their most recent matchup, but you can never write off the 3-time EBBL champion.

In the Big 8, Tide of Fire have been on top all season and look like the favourites heading into the playoffs as they ended the season with an impressive 20-2 record and a national cup win. Last year’s champions Optic Fibres finished in 2nd with a 16-6 record and hoping to make another push to the title. NT coach Bergkamp has led his Arsenal 98 squad to the 3rd seed ahead of 7-time EBBL champion (2 as LIDLTallfellas) LIDLTallfellas who both finished with a 14-8 record.

LIDLTallfellas does hold a victory over Tide of Fire in their most recent game as they beat them 78-51. but Tide of Fire looked to be resting players for the cup final in the same week. Tide of Fire might be favourites, but the Tallfellas hold recent victories over the top 2 seeds, so it won’t be easy for the 12-time EBBL champions

The other first round matchup is a battle between the two national coaches, Bergkamp and js8. The season series is 1-1 with the home team picking up the victory on both occasions. Optic Fibres have had a rocky run of form with a 3-4 record in the final conference matchups. Arsenal on the other hand go into the playoffs on a 6-1 run during that time, with the only loss falling to Tide of Fire in the final game of the season. An intriguing game that could go either way.

EBBL veterans Los Mikitos and Gauson face relegation as they failed to make the playoffs. Los Mikitos face new jersey2 in what on paper should be a straight forward victory for Los Mikitos. Gauson face a tougher challenge as they face the Cambois Donkeys with the Donkeys having home-court advantage. The final relegation series see two first-time EBBL teams battling for survival as Bromley-By-Bow face JA Miami.

Good luck to all teams

Div II.1
Division II.1 sees long-time team Kotwa leading the way as they finished with the divisions best record of 19-3. However, they face a difficult first round match-up as they play recently relegated Galaxy Walkers who finished 4th in the Big 8 with a 14-8 record. The other Big 8 first round game sees Panathinaikos Bristol face former EBBL runner up and cup winner Doncaster Hawks. These two faced off in the final league game which saw Doncaster pick up a 86-73 win.

Over on the Great 8 side, things look just as tight as all 4 teams ended the season within 2 games of each other. Falcons Heywood pipped Detroit Pistons I to the top seed on points difference on the final day as they beat 3rd seed Hurstead Hustlers and Detroit lost to the 4th seed Toral Castro. Falcons Heywood look to regain their EBBL spot which they lost 2 seasons ago and recover from the finals loss last season as they face Toral Castro in the first round. Detroit Pistons I face Hurstead Hustlers in the other first round matchup.

Div II.2
Division II.2 sees the closest conference finish potentially ever as in the Big 8 all 4 playoff teams finished with a 16-6 record and within 70-point difference of each other! MexicanTaxiDriver ended up on top and they will face Borac Basket in the first round. A matchup between a newly promoted team and recent EBBL team, but both teams have a strong chance of progressing through. The second Big 8 tie sees another newly promoted team, and former EBBL team, face off against season 45 EBBL champion and 2-time cup winner A Dogs. These two faced off in the final league game which saw A Dogs come out on top 77-74.

The Great 9 conference might not be as close, but still has a lot of talent. BC Bloosa finished with a 19-3 record to give them home court advantage throughout the playoffs. They face a tough first round tie against last year’s division II.2 runner up Porzigod. Roaring Lions finished 2nd with a 18-4 record. The Lions have 2 national players on their books as well as 2 U21 national players so they will pose a strong threat for everyone. The face Heat Culture who will be without their second top scorer Jerome Wiseman who is out with an injury.

Div II.3
Division II.3 is this season’s home to the 4th most successful team in England BB history, BC Zalgiris. BC Zalgiris won 4 EBBL titles back-to-back between season 49 and 52 before a shock relegation. Zalgiris have bounced back to lead the entirety of division 2 with a 20-2 record which guarantees them promotion back to the EBBL. However, I’m sure Vycka is still wanting to win the playoffs. They face Olympiacos 1925 in the first round. The other Great 8 tie sees the 2nd seed Team Nook face Kauno Zalgiris 7 BC. The two games between these have ended with the away team picking up the win, will that continue in the playoffs.

The Big 8 conference was comfortable won by PONTIOPOYLA who finished with a 18-4 record, after two surprising losses to end the season. PONTIOPOYLA face Varnalesos, who ended with a 13-9 record,in the first round. The other Big 8 matchup is between two teams that ended with a 14-8 record, Coventry Phoenix and Nutwood Nets. Nutwood Nets made it to the finals last season before losing to JA Miami and they will be hoping to go one step further this time around.

Div II.4
The Big 8 conference in Division II.4 sees 3 teams with a 16-6 record who were all led by last season’s EBBL team, Bethnal Green Erks who finished with the best record in the league 19-3 (beating Bournemouth Drunkers on points difference). Bethnal Green Erks face Club Deportivo San Andres in the first round, with the season series between them at 1-1 both teams will be hoping to get the better of the other a progress. The second Big 8 tie is between the one of the oldest clubs in the country, Whetstone Wizards, and Camden Kings. Both teams picked up big home court wins against the other during the season so the Kings will be hoping for a similar result this time round.

Over in the Great 8, Bournemouth Drunkers lead the way with a 19-3 record. They face another former EBBL team in CWA Fury. Both teams picked up the home win during the season, and with both teams hoping to get back to the big time, both teams will be pushing hard for the win. In the other Great 8 tie, promoted side Pleven North End travel to Zalia – Baita. Zalia – Baita swept Pleven Noth End through the season and will hope to make it 3 ut of 3, however a heavy defeat to Bournemouth Drunkers on the final day may have damped spirits heading into the post season.

Good luck to all teams in the playoffs!

As you may know, the division 2 team with the best record and number 1 seed who don’t win the playoffs automatically win promotion to the EBBL. Here are the rankings for that promotion:

1- BC Zalgiris 20-2 – 642 PD
2- Bethnal Green Erks 19-3 – 561 PD
3- Bournemoth Drunkers 19-3 – 444 PD
4- Kotwa 19-3 – 437 PD
5- BC Bloosa 19-3 – 388 PD
6- PONTIOPOYLA 18-4 – 345 PD
7- Falcons Heywood 17-5 – 476 PD
8- Mexican Taxi Driver 16-6 – 281 PD

Good work, nice round up of each division.

Good stuff. Really adds something to the end of the season.

Thanks for the write-up, I'm in my first season so it's good to learn about some of the long-standing teams.

Best of luck to everyone.