East Coast Basketball League

Minor American basketball league

East Coast Basketball League (ECBL)

Sport| Basketball
Founded| June 2014
First season| 2015
No. of teams| 21
Country| United States
Continent| FIBA Americas (Americas)
Most recent
champion(s)| Carolina Thunder (South)
Hartford Shockers (Mid Atlantic)
(2023)
Most titles| Six (PrimeTime Players)
Official website| EastCoastBasketballLeague.org

East Coast Basketball League (ECBL) is a men's professional basketball minor league in the United States that began play in March 2015. The league is centered in the Carolinas with teams also in Georgia, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Massachusetts.

## History

[edit]

Five teams (Carolina Gladiators, Fayetteville Crossover, PrimeTime Players, Queen City Express, South Carolina All-Stars)[1] in the ECBL previously played in the Tobacco Road Basketball League. The teams broke away from the TRBL due to changes in the league format.[2]

On August 16, 2014, the ECBL announced the addition of the Fort Gordon Eagles. A military team, the Eagles also compete in the Southeast Military Athletics Conference (SEMAC) from October to February.

Former American Basketball Association team Savannah Storm were admitted to enter the ECBL for Season 1. They would be joined by Columbia Crusaders, Gastonia Crowns and High Point Hawks to round out the 10-team circuit.

The first-ever ECBL Championship was won by PrimeTime Players, 130–113 over the Fayetteville Crossover. The final was played on June 27, 2015, in Fort Mill, South Carolina and streamed live online. Former Catawba College forward Donald Rutherford[3] scored 34 points while grabbing 16 rebounds for PrimeTime and was named game MVP.

Four new teams joined the ECBL for the 2016 season: expansion teams Carolina MPact, Petersburg Revolution, RDU Raptors and Winston-Salem Certified (formerly of the TRBL).

Expansion into Charlotte was announced on April 8, 2016, with the addition of Charlotte Golden Bulls.[4]

At the August 2016 AGM, league board of directors unanimously accepted the expansion application of the Florence Wildcats for 2017.[5] Two teams also announced name changes: Peterburg Cavaliers (formerly Revolution) and North Carolina Coyotes (formerly RDU Raptors).

League owners approved the expansion application of the Carolina Thunder for 2017. The Thunder began as a travel team playing a league schedule on the road. A second travel team, Hickory Hoyas, were added to the schedule before the season opener.

Prior to the 2021 season the league added seven teams to form the new Mid-Atlantic Conference. Teams included Fredericksburg Grizzlies, Hub City Hogs, Philly Cannons, Philly Raiders, Plaistow Shockers, Red Rose Thunder and Western Mass Zombies.

## Teams

[edit]

Mid-Atlantic Conference  | City  | Arena  | Founded  | First ECBL

season

|
|
|
|

Hartford Shockers  | Hartford, Connecticut | East Catholic High School | 2019  | 2021
Philly Raiders  | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Germantown Academy | 2019  | 2021
Northern Conference  | City  | Arena  | Founded  | First ECBL

season

Carolina Chosen Lions  | Rocky Mount, North Carolina | Rocky Mount Prep  | 2018  | 2019
Fayetteville Panthers  | Fayetteville, North Carolina | Highland Presbyterian Church Rec Center  | 2018  | 2019
Hickory Hoyas  | Hickory, North Carolina | Newton Conover Middle School  | 2016  | 2017
North Carolina Capitals  | Raleigh, North Carolina | Garner Road Community Center  | 2020  | 2021
Petersburg Cavaliers  | Petersburg, Virginia | Richard Bland College | 2015  | 2016
Rowan County Bulls  | Cleveland, North Carolina | Fifteen Sports Athletic Center  | 2017  | 2018
Winston-Salem Wolves | Winston-Salem, North Carolina | Forsyth Country Day Childress Center | 2018  | 2019
Southern Conference  | City  | Arena  | Founded  | First ECBL

season

Carolina Crusaders  | Columbia, South Carolina | Glenforest School  | 2014  | 2015
Carolina Thunder  | Hartsville, South Carolina | Coach D.B. Thomas Sports Center  | 2015  | 2017
Charlotte Tribe  | Charlotte, North Carolina | Mountain Island Fitness  | 2017  | 2018
Garden City Magic  | Augusta, Georgia | Episcopal Day School  | 2019  | 2021
Gastonia Snipers  | Gastonia, North Carolina | Fort Mill Community Center  | 2018  | 2019
PrimeTime Players | Fort Mill, South Carolina | Legion Collegiate Academy  | 1991  | 2015
South Carolina Upstate Redhawks  | Greenville, South Carolina | Greenville First Baptist  | 2014  | 2015

### Former teams

[edit]

* Augusta Eagles (2015–20)
* Carolina Gladiators (2015)
* Carolina Kings (2017)
* Carolina MPact (2016)
* Carolina Showtime (2017; 2020)
* Charlotte Golden Bulls (2017)
* C-Port Trojans (2015–18)
* East Carolina Cardinals (2018–19)
* Fayetteville Crossover (2015–16)
* Fredericksburg Grizzlies (2021)
* Gastonia Crowns (2015)
* Georgia Fire (2020–21)
* Hickory Hoyas (2017–19; 2020–present) - Suspended from league in 2019 after four games. Returned in 2020.
* High Point Hawks (2015–17)
* Philly Cannons (2021)
* Queen City Express (2015)
* South Carolina All Stars (2015–18)
* Winston-Salem Certified (2016–18)
* Kannapolis Lycans (2020–22)
* North Carolina Coyotes (2017–22)
* Lehigh Valley Flight (2022)
* Coastal Elite Pirates (2021–23)
* Bishopville Devils (2022–23)
* Hampton Roads Warriors (2017–20,2023)
* Florence Wildcats (2017–23)
* Western Mass Zombies (2021–23)
* Hub City Hogs (2021–23)
* Red Rose Thunder (2021–23)
* Nova Bulls (2022–23)

## Champions

[edit]

Season  | Champion  | Runner-up  | Result

|
|
|

2015  | PrimeTime Players | Fayetteville Crossover | 130-113[6][7]
2016  | PrimeTime Players | Fayetteville Crossover | 119-100
2017  | PrimeTime Players | Carolina Thunder  | 123-105
2018  | PrimeTime Players | Hickory Hoyas  | 134-118
2019  | PrimeTime Players | Winston-Salem Wolves  | 103-99
2020  | none (season suspended due to COVID-19)  | \
  | \

2021: South

2021: Mid-Atlantic

| PrimeTime Players

Western Mass Zombies

| North Carolina Coyotes

Hub City Hogs

| 130-128

122-117 (OT)

2022: South

2022: Mid-Atlantic

| Petersburg Cavaliers

Hartford Shockers

| Carolina Crusaders

Hub City Hogs

| 134-124

125-114

|- |2023: South 2023: Mid-Atlantic |Carolina Thunder Hartford Shockers |Petersburg Cavaliers The DC Heat |126-102 134-120 |}

## ECBL Super Cup

[edit]

Winners of the ECBL Mid-Atlantic and ECBL South.

ECBL Super Cup  Year  | Winner  | Runner-up  | Result  | Location

|
|
|
|

2021  | PrimeTime Players | Western Mass Zombies  | 133-129[8] | Combine Academy, Lincolnton, North Carolina
2022  | Hartford Shockers | Petersburg Cavaliers  | 130-110  | Hartford, CT

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "New East Coast Basketball League Created In Aftermath of Significant TRBL Changes". USBasket. July 23, 2014.
2. ^ "East Coast Basketball League to Begin Play in 2015". ECBL. July 4, 2014. Archived from the original on November 7, 2014.
3. ^ "Four Recieve [sic] Post-Season All-SAC Honors in Men's Basketball". Catawba College Athletics. March 5, 2010. Archived from the original on October 15, 2011.
4. ^ "ECBL Add Charlotte Golden Bulls For 2017". USbasket. April 8, 2016.
5. ^ "Florence Wildcats Newest Addition To ECBL". USbasket. August 25, 2016.
6. ^ "PrimeTime Players Win Inaugural ECBL Title". USBasket. July 2, 2015.
7. ^ "It's PrimeTime for hoops in Fort Mill". The Herald. April 4, 2016.
8. ^ "Bracey, Booker lead PrimeTime Players to Super Cup victory". USBasket. June 27, 2021. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021.

## External links

[edit]

* Official league website

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