From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
2nd WBL season
Sports season
The
1979?80 WBL season
was the 2nd season of the
Women's Professional Basketball League
. The season ended with the
New York Stars
winning the WBL Championship, beating the
Iowa Cornets
3 games to 1 in the WBL Finals.
[1]
The league was divided into three divisions, with the
New Jersey Gems
,
New York Stars
St. Louis Streak
,
Washington Metros
and the
Philadelphia Fox
in the Eastern Division, the
Iowa Cornets
,
Minnesota Fillies
,
Chicago Hustle
and the
Milwaukee Does
in the Midwest and the
Houston Angels
,
San Francisco Pioneers
,
California Dreams
and the
Dallas Diamonds
in the West. Struggling financially, Philadelphia and Washington both disbanded after 10 games.
[2]
Notable occurrences
[
edit
]
- In June, former NBA player
Dean Meminger
was hired as the head coach of the
New York Stars
.
[3]
[4]
- Pat Colasurdo Mayo
was selected with the first pick in the 1979 WBL draft by the
San Francisco Pioneers
.
[5]
- Former NBA coach
Larry Costello
was hired as the head coach of the
Milwaukee Does
.
[6]
[7]
- After sitting out the
1978?79 season
and participating in the
Indiana Pacers
training camp,
Ann Meyers
signed with the
New Jersey Gems
in November.
[8]
- The season debut was on 15 November, 1979, where the
New York Stars
defeated the
New Orleans Pride
, 120-112, before a record crowd of 8,452 in the
Louisiana Superdome
.
[9]
- On 26 November,
Janie Fincher
of the
Chicago Hustle
was traded to the
Washington Metros
for two third-round draft picks and an undisclosed amount of cash. As Chicago's most popular player, the trade turned out to be a very unpopular move with Chicago's fans, with many turning in their season tickets afterwards.
[10]
Due to the uproar, the Hustle tried to get the trade voided but could not do so before the Metros folded with Fincher going into a dispersal draft with the other Metros players. Despite having a chance to select her with the 4th pick, the team traded the pick to the
Iowa Cornets
for
Denise Sharps
, and Fincher was then selected with the fifth pick by the
St. Louis Streak
. The Hustle however, then traded
Adrian Mitchell
to the Streak for "Future considerations" which turned out to be Fincher,
[11]
and she returned to Chicago before the end of the month.
[12]
- On January 13, 1980,
Molly Bolin
, of the
Iowa Cornets
, broke her own WBL single game scoring record of 53 points when she scored 54 in a 109-93 win against the
Minnesota Fillies
.
[13]
Two months later, on March 2, 1980, she broke the record again, scoring 55 points in another win against the Fillies despite dislocating her left shoulder early in the second quarter. That game, she also became the first WBL player to break the 1,000 point barrier in a single season.
[14]
Standings
[
edit
]
Notes
- z
? division champions
- x
? clinched playoff spot
Playoffs
[
edit
]
Statistics leaders
[
edit
]
WBL awards
[
edit
]
All-Pro team
[
edit
]
Source
[15]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"NY Stars take Cornets' crown"
.
The Dispatch
.
United Press International
. April 10, 1980. p. 40
. Retrieved
October 17,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
"WBL's Metros, Fox suspend operations"
.
Florida Today
. December 22, 1979. p. 2C
. Retrieved
October 17,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
Mike Wise (December 25, 2003).
"PRO BASKETBALL; How Dean Meminger Turned His Life Around"
.
The New York Times
.
- ^
Don Markus (July 1, 1979).
"Meminger's new role is an old one"
.
Newsday
. p. 8 (sports)
. Retrieved
October 15,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
"Cornets select 5 Iowans in WBL draft"
.
The Gazette
. June 13, 1979. p. 1C
. Retrieved
October 17,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
"Ex-NBA coach turns to women"
.
Ventura County Star
. October 4, 1979. p. C8
. Retrieved
October 17,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
Helene Elliott (December 14, 1979).
"Larry Costello suffers among 389"
.
Newsday
. p. 141
. Retrieved
October 17,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
"Ann Meyers signs with WBL Gems"
.
The Day
.
Associated Press
. November 15, 1979. p. 48
. Retrieved
October 17,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
"It was a Jazzy family reunion for VBK"
.
The Memphis Press-Scimitar
.
Associated Press
. p. 16
. Retrieved
October 30,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
Bill Jauss (December 19, 1979).
"
'Mistaken' Hustle puts in claim for Fincher"
.
Chicago Tribune
. p. 3 (Section 5)
. Retrieved
October 30,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
Bill Jauss (December 22, 1979).
"Where's Janie now?"
.
Chicago Tribune
. p. 3 (Section 2)
. Retrieved
October 30,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
Mike Conklin (December 27, 1979).
"Hustle regains Fincher, may lose general manager"
.
Chicago Tribune
. p. 3 (Section 4)
. Retrieved
October 30,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
Wayne Grett (January 14, 1980).
"Magnificent Molly makes her mark"
.
The Des Moines Register
. pp. 1S, 5S
. Retrieved
October 21,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
Wayne Grett (March 3, 1980).
"Bolin's 55 break mark; Cornets win"
.
The Des Moines Register
. p. 3S
. Retrieved
October 19,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
"Bolin, Meyers head WBL All-Pro team"
.
Arizona Daily Star
.
Associated Press
. June 10, 1980. p. C2
. Retrieved
October 21,
2023
– via
Newspapers.com
.
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WBL teams
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WBL seasons
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WBL draft
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All-Star game
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