October tip-off for 2012-13 NBL Season

The 2012/13 National Basketball League season will tip-off on Friday October 5, with reigning title-holders the New Zealand Breakers set to hoist their second consecutive championship banner to the rafters of North Shore Events Centre in Auckland on Opening Night of the NBL Championship.

The Breakers will have the honour of tipping-off the new season with a home game against 2012 Semi Finalists, the Gold Coast Blaze, at the North Shore Events Centre in Auckland.

Also playing on Opening Night will be the NBL’s two New South Wales clubs, with the Wollongong Hawks hosting their intrastate rivals the Sydney Kings at ‘The Sandpit’ (AKA the Wollongong Entertainment Centre). New Kings import Corin Henry will make his NBL debut in that game along with Sydney’s other key off-season signings centre Ian Crosswhite and guard James Harvey.

There will be four games in Round One, including archrivals the Cairns Taipans and Townsville Crocodiles facing each other for a ‘Reptile Rumble’ in Cairns on Saturday October 6. That clash will see new signing Cameron ‘Trigger’ Tragardh (ex-Melbourne Tigers) make his first appearance for the Taipans, as well as the debut of Australia college stars Cameron Gliddon and Clint Steindl for the Snakes.

Traditional combatants the Adelaide 36ers and Melbourne Tigers will meet at Adelaide Arena on Sunday 7 October, with prodigal son Luke Schenscher making his highly-anticipated return for the Sixers. Adam Ballinger will also make his first appearance for the Melbourne Tigers in that clash against his former club.

Fans won’t have to wait long to see a rematch of the two teams that slugged it out in the classic 2012 NBL Grand Final series, with the Breakers hosting last season’s runners-up the Perth Wildcats in Round Five on 1 November.

The Wildcats will face their opening five games on the road before playing their first ever game at the brand new Perth Arena in Round Seven on Friday November 16.

As recently announced, the fixture also features a break between Rounds 11 and 12 to accommodate the reintroduction of the NBL All-Star Game on Sunday December 23.

Each team will play 28 games during the 2012/13 NBL Championship regular season. The nine teams that will play in 2012/13 are the Adelaide 36ers, Cairns Taipans, Gold Coast Blaze, Melbourne Tigers, New Zealand Breakers, Perth Wildcats, Sydney Kings, Townsville Crocodiles and Wollongong Hawks.

The existing NBL Finals system with its top four format will be retained, with the Finals set to run from late March through to late April.

Expectations are high for continued growth and increased visibility for the NBL in the new season after the 2011/12 NBL Championship campaign produced a third consecutive season of attendance increases and a scintillating sold-out Grand Final series.

Click here to view the full 2012/13 NBL Championship schedule.

Visit www.nbl.com.au to read more about the National Basketball League.

•  Have a view on this story? Send us your feedback!