The 2017–18 Pro Basketball League, for sponsorship reasons the EuroMillions Basketball League, was the 91st season of the Belgian Basketball League, first tier of basketball in Belgium. The defending champion was Oostende. The season started on 23 September 2017 and ended 14 June 2018.
| Pro Basketball League | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | 2017–18 | ||||||||||||
| Dates | 23 September 2017 – 13 June 2018 | ||||||||||||
| Teams | 10 | ||||||||||||
| Regular season | |||||||||||||
| Season MVP | Jean Salumu | ||||||||||||
| Finals | |||||||||||||
| Champions | Oostende (19th title) | ||||||||||||
| Runners-up | Telenet Giants Antwerp | ||||||||||||
| Semifinalists | Proximus Spirou Okapi Aalstar | ||||||||||||
| Finals MVP | Tonye Jekiri | ||||||||||||
| Statistical leaders | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
← 2016–17 2018–19 → | |||||||||||||
Teams
editAntwerp Giants changed its name to Telenet Giants Antwerp, following a sponsorship agreement with Telenet.[1] Meanwhile, Telenet left Oostende which meant the sponsored club name disappeared after seven years.
Arenas and locations
edit
| Club | City | Arena | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic-Fit Brussels | Brussels | Piscine de Neder-Over-Hembeek | 1,200 |
| Belfius Mons-Hainaut | Mons | Mons.Arena | 4,000 |
| VOO Liège[a] | Liège | Country Hall | 5,000 |
| Crelan Okapi Aalstar | Aalst | Okapi Forum | 2,800 |
| Hubo Limburg United | Hasselt | Alverberg Sporthal | 1,730
|
| Kangoeroes Willebroek | Willebroek | Sporthal de Schalk | 1,000 |
| Oostende | Ostend | Versluys Dôme | 5,000 |
| Proximus Spirou | Charleroi | Spiroudome | 6,200 |
| Stella Artois Leuven Bears | Leuven | Sportoase | 3,400 |
| Telenet Giants Antwerp | Antwerp | Lotto Arena | 5,218 |
- ^ Liège Basket started the season as "BetFirst Liège Basket", however it changed its name into "VOO Liège Basket" in February 2018.
Personnel and kits
editNote: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.
| Team | Manager | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic-Fit Brussels |  Serge Crèvecoeur
|
Spalding | Basic-Fit Fitness |
| Belfius Mons-Hainaut | Daniel Goethals
|
Jako | Belfius |
| VOO Liège | Laurent Constantiello
|
Jako | BetFirst |
| Crelan Okapi Aalstar | Jean-Marc Jaumin
|
Jartazi | Crelan |
| Hubo Limburg United |  Ronnie McCollum
|
K1X | Hubo |
| Kangoeroes Willebroek |  Damir Milačić
|
Jako | |
| Oostende | Dario Gjergja
|
Spalding | |
| Proximus Spirou | Brian Lynch
|
Spalding | Proximus |
| Stella Artois Leuven Bears | Ferried Naciri
|
Stella Artois | |
| Telenet Giants Antwerp | Roel Moors
|
Spalding | Telenet |
Managerial changes
edit| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Replaced by | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hubo Limburg United | Brian Lynch
|
Signed with Proximus Spirou | 31 June 2017[2] | Pre-season | Ronnie McCollum
|
9 April 2017[3] |
| Proximus Spirou | Fluvio Bastianini
|
Mutual consent | 19 March 2017[4] | Brian Lynch
|
9 April 2017[2] | |
| Hubo Limburg United | Ronnie McCollum
|
Fired | 17 November 2017 [5] | 8th (2–6) | Pascal Angillis
|
17 November 2017[5] |
Regular season
editIn the regular season, teams play against each other home-and-away in a round-robin format. The eight highest placed teams advance to the playoffs. The first games are played on 23 September 2017 and the regular season finishes on 20 May 2018.[6]
Standings
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oostende | 36 | 29 | 7 | 2969 | 2470 | +499 | 65 | Qualification for playoffs |
| 2 | Telenet Giants Antwerp | 36 | 27 | 9 | 2911 | 2618 | +293 | 63 | |
| 3 | Proximus Spirou | 36 | 25 | 11 | 2954 | 2783 | +171 | 61 | |
| 4 | Crelan Okapi Aalstar | 36 | 23 | 13 | 2898 | 2708 | +190 | 59 | |
| 5 | Belfius Mons-Hainaut | 36 | 20 | 16 | 2870 | 2886 | −16 | 56 | |
| 6 | Hubo Limburg United | 36 | 16 | 20 | 2889 | 2903 | −14 | 52 | |
| 7 | Kangoeroes Willebroek | 36 | 13 | 23 | 2826 | 3111 | −285 | 49 | |
| 8 | Basic-Fit Brussels | 36 | 12 | 24 | 2637 | 2812 | −175 | 48 | |
| 9 | VOO Liège | 36 | 8 | 28 | 2970 | 3217 | −247 | 44 | |
| 10 | Stella Artois Leuven Bears | 36 | 7 | 29 | 2628 | 3044 | −416 | 43 |
Source: EuroMillions League
Playoffs
editThe playoffs start on 26 May and end on 13, 15 or 17 June 2017. The winner of the playoffs is crowned Belgian national champion. In the quarterfinals and semifinals a best-of-three format is used, while the finals are played in a best-of-five format. The higher seeded team had home advantage and played games one, three and five (if possible) at home. Small bold numbers indicate team seeding.
Bracket
editQuarterfinals
edit| Team 1 | Series | Team 2 | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oostende | 2–0 | Basic-Fit Brussels | 103–62 | 84–63 | |
| Okapi Aalstar | 2–1 | Belfius Mons-Hainaut | 79–81 | 82–80 | 81–71 |
| Telenet Giants Antwerp | 2–0 | Kangoeroes Willebroek | 76–62 | 95–65 | |
| Proximus Spirou | 2–0 | Hubo Limburg United | 89–62 | 80–73 |
Semifinals
edit| Team 1 | Series | Team 2 | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oostende | 2–0 | Okapi Aalstar | 82–60 | 80–64 | |
| Telenet Giants Antwerp | 2–0 | Proximus Spirou | 90–80 | 83–82 |
Finals
edit| Team 1 | Series | Team 2 | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4 | Game 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oostende | 3–0 | Telenet Giants Antwerp | 75–67 | 74–66 | 78–67 |
Final standings
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oostende (C) | 43 | 36 | 7 | Qualification for Champions League regular season |
| 2 | Telenet Giants Antwerp | 43 | 31 | 12 | Qualification for Champions League first qualifying round |
| 3 | Proximus Spirou | 40 | 27 | 13 | |
| 4 | Crelan Okapi Aalstar | 41 | 25 | 16 | |
| 5 | Belfius Mons-Hainaut | 39 | 21 | 18 | Qualification for FIBA Europe Cup |
| 6 | Hubo Limburg United | 38 | 16 | 22 | |
| 7 | Kangoeroes Willebroek | 38 | 13 | 25 | |
| 8 | Basic-Fit Brussels | 38 | 12 | 26 | |
| 9 | VOO Liège | 36 | 8 | 28 | |
| 10 | Stella Artois Leuven Bears | 36 | 7 | 29 |
Awards
editIndividual honours
edit| Award | Player | Club | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most Valuable Player | Jean Salumu |
Oostende | |
| Belgian Player of the Year | Jean Salumu |
Oostende | |
| Most Promising Player | Thomas Akyazili |
Telenet Giants Antwerp | |
| Coach of the Year | Dario Gjergja |
Oostende |
All-League Teams
edit| All-Offensive Team | All-Defensive Team | ||
|---|---|---|---|
 Dušan Đorđević |
Oostende | Paris Lee |
Telenet Giants Antwerp |
| Garlon Green |
Belfius Mons-Hainaut | Bill Amis |
Okapi Aalstar |
| Jean Salumu |
Oostende | Jean Salumu |
Oostende |
| Chase Fieler |
Oostende | Jean-Marc Mwema |
Oostende |
| Seth Tuttle |
Proximus Spirou |  Tonye Jekiri |
Oostende |
In European competitions
edit| Team | Competition | Progress | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oostende | Champions League | Regular season | [8] |
| Telenet Giants Antwerp | Regular season | ||
| Proximus Spirou | FIBA Europe Cup | Regular season | |
| Belfius Mons-Hainaut | Second round |
References
edit- ^ Telenet komende drie jaar hoofdsponsor van Antwerp Giants
- ^ a b Brian Lynch vertrekt bij Limburg United en wordt coach van Charleroi
- ^ "HUBO LIMBURG UNITED STELT RONNIE MCCOLLUM ALS NIEUWE COACH VOOR". Archived from the original on 2017-08-08. Retrieved 2017-08-08.
- ^ Fulvio Bastianini stopt als coach van eersteklasser in basketbal Charleroi
- ^ a b "Pascal Angillis takes over at Hubo Limburg United". Euromillions Basketball. 2017-11-20. Retrieved 2017-11-20.
- ^ "Kalender bekend: BC Oostende speelt twee keer thuis in kerstperiode 2017". Knack.be. 2017-06-29.
- ^ "Salumu (Oostende) verkozen tot MVP, Akyazili (Antwerp) belofte van het jaar" (in Dutch). HLN.be. 22 May 2018. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
- ^ Champions League Qualification Rounds and Regular Season draw completed[permanent dead link]