Andrea Costa Imola is an Italian professional
basketball team based in
Imola,
Emilia-Romagna. The side is playing in the second division
Serie A2 as of the 2015-16 season.
History
Andrea Costa Basket was founded on 4 October 1967, with the name an hommage to a former Imola of the same name.
The club started playing in the amateur Prima divisione before moving up to the Promozione after one season, staying there until 1980-81.
Playing one season in Serie D, the side then was promoted to the Serie C2 where it would play from 1982 to 1986 after which it joined the Serie B2.
It won the league on its first try, moving up to the highest amateur division, the
Serie B1, where it would stay for eight years.
At the end of the 1994-95 season, Andrea Costa won a promotion to the professional
Serie A2.
The 1996-97 would see Imola beat favourites
Livorno
Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 158,493 residents in December 2017. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn (pronou ...
in the promotion playoffs and reach the
Serie A.
Under the leadership of
Vincenzo Esposito, the side reached the playoffs in 1998-99, losing in the quarterfinals to rivals
Fortitudo Bologna.
The club managed to qualify for European competitions in 1999-2000 (Korać Cup) and 2000-01 (Saporta Cup) but would be relegated at the end of 2001.
The next decade was more difficult for Imola, with the club relegated thrice on the court (2004, 2007, 2009) before being saved by other club's bankruptcies.
Arena
Andrea Costa played in the PalaRuggi until 1995, with the promotion to the Serie A2 meaning the side had to find a suitable arena, moving to the Palatenda.
Another promotion to the Serie A in 1998, meant the side had to move again, this time to the PalaCattani in neighbouring
Faenza
Faenza (, , ; rgn, Fènza or ; la, Faventia) is an Italian city and comune of 59,063 inhabitants in the province of Ravenna, Emilia-Romagna, situated southeast of Bologna.
Faenza is home to a historical manufacture of majolica-ware glazed eart ...
.
Later returning to the PalaRuggi, the side plays there as of the 2015-16 season.
2015–16 roster
Notable former players
2000's
*
Pietro Aradori
Pietro Aradori (born 9 December 1988) is an Italian professional basketball player for Fortitudo Bologna of the Lega Basket Serie A (LBA). Standing at , he plays at the shooting guard and small forward positions.
Professional career
The Brescia n ...
1 season: '06-'07
*
Darren Kelly 1 season: '06-'07
*
Nicholas James George
Nicholas is a male given name and a surname.
The Eastern Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Anglican Churches celebrate Saint Nicholas every year on December 6, which is the name day for "Nicholas". In Greece, the name and its d ...
1 season: '06-'07
*
Donte Mathis
Donte Mathis (born July 13, 1977) is an American basketball coach and former professional player who is an assistant coach for the Texas State Bobcats men's team. He played college basketball for the Bobcats from 1995 to 1999. Mathis played profe ...
1 season: '06-'07
*
BJ McKie
Bjorn "BJ" McKie (born April 7, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player and current assistant coach at Wake Forest. Born in Norfolk, Virginia, McKie went to high school at Irmo High School and played for the University of Sou ...
1 season: '05-'06
*
David Brkic
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
1 season: '05-'06
*
Bingo Merriex
Bingo or B-I-N-G-O may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Gaming
* Bingo, a game using a printed card of numbers
** Bingo (British version), a game using a printed card of 15 numbers on three lines; most commonly played in the UK and Ireland
** Bi ...
1 season: '04-'05
*
Michael Campbell 1 season: '04-'05
*
Jobey Thomas
Jobey Wayne Thomas (born March 24, 1980) is an American retired basketball player who competed for a number of professional clubs, mostly in Italy, with a short but successful spell in Portuguese basketball.
In his college basketball career, Thom ...
1 season: '03-'04
*
Elton Tyler Elton may refer to:
Places
England
* Elton, Cambridgeshire (formerly Huntingdonshire), a village
** Elton Hall, a baronial hall
* Elton, Cheshire, a village and civil parish
* Elton, County Durham, a village and civil parish
* Elton, Derbyshire, ...
1 season: '03-'04
*
Gerrod Abram 1 season: '03-'04
*
Michael Hicks 2 seasons: '02-'03, '05-'06
*
Brian Shorter
Brian William Shorter (born November 28, 1968) is an American-Italian former professional basketball player. He spent two decades playing in European leagues.
High school career
Shorter, a Philadelphia native, grew up in a low-income neighborh ...
1 season: '02-'03
*
Harper Williams
Harper Terry Williams (born May 25, 1971) is a retired American basketball player and a former administrative assistant on the Auburn Tigers coaching staff. He played professionally for 17 years, including ten in Spain's Liga ACB.
College and e ...
1 season: '01-'02
*
Sylvester Gray 1 season: '01-'02
*
Juan Manuel Moltedo
''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking communities around the world and in the Philippines, and also (pronounced differently) in the Isle of Man. In Spanish, t ...
2 seasons: '00-'02
*
Marques Bragg
Marques Bragg (born March 24, 1970) is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the NBA with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Bragg was a Providence Friar in college, and co-led the Big East Conference in Field goal percentage ...
1 season: '00-'01
*
Kevin Thompson 1 season: '00-'01
1990's
*
Brian Evans 1 season: '99-'00
*
Ian Lockhart 1 season: '99-'00
*
Vincenzo Esposito 5 seasons: '98-'01, '02-'03, '04-'05
*
Yamen Sanders
A ''yamen'' (''ya-men''; ; Manchu: ''yamun'') was the administrative office or residence of a local bureaucrat or mandarin in imperial China. A ''yamen'' can also be any governmental office or body headed by a mandarin, at any level of govern ...
2 seasons: '98-'99, '00-'01
*
Christopher Jent
Christopher is the English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or '' Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Christ" or "Anointed", and φέρει ...
1 season: '98-'99
*
Steve Burtt Sr.
Steven Dwayne Burtt (born November 5, 1962) is a retired American professional basketball player. The 6'2" point guard played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) sporadically from 1984 until 1993. He also had an established playing caree ...
1 season: '97-'98
*
Matthew Alosa
Matthew may refer to:
* Matthew (given name)
* Matthew (surname)
* ''Matthew'' (ship), the replica of the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497
* ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith
* Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Chi ...
1 season: '96-'97
*
Gianluca Lulli
Gianluca is an Italian masculine given name. Its English translation is "John Luke" and it is often a shorter form of "Giovanni Luca".
*Gianluca Alfenoni (born 1996), Argentine footballer
*Gianluca Arrighi (born 1972), Italian writer
*Gianluca ...
1 season: '96-'97
*
Paolo Bortolon
Paolo is both a given name and a surname, the Italian form of the name Paul. Notable people with the name include:
People with the given name Paolo
Art
*Paolo Alboni (1671–1734), Italian painter
*Paolo Abbate (1884–1973), Italian-American ...
4 seasons: '95-'99
*
Francesco Foiera
Francesco, the Italian (and original) version of the personal name "Francis", is the most common given name among males in Italy. Notable persons with that name include:
People with the given name Francesco
* Francesco I (disambiguation), seve ...
4 seasons: '95-'99
*
Bill Jones 3 seasons: '95-'98
Sponsorship names
Throughout the years, due to sponsorship, the club has been known as:
* Benati Imola (1990–91)
* Leonardo Imola (1991–93)
* Fanti Imola (1993–95)
* Casetti Imola (1995–98)
* Termal Imola (1998–99)
* Lineltex Imola (1999-2001)
* Fillattice Imola (2001–02)
*Esse.Ti Imola (2002–03)
*Zarotti Imola (2005–07)
References
External links
* Retrieved 23 August 2015
Serie A historical results Retrieved 23 August 2015
{{Serie A2 Basket
1967 establishments in Italy
Basketball teams established in 1967
Basketball teams in Emilia-Romagna
Imola