The Elite Basketball League (EBL) is a semi-professional men's

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

league League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football Sports * Sports league * Rugby league, full contact footba ...

that began play in the fall of 2014.

History

There were 10 charter members competing in the first season, based around

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

. The EBL season begins in October and concludes with league playoffs in late April/early May. The first league championship (2014–15) was won by the Little Rock Diamonds, who defeated regular season winner Arkadelphia Bulldogs. The game was played on the campus of the

University of Arkansas-Little Rock The University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UA Little Rock) is a public research university in Little Rock, Arkansas. Established as Little Rock Junior College by the Little Rock School District in 1927, the institution became a private four-year ...

. Season two began in October 2015 with nine teams, three (Arkansas Dream, Arkansas Golden Knights and Ridge City Rippers) new to the league. First season champion Little Rock Diamonds did not return along with Arkansas Premier and Spa City Outlaws. Arkadelphia Bulldogs left to help form a new league, the Elite International Basketball Association. Bobby Johnson of Southwest Flight set a league-record by scoring 70 points in a game played on February 9, 2016 against the Golden Knights. Johnson bested the previous record of 61 points by Billy Berry of Arkansas Showstoppers. Regular season winner Arkansas Elite went on to win the nine-team playoffs (best-of 3 series each round) to capture the 2016 championship. Elite defeated Southwest Flight in two-straight games.

Teams

Former teams

* Arkadelphia Bulldogs (2014–15) * Arkansas Dream (2015) * Arkansas Legends (2014–15) * Arkansas Premier (2014–15) * Arkansas Showstoppers (2014–15) * Little Rock Diamonds (2014–15) * Spa City Outlaws (2014–15)

Champions

References

External links

Official EBL website

@EBLleague
{{Men's professional basketball leagues, state=expanded Basketball leagues in the United States