The Minnesota Fillies were an American women's professional

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 ...

team based in

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

that competed in the

Women's Professional Basketball League The Women's Professional Basketball League (abbreviated WBL) was a professional women's basketball league in the United States. The league played three seasons from the fall of 1978 to the spring of 1981. The league was the first professional w ...

from 1978 to 1981. The Fillies were one of three teams to play in all three of the league's seasons. The

Met Center The Met Center was an indoor arena that stood in Bloomington, Minnesota, United States, a suburb of Minneapolis. The arena, which was completed in 1967 by Minnesota Ice, just to the north of Metropolitan Stadium, seated 15,000. It was the home of ...

served as the team's home court during their first two seasons. In the team's last season, they played home games at the

Minneapolis Auditorium Minneapolis Auditorium was an indoor arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It hosted the NBA's Minneapolis Lakers from 1947 until they moved to the Minneapolis Armory in 1959. The arena held 10,000 people and was built in 1927. The building fell into ...

. The Women's Professional Basketball League disbanded in 1981 due to financial problems. Most of these problems were attributed to owners defaulting on creditors and outstanding

payroll A payroll is the list of employees of some company that is entitled to receive payments as well as other work benefits and the amounts that each should receive. Along with the amounts that each employee should receive for time worked or tasks pe ...

entitlements to players and other employees. In 1981, Commissioner Sherwin Fischer promised that the Minnesota Fillies players would receive their entitlements. When the Commissioner failed to deliver on this promise, the Fillies walked off the court in Chicago ten minutes before a scheduled game against the Chicago Hustle. Despite a full house at De Paul Alumni Hall, the game was forfeited. The Fillies finished out the final games of the 1980–1981 season with replacement players.

Season-by-season records

, - , colspan="6" align=center , Minnesota Fillies , - , 1978-79 , , 17 , , 17 , , .500 , , , , , - , 1979-80 , , 22 , , 12 , , .647 , , Won quarterfinals
Lost semi-finals , , 2–1 New Orleans
1–2 Iowa , - , 1980-81 , , 7 , , 28 , , .200 , , , , , - , Totals , , 46 , , 57 , , .447 , , , , , - , Playoffs , , 3 , , 3 , , .500 , , , ,

Personnel

Julia Yeater was hired to coach the Fillies in 1978. She had been the head coach of the women's basketball team at

Western Kentucky University Western Kentucky University is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky. It was founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a quarter-century earlier. It operates regional campuses in Glasgow, Elizabethtow ...

for two seasons, with a record of 45 wins and 17 losses. Yeater reflected that she joined the team because she wanted to see more female head coaches in the newly established WBL. Yeater received her master's degree from

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...

.Minnesota Fillies 1978-1979 Season Yearbook Women also played in the Semi Pro League sponsored by Steve and Dave Winfield, professional baseball players. These women included Janelle D. Gibson, who was studying at Minneapolis Community College at the time, and Kathy Burks, a 19-year-old attending the University of Minnesota. The president and general manager of the team was J. Gordon Nevers.

References

{{reflist Basketball teams established in 1978 Sports in Minneapolis Basketball teams in Minnesota 1978 establishments in Minnesota 1981 disestablishments in Minnesota Women's Professional Basketball League teams Sports clubs disestablished in 1981 Women's sports in Minnesota