2005 Championship Tournament Set
Published on April 10, 2005 under NBA G League (G League) News Release
GREENVILLE, S.C., April 10 â The National Basketball Development League regular season champion Columbus Riverdragons are the top seed in the 2005 NBDL Championship Tournament presented by Delta Air Lines that gets underway with semi-final games in Columbus (Ga.) and Asheville (N.C.) Saturday, April 16.
The Riverdragons will host the Roanoke Dazzle, which comes into the tournament as the #4 seed. Tipoff for that game is 7 p.m. EDT at the Columbus Civic Center. Asheville, the #2 seed and defending champion, will host #3 Huntsville at the Asheville Civic Center at 7 p.m. EDT.
The winner of those games will advance to the championship game of the tournament at the arena of the highest remaining seed on Saturday, April 23.
Both semi-final games will be televised on a tape-delayed basis by NBA TV. The game between Columbus and Roanoke will air on Thursday, April 21 at 3:30 p.m. EDT and the Asheville-Huntsville game will air Friday, April 22 at 3:30 p.m. EDT. NBA TV will also carry the championship game of the tournament on Monday, April 25 at 3:30 p.m. EDT.
Columbus comes into the tournament with a 30-18 regular season record. The Riverdragons are making their first NBDL postseason appearance since the 2001-02 season. Roanoke, 26-22, will be making its second trip to Columbus in as many weeks, losing to the Dragons, 110-92, to close the regular season on April 9.
Asheville and Huntsville both finished three games behind Columbus in the regular season with identical 27-21 records, but Asheville earned the second seed by winning the season series against the Flight. The Altitude defeated the Flight, 96-94 at the Asheville Civic Center, to close the regular season on April 9.
Tickets are available for the tournament by clicking on NBDL.com or calling 1-800-4 NBA TIX. Tickets are also available at the Asheville Civic Center Box Office, the Columbus Civic Center Box Office or by calling 828-782-1000 for tickets to the semi-final game at Asheville, or 706-225-1100 for the semi-final game at Columbus. Group rates are available.
The NBDL, the NBA's minor league, includes the Fayetteville Patriots (N.C.), Florida Flame (Ft. Myers), Huntsville Flight (Ala.), Roanoke Dazzle (Va.), Columbus Riverdragons (Ga.) and Asheville Altitude (N.C.). Expansion teams in Albuquerque, N.M., Austin and Fort Worth, Texas and Tulsa, Okla. will begin play next season.
The league offers players the opportunity to develop their talent in a highly competitive atmosphere under the NBA's umbrella. Thirty-four (34) players have been called up the NBA on 50 separate occasions. Nine former NBDL coaches, five athletic trainers, 11 referees and 29 front office executives have also been called up since the start of the league's inaugural season in November 2001.
NBA G League Stories from April 10, 2005
- 2005 Championship Tournament Set - G League
- NBDL daily developments - G League
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