Cincinnati ready to roll
January 28, 2005 - American Basketball Association (ABA)
Cincinnati Monarchs News Release
Cincinnati, OH. ABA's Cincinnati professional basketball team is back and ready to take on the rest of the Central Division with an intense schedule of games between now and the end of the season. Under the continued leadership of GM/Coach Ralph Underhill and with a new owner, Michael Rogers, the team has assembled a squad of excellent players.
Formerly known as the Blaze, the team is now known as the Cincinnati Monarchs. They will carry a 3-1 record into February and March.
"The new ownership group wants to make a clean break and it starts with the name change," said Underhill. "With everything that has gone on, I can understand."
ABA CEO Joe Newman stated, "The old ownership group kind of bailed out on us and left Ralph with a good team, no operating capital. We are thrilled to have Michael and his partners because we know what a terrific city Cincinnati is, how great the media has been - and most of all, how good Ralph is at what he does. It should be terrific."
The Monarchs have assembled an excellent team including such area hoop stars as Kareem Johnson (University of Cincinnati), Craig Conley (LaSalle High, Northern Kentucky University) and David Shelton, one of the league's premiere players, (Western Hills, Tulsa). The team expects to play eight or nine home games before season's end.
Michael Rogers added, "We're starting late but we're confident that with Ralph at the helm we can make a late drive and become one of the league's premiere teams. We'll give it everything we can. We'll be playing at Cincinnati State University, tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for students; it's the best sports entertainment value in town. We hope the city will get behind us.
For more information, contact Ralph Underhill at 859 341 6886 or visit www.abalive.com.
Note: OurSports Central no longer actively covers the American Basketball Association (ABA) as a professional league due in part to its inability to publish and play a schedule and the transitory nature of many of its teams. For information on professional minor leagues, please see OSC's basketball section.
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American Basketball Association Stories from January 28, 2005
- Central Valley Dawgs get a win with the return of Randy Holcomb - Central Valley Dawgs
- Cincinnati ready to roll - Cincinnati Monarchs
- Rhythm sign solid rebounder - Nashville Rhythm
- Utah extends ABA record win streak to 23 in Bellevue - Utah Snowbears
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
