Queen City and The Granite State Get ABA Basketball Team
August 14, 2007 - American Basketball Association (ABA)
Saint John Riptide News Release
Manchester, New Hampshire has seen quite a boom in minor league sports over the past few years - commencing with the construction of the Verizon Wireless Arena in 2001. Home now to an AHL hockey team, a double A baseball team, and an AF2 arena football team, the 'Queen City' has now been approved for a new American Basketball Association (ABA) franchise.
A group, led by local basketball star David Cooper, Londonderry HS grad Steve Yankopolous, and former Cape Cod Frenzy GM Ian McCarthy, has been working out the details all summer to accommodate the move. Cooper, who was born in Jamaica but raised in Manchester, won several state championships at Manchester High School Central and played a season at Southern New Hampshire University before transferring to James Madison (D1). Steve Yankopolous, who graduated from Lasell College in Boston, successfully ran the Boston Marathon in 2006 despite having been diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis as an infant. He is an aspiring sports agent and executive, and serves as an inspiration to all those whom he meets.
"The guy is something tremendous. I haven't seen anybody fight like he fights," Cooper said regarding his pal. "It's humbling for everybody else."
A stated goal of the franchise is to help raise money for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in their efforts to find a cure for the debilitating disease.
The Manchester Millrats, named for the nefarious inhabitants of the city's old riverside mills, will play in the 2,000 seat Fieldhouse at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU). Manchester will take the place of the Cape Cod Frenzy, in the ABA schedule. Ian McCarthy will serve as the Director of Basketball Operations for the Millrats.
"Manchester is great sports town and we look forward to building a quality professional basketball team here for the local sports fans and residents alike," stated McCarthy. "We have players that we are in contact with from last year and are building a database of local players. I am very impressed with the talent I've seen locally."
Manchester is also home to the Manchester Monarchs AHL hockey team, the New Hampshire Fisher Cats AA baseball team, and the Manchester Wolves AF2 arena football team.
The Millrats will attempt to duplicate the first year success of their neighbors to the west, the Vermont Frost Heaves. The Frost Heaves won the ABA Championship earlier this year, their inaugural season, and garnered support statewide. The Frost Heaves are owned primarily by Sports Illustrated writer Alexander Wolff and University of Vermont retired head coach Tom Brennan.
The Millrats are planning a tryout camp in mid September, and currently accepting local coaching resumes. Ticket and sponsorship information will be available on a soon-to-be released website. For more information please contact the Millrats' Director of Basketball Operations Ian McCarthy at 508-246-0907 or millrats@gmail.com 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 August 14, 2007
- Rochester Fire Kidsfest This Saturday - ABA
- Do You Know A Kid Who Wants To Have A Ball? - ABA
- Do you know a kid who wants to have a ball? - Vermont Frost Heaves
- Queen City and The Granite State Get ABA Basketball Team - Saint John Riptide
- Cape Cod Frenzy To Sit Out Season - Cape Cod Frenzy
- Ask the CEO - ABA
- Hurricanes Shake The Gym In First Tryout - Hawaii Hurricanes
- ABA expands to Reno, Nevada, begins play in November - Reno Rockers
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