Christchurch Cougars
Encyclopedia
The Christchurch Cougars are a professional men's basketball
team based in Christchurch
, Canterbury, New Zealand
. They play in the New Zealand National Basketball League
.
They play their home games at Cowles Stadium in Aranui. The stadium has a capacity of 2000 with 500 temporary and 1500 permanent seats. While much of the team came into the NBL to replace The Canterbury Rams they are an entirely different organisation run by different people.
The Cougars began in 2009, replacing the Canterbury Rams, one of the New Zealand National Basketball League's
foundation sides. In the first four years of NBL competition the league was dominated by the North Island
sides like Auckland Stars
and Wellington Saints
who won two titles each. In the early years the side struggled to attract quality players due to the appeal of the North Island
cities and the job opportunities offered.
, Gilbert Gordon, John Hill, John "Dutchie" Rademakers, Graham Timms, Chris Tupu, Ian Webb, youngster Ralph Lattimore and another star American import player Kenny Perkins (father of Boston Celtic
Kendrick Perkins
) who later played for the Nelson Giants
. The architects of this success were coaches Gary Pettis who led the team from 1986–88 and Keith Mair who took over in 1989.
, renamed Westpac Arena, renamed again to CBS Canterbury Arena on 18 June 2010, in Addington, Christchurch. There was a great deal of anticipation before the season in Christchurch that the rams could finally win some silverware after not having won a title since 1992. This was combined with an exciting roster consisting of American Clifton Bush, Canadien Robert Wilson, and an up and coming team of kiwis like David Langrell, Jason Kyle and Craig Farrant. The rams started the 1999 season slowly, but made the playoffs ending up with a 10-6 record in second place. The rams won the right to host the playoff series at Westpac Centre and after defeating the North Harbour Kings in the semi final, they progressed onto the grand final against Auckland. It was not to be Canterbury's year however, with the rams going down in a close fought final to Auckland.
There was a massive cleanout at the Canterbury Rams under new management after the 1999 season. Head coach Bert Knops was replaced by Matt Ruscoe for the 2000 season and most the cast from 1999 were not retained. The rams fielded an extremely young roster and this showed in their play, finishing second last with only two wins against North Harbour and Otago.
After a year rebuilding in 2001, a season that saw the team improve drastically, including a 50 point home victory over the Saints. Derision from then owner John Watson into coach and player matters undermined the impact of Ruscoe's tenure ending with Watson being appointing after the successful in season recruitment of league legend Terrence Lewis. Canterbury had an excellent year in 2002 under first year head coach John Watson. With a new star signing in Terrence Lewis from Wellington and American centre John Whorton, Canterbury had two of the best import players in the league. Whorton and Lewis were the league leaders in scoring all year long, carrying Canterbury to an 11-5 regular season record, good enough for third place. In the semi final Canterbury travelled to Hamilton to take on the Waikato Titans . After three quarters the Rams were playing good basketball and led by 12 points and they appeared headed for the grand final in Watson's first year as coach . Things turned ugly in the final quarter though and Waikato came from behind to beat the rams, and eventually win the NBL grand final, a week later. Ominously Lewis did not return sighting coaching as a major reason.
In 2003 and 2004 the rams failed to make the playoffs under the coaching of John Watson and then Pete McAllister. After a dismal 2003 season when the rams finished second last after their outstanding 2002 season, John Whorton - arguably one of the league's best American players of the decade was not retained. On June 14, 2003 John Whorton had scored a league-record 50 points in a 99-94 Rams victory over the Hawkes Bay Hawks
in Napier.
During the 2004 off-season word circulated around that the Rams were in line to sign former NBA bad-boy Dennis Rodman
for the 2005 NBL season. This would have been a major coup for the Rams, as attendances would have sky-rocketed. In the end though, the rumours amounted to nothing, with Rodman's price tag, being far too expensive far the Rams to afford. http://www.rams.org.nz/News/2004/ramsnews/20december2004.htm
In 2005 under Pete McAllister the rams began the season brilliantly starting the season 5-1 thanks to the strong play of new imports Mike Gardener and Ryan Prillman. Canterbury started to struggle though as the season progressed and although the team finished with a highly satisfactory 10-8 record, they narrowly missed out on the final playoff spot finishing in fifth position. After the 2005 NBL season Pete McAllister got a job at New Zealand basketball and he was subsequently forced to resign as the Rams head coach. In January 2006, American Chris Sparks was named head coach to fill McAllister's void.
Canterbury fielded a very youthful roster in 2006, with half of the squad under the age of 22 and requiring a special dispensation from Basketball New Zealand to compete in the league. The Rams missed the playoffs finishing with a 6-12 final record. American import Dennis Trammell
was a stand-out for the Rams averaging 25 points a game. Jeremy Kench
had a break out year for Canterbury with 18 points a game, significantly up on his 2 point average from the previous year. He was also named to the Tall Blacks National team roster. Head Coach Chris Sparks was named a "Coach of the Year" finalist by Basketball New Zealand in his first season as Head Coach.
The Rams had a disappointing 2007 NBL season finishing 4-14. Point guard Jeremy Kench followed up his breakout 2006 year with another strong season. One of the rare highlights was the improvement of young centre Mike Townsend.
The Canterbury Basketball Association had a management contract for the Rams for three years.Canterbury basketball also announced in late 2007 that the Rams will return to their former home arena of Cowles Stadium as of the start of 2008, after nine years at the Westpac Arena. Unfortunately at the beginning of the 2008 season the CBA announced a shortfall of over 250,000 due largely to their mismanagement of the team (coinciding with the 2008 failure of the CBA to keep the Canterbury Woman's team afloat), leaving the Rams ongoing participation in the league tedious until new sponsor Marley and NZCT moved in to bail the team out. The Rams struggled on the court, missing the playoffs with a 6-12 record.
Unfortunately in late 2008, just before the new season deadline for entering the League the Canterbury Basketball Association reneged on their management agreement, leaving the Rams a small window to prepare a new management plan for the upcoming season. The Rams after discussions with NBL board decided not to enter the 2009 competition.
team recruited well keeping former Rams player Jeremy Kench
and recruiting Tall Blacks Point Guard
Paul Henare
and Swingman
Paora Winitana
. They imported Australia
n Tim Behrendorff
and American
Trenton Wurtz. In their first year in the NBL the Cougars managed to make the semi-finals before losing to the Waikato Pistons. Guard Paul Henare
picked up the teams only award for the 2009 season winning the most assists award (with 6.5apg).
For the 2011 NBL season, the Cougars have pulled due to the Christchurch earthquake that happpened in February, 2011.
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
team based in Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
, Canterbury, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. They play in the New Zealand National Basketball League
National Basketball League (New Zealand)
The National Basketball League, often abbreviated to the NBL, is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in New Zealand.There were 10 teams in the 2010 season with teams based in Christchurch, Dunedin, Hamilton, Invercargill, Nelson, New Plymouth, North Shore, Palmerston North,...
.
They play their home games at Cowles Stadium in Aranui. The stadium has a capacity of 2000 with 500 temporary and 1500 permanent seats. While much of the team came into the NBL to replace The Canterbury Rams they are an entirely different organisation run by different people.
Establishment (1982-85)
National Basketball League (New Zealand)
The National Basketball League, often abbreviated to the NBL, is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in New Zealand.There were 10 teams in the 2010 season with teams based in Christchurch, Dunedin, Hamilton, Invercargill, Nelson, New Plymouth, North Shore, Palmerston North,...
foundation sides. In the first four years of NBL competition the league was dominated by the North Island
North Island
The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
sides like Auckland Stars
Auckland Stars
The Auckland Pirates are a New Zealand professional basketball team that represents the Auckland region in the New Zealand National Basketball League. They play their home games at the ASB Stadium in Kohimarama, Auckland, New Zealand....
and Wellington Saints
Wellington Saints
The Wellington Saints are a professional basketball team that play in the New Zealand National Basketball League. They play their home games at the TSB Bank Arena in Wellington, New Zealand. For sponsorship reasons, they are known as the Exodus Saints....
who won two titles each. In the early years the side struggled to attract quality players due to the appeal of the North Island
North Island
The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
cities and the job opportunities offered.
"The Rams Glory Days" (1986-94)
Canterbury ended up dominating the NBL in the next few years. From 1986-1994 the Rams played in seven grand finals winning four of them. This successful nine year tenure was thanks to stand-out American players like Eddie Anderson, Angelo Hill and Clyde Huntley who were three of the league's best ever early import players. Other players to play a key role during this era were local players such as Terry Brunel, Glen DenhamGlen Denham
Glen Ivan Denham, Educated Corstophine Primary School, Macandrew Intermediate School, and Kings High School 1977 -1982 Otago University 1982 -...
, Gilbert Gordon, John Hill, John "Dutchie" Rademakers, Graham Timms, Chris Tupu, Ian Webb, youngster Ralph Lattimore and another star American import player Kenny Perkins (father of Boston Celtic
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are a National Basketball Association team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1946, the team is currently owned by Boston Basketball Partners LLC. The Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which...
Kendrick Perkins
Kendrick Perkins
Kendrick Perkins is an American professional basketball player who plays as a center for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the NBA....
) who later played for the Nelson Giants
Nelson Giants
The Fico Finance Nelson Giants are a basketball team that play in the National Basketball League in New Zealand. Their home games are played at the Trafalgar Centre in Nelson....
. The architects of this success were coaches Gary Pettis who led the team from 1986–88 and Keith Mair who took over in 1989.
Westpac Arena era (1999-2007)
At the start of the 1999 New Zealand NBL season, the rams moved into the huge new Westpac CentreWestpac Centre
CBS Canterbury Arena is a sporting and entertainment arena located in Addington, Christchurch, New Zealand.-Description:The stadium is New Zealand's second largest indoor arena with a maximum capacity of 8,888 , it was the largest until the construction of Auckland's Vector Arena in 2007...
, renamed Westpac Arena, renamed again to CBS Canterbury Arena on 18 June 2010, in Addington, Christchurch. There was a great deal of anticipation before the season in Christchurch that the rams could finally win some silverware after not having won a title since 1992. This was combined with an exciting roster consisting of American Clifton Bush, Canadien Robert Wilson, and an up and coming team of kiwis like David Langrell, Jason Kyle and Craig Farrant. The rams started the 1999 season slowly, but made the playoffs ending up with a 10-6 record in second place. The rams won the right to host the playoff series at Westpac Centre and after defeating the North Harbour Kings in the semi final, they progressed onto the grand final against Auckland. It was not to be Canterbury's year however, with the rams going down in a close fought final to Auckland.
There was a massive cleanout at the Canterbury Rams under new management after the 1999 season. Head coach Bert Knops was replaced by Matt Ruscoe for the 2000 season and most the cast from 1999 were not retained. The rams fielded an extremely young roster and this showed in their play, finishing second last with only two wins against North Harbour and Otago.
After a year rebuilding in 2001, a season that saw the team improve drastically, including a 50 point home victory over the Saints. Derision from then owner John Watson into coach and player matters undermined the impact of Ruscoe's tenure ending with Watson being appointing after the successful in season recruitment of league legend Terrence Lewis. Canterbury had an excellent year in 2002 under first year head coach John Watson. With a new star signing in Terrence Lewis from Wellington and American centre John Whorton, Canterbury had two of the best import players in the league. Whorton and Lewis were the league leaders in scoring all year long, carrying Canterbury to an 11-5 regular season record, good enough for third place. In the semi final Canterbury travelled to Hamilton to take on the Waikato Titans . After three quarters the Rams were playing good basketball and led by 12 points and they appeared headed for the grand final in Watson's first year as coach . Things turned ugly in the final quarter though and Waikato came from behind to beat the rams, and eventually win the NBL grand final, a week later. Ominously Lewis did not return sighting coaching as a major reason.
In 2003 and 2004 the rams failed to make the playoffs under the coaching of John Watson and then Pete McAllister. After a dismal 2003 season when the rams finished second last after their outstanding 2002 season, John Whorton - arguably one of the league's best American players of the decade was not retained. On June 14, 2003 John Whorton had scored a league-record 50 points in a 99-94 Rams victory over the Hawkes Bay Hawks
Hawkes Bay Hawks
The Hawke's Bay Hawks are a professional basketball team represents the Hawkes Bay region in the New Zealand National Basketball League.They play their home fixtures at the Pettigrew Green Arena in Taradale, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand....
in Napier.
Dennis Rodman
Dennis Keith Rodman is a retired American Hall of Fame professional basketball player of the National Basketball Association's Detroit Pistons, San Antonio Spurs, Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks. Born in Trenton, New Jersey, he was nicknamed "Dennis the Menace" and "The...
for the 2005 NBL season. This would have been a major coup for the Rams, as attendances would have sky-rocketed. In the end though, the rumours amounted to nothing, with Rodman's price tag, being far too expensive far the Rams to afford. http://www.rams.org.nz/News/2004/ramsnews/20december2004.htm
In 2005 under Pete McAllister the rams began the season brilliantly starting the season 5-1 thanks to the strong play of new imports Mike Gardener and Ryan Prillman. Canterbury started to struggle though as the season progressed and although the team finished with a highly satisfactory 10-8 record, they narrowly missed out on the final playoff spot finishing in fifth position. After the 2005 NBL season Pete McAllister got a job at New Zealand basketball and he was subsequently forced to resign as the Rams head coach. In January 2006, American Chris Sparks was named head coach to fill McAllister's void.
Canterbury fielded a very youthful roster in 2006, with half of the squad under the age of 22 and requiring a special dispensation from Basketball New Zealand to compete in the league. The Rams missed the playoffs finishing with a 6-12 final record. American import Dennis Trammell
Dennis Trammell
Dennis Trammell , is a professional basketball player who played for the Canterbury Rams in the New Zealand National Basketball League ....
was a stand-out for the Rams averaging 25 points a game. Jeremy Kench
Jeremy Kench
Jeremy "Jay" Kench is a New Zealand professional basketball player who plays the point guard position.-Playing career:...
had a break out year for Canterbury with 18 points a game, significantly up on his 2 point average from the previous year. He was also named to the Tall Blacks National team roster. Head Coach Chris Sparks was named a "Coach of the Year" finalist by Basketball New Zealand in his first season as Head Coach.
The Rams had a disappointing 2007 NBL season finishing 4-14. Point guard Jeremy Kench followed up his breakout 2006 year with another strong season. One of the rare highlights was the improvement of young centre Mike Townsend.
End of the Rams (2008)
In late 2007 the Canterbury Rams announced huge changes. Head Coach and 2006 "Coach of the Year" finalist, Chris Sparks, who coached the Rams in 2006 and 2007, returned to America to coach for the prestigious Valparaiso University basketball team. Bert Knops who coached the Rams from 1996 to 1999 was reappointed.The Canterbury Basketball Association had a management contract for the Rams for three years.Canterbury basketball also announced in late 2007 that the Rams will return to their former home arena of Cowles Stadium as of the start of 2008, after nine years at the Westpac Arena. Unfortunately at the beginning of the 2008 season the CBA announced a shortfall of over 250,000 due largely to their mismanagement of the team (coinciding with the 2008 failure of the CBA to keep the Canterbury Woman's team afloat), leaving the Rams ongoing participation in the league tedious until new sponsor Marley and NZCT moved in to bail the team out. The Rams struggled on the court, missing the playoffs with a 6-12 record.
Unfortunately in late 2008, just before the new season deadline for entering the League the Canterbury Basketball Association reneged on their management agreement, leaving the Rams a small window to prepare a new management plan for the upcoming season. The Rams after discussions with NBL board decided not to enter the 2009 competition.
Christchurch Cougars (2009-present)
The Cougars entered the 2009 competition in place of the Rams. The new ChristchurchChristchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
team recruited well keeping former Rams player Jeremy Kench
Jeremy Kench
Jeremy "Jay" Kench is a New Zealand professional basketball player who plays the point guard position.-Playing career:...
and recruiting Tall Blacks Point Guard
Point guard
Point guard , also called the play maker or "the ball-handler", is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position – essentially, he is expected to run the team's offense by controlling the ball and making sure that...
Paul Henare
Paul Henare
Paul Donald Henare is a former New Zealand professional basketball player who last played for the New Zealand Breakers in the Australasian National Basketball League....
and Swingman
Swingman
A Swingman is a basketball term denoting a player who can play both the small forward and shooting guard positions, and, in essence, swing between the shooting guard and small forward positions." Swingmen males are often between 6'5" and 6'8" .John Havlicek, who played for the Boston Celtics in...
Paora Winitana
Paora Winitana
Paora Winitana is a professional New Zealand basketball player. He was ordained as a Mormon bishop in 2005 and chooses not to play basketball on Sundays. He currently plays for the New Zealand NBL team Hawke's Bay Hawks...
. They imported Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n Tim Behrendorff
Tim Behrendorff
Timothy "Tim" Behrendorff is an Australian basketball player. Behrendorff attended college at Gardner-Webb University in the United States from 2000-2004....
and American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Trenton Wurtz. In their first year in the NBL the Cougars managed to make the semi-finals before losing to the Waikato Pistons. Guard Paul Henare
Paul Henare
Paul Donald Henare is a former New Zealand professional basketball player who last played for the New Zealand Breakers in the Australasian National Basketball League....
picked up the teams only award for the 2009 season winning the most assists award (with 6.5apg).
For the 2011 NBL season, the Cougars have pulled due to the Christchurch earthquake that happpened in February, 2011.
Past Head Coaches
- Bert Knops
1996-1999 - Matt Ruscoe 2000-2001
- John Watson
2002-2004 - Peter McAllister 2004-2005
- Chris Sparks 2006-2007
- Bert Knops 2008-2009
- Andrew Gardiner 2010–present
Past import players
- 1998: Clifton Bush , Raymond Harding
- 1999: Clifton Bush , Robert Wilson
- 2000: Alex Lopez , Malcolm Leak . Leak replaced half season by John Watson
- 2001: John Whorton
- 2002: John Whorton
- 2003: John Whorton , temporarily filled by Mike Pegues
- 2004: Kenny Walker , Damian Matacz
- 2005: Mike Gardener , Ryan Prillman
- 2006: Dennis TrammellDennis TrammellDennis Trammell , is a professional basketball player who played for the Canterbury Rams in the New Zealand National Basketball League ....
, Sam Spann
- 2007: Mychal GreenMychal GreenMychal Green is an American professional basketball player. He is a 6'4" guard and plays for the Glasgow Rocks....
, Michael JoinerMichael JoinerMichael Joiner is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Austin Toros in the NBA D-League. He is 6'7" and plays small forward and sometimes power forward....
- 2008: Joey HarrellJoey HarrellJoey Harrell , is an American professional basketball player, who played for the Canterbury Rams in the 2008 NZL NBL season....
Wilder Auguste . Auguste replaced half-season by John Whorton
- 2009: Tim BehrendorffTim BehrendorffTimothy "Tim" Behrendorff is an Australian basketball player. Behrendorff attended college at Gardner-Webb University in the United States from 2000-2004....
Trenton Wurtz
- 2010: Tim BehrendorffTim BehrendorffTimothy "Tim" Behrendorff is an Australian basketball player. Behrendorff attended college at Gardner-Webb University in the United States from 2000-2004....
Trenton Wurtz
Honour Roll
| NBL Championships: | 4 (1986,1989,1990,1992) |
| NBL Playoff Appearances: | 13 ( 1982,1984,1985,1986,1987,1989,1990,1992,1993,1994,1998,1999,2002 ) |
| NBL Grand Final appearances: | 8 (1986,1987,1989,1990,1992,1993,1994,1999) |
| NBL Most Valuable Player: | John Whorton(2002) |
| MVP Non-Restricted Player: | John Rademakers(1984), Terrence Lewis (2002) |
| All-NBL First Team: | Clyde Huntley(1983), Clyde Huntley(1984), Clyde Huntley(1986), Clyde Huntley (1987), Eddie Anderson(1991), Terrence Lewis(2002), John Whorton(2002), Ryan Prillman (2005) |
| Most Outstanding Guard: | Clyde Huntley (1986), Eddie Anderson(1991), Terrence Lewis(2002) |
| Most Outstanding Forward/Centre: | John Whorton (2002) |
| Most Outstanding Non-Restricted Guard: | John Rademakers (1986), Chris Tupu (1994), Terrence Lewis (2002) |
| Most Outstanding Non-Restricted Forward/Centre: | Glen Denham (1990) |
| Leading Individual NBL scorer: | John Whorton (2002), John Whorton (2003), Dennis Trammell Dennis Trammell Dennis Trammell , is a professional basketball player who played for the Canterbury Rams in the New Zealand National Basketball League .... (2006) |
| Leading Individual NBL Rebounder: | John Whorton(2002), John Whorton(2003) |
| Leading Assists : | Clyde Huntley (1984), Scott Stewart(1996), Carlo Varicchio(2002), Paul Henare Paul Henare Paul Donald Henare is a former New Zealand professional basketball player who last played for the New Zealand Breakers in the Australasian National Basketball League.... (2009) |
| Coach of the Year: | John Watson (2002) |
| Non-Restricted Rookie of the Year | Arthur Trousdell (2000) |
Recent final placings
- 2009 = 4th (10-6) Lost semi final to Waikato Pistons
- 2008 = 8th (6-12) Missed playoffs
- 2007 = 8th (4-14) Missed playoffs
- 2006 = 7th (6-12) Missed playoffs
- 2005 = 5th (10-8) Missed playoffs
- 2004 = 7th (7-11) Missed playoffs
- 2003 = 9th (4-14) Missed playoffs
- 2002 = 3rd (11-5) Lost semi final to Waikato Titans
- 2001 = 6th (7-9) Missed playoffs
- 2000 = 8th (2-14) Missed playoffs
- 1999 = 2nd (10-6) Lost Grand Final to Auckland StarsAuckland StarsThe Auckland Pirates are a New Zealand professional basketball team that represents the Auckland region in the New Zealand National Basketball League. They play their home games at the ASB Stadium in Kohimarama, Auckland, New Zealand....
- 1998 = 3rd (13-7) Lost semi final to Nelson GiantsNelson GiantsThe Fico Finance Nelson Giants are a basketball team that play in the National Basketball League in New Zealand. Their home games are played at the Trafalgar Centre in Nelson....