Manchester Millrats
Encyclopedia
The Saint John Mill Rats are a professional basketball team in the National Basketball League of Canada
National Basketball League of Canada
The National Basketball League of Canada is a Canadian professional men's basketball league founded in 2011. For the first season, three teams formerly of the Premier Basketball League have joined, with four expansion teams officially joining to form the NBL's "Original Seven".-Current:These are...

 based in Saint John, New Brunswick
Saint John, New Brunswick
City of Saint John , or commonly Saint John, is the largest city in the province of New Brunswick, and the first incorporated city in Canada. The city is situated along the north shore of the Bay of Fundy at the mouth of the Saint John River. In 2006 the city proper had a population of 74,043...

. The Mill Rats started as the Manchester Millrats, an expansion team in the American Basketball Association in 2007 based in Manchester, New Hampshire
Manchester, New Hampshire
Manchester is the largest city in the U.S. state of New Hampshire, the tenth largest city in New England, and the largest city in northern New England, an area comprising the states of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. It is in Hillsborough County along the banks of the Merrimack River, which...

. For the next three seasons, they played in the Premier Basketball League
Premier Basketball League
The Premier Basketball League, often abbreviated to the PBL, is a men's professional basketball minor league in the United States that began play in January 2008. The league had ten teams for the 2008 season and thirteen teams for the 2009 season. Nine teams from Canada and the United States...

. The team is owned by Jason Briggs, Steve Yankopoulos, Dave Cooper, Ralph Allen and Silena Cooper.

History

Manchester Millrats season-by-season record
Season League Games Played Wins Losses Average Play-offs
2007–2008 ABA  40 28 12 .700 Semi-finalist
2009 PBL
Premier Basketball League
The Premier Basketball League, often abbreviated to the PBL, is a men's professional basketball minor league in the United States that began play in January 2008. The league had ten teams for the 2008 season and thirteen teams for the 2009 season. Nine teams from Canada and the United States...

 
20 16 4 .800 Atlantic Division champion
2010 PBL 20 6 14 .300 none

2007–08 season

The Manchester Millrats, in their inaugural season in the ABA, compiled a regular-season record of 28–12, playing their home games at the Fieldhouse of Southern New Hampshire University
Southern New Hampshire University
Southern New Hampshire University, also known as SNHU, is a private university in Manchester and Hooksett, New Hampshire. The university is accredited by the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, and also has numerous specialized...

 (SNHU). They won their first 12 games, and won their first 4 games against the reigning champion Vermont Frost Heaves
Vermont Frost Heaves
The Vermont Frost Heaves were a professional basketball team in Vermont, United States that last played in the Premier Basketball League, last coached by Joe Salerno. The formation of the team was announced in December, 2005 by founding owner Alexander Wolff, a Cornwall, Vermont resident and...

, the only losses the Frost Heaves had all year. The Millrats were one of eight teams to make the post-season. They got to the semifinals but lost in overtime to the San Diego Wildcats
San Diego Wildcats
The San Diego Wildcats were a professional basketball team based in San Diego, California. They were members of the Red Conference West in the American Basketball Association . Their home arena was the Ray and Joan Kroc Center. On January 5, 2009 they abruptly cancelled their season. Their...

. Larry Lessett was the head coach.

There were logistical nightmares, as two of the four teams in the Millrats' division suspended operations. The ABA flew the Millrats to the Bahamas once and to Singapore twice to play against ABA teams with no local competition. Nevertheless, Millrats management organized additional games against local rivals and gave season-ticket owners the full number of events they had been promised, although the final regular-season game was played at a private center ten miles away.

Point guard Anthony Anderson got the ABA's Most Valuable Player award and other awards and mentions. Ian McCarthy was named the league's General Manager of the Year. But Ismael Caro and Ife Anosike were separated from the team after a brawl that brought a game in Vermont to a premature end.

2008–09 season

The logistical problems of the ABA led the Millrats to join the Premier Basketball League
Premier Basketball League
The Premier Basketball League, often abbreviated to the PBL, is a men's professional basketball minor league in the United States that began play in January 2008. The league had ten teams for the 2008 season and thirteen teams for the 2009 season. Nine teams from Canada and the United States...

, with teams from Vermont
Vermont Frost Heaves
The Vermont Frost Heaves were a professional basketball team in Vermont, United States that last played in the Premier Basketball League, last coached by Joe Salerno. The formation of the team was announced in December, 2005 by founding owner Alexander Wolff, a Cornwall, Vermont resident and...

, Quebec City, and Halifax. The 20-game PBL regular season did not start until January 2009. The Millrats and three other teams from the PBL's Atlantic Division added 6 exhibition games apiece in pursuit of the "Champlain Cup." The Millrats played three other exhibitions, including two against the Arecibo Captains
Arecibo Captains
The Capitanes de Arecibo are a team in the Baloncesto Superior Nacional , Puerto Rico's main basketball league. In 2010, the team also played in the Premier Basketball League under the name Capitanes de Puerto Rico....

 of Puerto Rico.

Owner Jason Briggs bought a mansion in Manchester and remodeled it to contain sauna, steam rooms, a dinner table on stilts, and custom, seven-foot bunks. Players and coaches resided there and the garage became the business office. Sam Carey joined P.J. Young as Millrats who had played college basketball on the same home court for SNHU. Ife Anosike rejoined the Millrats, left at mid-season to pursue a nursing career, but returned for the playoffs.

The Millrats started the PBL regular season with two road losses, but lost only two other games and finished the regular season at 16-4, atop the Atlantic Division. The team was undefeated at home, and undefeated in February, for which Rob Spon got the PBL Coach of the Month award and Desmond Ferguson
Desmond Ferguson
Desmond Ferguson is an American professional basketball player currently with the Halifax Rainmen of the PBL...

 got a Player of the Week award.

On February 5, the PBL suspended the Montreal Sasquatch
Montreal Sasquatch
The Montreal Sasquatch were a team of the Premier Basketball League that played in the 2008–09 season under two different ownership groups.-History:...

 and conducted a dispersal draft on February 7. The Millrats selected Jamaal Wise. On March 9, the Millrats traded Wise and other considerations to Quebec for power forward John Ruffus, whom Quebec selected in the same dispersal draft. This was called the PBL's first in-season player trade. On February 13, the Millrats played a scheduled home game against a Montreal team with new roster and ownership.

Vermont
Vermont Frost Heaves
The Vermont Frost Heaves were a professional basketball team in Vermont, United States that last played in the Premier Basketball League, last coached by Joe Salerno. The formation of the team was announced in December, 2005 by founding owner Alexander Wolff, a Cornwall, Vermont resident and...

 remained the principal rival; many Vermont fans made the 130-mile drive. A showdown on February 15 enthused 1052 fans. February's winning streak ended on March 6 with an overtime loss to Vermont
Vermont Frost Heaves
The Vermont Frost Heaves were a professional basketball team in Vermont, United States that last played in the Premier Basketball League, last coached by Joe Salerno. The formation of the team was announced in December, 2005 by founding owner Alexander Wolff, a Cornwall, Vermont resident and...

 in Burlington, but the Millrats clinched the Atlantic Division the next day in Quebec.

Post-season

Third-seeded Manchester met the second-seeded Rochester RazorSharks
Rochester Razorsharks
The Rochester Razorsharks are a professional basketball team based in Rochester, New York. They are members of the Premier Basketball League and play their home games at the Blue Cross Arena in downtown Rochester. The Razorsharks were founded in 2005 as a member of the American Basketball...

 for the best-of-three PBL semifinals. The RazorSharks delayed the third and deciding game four days, blamed on a malfunctioning backboard, and won the game to eliminate the Millrats. Millrats point guard Al Stewart shared post-season honors for the PBL Defensive Player of the Year.

2009–10 season

The PBL had massive turnover of franchises and began the 2009–10 season reduced from 13 to 9 teams, playing as a single division. Four teams of the old Atlantic Division returned, except the problematic Montréal franchise. But the entire Midwest Division disappeared. Battle Creek, with the league's best record, quit the PBL over the PBL's decision to hold a one-game league championship in Rochester, denying Battle Creek up to two home dates, and over disagreement over compensation for this decision. In the Eastern Division, Rochester and Buffalo returned, but the Wilmington franchise left, reportedly over loss of nearby competitors. However, the Maryland GreenHawks (formerly the Nighthawks) came out of dormancy, and the PBL picked up the Lawton-Fort Sill Cavalry from the Continental Basketball Association
Continental Basketball Association
The Continental Basketball Association was a professional men's basketball league in the United States, which has been on hiatus since the 2009 season.- History :...

; and the Capitanes de Arecibo, from the Baloncesto Superior Nacional league of Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

.

Heath Teixeira was promoted to Head Coach. An exposure combine on October 24–25, 2009 drew over 70 athletes. The Champlain Cup became a three-team tournament hosted by the Vermont Frost Heaves
Vermont Frost Heaves
The Vermont Frost Heaves were a professional basketball team in Vermont, United States that last played in the Premier Basketball League, last coached by Joe Salerno. The formation of the team was announced in December, 2005 by founding owner Alexander Wolff, a Cornwall, Vermont resident and...

 from December 27–29 against the Millrats and the Québec Kebs. The Millrats won the Cup with lopsided victories. The team played no exhibition games at home.

Among players from the previous season, only Al Stewart and Marlowe Currie started the regular season with the Millrats, and they were not with the team by late January. Charles Mason trained with the team and joined the roster in late January, as did P.J. Young. Anthony Anderson rejoined the team after a year's absence, and Charles Easterling joined in mid-season. The Millrats drafted Tyrece Gibbs and Eric Gilchrese, alumni of the University of New Hampshire
University of New Hampshire
The University of New Hampshire is a public university in the University System of New Hampshire , United States. The main campus is in Durham, New Hampshire. An additional campus is located in Manchester. With over 15,000 students, UNH is the largest university in New Hampshire. The university is...

, with their picks in the PBL player draft. The signing of Luke Bonner on January 15 spurred media interest, as Bonner is from Concord, New Hampshire
Concord, New Hampshire
The city of Concord is the capital of the state of New Hampshire in the United States. It is also the county seat of Merrimack County. As of the 2010 census, its population was 42,695....

 and is the brother of Matt Bonner of the San Antonio Spurs
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio, Texas. They are part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ....

. But he played only the weekend of January 16–17 before going to the Austin Toros
Austin Toros
The Austin Toros are a NBA Development League minor league basketball team based in Cedar Park, Texas, United States.The team plays home games at Cedar Park Center.Their logo is the design of a bull and basketball with the state of Texas in the background...

 in the NBA Development League
NBA Development League
The NBA Development League, or NBA D-League, is the National Basketball Association's official minor league basketball organization. Known until summer 2005 as the National Basketball Development League , the NBA D-League started with eight teams in the fall of 2001...

. On January 21, Currie was traded to Halifax.

Admission to the SNHU Fieldhouse remained at $10 ($90 for a ten-game season ticket), but the bleachers on one side were replaced by $17 courtside seating. Mascot Millie the Millrat was not seen, but a dog mascot took his/her place, wearing 00. One home game was moved to Hesser College
Hesser College
Hesser College is a for-profit college with several campuses in New Hampshire. It is owned by Kaplan, Inc. The college offers associate and bachelor degrees in the fields of early childhood education, criminal justice, general studies, business and various art programs. The college claims a...

, and one was moved to UNH
University of New Hampshire
The University of New Hampshire is a public university in the University System of New Hampshire , United States. The main campus is in Durham, New Hampshire. An additional campus is located in Manchester. With over 15,000 students, UNH is the largest university in New Hampshire. The university is...

, as it featured Keith Friel of the visiting Rochester Razorsharks
Rochester Razorsharks
The Rochester Razorsharks are a professional basketball team based in Rochester, New York. They are members of the Premier Basketball League and play their home games at the Blue Cross Arena in downtown Rochester. The Razorsharks were founded in 2005 as a member of the American Basketball...

 (the son of former UNH Head Coach Gerry Friel) and the two UNH alumni mentioned above for the Millrats.

2010–11 season

In May 2010, a report surfaced that the Millrats ownership was looking to leave Manchester for Saint John, New Brunswick
Saint John, New Brunswick
City of Saint John , or commonly Saint John, is the largest city in the province of New Brunswick, and the first incorporated city in Canada. The city is situated along the north shore of the Bay of Fundy at the mouth of the Saint John River. In 2006 the city proper had a population of 74,043...

, saying that seating and concessions in the arena were the main impetus for moving.
On June 21, 2010, a press conference was held at Harbour Station
Harbour Station
Harbour Station is an arena located in the uptown area of Saint John, New Brunswick.It was the home of the American Hockey League's Saint John Flames from 1993 until their demise in 2003....

 in Saint John to officially announce the move. A naming contest was held in conjunction with Rogers Communications
Rogers Communications
Rogers Communications Inc. is one of Canada's largest communications companies, particularly in the field of wireless communications, cable television, home phone and internet with additional telecommunications and mass media assets...

 titled "Got Name?" where fans could text their choice of name via text-messaging. The choices for the names were: Millrats, Fog, Shamrocks, Fire, and Rip Tide. The fans could also select their own. On July 27, Ian McCarthy, president of the team, announced that with overwhelming support, the Mill Rats moniker would remain the same, although a space was added between the two words. A new logo was also unveiled.

The Mill Rats were in contention for most of the regular season, but finished with a record of 9-11, in 5th place, one game out of the playoffs.

The playoffs were notable for New York State-based referees traveling to work several away games involving the Rochester Razorsharks. When this, an uneven number of foul calls, and a final game terminated prematurely by fan reaction, marred the semifinal series in Quebec, McCarthy (who had chafed at out-of-state referees during the 2009 playoffs) wrote a protest letter to the league on behalf of his and the other Canadian teams. The same events recurred in the final series, which concluded in Lawton-Fort Sill, Oklahoma, and the Mill Rats (along with the other Canadian teams, and Lawton) quit the league.

2011-12 season

On 12 May 2011, the Mill Rats (along with the existing Halifax and Québec teams of the PBL) were announced as founding members of the National Basketball League of Canada
National Basketball League of Canada
The National Basketball League of Canada is a Canadian professional men's basketball league founded in 2011. For the first season, three teams formerly of the Premier Basketball League have joined, with four expansion teams officially joining to form the NBL's "Original Seven".-Current:These are...

. On 1 August 2011, the Mill Rats created the sjmillratsTV channel on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....

.

The NBL began its season with four additional teams (in London
London, Ontario
London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of 352,395, and the metropolitan area has a population of 457,720, according to the 2006 Canadian census; the metro population in 2009 was estimated at 489,274. The city...

 and Oshawa, Ontario
Oshawa, Ontario
Oshawa is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario approximately 60 kilometres east of downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of both the Greater Toronto Area and the Golden Horseshoe. It is now commonly referred to as the most...

; Moncton, N.B.
Moncton, New Brunswick
Moncton is a Canadian city, located in Westmorland County, New Brunswick. The city is situated in southeastern New Brunswick, within the Petitcodiac River Valley, and lies at the geographic centre of the Maritime Provinces...

; and Summerside, P.E.I.
Summerside, Prince Edward Island
Summerside is a Canadian city in Prince County, Prince Edward Island. It is the second largest city in the province and the principal municipality for the western part of the island.- History :...

) for a total of seven. Personnel from former PBL franchises were involved, as former Lawton-Fort Sill coach Michael Ray Richardson ran the London franchise, and Joe Salerno of the Vermont Frost Heaves organized the Summerside team.

On 12 October, the Mill Rats announced the signing of former Detroit Pistons
Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are a franchise of the National Basketball Association based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The team's home arena is The Palace of Auburn Hills. It was originally founded in Fort Wayne, Indiana as the Fort Wayne Pistons as a member of the National Basketball League in 1941, where...

 guard Will Blalock
Will Blalock
William Anthony "Will" Blalock is an American professional basketball player currently playing for the Saint John Mill Rats of the National Basketball League of Canada....

. The team looked forward to intense interest for the season given the 2011 NBA lockout
2011 NBA lockout
The 2011 NBA lockout is the fourth lockout in the history of the National Basketball Association . The owners began the work stoppage at 12:01 am EDT on July 1, 2011. The main issues dividing the owners and the players are revenue sharing and the structure of the salary cap...

.

Roster

Schedule

In the following table of results, green rows denote Mill Rats victories and red rows denote defeats. The Mill Rats' score is given first, followed by that of the opponents.
Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Record
November 4 at Summerside Storm
Summerside Storm
The Summerside Storm is a charter member of the National Basketball League of Canada which began play for its inaugural 2011-12 season. Based in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, the Storm plays its home games at the Consolidated Credit Union Place....

98-112 Tisby (20) Ibrahim (9) Blalock (8) Consolidated Credit Union Place
Consolidated Credit Union Place
Consolidated Credit Union Place is a multi purpose facility that opened in two stages in April 2006 in the City of Summerside, Prince Edward Island, Canada. It contains an aquatics centre, meeting and convention rooms and fitness centre and in 2 NHL size ice surface arenas, bowling lanes and...

0-1
November 6 London Lightning
London Lightning
The London Lightning is a charter member of the National Basketball League of Canada set to begin play for the 2011-12 season. Based in London, Ontario, the Lightning will play its home games at the John Labatt Centre....

70-81 Tisby (19) Young (7) Anderson (5) Harbour Station
Harbour Station
Harbour Station is an arena located in the uptown area of Saint John, New Brunswick.It was the home of the American Hockey League's Saint John Flames from 1993 until their demise in 2003....

0-2
November 10 Summerside Storm 107-108 Anderson (25) DeLuca (8) Blalock (9) Harbour Station 0-3
November 13 at London Lightning 96-86 Anderson/DeLuca (20) Tisby (14) Blalock (4) John Labatt Centre
John Labatt Centre
The John Labatt Centre is a sports-entertainment centre, in London, Ontario, Canada -- the largest such centre in southwestern Ontario.The John Labatt Centre, usually referred to as the "JLC", opened on October 11, 2002. It is named after John Labatt, founder of the Labatt brewery in London...

1-3
November 14 at Oshawa Power
Oshawa Power
The Oshawa Power is a charter member of the National Basketball League of Canada which began play in 2011. Based in Oshawa, Ontario, the Power plays its home games at the General Motors Centre.-Current Roster:-Schedule:...

91-88 Anderson (27) Tisby (7) Anderson/Blalock (5) General Motors Centre 2-3
November 17 at Summerside Storm 106-90 Anderson (35) Blalock/Tisby (10) Blalock (10) Consolidated Credit Union Place 3-3
November 18 at Halifax Rainmen 104-122 DeLuca (22) DeLuca (9) Blalock (6) Halifax Metro Centre
Halifax Metro Centre
The Halifax Metro Centre was built in 1978, in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The building is next to the World Trade and Convention Centre, at the foot of Citadel Hill. It is the largest arena in Halifax. It originally featured a full ring of bright orange seats around the playing surface,...

3-4
November 20 at Moncton Miracles
Moncton Miracles
The Moncton Miracles are a charter member of the National Basketball League of Canada set to begin play for the 2011-12 season. Based in Moncton, New Brunswick, the Miracles will play their home games at the Moncton Coliseum. -Current Roster:...

97-92 Anderson (19) Anderson/Tisby (5) Anderson (8) Moncton Coliseum
Moncton Coliseum
The Moncton Coliseum is a multi-purpose facility, located in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada. The capacity is 7,200 , for hockey.The adjoining Moncton Agrena complex constitutes the largest trade show facility in Atlantic Canada....

4-4
November 30 Summerside Storm Harbour Station
December 1 Oshawa Power Harbour Station
December 2 Halifax Rainmen Harbour Station
December 11 Quebec Kebs Harbour Station
December 13 at Moncton Miracles Moncton Coliseum
December 17 Moncton Miracles Harbour Station
December 19 at Quebec Kebs PEPS
PEPS
The ' , usually called PEPS for short, is a sports complex located in Quebec City, Quebec, on the campus of the Université Laval...

December 20 at Quebec Kebs PEPS
December 29 London Lightning Harbour Station
December 31 at Summerside Storm Consolidated Credit Union Place
January 3 at Moncton Miracles Moncton Coliseum
January 5 at Quebec Kebs PEPS
January 14 at Halifax Rainmen Halifax Metro Centre
January 15 London Lightning Harbour Station
January 20 Quebec Kebs Harbour Station
January 22 Moncton Miracles Harbour Station
January 26 at Oshawa Power General Motors Centre
January 29 at London Lightning John Labatt Centre
February 1 Moncton Miracles Harbour Station
February 9 Quebec Kebs Harbour Station
February 10 Summerside Storm Harbour Station
February 15 at Oshawa Power General Motors Centre
February 16 at London Lightning John Labatt Centre
February 20 Halifax Rainmen Harbour Station
February 23 Oshawa Power Harbour Station
February 24 at Halifax Rainmen Halifax Metro Centre
March 1 Oshawa Power Harbour Station
March 4 Halifax Rainmen Harbour Station

External links

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