1979–80 WBL season
LeagueWomen's Professional Basketball League
SportBasketball
DurationNovember 15, 1979 – April 9, 1980
Number of teams14
Draft
Top draft pickPat Colasurdo
Picked bySan Francisco Pioneers
Regular season
Top seedNew York Stars
Season MVPAnn Meyers (New Jersey)
Molly Bolin (Iowa Cornets)
Top scorerMolly Bolin (Iowa Cornets)
Playoffs
Finals
ChampionsNew York Stars
  Runners-upIowa Cornets

The 1979–80 WBL season was the 2nd season of the Women's Professional Basketball League. The season ended with the New York Stars winning the WBL Championship, beating the Iowa Cornets 3 games to 1 in the WBL Finals.[1]

The league was divided into three divisions, with the New Jersey Gems, New York Stars St. Louis Streak, Washington Metros and the Philadelphia Fox in the Eastern Division, the Iowa Cornets, Minnesota Fillies, Chicago Hustle and the Milwaukee Does in the Midwest and the Houston Angels, San Francisco Pioneers, California Dreams and the Dallas Diamonds in the West. Struggling financially, Philadelphia and Washington both disbanded after 10 games.[2]

Notable occurrences

  • In June, former NBA player Dean Meminger was hired as the head coach of the New York Stars.[3][4]
  • Pat Colasurdo was selected with the first pick in the 1979 WBL draft by the San Francisco Pioneers.[5]
  • Former NBA coach Larry Costello was hired as the head coach of the Milwaukee Does.[6][7]
  • After sitting out the 1978–79 season and participating in the Indiana Pacers training camp, Ann Meyers signed with the New Jersey Gems in November.[8]
  • The season debut was on 15 November, 1979, where the New York Stars defeated the New Orleans Pride, 120-112, before a record crowd of 8,452 in the Louisiana Superdome.[9]
  • On 26 November, Janie Fincher of the Chicago Hustle was traded to the Washington Metros for two third-round draft picks and an undisclosed amount of cash. As Chicago's most popular player, the trade turned out to be a very unpopular move with Chicago's fans, with many turning in their season tickets afterwards.[10] Due to the uproar, the Hustle tried to get the trade voided but could not do so before the Metros folded with Fincher going into a dispersal draft with the other Metros players. Despite having a chance to select her with the 4th pick, the team traded the pick to the Iowa Cornets for Denise Sharps, and Fincher was then selected with the fifth pick by the St. Louis Streak. The Hustle however, then traded Adrian Mitchell to the Streak for "Future considerations" which turned out to be Fincher,[11] and she returned to Chicago before the end of the month.[12]
  • On January 13, 1980, Molly Bolin, of the Iowa Cornets, broke her own WBL single game scoring record of 53 points when she scored 54 in a 109-93 win against the Minnesota Fillies.[13] Two months later, on March 2, 1980, she broke the record again, scoring 55 points in another win against the Fillies despite dislocating her left shoulder early in the second quarter. That game, she also became the first WBL player to break the 1,000 point barrier in a single season.[14]

Standings

# Eastern Division
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-New York Stars287.800
2 x-New Orleans Pride2113.6186.5
3 New Jersey Gems1917.5289.5
4 St. Louis Streak1521.41713.5
5 Washington Metros37.300...
6 Philadelphia Fox28.200...
# Midwest Division
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-Iowa Cornets2412.667
2 x-Minnesota Fillies2212.6471
3 Chicago Hustle1719.4727
4 Milwaukee Does1024.29413
# Western Division
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-Houston Angels1914.576
2 x-San Francisco Pioneers1818.5002.5
3 California Dreams1118.3936
4 Dallas Diamonds728.20013

Notes

  • z – division champions
  • x – clinched playoff spot

Playoffs

Quarter finals
  
Houston Angels 1
San Francisco Pioneers 2
Quarter finals
  
Minnesota Fillies 2
New Orleans Pride 1
Semifinals Finals
    
New York Stars 2
San Francisco Pioneers 0
New York Stars 3
Iowa Cornets 1
Iowa Cornets 2
Minnesota Fillies 1

Statistics leaders

CategoryPlayerTeamStat
Points per gameMolly BolinIowa Cornets32.8
Rebounds per gameDoris DravingIowa Cornets14.9
Assists per gameJanice ThomasNew York Stars8.6
Steals per gameAnn MeyersNew Jersey Gems4.9
Blocks per gameBertha HardyNew Orleans Pride2.7

WBL awards

All-Pro team

Source[15]

References

  1. "NY Stars take Cornets' crown". The Dispatch. United Press International. April 10, 1980. p. 40. Retrieved October 17, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  2. "WBL's Metros, Fox suspend operations". Florida Today. December 22, 1979. p. 2C. Retrieved October 17, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  3. Mike Wise (December 25, 2003). "PRO BASKETBALL; How Dean Meminger Turned His Life Around". The New York Times.
  4. Don Markus (July 1, 1979). "Meminger's new role is an old one". Newsday. p. 8 (sports). Retrieved October 15, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  5. "Cornets select 5 Iowans in WBL draft". The Gazette. June 13, 1979. p. 1C. Retrieved October 17, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  6. "Ex-NBA coach turns to women". Ventura County Star. October 4, 1979. p. C8. Retrieved October 17, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  7. Helene Elliott (December 14, 1979). "Larry Costello suffers among 389". Newsday. p. 141. Retrieved October 17, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  8. "Ann Meyers signs with WBL Gems". The Day. Associated Press. November 15, 1979. p. 48. Retrieved October 17, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  9. "It was a Jazzy family reunion for VBK". The Memphis Press-Scimitar. Associated Press. p. 16. Retrieved October 30, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  10. Bill Jauss (December 19, 1979). "'Mistaken' Hustle puts in claim for Fincher". Chicago Tribune. p. 3 (Section 5). Retrieved October 30, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  11. Bill Jauss (December 22, 1979). "Where's Janie now?". Chicago Tribune. p. 3 (Section 2). Retrieved October 30, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  12. Mike Conklin (December 27, 1979). "Hustle regains Fincher, may lose general manager". Chicago Tribune. p. 3 (Section 4). Retrieved October 30, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  13. Wayne Grett (January 14, 1980). "Magnificent Molly makes her mark". The Des Moines Register. pp. 1S, 5S. Retrieved October 21, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  14. Wayne Grett (March 3, 1980). "Bolin's 55 break mark; Cornets win". The Des Moines Register. p. 3S. Retrieved October 19, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  15. "Bolin, Meyers head WBL All-Pro team". Arizona Daily Star. Associated Press. June 10, 1980. p. C2. Retrieved October 21, 2023 via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
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