Mavericks finish with winning streak
With their 105-103 victory over the Jacksonville Giants, the Shreveport-Bossier Mavericks not only secured the American Basketball Association League Championship, they also capped off a perfect winning season, with 34 out of 34 wins. A large crowd enthusiastically cheered on the team at Hirsch Coliseum the night of the final game April 14.
“To finish 34-0, 60 straight wins and 66 straight at home – this is just unbelievable,” Coach Steve Tucker said.
Founded in 2006, the Mavericks relocated to Shreveport from Southeast Texas in 2013. “We’re growing rapidly, and we’ve been here less than a year, and already we had great attendance for the championship games,” Tucker said. “We appreciate the support we’ve received from the community. We’ve really been embraced by the community, and we have embraced the community as well.”
“We had big expectations going into this season because of our past success in Southeast Texas, and I think we exceeded all those expectations,” said Tucker.
Achieving a flawless season is no small feat, and fittingly four Mavericks were chosen to play in the ABA All-Star Game in Kansas City, Mo., on April 19. First is Ed Horton, who was also named MVP of the ABA Championship Finals. Horton is a native of Shreveport, having played basketball for Southwood High School. Horton averaged 18.2 points per game. Next is P.J. Couisnard, a former league MVP who averaged 15.5 points per game. Trey Moore will play in the All-Stars, and at 38-years-old, Tucker points out that he “can really still play,” averaging 16.4 points per game this season. Finally, Alex Sanders averaged 11.5 points per game and 8.4 rebounds per game. Sanders also played for the Harlem Globetrotters for seven years before joining the Mavericks. “I think this is the greatest basketball team in the country outside of the NBA, and I think it’s time ESPN gave these players their due,” Tucker said.
The startling success of the Mavericks this season is also thanks largely to Tucker himself, as Tucker was recently named ABA Coach of the Year for a sixth time. The honor is no surprise; Tucker has three ABA National Championships and 5 Division Titles under his belt. He has won three National Coach of the Year Awards, was the ABA Coach of the Decade (2000- 10), and has won more games than any coach since the ABA returned in 2000. Tucker has also been selected to coach in the ABA All-Star Game; no coach has ever been selected more times to coach in that game than Tucker.
Tucker’s accomplishments this season are all the more impressive considering he suffered a heart attack during pre-season workouts. “It is a great honor. With all that has gone on this season with my health, this just is special to be selected again to coach in the ABA All-Star Game,” Tucker said.
Tucker is very happy with the way Shreveport-Bossier City has embraced the Mavericks in the first year of their relocation. “We see a bright future for the Mavericks here in Shreveport-Bossier City. We’ve created a lot of buzz,” Tucker said. Indeed, attendance during the Championship Finals grew with each game as word of the team’s exciting performances spread.
“We made a lot of inroads this year. We’ve created a lot of bridges of communication,” Tucker said. Tucker is hoping to get even more involved with the public as a way of setting down roots in the area. Tucker explained the team gets actively involved by visiting schools and giving talks to students about the lessons that can be learned from sports. Players enthusiastically seek out opportunities to give back to their fans. “We want to grow our credibility and our involvement in the community. We want to really give back to the community.”
“I think if we embrace each other, we can really have a great place here for professional sports,” Tucker said.
Tucker said he believes Northwest Louisiana is a perfect place for professional sports to thrive and that Shreveport-Bossier City has been ripe for a pro basketball team for some time. Tuckers points out that Northwest Louisiana has traditionally been sportsrich, supporting everything from pro bass fishing to football. “This is such a rich sports area in so many ways. It’s just such a special area of the country,” Tucker said.
To learn more about the Mavericks, including statistics and player biographies, visit www.abamavericks.com/.
–Kirk Fontenot
