2014–15 WNBL season
Sports season
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The 2014–15 WNBL season was the 35th season of competition since its establishment in 1981. A total of 8 teams contested the league. The regular season was played between 17 October 2014 and 15 February 2015, followed by a post-season involving the top four on 21 February 2015 until 8 March 2015.
| 2014–15 WNBL season | |
|---|---|
| League | Women's National Basketball League |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration | 17 October 2014 – 8 March 2015 |
| Teams | 8 |
| TV partner | ABC |
| Regular season | |
| Top seed | Townsville Fire |
| Season MVP | Abby Bishop Capitals |
| Top scorer | Abby Bishop Capitals |
| Finals | |
| Champions | Townsville Fire[1] |
| Runners-up | Bendigo Spirit |
| Finals MVP | Mia Newley Fire |
Broadcast rights were held by free-to-air network ABC. ABC broadcast one game a week, at 1:00PM at every standard time in Australia. Regular hosts are John Casey & Rachael Sporn.[2]
Sponsorship included Wattle Valley, entering its second year as league naming rights sponsor. Spalding provided equipment including the official game ball, with Peak supplying team apparel.
Team standings
| # | WNBL Championship Ladder | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | GP | ||
| 1 | Townsville Fire | 17 | 5 | 77.27 | 22 | |
| 2 | Bendigo Spirit | 15 | 7 | 68.18 | 22 | |
| 3 | Dandenong Rangers | 12 | 10 | 54.55 | 22 | |
| 4 | Sydney Uni Flames | 11 | 11 | 50.00 | 22 | |
| 5 | Canberra Capitals | 11 | 11 | 50.00 | 22 | |
| 6 | Melbourne Boomers | 11 | 11 | 50.00 | 22 | |
| 7 | Adelaide Lightning | 7 | 15 | 31.82 | 22 | |
| 8 | West Coast Waves | 4 | 18 | 18.18 | 22 | |
Finals
| Semifinals | Preliminary final | Grand final | |||||||||||
| 22 February – Townsville RSL Stadium | 8 March – Townsville RSL Stadium | ||||||||||||
| Townsville Fire | 82 | Townsville Fire | 75 | ||||||||||
| Bendigo Spirit | 63 | 1 March – Bendigo Stadium | Bendigo Spirit | 65 | |||||||||
| Bendigo Spirit | 85 | ||||||||||||
| 21 February – Dandenong Basketball Stadium | Sydney Uni Flames | 77 | |||||||||||
| Dandenong Rangers | 80 | ||||||||||||
| Sydney Uni Flames | 89 | ||||||||||||
Statistics
Individual statistic leaders
| Category | Player | Team | Statistic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Points per game | Abby Bishop | Canberra Capitals | 23.0 PPG |
| Rebounds per game | Abby Bishop | Canberra Capitals | 10.6 RPG |
| Assists per game | Leilani Mitchell | Sydney Uni Flames | 5.9 APG |
| Steals per game | Rebecca Allen | Melbourne Boomers | 1.8 SPG |
| Blocks per game | Louella Tomlinson | West Coast Waves | 2.6 BPG |
| Three point percentage | Micaela Cocks | Townsville Fire | 54.9% |
| Free throw percentage | Deanna Smith | West Coast Waves | 92.5% |
Season award winners
Player of the Week Award
| Round # | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | Cayla Francis | Townsville Fire |
| Round 2 | Gabrielle Richards | Bendigo Spirit |
| Round 3 | Tess Madgen | Melbourne Boomers |
| Round 4 | Abby Bishop | Canberra Capitals |
| Round 5 | Leilani Mitchell | Sydney Uni Flames |
| Round 6 | Lindsey Moore | West Coast Waves |
| Round 7 | Abby Bishop (2) | Canberra Capitals |
| Round 8 | Belinda Snell | Bendigo Spirit |
| Round 9 | Suzy Batkovic | Townsville Fire |
| Round 10 | Abby Bishop (3) | Canberra Capitals |
| Round 11 | Penny Taylor | Dandenong Rangers |
| Round 12 | Rebecca Cole | Melbourne Boomers |
| Round 13 | Cayla Francis (2) | Townsville Fire |
| Round 14 | Abby Bishop (4) | Canberra Capitals |
| Round 15 | Gabrielle Richards (2) | Bendigo Spirit |
| Round 16 | Cayla Francis (3) | Townsville Fire |
| Round 17 | Stephanie Talbot | Canberra Capitals |
Player & Coach of the Month Awards
| For games played | Player of the Month | Coach of the Month | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Team | Coach | Team | |
| November 2014 | Abby Bishop | Canberra Capitals | Chris Lucas | Townsville Fire |
| December 2014 | Suzy Batkovic | Townsville Fire | Mark Wright | Dandenong Rangers |
| January 2015 | Penny Taylor | Dandenong Rangers | Mark Wright (2) | Dandenong Rangers |
Postseason awards
| Award | Winner | Position | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most Valuable Player Award | Abby Bishop | Forward | Canberra Capitals |
| Grand Final MVP Award | Mia Newley | Guard | Townsville Fire |
| Rookie of the Year Award | Lauren Scherf | Forward | Dandenong Rangers |
| Defensive Player of the Year Award | Kelsey Griffin | Forward | Bendigo Spirit |
| Top Shooter Award | Abby Bishop | Forward | Canberra Capitals |
| Coach of the Year Award | Shannon Seebohm | Coach | Sydney Uni Flames |
| All-Star Five | Tess Madgen | Guard | Melbourne Boomers |
| Kelsey Griffin | Forward | Bendigo Spirit | |
| Abby Bishop | Forward | Canberra Capitals | |
| Penny Taylor | Forward | Dandenong Rangers | |
| Cayla Francis | Center | Townsville Fire |