Bulleen Boomers (Big V)
Basketball team in Bulleen, Victoria
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bulleen Boomers is a Big V club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club fields a team in both the Men's and Women's Big V. The club is a division of Bulleen-Templestowe Basketball Club (BTBC), the major administrative basketball organisation in the City of Manningham. The Boomers play their home games at Sheahans Reserve Basketball Stadium.
Bulleen Boomers
1981–1996; 1998–present
Women:
Bulleen Boomers
1994–1995; 1998–present
| Bulleen Boomers | |
|---|---|
| |
| Leagues | Big V |
| Founded | 1981 |
| History | Men: Bulleen Boomers 1981–1996; 1998–present Women: Bulleen Boomers 1994–1995; 1998–present |
| Arena | Sheahans Reserve Basketball Stadium |
| Location | Bulleen, Victoria |
| Team colors | Blue & gold |
| President | Derek Pangbourne |
| Vice-president | Roger Jeffrey |
| General manager | Ryan Rogers |
| Head coach | M: Umberto Fato W: Mason Rogers |
| Championships | Men: ABA (2)Women: Big V (2) |
| Conference titles | Men: SEABL (2) |
| Website | bulleenboomers.com.au |
Club history
Background and WNBL entry
Bulleen-Templestowe Basketball Club (BTBC) was established in 1969.[1] The Bulleen Boomers WNBL team entered the Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) in the 1984 season after BTBC obtained a licence.[1][2][3]
SEABL men's team
In 1981, the Boomers were inaugural members of the South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL).[4] In 1983, the Boomers finished second in the SEABL regular season[4] and went on to reach the ABA National grand final, where they were defeated by the Melbourne Tigers.[5] In 1984, the Boomers again finished second in the SEABL regular season[4] and returned to the ABA National grand final, where they won the National championship with a victory over the Chelsea Gulls.[5] In 1985, the Boomers finished third in the SEABL regular season[4] and made their third straight ABA National grand final, where they were defeated by the Kilsyth Cobras.[5]
In 1988, the Boomers won the SEABL East Conference championship[6][7] and returned to the ABA National grand final, where they lost to the Bendigo Braves.[5] In 1989, the Boomers won their second straight SEABL East Conference championship.[6][7] In 1990, the Boomers finished second in the SEABL South Conference regular season[4] and went on to reach their fifth ABA National grand final, where they defeated the Ballarat Miners to win their second National championship.[5] In 1992, American import guard Drederick Irving played for the Boomers under coach Brett Brown.[8]
Following the 1996 season, the Boomers withdrew from the SEABL.[4]
Big V
In 1994, a Bulleen state league women's team emerged in the Country Victorian Invitation Basketball League (CVIBL) Division One.[9] They withdrew from the CVIBL following the 1995 season.[9] In 1998, Bulleen's men's and women's teams joined the Victorian Basketball League's (VBL) second division.[9] In 1999, the men's team was elevated to the VBL's Premier Division while the women's team won the championship in the VBL's second division.[9][10]
In 2000, the Boomers were members of the inaugural Big V season.[11] In 2001 and 2002, the women's team reached the Big V grand final, where they lost both times to the Ballarat Miners.[10] In 2006, the men's team dropped down from Championship Division to Division One.[11] In 2009, the men's team reached the Division One grand final series,[12] where they lost 2–0 to the Sunbury Jets.[13] They subsequently returned to Championship Division in 2010.[14][15] In 2013, the men's team finished as minor premiers but lost in the semi-finals. Future NBA player Ben Simmons featured for the Boomers during the 2013 season.[16] In 2017, the men's team was relegated to Division One.[17] That year, the women's team reached the Championship Division grand final series, where they lost 2–0 to the Sunbury Jets.[18]
In 2022, the women's team reached the Big V Championship Division grand final series,[19][20] where they lost 2–0 to the Wyndham Devils.[21][22][23] In 2023, the team won the Big V title with an 84–79 overtime victory over Wyndham in the grand final.[24][25] The team returned to the grand final in 2024 and faced Wyndham for the third straight year,[26] where they lost 50–48.[27] The Boomers women reached their fourth straight grand final in 2025,[28] where they won their second Big V championship with a 71–55 win over the Bellarine Storm.[29]