2019 NBL Finals

The 2019 NBL Finals were the championship series of the 2018–19 NBL season and the conclusion of the season. The semi-finals started on 28 February and ended 3 March 2019, making way for the Grand Final series to commence on 8 March and end on 17 March 2018. The Perth Wildcats were 3-1 victors over Melbourne United in the best of 5 series, winning their ninth NBL championship title.[1]

2019 NBL Finals

Country	Australia New Zealand
Dates	28 February – 17 March 2019
Season	2018–19
Teams	4
Defending champions	Melbourne United
Champions	Perth Wildcats (9th title)
Runners-up	Melbourne United
Semifinalists	Sydney Kings Brisbane Bullets
Matches played	8
Winning coach	Trevor Gleeson
MVP	Terrico White, Perth Wildcats
Attendance	84,212 (10,527 per match)
Top scorer	Terrico White
← 2018 2020 →

Format

The finals were played in February and March 2020 between the top four teams of the regular season, consisting of two best-of-three semi-final and one best-of-five final series, where the higher seed hosts the first, third and fifth games.[2]

Qualification

Qualified teams

Team	Date of qualification	Round of qualification	Finals appearance	Previous appearance	Previous best performance	Ref
Perth Wildcats	1 February 2019	16	33rd	2018	Champions (1990, 1991, 1995, 2000, 2010, 2014, 2016, 2017)	[3]
Melbourne United	3 February 2020	16	24th	2018	Champions (1993, 1997, 2006, 2008, 2018)	[4]
Sydney Kings	3 February 2019	16	14th	2013	Champions (2003, 2004, 2005)	[5]
Brisbane Bullets	17 February 2019	18	21st	2008	Champions (1985, 1987, 2007)	[6]

Ladder

2018-19 NBL ladder
Ladder	Information
Pos. Nat. Name Pld. W. L. Last 5 Streak Home Away For Against Pts % Win % 1 Perth Wildcats 28 18 10 4-1 L1 12-2 6-8 2499 2355 106.11% 64.29% 2 Melbourne United (RC) 28 18 10 3-2 W1 10-4 8-6 2586 2478 104.36% 64.29% 3 Sydney Kings 28 18 10 4-1 W1 9-5 9-5 2438 2380 102.44% 64.29% 4 Brisbane Bullets 28 14 14 2-3 W1 9-5 5-9 2503 2480 100.93% 50.00% 5 Adelaide 36ers 28 14 14 2-3 L2 6-8 8-6 2687 2681 100.22% 50.00% 6 New Zealand Breakers 28 12 16 2-3 L1 7-7 5-9 2649 2641 100.30% 42.86% 7 Illawarra Hawks 28 12 16 1-4 L3 8-6 4-10 2493 2664 93.58% 42.86% 8 Cairns Taipans 28 6 22 2-3 L1 3-11 3-11 2400 2576 93.17% 21.43%	Total Rounds 18 Games per Team 28 Total Games 112 Legend (NT) New Team (RC) Reigning Champion Updated: 5 October 2019

Ladder progression

• Numbers highlighted in green indicate that the team finished the round inside the top four.
• Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the team finished first on the ladder in that round.
• Numbers highlighted in red indicates the team finished last place on the ladder in that round.

	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18
	Adelaide 36ers	3	4	4	6	7	5	5	6	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	4	4	5
	Brisbane Bullets	5	6	6	3	5	6	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	5	5	4
	Cairns Taipans	2	3	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8
	Illawarra Hawks	8	7	7	7	6	7	7	5	6	6	6	7	6	6	6	6	6	7
	Melbourne United	4	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	3	1	3	3	2	2	1	1	2	2
	New Zealand Breakers	6	8	5	5	4	4	6	7	7	7	7	6	7	7	7	7	7	6
	Perth Wildcats	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	3	2	2	3	3	2	2	1	1
	Sydney Kings	7	5	3	4	3	3	3	3	2	2	1	1	1	1	3	3	3	3

Seedings

1. Perth Wildcats
2. Melbourne United
3. Sydney Kings
4. Brisbane Bullets

The NBL tie-breaker system as outlined in the NBL Rules and Regulations states that in the case of an identical win-loss record, the overall points percentage will determine order of seeding.

Playoff Bracket

	Semi-finals							Grand final
	1	Perth Wildcats	89	84	X
	4	Brisbane Bullets	59	79	X
								1	Perth Wildcats	81	74	96	97	X
								2	Melbourne United	71	92	67	82	X
	2	Melbourne United	95	90	X
	3	Sydney Kings	73	76	X

Semi-Finals Series

(2) Melbourne United vs. (3) Sydney Kings

{{{teamA}}} v {{{teamB}}}

28 February 2019	Melbourne United	95–73 (Series: Melbourne leads series, 1–0)	Sydney Kings	Melbourne Arena, Melbourne, Victoria
19:50	Scoring by quarter: 24–24, 28–11, 19–18, 24–20
Fox Sports	Pts: Ware 22 Rebs: Boone 7 Asts: Ware 7	boxscore	Pts: Newley 17 Rebs: Bogut 7 Asts: three players 3	Attendance: 7,566

{{{teamA}}} v {{{teamB}}}

3 March 2019	Sydney Kings	76–90 (Series: Melbourne wins series, 2–0)	Melbourne United	Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney, New South Wales
14:20	Scoring by quarter: 24-22, 16-20, 18-25, 18-23
Fox Sports	Pts: Adnam, Lisch 13 Rebs: Bogut 12 Asts: Bogut, Randle 5	boxscore	Pts: Ware 30 Rebs: Boone 8 Asts: McCarron 5	Attendance: 14,569

(1) Perth Wildcats vs. (4) Brisbane Bullets

{{{teamA}}} v {{{teamB}}}

28 February 2019	Perth Wildcats	89–59 (Series: Perth leads series, 1–0)	Brisbane Bullets	RAC Arena, Perth, Western Australia
19:20	Scoring by quarter: 23-16, 18-24, 30-15, 18-4
Fox Sports	Pts: Cotton 22 Rebs: Kay 10 Asts: Cotton 6	boxscore	Pts: Gliddon 18 Rebs: Hodgson 7 Asts: Patterson 6	Attendance: 10,587

{{{teamA}}} v {{{teamB}}}

2 March 2019	Brisbane Bullets	79–84 (Series: Perth wins series, 2–0)	Perth Wildcats	Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Brisbane, Queensland
13:50	Scoring by quarter: 20-25, 21-24, 21-20, 17-15
Fox Sports	Pts: Patterson 19 Rebs: Bairstow 7 Asts: Gibson 5	boxscore	Pts: White 24 Rebs: Kay 15 Asts: Cotton 10	Attendance: 5,519

Grand Final Series

(1) Perth Wildcats vs. (2) Melbourne United

{{{teamA}}} v {{{teamB}}}

8 March 2019	Perth Wildcats	81–71 (Series: Perth leads series, 1–0)	Melbourne United	RAC Arena, Perth, Western Australia
19:20	Scoring by quarter: 14-13, 15-20, 31-14, 21-24
Fox Sports	Pts: White 19 Rebs: Cotton, White 8 Asts: Cotton 8	boxscore	Pts: Ware 19 Rebs: Boone 12 Asts: Ware 4	Attendance: 12,490

{{{teamA}}} v {{{teamB}}}

10 March 2019	Melbourne United	92–74 (Series: Series tied, 1–1)	Perth Wildcats	Melbourne Arena, Melbourne, Victoria
14:50	Scoring by quarter: 20-20, 22-21, 26-16, 24-17
Fox Sports	Pts: Goulding, Ware 14 Rebs: Kennedy 14 Asts: Kennedy, McCarron 4	boxscore	Pts: Cotton 19 Rebs: Kay 8 Asts: Cotton, White 4	Attendance: 10,062

{{{teamA}}} v {{{teamB}}}

15 March 2019	Perth Wildcats	96–67 (Series: Perth leads series, 2–1)	Melbourne United	RAC Arena, Perth, Western Australia
19:35	Scoring by quarter: 21-16, 21-20, 28-15, 26-16
Fox Sports	Pts: White 31 Rebs: Kay, White 7 Asts: Cotton 10	boxscore	Pts: Barlow, Kennedy 13 Rebs: Kenndey 10 Asts: Kennedy 6	Attendance: 13,412

{{{teamA}}} v {{{teamB}}}

17 March 2019	Melbourne United	84–97 (Series: Perth wins series, 3–1)	Perth Wildcats	Melbourne Arena, Melbourne, Victoria
14:20	Scoring by quarter: 28-26, 17-27, 12-15, 27-29
Fox Sports	Pts: Ware 18 Rebs: Boone 7 Asts: Goulding, Ware 4	boxscore	Pts: Cotton 28 Rebs: Kay 10 Asts: Martin 6	Attendance: 10,007

References

1. Ward, Roy (2019-03-17). "Perth win ninth NBL title with game 4 victory over Melbourne United". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
2. "National Basketball League | NBL". nbl.com.au. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
3. "National Basketball League | NBL". nbl.com.au. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
4. "National Basketball League | NBL". nbl.com.au. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
5. "Kings lock in finals spot after blowout win over the Bullets". www.sydneykings.com. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
6. "National Basketball League | NBL". www.brisbanebullets.com.au. Retrieved 2020-04-05.