The 1986 NBL season was the 5th season for the Adelaide 36ers in the Australian-based National Basketball League. The club won its first NBL Championship after defeating the Brisbane Bullets 2–1 in the NBL's first ever multiple game Grand Final series. In 1985, the 36ers just missed out on their first NBL championship when they had gone down 121–95 to the Brian Kerle coached, Leroy Loggins inspired Brisbane Bullets in the Grand Final that had been played on the Bullets home court, the Sleeman Sports Centre.
The Adelaide 36ers played their home games at the 3,000 seat Apollo Stadium. Built in 1969, the Apollo was (at the time) Adelaide's largest indoor arena. Coaching the 36ers as he had done in 1985 was former Australian Boomers Olympic Games representative (1964) Ken Cole. Captaining the team would be 6'9" (207 cm) American import centre, 27 year old Bill Jones.
The 1986 Adelaide 36ers compiled a league leading 24–2 record in the regular season before going 3–1 in the playoffs to claim their first title.
Off-season Additions (From the squad at the end of the 1985 NBL season) Player Signed Former Team Dwayne Nelson Scott Ninnis Peter Sexton Mark Sykes
Subtractions (From the squad at the end of the 1985 NBL season) Player Reason Left New Team Andy Amberg Craig Clatworthy Karl Luke
Roster
Depth chart
1986 NBL clubs Club Location Home Venue Capacity Founded Head coach Adelaide 36ers Adelaide, South Australia Apollo Stadium 3,000 1982 Ken Cole Brisbane Bullets Brisbane, Queensland Sleeman Sports CentreBrisbane Entertainment Centre 2,70013,500 1979 Brian Kerle Canberra Cannons Canberra, Australian Capital Territory AIS Arena 5,200 1979 Bob Turner Coburg Giants Melbourne, Victoria The Glass House 7,200 1980 Bruce Palmer Geelong Cats Geelong, Victoria Geelong Arena 2,000 1982 Ken Richardson Hobart Devils Hobart, Tasmania Kingborough Sports Centre 1,800 1983 David Adkins Illawarra Hawks Wollongong, New South Wales Illawarra Basketball Stadium 2,000 1979 Dave Lindstrom Melbourne Tigers Melbourne, Victoria Albert Park Basketball Stadium 2,000 1931 Lindsay Gaze Newcastle Falcons Newcastle, New South Wales Broadmeadow Basketball Stadium 2,200 1979 Steve Johansen Nunawading Spectres Melbourne, Victoria Burwood Stadium 2,000 1979 Barry Barnes Perth Wildcats Perth, Western Australia Perry Lakes Basketball Stadium 1,500 1982 Jay Brehmer St Kilda Saints Melbourne, Victoria The Glass House 7,200 1979 Andris Blicavs Sydney Supersonics Sydney, New South Wales State Sports Centre 5,006 1982 Owen Wells West Sydney Westars Sydney, New South Wales State Sports Centre 5,006 1982 Robbie Cadee
Regular season Ladder
Game log Regular season All home games were broadcast on Channel 10
|- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 1 | 26 April | Supersonics | W 107–96 | Bill Jones (30) | Mark Davis (10) | Mark Davis (3) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 1–0
|- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 2 | 3 May | Devils | W 108–72 | Mark Davis (20) | Bill Jones (14) | Al Green (4) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 2–0 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 3 | 10 May | Hawks | W 114–110 | Bill Jones (27) | Mark Davis (19) | Al Green (2) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 3–0 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 4 | 16 May | @ Devils | W 97–69 | Mark Davis (33) | Mark Davis (18) | Peter Ali & Al Green (6) | Kingborough Sports Centre1,800 | 4–0 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 5 | 17 May | @ Saints | W 125–97 | Mark Davis (35) | Bill Jones (18) | Darryl Pearce (7) | Albert Park Basketball Stadium2,000 | 5–0 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 6 | 24 May | Cannons | W 124–91 | Mark Davis (30) | Mark Davis (23) | Bill Jones, Peter Ali & Mark Davis (4) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 6–0 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 7 | 30 May | @ Falcons | W 98–96 | Mark Davis (26) | Mark Davis & Bill Jones (18) | Al Green & Darryl Pearce (3) | Broadmeadow Basketball Stadium2,200 | 7–0 |- style="background-color:#ffcccc;" | 8 | 31 May | @ Westars | L 87–89 | Mark Davis (26) | Mark Davis (23) | Al Green (4) | State Sports Centre5,006 | 7–1
|- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 9 | 7 June | Falcons | W 119–92 | Al Green & Bill Jones (28) | Mark Davis & Bill Jones (14) | Mark Davis (6) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 8–1 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 10 | 14 June | @ Wildcats | W 117–85 | Darryl Pearce (23) | Mark Davis (16) | Mark Davis (8) | Perry Lakes Basketball Stadium1,500 | 9–1 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 11 | 21 June | Spectres | W 124–104 | Mark Davis (42) | Mark Davis (18) | Darryl Pearce (6) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 10–1
|- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 12 | 12 July | Wildcats | W 124–83 | Al Green (35) | Mark Davis (18) | Al Green (7) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 11–1 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 13 | 19 July | @ Cats | W 109–107 | Mark Davis (25) | Mark Davis (21) | Al Green & Mark Davis (3) | Geelong Arena2,000 | 12–1 |- style="background-color:#ffcccc;" | 14 | 20 July | @ Giants | L 114–116 | Darryl Pearce (30) | Bill Jones (14) | Al Green (8) | The Glass House7,200 | 12–2 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 15 | 26 July | Tigers | W 140–101 | Al Green (33) | Mark Davis (16) | Darryl Pearce (5) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 13–2
|- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 16 | 2 August | Bullets | W 120–92 | Mark Davis (32) | Dwayne Nelson (16) | Al Green (5) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 14–2 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 17 | 9 August | Giants | W 137–111 | Dwayne Nelson (24) | Bill Jones (17) | Al Green (9) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 15–2 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 18 | 15 August | @ Hawks | W 100–79 | Darryl Pearce (24) | Mark Davis (15) | Darryl Pearce (4) | Illawarra Basketball Stadium2,000 | 16–2 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 19 | 16 August | @ Supersonics | W 100–75 | Bill Jones (23) | Bill Jones (24) | Al Green (3) | State Sports Centre5,006 | 17–2 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 20 | 30 August | Cats | W 120–119 | Bill Jones & Mark Davis (24) | Bill Jones (20) | Al Green (6) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 18–2
|- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 21 | 6 September | Saints | W 138–98 | Darryl Pearce (29) | Mark Davis (24) | Darryl Pearce (4) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 19–2 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 22 | 13 September | @ Cannons | W 118–104 | Mark Davis (35) | Mark Davis (17) | Al Green (5) | AIS Arena5,200 | 20–2 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 23 | 14 September | @ Bullets | W 124–115 | Mark Davis (38) | Mark Davis (18) | Darryl Pearce (6) | Brisbane Entertainment Centre8,000 | 21–2 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 24 | 20 September | Westars | W 124–98 | Mark Davis (31) | Bill Jones (15) | Al Green & Darryl Pearce (3) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 22–2 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 25 | 27 September | @ Spectres | W 98–94 | Bill Jones (28) | Mark Davis (17) | Darryl Pearce (8) | Burwood Stadium2,000 | 23–2 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | 26 | 28 September | @ Tigers | W 130–117 | Mark Davis (34) | Mark Davis (14) | Darryl Pearce (8) | Albert Park Basketball Stadium2,000 | 24–2
Finals One Game Semi-final, 3 Game Grand Final
|- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | SF | 4 October | Hawks | W 116–92 | Darryl Pearce (28) | Mark Davis (14) | Darryl Pearce (7) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 1–0
|- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | GF1 | 11 October | @ Bullets | W 122–119 (OT) | Mark Davis (38) | Mark Davis (23) | Mark Davis (5) | Brisbane Entertainment Centre11,000 | 1–0 |- style="background-color:#ffcccc;" | GF2 | 17 October | Bullets | L 83–104 | Darryl Pearce (29) | Bill Jones (17) | Darryl Pearce (6) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 1–1 |- style="background-color:#bbffbb;" | GF3 | 19 October | Bullets | W 113–91 | Darryl Pearce (27) | Mark Davis (25) | Darryl Pearce (2) | Apollo Stadium3,000 | 2–1
Player statistics Regular season
No. Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG 4 25 25 NA .407 .375 .880 3.0 3.7 1.1 0.2 18.4 6 10 0 NA .375 1.000 .333 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.8 8 26 26 NA .511 .333 .769 2.2 1.0 0.7 0.1 4.0 9 26 0 NA .439 .388 .866 1.8 0.8 0.9 0.1 2.1 10 26 1 NA .477 .453 .755 2.5 1.2 0.5 0.4 13.9 12 12 0 NA .571 .000 .000 0.2 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.6 14 (C) 26 26 NA .564 .000 .602 13.2 0.9 1.2 2.1 19.0 15 26 26 NA .502 .382 .690 4.6 3.7 1.1 0.4 20.1 20 26 0 NA .566 .000 .702 5.2 0.3 0.5 0.5 7.5 32 24 0 NA .536 .500 .833 0.1 0.3 0.0 0.0 1.3 33 26 26 NA .571 .159 .736 15.8 2.2 1.1 0.7 25.7
Team Leaders Points per game: 25.7 - Mark Davis Rebounds per game: 15.8 - Mark Davis Assists per game: 3.7 - Al Green and Darryl Pearce Steals per game: 1.2 - Bill Jones Blocks per game: 2.1 - Bill Jones
Finals
No. Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG 4 4 4 NA .379 .375 .500 3.5 4.6 0.5 0.0 24.3 6 1 0 NA .000 .000 .000 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 8 4 4 NA .519 .000 .714 4.0 0.5 1.8 0.0 3.5 9 4 0 NA .375 .250 .333 0.7 1.5 0.9 0.1 2.1 10 4 0 NA .388 .333 .714 1.0 1.0 1.5 0.5 11.8 12 1 0 NA .500 .000 .000 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.0 14 (C) 4 4 NA .526 .000 .579 10.0 0.7 1.0 2.5 17.8 15 4 4 NA .531 .375 .666 4.3 2.0 0.7 0.7 15.3 20 4 0 NA .368 .000 .875 3.5 0.5 0.0 0.5 5.3 32 1 0 NA .000 .000 .000 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 33 4 4 NA .500 .000 .733 18.0 2.0 1.2 0.5 22.5
Team Leaders Points per game: 24.3 - Darryl Pearce Rebounds per game: 18.0 - Mark Davis Assists per game: 4.6 - Darryl Pearce Steals per game: 1.8 - Peter Ali Blocks per game: 2.5 - Bill Jones
Awards NBL Award Winners All-NBL First team – Mark Davis (Centre) Grand Final MVP – Mark Davis NBL Coach of the Year – Ken Cole NBL Leading Rebounder – Mark Davis (482 @ 16.1 pg) Adelaide 36ers Club MVP – Mark Davis
Season summary Regular season The 1986 Adelaide 36ers were determined to go one better and avenge their Grand Final loss to the Brisbane Bullets in 1985. Former import player in 1984 and now Australian citizen Dwayne Nelson rejoined the club who were on the lookout for a player who could handle Brisbane's star import Leroy Loggins. Nelson, who had averaged 25.9 points and 10.1 rebounds in 24 games in 1984, adjusted well to his new role as a bench player backing up both Mark Davis and Peter Ali.
The 36ers enjoyed their best ever year when they went through the regular season with a league leading 24–2 record which included winning all 13 games played at the Apollo Stadium, the first time in NBL history that a team had gone through a regular season undefeated on their home court. As expected, the team was led by its Twin Towers import front court combination of centre Bill Jones and Power forward Mark Davis and along with the tough defence of 1980 Olympic Games forward Peter Ali and Dwayne Nelson, plus the scoring ability of guards Al Green, Darryl Pearce and Mike McKay, the 36ers emerged as the league's dominant team.
Adelaide only lost two games for the season, both away from home and both came from last second shots against the West Sydney Westars and Coburg Giants respectively. Those two losses ultimately denied Adelaide a perfect season by no more than a couple of seconds, but earned the team the nickname "The Invincibles", given to them by Adelaide's multi-award-winning basketball journalist Boti Nagy. The team generally dominated on his home court at the Apollo Stadium which was regularly sold-out for games. The closest any team came to beating Adelaide at home was on 30 August against the Geelong Cats. With 13 seconds remaining, a 3-pointer from Cats veteran Boomers forward Ian Davies gave the visitors a 119–118 lead and it appeared might Adelaide would lose at home for the first time. Following a quick inbound pass, Mike McKay brought the ball down court and managed to get a pass through double team defence to an open Darryl Pearce who put up a 3-point shot with only 2 seconds remaining that missed. Captain Bill Jones flew high to grab the rebound and in one motion tip-dunked the ball to give the 36ers a 120–119 win on the buzzer.The Golden Era highlights