Reading Rockets
Encyclopedia
Reading Rockets is a basketball
club based in the town of Reading
in the English
county of Berkshire
. Currently Reading Rockets play in the English Basketball League
Division 1. Reading Rockets work with around 1,000 young players every week in Berkshire. The club has squads ranging from developing Under-12s to the Division 1 senior men's side, and coaching staff regularly visit local schools and run satellite clubs as part of the Community Rockets scheme.
. They won promotion at the first attempt, and in the reorganisation of 2000 the National Basketball League replaced Division 1 with the eight-team NBL Conference as the second-tier after the BBL
. Subsequently Division 2 became Division 1 where the Rockets found themselves.
The Rockets remained in Division 1 for just one season, finishing second, and beating Oxford in the Championship Final, thus winning promotion to the NBL Conference after four years in the league. In the 2001/02 season they finished seventh in the NBL Conference. In the following season, the Rockets continued their rise, finishing in third place within the NBL Conference.
In 2003, the National Basketball League was rebranded as the English Basketball League
, and once again was restructured with a new format, with Rockets finishing in second place in the new EBL Division 1. In the following season they finished third and have been League runners-up to Worthing Thunder
in both the 2005/06 & 2006/07 seasons. In 2006/07 the team were sponsored by the Atlantis Group
and became known as the Atlantis Reading Rockets.
in the final game of the season, to draw level at the top, but losing out to on points difference in the head-to-head. Rockets are back-to-back National Trophy winners beating Worthing Thunder
in the final in Manchester (84-68). Rockets win their final match of the season but were not able to win by the seven point margin required to give them the illusive League Championship title. Adam Kelly make his last ever home appearance for Rockets. Danny Carter also enjoyed his last home game before a stint in an American College basketball
. Rockets were edged out by Manchester Magic who won the Play off Championship Final at the English Institute of Sport
, Sheffield
. Following the game Titmuss presented Adam Kelly with the match ball as a mark of respect and gratitude for his contribution to the club. Assistant coach Matt Johnson was full of praise for the departing captain: “Adam epitomises everything about the Rockets ethos. He is a dedicated individual who has shown an unbelievable amount of commitment over the last 10 years. This season has been one of his best and he will be impossible to replace”.
team of 2004/05, who missed out on the quadruple when they lost the National Cup final by a single point against Rockets, though they did lose one of their 22 league games. Dave Titmus resigned from the club before the start of the 2009/10 season.
Tin-Tin Watts was also voted as the league's top player in 2008/09 and Dave Titmuss was selected as the Coach of the Year for the season.
whilst Walid Mumuni joined the new BBL team of Essex Pirates
. Rockets had expected Tyrell Smith to return for the season but issues with his work permit prevented this happening.
Rockets secured the services of a new coach, Sasa Punosevac, the Serbian had spent four years coaching in Ireland
’s SuperLeague
while he also spent a season with the Ireland women's national basketball team
.
Rockets strange start to the season continued with the arrival, and departure of American Banks Estridge. Signed as a replacement for Tyrell Smith, the American trained with the squad on Monday, but two days later told the club he was returning home.
Over the winter period more turmoil for the Rockets when the cash-hit club were forced to dispense with the services of head coach Sasa Punosevac after just four months in charge. Chairman Gary Johnson expressed his gratitude to Punosevac for the positive impact he made in his short spell at the club. Assistant coach Matt Johnson, one of the most qualified coaches in the country, was to take over for the rest of the season.
Rockets crashed out of the National Cup, the Trophy (which they had won for the previous three years) and finished the league season in 7th place. Securing a play-off place against old rivals Manchester Magic.
During the season Rockets achievements, from last year were recognised, At the 2009 Reading Sports Personality of the Year awards the male team of the year award went to Reading Rockets who won every single game last season and as a result collected four national trophies. In addition the International Sports Personality of the Year was presented to Reading Rockets American Ryan Lohfink.
Rockets crashed out of the National Cup at the 3rd round stage to EBL Division 2 high-fliers London United at Harfield Academy. This was Reading’s first National Cup tie of the season, having received a bye in the previous two rounds, the latter being at the expense of Portsmouth City Smugglers, who could not raise a team.
Rockets’ run of success in the National Trophy continued as they win the competition, for the fourth time in five years, beating Leeds Carnegie
in the final held in Manchester. Rockets repeated their National Trophy final victory against Leeds Carnegie to collect their second playoff title in three years.
Niko Scott was selected as Division 1 Men's Player of the Year. In his first EBL season, American guard Scott averaged an EBL third-best 20.7 points per game (on 46% shooting) while helping Rockets win the 2011 Men's National Trophy and Division 1 playoff final. Niko Scott was released by the Rockets before the start of the 2011/12 season to join Quintanar Deportivo in Spain. Samit Nuruzade was chosen as the Division 1 Men's Coach of the Year by his peers. In his first year at Rockets, Nuruzade's Trophy and playoff titles have earned him much respect from his fellow coaches in a very tight Division 1 season.
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
club based in the town of Reading
Reading, Berkshire
Reading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London....
in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
county of Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
. Currently Reading Rockets play in the English Basketball League
English Basketball League
The English Basketball League is a semi-professional and amateur basketball league in England. It forms the second-tier of competition below the professional British Basketball League....
Division 1. Reading Rockets work with around 1,000 young players every week in Berkshire. The club has squads ranging from developing Under-12s to the Division 1 senior men's side, and coaching staff regularly visit local schools and run satellite clubs as part of the Community Rockets scheme.
Establishment
The Reading Rockets were formed in 1997 by the current owner Gary Johnson and played in Division 3 of the then NBLNational Basketball League (United Kingdom)
The National Basketball League, or NBL for short, is a British basketball league. The league started in 1972 and continued through to 2003 renamed the English Basketball League.-1972-1993:...
. They won promotion at the first attempt, and in the reorganisation of 2000 the National Basketball League replaced Division 1 with the eight-team NBL Conference as the second-tier after the BBL
British Basketball League
The British Basketball League, often abbreviated to the BBL, is the premier men's professional basketball league in the United Kingdom. The BBL runs two knockout competitions alongside the league championship; the BBL Cup and the BBL Trophy....
. Subsequently Division 2 became Division 1 where the Rockets found themselves.
The Rockets remained in Division 1 for just one season, finishing second, and beating Oxford in the Championship Final, thus winning promotion to the NBL Conference after four years in the league. In the 2001/02 season they finished seventh in the NBL Conference. In the following season, the Rockets continued their rise, finishing in third place within the NBL Conference.
In 2003, the National Basketball League was rebranded as the English Basketball League
English Basketball League
The English Basketball League is a semi-professional and amateur basketball league in England. It forms the second-tier of competition below the professional British Basketball League....
, and once again was restructured with a new format, with Rockets finishing in second place in the new EBL Division 1. In the following season they finished third and have been League runners-up to Worthing Thunder
Worthing Thunder
Worthing Thunder is a basketball team from Worthing, England. Founded in 1999, until recently they competed in the top-tier British Basketball League, having previously having dominated the lower leagues in recent years, winning back-to-back English Basketball League Division One titles in 2006 and...
in both the 2005/06 & 2006/07 seasons. In 2006/07 the team were sponsored by the Atlantis Group
Atlantis Group
The Atlantis Group is a group of property companies based in Reading, England which was formed in 2000 by John Sykes. The group has expanded rapidly.-Corporate structure:...
and became known as the Atlantis Reading Rockets.
2007/08 season
In 2008 they came close to winning the League title, beating Manchester MagicManchester Magic
Manchester Magic is an English basketball team from Manchester, competing in the English Basketball League, Division 3. They play their home games at the Amaechi Basketball Centre, which was funded by former NBA star John Amaechi....
in the final game of the season, to draw level at the top, but losing out to on points difference in the head-to-head. Rockets are back-to-back National Trophy winners beating Worthing Thunder
Worthing Thunder
Worthing Thunder is a basketball team from Worthing, England. Founded in 1999, until recently they competed in the top-tier British Basketball League, having previously having dominated the lower leagues in recent years, winning back-to-back English Basketball League Division One titles in 2006 and...
in the final in Manchester (84-68). Rockets win their final match of the season but were not able to win by the seven point margin required to give them the illusive League Championship title. Adam Kelly make his last ever home appearance for Rockets. Danny Carter also enjoyed his last home game before a stint in an American College basketball
College basketball
College basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....
. Rockets were edged out by Manchester Magic who won the Play off Championship Final at the English Institute of Sport
English Institute of Sport
The English Institute of Sport , established in May 2002, is an organisation which provides sport science and medical support services to elite athletes through a nationwide network of expertise and facilities, working with Olympic and Paralympic summer and winter sports, as well as English and a...
, Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
. Following the game Titmuss presented Adam Kelly with the match ball as a mark of respect and gratitude for his contribution to the club. Assistant coach Matt Johnson was full of praise for the departing captain: “Adam epitomises everything about the Rockets ethos. He is a dedicated individual who has shown an unbelievable amount of commitment over the last 10 years. This season has been one of his best and he will be impossible to replace”.
2008/09 season
Reading Rockets re-wrote the history books during 2008/09 with a perfect season as they won 36 straight games to retain the National Trophy and win Division One, the playoffs and the National Cup. The only team to come close in modern years were the Sheffield ArrowsCity of Sheffield Arrows
The City of Sheffield Arrows, or just Sheffield Arrows for short, is a basketball team from Sheffield, South Yorkshire with their first team competing in the English Basketball League, Division 1....
team of 2004/05, who missed out on the quadruple when they lost the National Cup final by a single point against Rockets, though they did lose one of their 22 league games. Dave Titmus resigned from the club before the start of the 2009/10 season.
Tin-Tin Watts was also voted as the league's top player in 2008/09 and Dave Titmuss was selected as the Coach of the Year for the season.
2009/10 season
Dave Titmuss quit the Rockets to take over as head coach at Worthing Thunder in June 2009, insisting that the prospect of coaching in the country’s top-flight league once again was too hard to turn down. Rockets also were without the services of several players from the previous season, EBL Player of the Year Tin Tin Watts left to join Manchester Magic, Richard Wellings left to join London UnitedLondon United
London United is basketball team from London, England, currently competing in English Basketball League Division 2. In 2006 they were elected into the professional British Basketball League to replace the London Towers as the sole representatives for the capital city...
whilst Walid Mumuni joined the new BBL team of Essex Pirates
Essex Pirates
Essex Pirates is currently inactive British Basketball League team from Southend-on-Sea, in the county of Essex. They were founded in 2009 and play their home games at the Southend Leisure & Tennis Centre...
. Rockets had expected Tyrell Smith to return for the season but issues with his work permit prevented this happening.
Rockets secured the services of a new coach, Sasa Punosevac, the Serbian had spent four years coaching in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
’s SuperLeague
Superleague (Ireland)
The Superleague is the top tier men's basketball league in Ireland. 10 clubs compete in 2 conferences, North & South with 5 teams in each conference. The competition is currently sponsored by Nivea for men, having previously been sponsored by ESB. The current champions are UCC Demons who beat Dart...
while he also spent a season with the Ireland women's national basketball team
Ireland women's national basketball team
The Ireland women's national basketball team represents Ireland in International women's basketball, the team play in Eurobasket Women Division B...
.
Rockets strange start to the season continued with the arrival, and departure of American Banks Estridge. Signed as a replacement for Tyrell Smith, the American trained with the squad on Monday, but two days later told the club he was returning home.
Over the winter period more turmoil for the Rockets when the cash-hit club were forced to dispense with the services of head coach Sasa Punosevac after just four months in charge. Chairman Gary Johnson expressed his gratitude to Punosevac for the positive impact he made in his short spell at the club. Assistant coach Matt Johnson, one of the most qualified coaches in the country, was to take over for the rest of the season.
Rockets crashed out of the National Cup, the Trophy (which they had won for the previous three years) and finished the league season in 7th place. Securing a play-off place against old rivals Manchester Magic.
During the season Rockets achievements, from last year were recognised, At the 2009 Reading Sports Personality of the Year awards the male team of the year award went to Reading Rockets who won every single game last season and as a result collected four national trophies. In addition the International Sports Personality of the Year was presented to Reading Rockets American Ryan Lohfink.
2010/11 season
Rockets appoint Samit Nuruzade as the club’s new head coach. Nuruzade was born and educated in Azerbaijan but has been playing and coaching in the UK for 10 years. His principal involvement has been with youth programmes and player development at England’s biggest club, Greater Manchester Youth.Rockets crashed out of the National Cup at the 3rd round stage to EBL Division 2 high-fliers London United at Harfield Academy. This was Reading’s first National Cup tie of the season, having received a bye in the previous two rounds, the latter being at the expense of Portsmouth City Smugglers, who could not raise a team.
Rockets’ run of success in the National Trophy continued as they win the competition, for the fourth time in five years, beating Leeds Carnegie
Leeds Carnegie (basketball)
Leeds Carnegie is a basketball team based in Leeds, England. They currently compete in the English Basketball League Division 1, the second-tier competition, after gaining promotion from Division 2 in 2010. Their primary colours are green and black. They play their home games at the Leeds...
in the final held in Manchester. Rockets repeated their National Trophy final victory against Leeds Carnegie to collect their second playoff title in three years.
Niko Scott was selected as Division 1 Men's Player of the Year. In his first EBL season, American guard Scott averaged an EBL third-best 20.7 points per game (on 46% shooting) while helping Rockets win the 2011 Men's National Trophy and Division 1 playoff final. Niko Scott was released by the Rockets before the start of the 2011/12 season to join Quintanar Deportivo in Spain. Samit Nuruzade was chosen as the Division 1 Men's Coach of the Year by his peers. In his first year at Rockets, Nuruzade's Trophy and playoff titles have earned him much respect from his fellow coaches in a very tight Division 1 season.
Home arenas
- Rivermead Leisure Complex (1997-present)
- University of ReadingUniversity of ReadingThe University of Reading is a university in the English town of Reading, Berkshire. The University was established in 1892 as University College, Reading and received its Royal Charter in 1926. It is based on several campuses in, and around, the town of Reading.The University has a long tradition...
SportsPark (2010-present)
Season-by-season records
| Season | Division | Position | Played | Won | Lost | Points | Play Offs | National Trophy |
National Cup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading Rockets | |||||||||
| 2011–2012 | |EBL Div1 | |Quarter Finals | |Quarter Finals | ||||||
| 2010–2011 | |EBL Div1 | 3rd | 18 | 12 | 6 | 24 | Winners | Winners | |3rd Round |
| 2009–2010 | |EBL Div1 | 7th | 22 | 12 | 10 | 24 | Quarter Finals | |Semi-Finals | Quarter Finals |
| 2008–2009 | |EBL Div1 | 1st | 18 | 18 | 0 | 36 | Winners | Winners | Winners |
| 2007–2008 | |EBL Div1 | 2nd | 18 | 16 | 2 | 32 | Runners-Up | Winners | Semi Finals |
| 2006–2007 | |EBL Div1 | 2nd | 22 | 19 | 3 | 38 | Semi-Finals | Winners | Semi-Finals |
| 2005–2006 | |EBL Div1 | 2nd | 26 | 22 | 4 | 44 | Winners | |Semi Finals | Runners-Up |
| 2004–2005 | |EBL Div1 | 3rd | 22 | 16 | 6 | 32 | Runners-Up | DNQ | Winners |
| 2003–2004 | |EBL Div1 | 2nd | 22 | 17 | 5 | 34 | Semi-Finals | DNQ | Quarter Finals |
| 2002–2003 | |NBL Conf | 3rd | 22 | 16 | 6 | 32 | Runners-Up | Quarter Finals | |
| 2001–2002 | |NBL Conf | |7th | 18 | 7 | 11 | 14 | Quarter Finals | DNQ | |
| 2000–2001 | |NBL Div1 | 2nd | 18 | 14 | 4 | 28 | Winners | DNQ | | |
| 1999–2000 | |NBL Div2 | 5th | 24 | 17 | 7 | 34 | Semi-Finals | DNQ | |
| 1998–1999 | |NBL Div2 | 4th | 24 | 17 | 7 | 34 | Quarter Finals | DNQ | | |
| 1997–1998 | |NBL Div3 | 3rd | 26 | 12 | 14 | 24 | Quarter Finals | DNQ | | |
- DNQ denotes Did Not Qualify.
League
- EBL Division 1 Winners: 2008/2009 1
- EBL Division 1 Runners Up: 2005/06, 2006/07 & 2007/08 3
Current rosters
The following information is established according to the official websites of the team (www.reading-rockets.com)Head coaches
| Name | From | To | Regular Season | Play-offs | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | W | L | ||||
| Dave Titmuss | 2005/06 | 2008/09 | 65 | 9 | 9 | 2 | National Trophy Winners (3) EBL Division 1 Play Off Champions (2) National Cup Winners (1) EBL Division 1 Winners (1) |
| Sasa Punosevac | 2009/10 | 2009/10 | 3 | 3 | - | - | |
| Matt Johnson | 2009/10 | 2009/10 | 9 | 7 | - | 1 | |
 Samit Nuruzade |
2010/11 | Present | 16 | 7 | 3 | - | National Trophy Winners (1) EBL Division 1 Play Off Champions (1) |