 Logo of the Ponce Lions The Ponce Lions —or Leones de Ponce in Spanish— are a BSN basketball team based in Ponce, Puerto Rico. The Lions are one of the BSN's most successful franchises, having won a total of twelve championships. They play their local games at Juan Pachín Vicéns Auditorium, named after one of their former players. Image File history File links LeonPonce. ...
National Superior Basketball —or Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN) in Spanish— is a basketball league in Puerto Rico wich was established in 1933 and has produced a handful of NBA players and a lot of classic games and emotive moments to its fans. ...
Sara Giauro shoots a three-point shot, FIBA Europe Cup for Women Finals 2005. ...
Flag Seal Nickname: Ciudad de los Leones , La Perla del Sur Gentilic: Ponceños Location Location of Ponce, Puerto Rico within Puerto Rico Government Founded 1692 Mayor Francisco Zayas Seijo Political party PPD Senatorial district 5 - Ponce Representative district 24,25 Geographical characteristics Area Total 501. ...
Juan PachÃn Vicens Auditorium is a well known sports venue in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico. ...
History
The 50s and 60s The Lions successes have always been periodical: their first championship came in 1952, 22 years after the beginning of BSN tournaments. They repeated as champions in 1954, but the 1953 championship did not finish when players from Ponce and San German were involved in a brawl which BSN officials could not control. The Lions did not win any more championships until 1960. The 1960s were a glorious decade for the Leones, who repeated in 1961 and then won back to back to back titles in 1964, 1965 and 1966. The presence of guard Juan "Pachín" Vicens greatly helped the Lions to reach the success they had. He was the key player in an already great roster. His impact can be evidenced by the fact that the Lions venue is named after him. Tex Winters, an assistant coach with the NBA Chicago Bulls championship teams of the 1990s, coached the Leones to their two 1950s titles, while Red Holzman was the main architect of the titles won from '64 to '66. A Guard may be a person or an organisation. ...
Juan PachÃn Vicéns was a renowned basketball player from Puerto Rico, specifically the Ponce Lions. ...
Juan PachÃn Vicens Auditorium is a well known sports venue in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico. ...
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is the worlds premier mens professional basketball league and one of the four major professional sports leagues of North America. ...
The Chicago Bulls are a professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois. ...
William Red Holzman (August 10, 1920 – November 13, 1998) was an NBA basketball player and coach probably best known as the head coach of the New York Knicks from 1967 to 1982. ...
The 80s The Lions could not win a championship for 24 years after the 1966 title. In 1984 they reached rock bottom when it was discovered that they had proceeded against the BSN's rules to sign the aptly named David Ponce. Ponce was an American born Puerto Rican, and he had not spent the three years in Puerto Rico that are necessary for a BSN player to be nationalized, therefore, he was not eligible to play in the league. When this was discovered, a league wide scandal broke out, and the league determined to close the tournament that year by carrying out the Copa Olimpica championship instead of the normal championship finals. The Leones were excluded from participating in the Copa Olimpica.
The 90s The Lions started rebuilding, acquiring such players as José "Papote" Agosto, Cesar Bocachica, Francisco "Papiro" León, and their star player, Toñito Colón. With these players, the Lions, contended for the 1989 title, losing in seven games to Mario "Quijote" Morales and the Guaynabo Mets. With the adquisition of veteran Bobby Ríos in 1990, however, the Lions formed one of the most feared roster line-ups in the league. The four key players (Agosto, Lanauze, Colón, and Ríos) were known as the "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" in local media for their sharpshooting accuracy. They returned to the finals, and beat Guaynabo in a rematch. In 1992, coached by legendary Julio Toro, the Leones returned to the throne, beating the Capitanes de Arecibo for the title. A rubber match with Mario Morales and his Mets was played at the 1993 finals, and the Leones prevailed, beating the Mets four games to one. They also reached the finals in 1995, 1996, and 1998. Mario Morales (born 1960), a. ...
Image:Guaynabo seal. ...
Julio Toro (born 1942) is a Puerto Rican basketball coach, and arguably one of the most successful head coaches in Puerto Rican professional basketball history. ...
The new millennium After 1993, Ponce took nine more years to win a title. With the acquisition of Eddie Casiano and Bobby Joe Hatton in 2001, the team started re-building around them, with remaining key veteran players like Toñito Colón. In 2002, they beat the Vaqueros for the title in seven games. In 2003, the Lions signed former Vaqueros player Jerome Mincy, but they could not repeat as champions despite reaching the finals again. In 2004, in a series marred by controversy (Ponce almost threatened to pull out of game six during the fourth quarter), the Lions won their twelfth championship, defeating the Coamo Marathon Runners in seven games, with a game seven score of 92-77. They dedicated the championship to the city mayor, Rafael Cordero, who died in January of that year. Eddie Casiano wearing the Puerto Rican National Basketball Team uniform. ...
Categories: Stub | 1976 births | 2004 Puerto Rican National Basketball Team | BSN players ...
The Bayamón Cowboys —or Vaqueros de Bayamón in Spanish— are a BSN basketball team based in Bayamón, Puerto Rico. ...
Jerome Mincy (Born 1964) is a Puerto Rican born basketball player of American Parents. ...
The Coamo Marathon Runners —or Maratonistas de Coamo in Spanish— are a BSN basketball team based in Coamo, Puerto Rico. ...
Date of birth October 24, 1942 Place of birth La Playa Ponce, Puerto Rico Date of death January 17, 2004 (brain hemorrhage) Place of death Medical Center of Río Piedras San Juan, Puerto Rico Occupation Mayor of Ponce. ...
See also The National Superior Basketball League of Puerto Rico —or Liga Baloncesto Superior Nacional De Puerto Rico (BSN) in Spanish— was established in 1933 and has produced a handful of NBA players and a lot of classic games and emotive moments to its fans. ...
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