Near East B.C.

Near East B.C.
Leagues	Greek A2 League Greek Cup
Founded	1927
History	1927 - Present
Arena	Near East Indoor Arena (capacity: 1,300)
Location	Kaisariani, Athens, Greece
Team colors	Red and White
Head coach	Tolis Karnesis
Championships	1 Greek Championship (1936) 1 A2 Championship (1998)
Website	Eurobasket.com
Uniforms
Home Away

A.O. Near East B.C. is one of the oldest professional basketball clubs in Greece. The basketball club was founded in 1927. The team is located in Kaisariani, Greece, which is a suburb of the city of Athens, Greece. Near East's home arena, Near East Indoor Arena, is located only about 2 miles from the downtown center of Athens. It takes its name from the Near East Foundation.

History

Early history

Near East B.C. was one of the teams that participated in the first Pan-Hellenic Basketball tournament, which took place in Thessaloniki, Greece. In 1936, Near East B.C. won its first official Greek League championship by defeating The University of Athens basketball team in Thessaloniki. To this day, this is still the only Greek National Championship the club has won. In 1937, Near East B.C. finished second in the Greek Championship as The University of Athens basketball club defeated them in the Championship's final.

Recent history

In more recent times, the Near East basketball team struggled to hold on to its position in the top league in Greece's first division the Greek A1 League. In 1998, the team won the top Greek pro league's second division championship the Greek A2 League. The team participated in the FIBA Korać Cup in the years 2000 and 2001. In 2002, the team competed in the A1 first division for the last time in recent years.

Championships

• Total Titles: 2
• National: 1
  • Greek Championship:
    • 1936
• Divisional: 1
  • Greek A2 League:
    • 1998

In European competitions

Notable players

Notable coaches

• Takis Koroneos

External links

• Eurobasket.com Team Page

International men's basketball
FIBA National teams Olympics World Cup Universiade U-21 World Championship U-19 World Championship U-17 World Championship World Rankings
Africa	FIBA Africa – AfroBasket U-18 U-16
Americas	FIBA Americas – FIBA Americas Championship U-18 U-16
Asia	FIBA Asia – FIBA Asia Cup U-18 U-16
Europe	FIBA Europe – EuroBasket U-20 U-18 U-16
Oceania	FIBA Oceania – FIBA Oceania Championship U-20 U-18 U-16
Other tournaments	Acropolis Tournament Adecco Cup Albert Schweitzer Tournament African Games Asian Games Commonwealth Games Belgrade Trophy Diamond Ball FIBA Asia Challenge FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament Lusophony Games Marchand Cup Mediterranean Games MVP Cup Stanković Cup Pan American Games Pan Arab Games South American Championship South Asian Games TBF International Under-16 Tournament William Jones Cup World Cup (Turkey)
Note: The Under-21 Championship is no longer held.