Edmonton Energy
Encyclopedia
The Edmonton Energy is a professional basketball team in the International Basketball League
International Basketball League
The International Basketball League was a short lived professional basketball league in the United States. The IBL was headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. The league started in 1999 and ended in 2001.-History:...

, formerly known as the Edmonton Chill. The Chill name was revoked in August 2008 after allegations of misconduct were filed with the league regarding Troy Barns, the majority shareholder in the team.

On 27 January 2009, The Edmonton Chill were renamed the Edmonton Energy. Eleven local business owners, led by successful businessman, chartered accountant, and mayoral candidate David Dorward came together to keep the IBL in Edmonton. Paul Sir was head coach and general manager of the Edmonton Energy.

The Edmonton Energy formerly played their home games at the MacEwan Centre for Sport and Wellness
MacEwan Centre for Sport and Wellness
MacEwan Sport and Wellness is part of Grant MacEwan University's City Centre Campus. Construction began on this campus in 1991. In May 1993, MacEwan Sport and Wellness was one of the first buildings on MacEwan's City Centre Campus to open its doors to students...

 at Grant MacEwan University just north of Downtown Edmonton
Downtown Edmonton
Downtown Edmonton is bounded by 109 Street to the west, 105 Avenue to the north, 97 Street to the east, 97 Avenue, 100 Avenue, and Rossdale Road to the south and Jasper Avenue to the southeast , though many people consider part or all of the surrounding neighborhoods to be part of downtown...

, but they now play at the "Butterdome" (or Universiade Pavilion), located at the University of Alberta
University of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...

 in the Windsor Park
Windsor Park, Edmonton
Windsor Park is a south central neighbourhood in the City of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It is located immediately to the west of the University of Alberta north campus and overlooking the North Saskatchewan River valley to the north, west, and south west...

/Garneau
Garneau, Edmonton
Garneau is a well known neighbourhood in the city of Edmonton. It is located just west of the Strathcona neighbourhood and just east of the main University of Alberta campus...

 area. The Energy are the second Canadian team in the International Basketball League, as Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...

, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

 also has a team called the BC Titans. But the only one currently playing.

2009 Season

The Edmonton Energy finished the regular season at the top of the IBL with a 17-3 record. The entire starting five of Will Funn (Portland State), J.R. Patrick (Santa Clara), Steve Sir (Northern Arizona), Skouson Harker
Skouson Harker
Skouson Harker is a Canadian former professional basketball player of the FIBA European Leagues. Harker is from Raymond, Alberta, Canada...

 (Oregon), and Lee Scruggs (Georgetown) were named 2009 IBL All-Stars. The team managed to split with the Los Angeles Lightning in LA, who eventually won the Playoffs. LA featured six former NBA players including Byron Russell and Lamond Murray
Lamond Murray
Lamond Maurice Murray is an American professional basketball player who last played with the NBA's New Jersey Nets. In 2009, Lamond Murray joined the Bahrain Basketball Association in Bahrain...

.

2010 Season

Edmonton had another solid season in the IBL with the team finishing 14-6. The Energy ended the regular season with a 2-1 series victory over the LA Lightning. Will Funn, Rashaun Broadus (BYU), Steve Sir, Dave Patten (Weber State), and Skouson Harker were named 2010 IBL All-Stars. Lee Scruggs was also named Honorable Mention for his veteran leadership and superb shooting as the team Captain.

On 30 June 2010, it was announced by the team's ownership group that the team will not be participating in the 2010 playoffs in Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

, Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

. After finishing second in the Continental Conference, the Energy qualified for the playoffs with a 14-6 record, however team ownership stated that they did not have enough money to fund the trip.

Coach Paul Sir finished his career with the Edmonton Energy with an exceptional 31-10 record over his two years as Head Coach. He will be a massive loss to the club, who thanked him for his winning attitude and dedicated service.

2011 Season

On February 11, 2011 the Club announced that it would be back for the 2011 season. Andrew Parker, Edmonton Energy guard, stated "We will play this year with a chip on our shoulder and show the fans that we deserve it." .

The team also announced that Rick Stanley will take over as the clubs General Manager for the 2011 season. The Energy's head coach is Skouson Harker.

The Edmonton Energy launched a dance team for the 2011 season, and coined them the "NRG Girls." The team is coached by former Grant MacEwan University dance coach and former Edmonton Crush coach Danielle Alasaad. It is composed of 13 dancers from Edmonton and surrounding areas. Girls on the team range from age 17 to age 25.

Team captain and All-Star Lee Scruggs, is an exciting leader. Standing 6’11”, ‘Captain Leezy’ cannot help but announce his presence in a game. This larger-than-life Energy team captain brings an impressive resume with his re-signing to the Edmonton IBL team. He began his career on the starting line for the Georgetown Hoyas. Scruggs was named an IBL All-Star in both the 2008 and 2009 Energy seasons, he spent two years in the NBA-D League as a professional rookie and has played for various FIBA leagues around the world. Most importantly, Scruggs is energized to be back as a part of the 2011 team in Edmonton. “I am super motivated to win it all this year; that has been my goal from day one in Edmonton. [W]e have a great team coming into training camp so our expectations are very high and I expect us to be a pretty good team this year- stay tuned for something special."

In April 2011, the Energy signed the Premier Basketball League's 2010-2011 official Player of the Year, Quinnel "Q" Brown. "Q" stands 6 feet 6 inches tall. He is a solid 37% 3 point shooter & an aggressive defenseman. Prior to the season's first game, "Q said that he was, "looking forward to a strong regular season with the goal being to win the championship and play with a good group of guys.”

During their home-opener, the Energy had a 129 - 107 victory over the Bellingham Slam on Friday, May 20. They lost the following two games in the series against the Bellingham Slam. The following weekend, the team played one home-game in Edmonton, and then travelled to Raymond, Alberta and Olds, Alberta where they won the entire series against the USA All-Stars. Friday: 131 - 123, Saturday: 140 - 91 and Sunday: 115 - 82.

See also


External links

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