The CBA Museum
Puerto Rico
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Puerto Rico Coquís 1983-1985
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PUERTO RICO
1983-84 EASTERN DIVISION CHAMPIONS
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First off - a Coquí is a tree frog indigenous to the island of Puerto Rico; it is also the national symbol of Puerto Rico.
Although the island of Puerto Rico had a strong professional basketball league of its own, the CBA added a franchise on the island in 1983, as the Puerto Rico Coquís became one of four new teams in the league for the 1983-84 season. Thanks to the solid coaching of Herb Brown, who shrewdly drafted center Geff Crompton and forward Larry Lawrence in the expansion draft, and the signing of forward Mark Smith as a three-man veteran crew for the Coquís, allowed the team to remain competitive throughout the season. Smith, Crompton and Lawrence, along with Michael Holton, an acquisition from the Toronto Tornados, were essentially the nucleus of the team.
The Coquís fought hard throughout the season, and ripped out a 9-game winning streak in January, finishing 28-16 (182 points), nabbing the Eastern Division regular season title in their first year in the league. But when Geff Crompton was signed by the Cleveland Cavaliers for the rest of the year, the Coquís lost their dominant center - and although they defeated Lancaster in the playoffs, they were not able to stop the eventual league champion Albany Patroons.
Although the Coquís' first season in the CBA was full of promise, the second season was a disaster. Geff Crompton was leading the league with a 13.6 rebounding average, and the Coquis had a 16-7 record - but an injury to his Achilles tendon knocked him off the team for the rest of the season. At the same time, Larry Lawrence, one of the CBA's top forwards, ripped ligmaents in his ankle, shelving HIM for the rest of the season.
Still, the Coquís fought on and had a chance to sneak into the playoffs with a victory against Albany. But during the March 4, 1985 game against the Patroons, Coquís coach Herb Brown argued a call from referee Ken Mauer - to the point where Brown yanked Mauer's whistle, snapping the lanyard off Mauer's neck. Brown was forced to take a one-game suspension, and missed the final game of the season. In the end, Puerto Rico and Toronto were tied with 179.5 quarter points; but because Toronto had a better Eastern Division winning percentage than did Puerto Rico, it was the Tornados - and not the Coquís - who went to the playoffs.
The second season in Puerto Rico proved to be the team's last. A move to a different building, Coliseo Pedrin Zorilla, did not improve attendance - in fact, the team barely broke 600 fans a night. By the 1985-86 season, the team moved from the sunny shores of San Juan to the chilly beaches of Maine, and renamed themselves the Windjammers.
Regular Season Standings
W L QW QP Result
1983-1984 28 16 98.0 182.0 Lost in semifinals
1984-1985 27 21 98.5 179.5 Did not make playoffs
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Home Courts:
1983-1984 Mets Pavillion, Guaynabo, P.R.; Pachin Vicens Colisseum, Ponce, P.R. (shared)
1984-1985 Coliseo Pedrin Zorilla, Hato Rey, P.R.
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