1972–73 Carolina Cougars season

The 1972–73 Carolina Cougars season was the 4th season of the Cougars in the American Basketball Association. The Cougars finished 2nd in points per game with 115.6 points per game and 5th in points allowed with 110.7 points per game. By the time the season was half over, the team was 28–14, with a season best eleven game winning streak occurring during that span, while they went 29–13 in the second half. The biggest losing streak was 4, which occurred after they had already won over 50 games. They clinched the best record in the Eastern Division after beating the San Diego Conquistadors on March 25, 1973, with their 57th victory, is tied for 9th most by a team in one ABA season. In the playoffs, they beat the New York Nets in five games to go to the Division Finals with a chance to go to the ABA Finals. But the Cougars failed to advance, losing to the Kentucky Colonels in seven games, with the final one in their home court.[1]

1972–73 Carolina Cougars season
Division champions
Head coachLarry Brown
ArenaGreensboro Coliseum
Charlotte Coliseum
Dorton Arena
Results
Record57–27 (.679)
PlaceDivision: 1st (Eastern)
Playoff finishLost in the Eastern Division Finals

Roster

Final standings

Eastern Division
TeamWL%GB
Carolina Cougars5727.679-
Kentucky Colonels5628.6671
Virginia Squires4242.50015
New York Nets3054.35727
Memphis Tams2460.28633

Playoffs

Eastern Division Semifinals[2]

GameDateLocationScoreRecordAttendance
1March 30Greensboro (Carolina)104–961–04,725
2March 31Raleigh (Carolina)111–1141–16,343
3April 3New York101–912–18,418
4April 5New York112–1083–17,867
5April 6Greensboro (Carolina)136–1134–16,388

Cougars win series, 4–1

Eastern Division Finals vs. Kentucky Colonels

GameDateLocationScoreRecordAttendance
1April 11Charlotte (Carolina)103–1130–19,165
2April 14Greensboro (Carolina)125–1051–15,103
3April 16Kentucky94–1081–210,422
4April 18Kentucky102–912–216,238
5April 20Greensboro (Carolina)112–1073–211,988
6April 21Kentucky100–1193–316,892
7April 24Charlotte (Carolina)96–1073–410,231

Cougars lose series, 4–3

Awards and honors

1973 ABA All-Star Game selections (game played on February 6, 1973)

  • Mack Calvin
  • Joe Caldwell
  • Billy Cunningham
  • ABA Most Valuable Player: Billy Cunningham (24.1 points per game, 12 rebounds per game, and 6.3 assists per game)
  • ABA Coach of the Year: Larry Brown
  • ABA Executive of the Year: Carl Scheer
  • All-ABA First Team selection: Billy Cunningham
  • All-ABA Second Team selection: Mack Calvin
  • All-Defensive Team selection: Joe Caldwell
  • All-Rookie Team selection: Dennis Wuycik

References
  1. https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/CAR/1973_games.html
  2. "1973-74 ABA Regular Season Standings". Remembertheaba.com. Retrieved 2016-07-22.
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