# 1985 NBL Finals

The 1985 NBL Finals was the championship series of the 1985 season of Australia's National Basketball League (NBL). The Brisbane Bullets defeated the Adelaide 36ers to win their first NBL championship.

## Format

The 1985 National Basketball League Finals was played between 24 August and 7 September between the top six teams of the regular season, consisting of two Elimination Finals, two Semifinals and the Grand Final. All Finals games were sudden death and for the first time the higher placed teams were given home court advantage. The top two teams of the regular season, the Brisbane Bullets and Adelaide 36ers, automatically qualified to host their respective Semifinals.

## Qualification
### Qualified teams

| Team | Finals appearance | Previous appearance | Previous best performance |
| Brisbane Bullets | 4th | 1984 | Runner up (1984) |
| Adelaide 36ers | 2nd | 1984 | 6th in 1984 |
| Canberra Cannons | 4th | 1984 | Champions (1983, 1984) |
| Nunawading Spectres | 5th | 1984 | Runner up (1981) |
| Coburg Giants | 4th | 1984 | 4th (1983, 1984) |
| Newcastle Falcons | 3rd | 1984 | 5th in 1984 |

### Ladder

| Pos | 1985 NBL season vte | 1985 NBL season vte | 1985 NBL season vte | 1985 NBL season vte | 1985 NBL season vte | 1985 NBL season vte | 1985 NBL season vte | 1985 NBL season vte | 1985 NBL season vte | 1985 NBL season vte | 1985 NBL season vte | 1985 NBL season vte |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PCT | Last 5 | Streak | Home | Away | PF | PA | PP |
| 1 | Brisbane Bullets$^1$ | 26 | 20 | 6 | 76.92% | 4–1 | W2 | 12–1 | 8–5 | 2832 | 2328 | 121.65% |
| 2 | Adelaide 36ers$^1$ | 26 | 20 | 6 | 76.92% | 4–1 | L1 | 11–2 | 9–4 | 3155 | 2693 | 117.16% |
| 3 | Nunawading Spectres$^2$ | 26 | 19 | 7 | 73.08% | 4–1 | W3 | 10–3 | 9–4 | 2574 | 2388 | 107.79% |
| 4 | Canberra Cannons$^2$ | 26 | 19 | 7 | 73.08% | 3–2 | L2 | 7–6 | 12–1 | 2607 | 2439 | 106.89% |
| 5 | Coburg Giants | 26 | 18 | 8 | 69.23% | 4–1 | W4 | 11–2 | 7–6 | 2947 | 2730 | 107.95% |
| 6 | Newcastle Falcons | 26 | 16 | 10 | 61.54% | 2–3 | L1 | 9–4 | 7–6 | 2864 | 2796 | 102.43% |
| 7 | Geelong Cats | 26 | 15 | 11 | 57.69% | 2–3 | L1 | 8–5 | 7–6 | 2871 | 2674 | 107.37% |
| 8 | Perth Wildcats | 26 | 13 | 13 | 50.00% | 3–2 | W3 | 9–4 | 4–9 | 2816 | 2844 | 99.02% |
| 9 | Illawarra Hawks$^3$ | 26 | 10 | 16 | 38.46% | 1–4 | L1 | 6–7 | 4–9 | 2690 | 2975 | 90.42% |
| 10 | St. Kilda Saints$^3$ | 26 | 10 | 16 | 38.46% | 2–3 | L1 | 7–6 | 3–10 | 2699 | 2810 | 96.05% |
| 11 | Sydney Supersonics | 26 | 9 | 17 | 34.62% | 2–3 | L3 | 6–7 | 3–10 | 2804 | 2934 | 95.57% |
| 12 | Bankstown Bruins | 26 | 6 | 20 | 23.08% | 3–2 | W1 | 3–10 | 3–10 | 2527 | 2694 | 93.80% |
| 13 | Melbourne Tigers | 26 | 5 | 21 | 19.23% | 1–4 | L2 | 3–10 | 2–11 | 2362 | 2903 | 81.36% |
| 14 | Hobart Devils | 26 | 2 | 24 | 07.69% | 0–5 | L8 | 2–11 | 0–13 | 2519 | 3059 | 82.35% |
Updated to match(es) played on 18 August 1985. Source: NBL.com.au

## Playoff bracket

| Elimination Finals | Elimination Finals | Elimination Finals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final |
| | | | 1 | Brisbane Bullets | 93 | | | |
| 4 | Canberra Cannons | 110 | 4 | Canberra Cannons | 76 | | | |
| 5 | Coburg Giants | 87 | | | | 1 | Brisbane Bullets | 121 |
| | | | | | | 2 | Adelaide 36ers | 95 |
| | | | 2 | Adelaide 36ers | 151 | | | |
| 3 | Nunawading Spectres | 97 | 6 | Newcastle Falcons | 103 | | | |
| 6 | Newcastle Falcons | 103 | | | | | | |

## Elimination Finals
### (3) Canberra Cannons vs (5) Coburg Giants

* ABC
* 24 August
* boxscore
Canberra Cannons 110, Coburg Giants 87 :
| Scoring by quarter: 19-22, 27-22, 24-19, 40-24 |||
| Pts: Herb Mceachin 29 Rebs: Dave Nelson 11 Asts: Phil Smyth 7 | Pts: Ray Borner 27 Rebs: Ray Borner 18 Asts: Borner, Carroll 4 each |
* AIS Arena, Canberra Attendance: 5,200 Referees: Eddie Crouch, Trevor Dallas

### (4) Nunawading Spectres vs (6) Newcastle Falcons

* ABC
* 24 August
* boxscore
Nunawading Spectres 97, Newcastle Falcons 103 :
| Scoring by quarter: 20-26, 28-24, 18-22, 31-31 |||
| Pts: Ron Lemons 38 Rebs: Lemons, Cottrell 12 each Asts: Brendan Joyce 12 | Pts: Ian Davies 26 Rebs: Jim Bateman 12 Asts: Ian Robilliard 4 |
* The Glass House, Melbourne Referees: Ray Hunt, Bill Mildenhall

## Semifinals
### (2) Adelaide 36ers vs (6) Newcastle Falcons

* SAS
* 31 August
* boxscore
Adelaide 36ers 151, Newcastle Falcons 103 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28-34, 42-27, 35-23, 46-19 |||
| Pts: Al Green 45 Rebs: Mark Davis 14 Asts: Darryl Pearce 6 | Pts: Michael Johnson 37 Rebs: Jim Bateman 13 Asts: Ian Davies 2 |
* Apollo Stadium, Adelaide Attendance: 3,000 Referees: Eddie Crouch, Bill Mildenhall

### (1) Brisbane Bullets vs (6) Canberra Cannons

* TV0
* 31 August
* boxscore
Brisbane Bullets 93, Canberra Cannons 76 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26-20, 24-15, 18-22, 25-19 |||
| Pts: Leroy Loggins 28 Rebs: Leroy Loggins 12 Asts: Cal Bruton 7 | Pts: Dave Nelson 17 Rebs: Phil Smyth 9 Asts: Jamie Kennedy 4 |
* Sleeman Sports Centre, Brisbane Attendance: 2,700 Referees: Ray Hunt, Geoff Weeks

## Grand Final
### (1) Brisbane Bullets vs (2) Adelaide 36ers

* TV0
* 7 September
* boxscore
Brisbane Bullets 121, Adelaide 36ers 95 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26-27, 29-18, 23-29, 43-21 |||
| Pts: Leroy Loggins 41 Rebs: Chris Mcgraw 10 Asts: Larry Sengstock 6 | Pts: Mark Davis 28 Rebs: Mark Davis 18 Asts: Darryl Pearce 8 |
| Brisbane wins the NBL Championship |||
* Sleeman Sports Centre, Brisbane Attendance: 2,700 Referees: Ray Hunt, Eddie Crouch