Indiana Lyons become ABA Champions

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a team photo of the Indiana Lyons
A team photo of Indiana Lyons. (Photo by/Tyrone Brown)

The 2022-23 Indiana Lyons, alongside the Burning River Buckets (Ohio), are Co-Champions of the American Basketball Association.

The Lyons are the first American Basketball Association champions from Indiana in five decades. The last time a team from Indiana won the ABA title was when the Indiana Pacers won in 1973.

The Indiana Lyons began the 2022-23 season with a concerning 1-4 record. However, they recovered from their subpar start, going on a 15-2 run. The Lyons concluded their regular season with a 16-6 record. They also secured the No. 11 ranking in the last American Basketball Association power index.

The Lyons defeated the Music City Jazz and Clarksville Phoenix in the ABA Midwest province playoffs, acquiring the title of 2022-23 Midwest Region champs and improving their record to 18-6.

The Indiana Lyons were the No. 5 seed in the association’s Final Eight tournament. The tournament features eight provincial winners fighting for one of the league’s highest honors.

 The Lyons bested the No. 4 seed Atlanta Aliens 121-107 April 13.

The following day, the Indiana Lyons faced one of the league’s powerhouses: the Wyoming Valley Clutch. The Clutch ranked No. 2 in the association and earned a 17-1 record. Trailing for most of the game, the Lyons showing against the Clutch was superb, resulting in a 27-16 run in the fourth quarter. The final run proved enough for the Lyons, allowing them to squeak by in the final frames of the contest and to best the Clutch 80-77.

On April 15, the Lyons were scheduled to face the Burning River Buckets in a championship match. However, due to inclement weather conditions, later revealed to be a tornado, the championship game could not be played.

The ABA Commissioner declared both the Lyons and the Buckets as co-champions of the league, leading the Lyons to wrap up the 2022-23 season with an impressive 20-6 record.

Contact multi-media staff writer Noral Parham at 317-762-7846 or via email at NoralP@IndyRecorder.com. Follow him on Twitter @NoralParham.