Global Women's Basketball Association

The Global Women's Basketball Association (GWBA) is a women's professional basketball league operating in the Midwest region of the United States. The league was founded in 2016 and features four teams. GWBA rosters are composed primarily of former collegiate players, often playing for the team nearest their former school, and former WNBA players.

Global Women's Basketball Association
SportBasketball
Founded2016
FounderSonya Nichols
Inaugural season2016
No. of teams4
CountryUnited States
Most recent
champion(s)		Flint Monarchs (4th)
Most titlesFlint Monarchs (4)
Official websitehttps://gwba.us/

History

The league was established in 2016 by Sonya Nichols, a former basketball player for the James Madison Dukes. The inaugural season began with four teams: the Flint Monarchs, Milwaukee Aces, Akron Innovators, and Illinois Starletz. The Monarchs finished the season undefeated and won the league championship. The 2017 season saw teams play eight games instead of seven; the Monarchs again won the championship. Following the 2018 season, which was again won by the Monarchs, the league added two teams: the Wisconsin Glo and St. Louis Surge. The Glo finished their inaugural season undefeated and won the league championship, defeating the three-time defending champions Monarchs. The 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2021, the Music City Icons were replaced by the Detroit Dodgers, who ultimately forfeited the season as they were unable to field a roster. The Surge finished the regular season in first place but were upset by the Glo in the championship.

Teams

Current
Team City Arena Capacity Joined
Flint Monarchs Flint, Michigan Dort Federal Credit Union Event Center 4,421 2016
Detroit Queens Detroit, Michigan Curtis L. Ivery Center 2,000 2022
St. Louis Surge Clayton, Missouri Mabee Gymnasium 3,800 2019
Wisconsin Glo Oshkosh, Wisconsin Oshkosh Arena[1] 3,500 2019

Former
Team City Arena Joined Left
Indianapolis Bandits Fort Wayne, Indiana Spiece Fieldhouse[2] 2018 2019
Milwaukee Aces Milwaukee, Wisconsin Reiman Gymnasium 2016 2019
Illinois Starletz Chicago, Illinois
Detroit Dodgers Detroit, Michigan
Chicago Breeze Chicago, Illinois
Akron Innovators Akron, Ohio

Champions
Game Date Winning team Losing team Site
2016 August 20, 2016 Flint Monarchs 99 Akron Innovators 52 Ballenger Fieldhouse[3]
2017 August 19, 2017 Flint Monarchs 83 Milwaukee Aces 68 Reiman Gymnasium[4]
2018 August 25, 2018 Flint Monarchs 107 Indianapolis Bandits 69 Dort Federal Credit Union Event Center[5]
2019 August 11, 2019 Wisconsin Glo 80 Flint Monarchs 78 Menominee Nation Arena[6]
2020 Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021 August 15, 2021 Wisconsin Glo 93 St. Louis Surge 77 Mabee Gymnasium[7]
2022 August 7, 2022 Flint Monarchs 72 Wisconsin Glo 70 Oshkosh Arena[8]

References
  1. "Wisconsin GLO drums up drama with slow reveal of roster -- a who's who of the state's women's basketball stars".
  2. Bandits, Indianapolis. "Last Regular Season Game! Spiece Fieldhouse in Fort Wayne, IN. #IndyBandits". Instagram. Retrieved 2020-07-07.
  3. Woodyard, Eric (2016-08-25). "Flint Monarchs crowned GWBA national champs, Arlesia Morse named Finals MVP". mlive. Retrieved 2023-03-07.
  4. Woodyard, Eric (2017-08-21). "Former CMU star Crystal Bradford helps Flint Monarchs repeat as GWBA champions". mlive. Retrieved 2023-03-07.
  5. "Flint Monarchs WIN the GWBA 2018 National Championship – GWBA". Retrieved 2023-03-07.
  6. Jacobson, Jordan. "Wisconsin Glo tops Flint Monarchs to win Global Women's Basketball Association championship". The Post-Crescent. Retrieved 2023-03-07.
  7. Jacobson, Jordan. "'It was a challenging year': After celebrating title, Wisconsin Glo looks to grow league". Oshkosh Northwestern. Retrieved 2023-03-07.
  8. "News: FLINT WINS SIXTH NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP, DEFEATS WISCONSIN GLO 72-70 - Flint Monarchs Women's Basketball". www.flintmonarchs.com. Retrieved 2023-03-07.
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