Mark Davis (basketball, born 1960)
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born |
December 23, 1960 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Nationality | American / Australian |
| Listed height | 201 cm (6 ft 7 in) |
| Listed weight | 95 kg (209 lb) |
| Career information | |
| College | St. Augustine's (1981–1983) |
| Playing career | 1984–2002 |
| Position | Power forward |
| Career history | |
| 1984 | Hamilton |
| 1984–1985 | Dorados de Chihuahua |
| 1985–2002 | South Adelaide Panthers |
| 1985–2001 | Adelaide 36ers |
| 1987 | Long Island Knights |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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Mark Davis (born December 23, 1960) is an American-Australian former professional basketball player who played in National Basketball League for the Adelaide 36ers between 1985 and 2001, gaining the nickname of "The Chairman of the Boards" for his record breaking rebounding achievements.
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Davis became an Australian citizen in 1992.
Davis played college basketball for St. Augustine's. In 1982–83, he averaged 20.5 points per game.
Davis' first professional gig came in 1984, playing for Hamilton in the New Zealand NBL. There, he was named rebounding champion. He then spent the 1984–85 season playing in Mexico for Dorados de Chihuahua where he helped the team win the championship.
In 1985, Davis moved to Adelaide where he joined both the South Adelaide Panthers of the SA State League and the Adelaide 36ers of the National Basketball League. According to long time 36ers and Panthers team mate Scott Ninnis, Davis was actually the Panthers 2nd choice and was only recruited to the club after 6'9" (205 cm) American centre Bill Coon left after just 4 days in Adelaide. Ninnis also told that after "scoring some healthy points" in his first game for Souths, Davis was actually ejected from the game before half-time leaving the club wondering what they had come across.
Davis then came to the attention of 36ers' coach Ken Cole after dominating performances for the Panthers, and just five games into the 1985 NBL season, Davis was signed by the NBL club and made an immediate impact, forming the league's leading front-court combination with Moscow Olympian Peter Ali, and fellow import, 6'9" (206 cm) centre Bill Jones. Davis made his NBL debut for Adelaide on 4 May 1985 in a Round 4 clash with the Bankstown Bruins at the Apollo Stadium in Adelaide. He showed he would be a player to be reckoned with by top scoring for the home side with 32 points while grabbing 14 rebounds in a 117–110 Adelaide win. Although he only played in 22 games for the 36ers during 1985, Davis won the club's MVP award after averaging 27.9 points, 17.6 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.3 steals per game. He scored a season-high 42 points (which would remain the 36ers single game record until beaten by Darryl Pearce with a 48-point game in 1988) in Adelaide's 144–112 win over St Kilda in Melbourne, while his season-high rebound game was again at home against the Canberra Cannons when he pulled down 29 boards, just two shy of the 36ers record of 31 held by Dan Clausen. The 36ers, including guards Al Green, Darryl Pearce and Mike McKay, made its first Grand Final appearance that season against the Brisbane Bullets. After a record 151–103 semi-final win over Newcastle, Adelaide were the favourite heading into the game at the Sleeman Sports Centre in Brisbane, but the team suffered a shock 125–90 loss to a Bullets team coached by Brian Kerle and featuring future NBL Hall of Famers Leroy Loggins, Cal Bruton, , Danny Morseu and "The Rat" Ron Radliff.
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