Baloncesto Superior Nacional

Baloncesto Superior Nacional
Founded	1929; 93 years ago
First season	1930 (as LPB)
Country	Puerto Rico
Confederation	FIBA Americas
Number of teams	12
Level on pyramid	1
International cup(s)	Champions League Americas
Current champions	Capitanes de Arecibo; (8 titles)
Most championships	Vaqueros de Bayamón; (15 titles)
All-time top scorer	Georgie Torres (15,863)
TV partners	Telemundo ; WAPA 2 Deportes; DirecTV Puerto Rico Teleisla
Website	www.bsnpr.com

The Baloncesto Superior Nacional, abbreviated as BSN, is the first-tier-level professional men's basketball league in Puerto Rico. It was founded in 1929 and is organized by the Puerto Rican Basketball Federation.

The Baloncesto Superior Nacional, which is played under FIBA rules, currently consists of 12^[1] teams, of which the most successful has been the Vaqueros de Bayamón with 15 titles as of 2020. The league has produced players that have distinguished themselves in the NBA, EuroLeague, Spain's ACB, and other tournaments throughout the world. Among them, NBA players Butch Lee, José Ortiz, Ramón Rivas, Daniel Santiago, Carlos Arroyo and José Juan Barea started their careers playing for BSN teams.

History[]

The league began in 1930, and is noted for having had several head coaches who went on to achieve international recognition later in their careers. Among those are Basketball Hall of Fame members Dr. Jack Ramsay, Tex Winter and Red Holzman, who coached the Leones de Ponce in the 1950s and 1960s, and Phil Jackson, who coached the Piratas de Quebradillas and Gallitos de Isabela in the late 1980s. Others notable coaches who have worked for BSN teams include Gene Bartow, Lou Rossini, Del Harris, P. J. Carlesimo, Bernie Bickerstaff and Herb Brown.

During the 1980s, notable players followed in the footsteps of players such as Juan "Pachin" Vicens (1959 Santiago Chile FIBA World Championship's All-Tournament Team) and Butch Lee, the first Puerto Rican and BSN player to enter the NBA. Among those are: Mario 'Quijote' Morales, Raymond Dalmau, Jose 'Piculin' Ortiz, Ramón Rivas, Jerome Mincy, Georgie Torres, Angelo Cruz, Angel Santiago, the late Federico 'Fico' Lopez, Rolando Frazer, Mario Butler, and Rubén Rodríguez, who showcased their talents to all of Puerto Rico's TV viewers and game goers.

On October 8, 2015, the BSN team owners selected Fernando Quiñones Bodea to succeed Carlos J. Beltrán as president of the league.^[2]^[3]

Competition format[]

Regular season[]

The BSN tournament is played under the regular FIBA basketball rules. The teams regularly play a total of four games amongst them. For the 2017 tournament, the regular season extended to 36 games. Of the 9 participating teams, the top 8 moved on to the postseason.

Postseason[]

Current teams[]

Ponce

Arecibo

Guayama

Guaynabo

Current location of the teams competing in the 2021 season

Team	Home city	Year established	Arena	Capacity
Atléticos de San Germán	San Germán	1930	Arquelio Torres Ramírez Coliseum	5,000
Brujos de Guayama	Guayama	1971	Dr. Roque Nido Stella Coliseum	3,500
Capitanes de Arecibo	Arecibo	1946	Manuel Iguina Coliseum	12,000
Gigantes de Carolina	Carolina	1971	Guillermo Angulo Coliseum	5,000
Indios de Mayagüez	Mayagüez	1956	Palacio de Recreación y Deportes	5,500
Leones de Ponce	Ponce	1946	Juan Pachín Vicéns Auditorium	8,000
Mets de Guaynabo	Guaynabo	1935	Mario Morales Coliseum	5,500
Piratas de Quebradillas	Quebradillas	1926	Raymond Dalmau Coliseum	5,500
Cariduros de Fajardo	Fajardo	1973	Tomás Dones Coliseum	6,000
Vaqueros de Bayamón	Bayamón	1930	Ruben Rodriguez Coliseum	12,000
Grises de Humacao	Humacao	2005	Emilio E. Huyke Coliseum	1,500
Cangrejeros de Santurce	Santurce	1918	José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum	18,500

Defunct teams[]

Aibonito Polluelos de Aibonito; (1977–2001) Played their home games at Cancha Marron Aponte

Aguada Conquistadores de Aguada (1994-1998)

Aguadilla Tiburones de Aguadilla; (1990s–1998) Played their home games at the Luis T. Diaz Coliseum

Cabo Rojo Taínos de Cabo Rojo; (1989–1993) Played their home games at Rebekah Colberg Cabrera Coliseum

Caguas Criollos de Caguas; (1976–2009) Played their home games at Héctor Solá Besares Coliseum

Canóvanas Indios de Canóvanas Played their home games at Coliseo Carlos Miguel Mangual

Coamo Maratonistas de Coamo; (1985–1996, 1999–2015) Played their home games at Edwin "Puruco" Nolasco Coliseum

Aguada Santeros de Aguada; (2016–2020) Played their home games at the Ismael Delgado Coliseum

Cayey Toritos de Cayey; (2002–2004) Played their home games at the Cayey Municipal Coliseum

Isabela Gallitos de Isabela Played their home games at the

Manatí Atenienses de Manatí; (2014–2017) Played their home games at the Juan Cruz Abreu Coliseum

Morovis Titanes de Morovis; (1977–2006) Played their home games in the José Pepe Huyke Coliseum

Villalba Avancinos de Villalba; (1996–1998) Played their home games at the José Ibem Marrero Coliseum

League records[]

Rubén Rodríguez established most of the early long-standing records in the BSN. He broke both the single-season points record with 810 in 1978 and the highest career points record with 11,549. The current holder of the career mark is Georgie Torres, who broke it before retiring in 2001 with 15,863 points in 679 games, playing his entire career after the establishment of the three-point line.^[4] Rodríguez also holds the mark for most rebounds in a career with 6,178. He also held the single-season rebound record with 380 in 1978, which stood until Lee Benson broke it in 2008. Currently, Neftalí Rivera holds the record for most points in a game in the Baloncesto Superior Nacional when he scored 79 points on May 22, 1974. In that game he achieved the record by making 34 field goals (all of them 2-pointers as 3-pointers were not adopted back then) and 11 free throws.^[5] In 1989, Pablo Alicea of the Gigantes de Carolina established a record for most assists in one game with 25.^[6] The record stood for over two decades until May 1, 2012, when Jonathan García of the Caciques de Humacao broke it recording 33 assists against the Brujos de Guayama. García's mark is an unofficial world record pending the approval of Guinness World Records, since there is no higher number recorded in any amateur or professional international league or in FIBA competition.^[7] During this game, the Caciques also established the team points record for a single game with 130 and for most scored during a single (10-minute) quarter with 46. The Vaqueros de Bayamón hosted the game with highest attendance in the league, with 17,621 fans attending a home game against Río Piedras on September 8, 1969. This bested the previous top of 16,564 in a game between Ponce and Santurce. The Vaqueros also hold the record for most consecutive championships, winning five from 1971 to 1975.

Championships[]

Number of championships won by teams[]

Teams	Finals	Championships	Runners-up	Years won	Years runners-up
Vaqueros de Bayamón	24	15	9	1933, 1935, 1967, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1981, 1988, 1995, 1996, 2009, 2020	1930, 1934, 1970, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2010, 2016, 2018
Atléticos de San Germán	25	14	11	1932, 1938, 1939, 1941, 1942, 1942-1943, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1985, 1991, 1994, 1997	1931, 1933, 1936, 1938, 1940, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1965, 1986
Leones de Ponce	25	14	11	1952, 1954, 1960, 1961, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1990, 1992, 1993, 2002, 2004, 2014, 2015	1949, 1958, 1963, 1967, 1989, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2003, 2013, 2019
Cangrejeros de Santurce	14	8	6	1962, 1968, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2007	1942, 1942–1943, 1951, 1952, 1964, 2006
Capitanes de Arecibo	19	8	11	1959, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2016, 2018, 2021	1932, 1946, 1948, 1961, 1966, 1992, 2007, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017
Cardenales de Río Piedras	15	6	9	1946, 1955, 1956, 1957,1963, 1976	1941, 1947, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1977
Piratas de Quebradillas	18	6	12	1970, 1977, 1978, 1979, 2013, 2017	1937, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1980, 1982, 1999, 2000, 2009, 2011, 2020
Capitalinos de San Juan	9	5	4	1930, 1931, 1940, 1945, 1958	1943, 1944, 1950, 1974
Mets de Guaynabo	10	3	7	1980, 1982, 1989	1978, 1981, 1983, 1985, 1990, 1993, 2021
Vega Baja	4	2	2	1934, 1937	1935, 1939
Indios de Canóvanas	3	2	1	1983, 1984	1988
Gallitos de la UPR	3	2	1	1944, 1951	1945
Polluelos de Aibonito	2	1	1	1986	1987
Club Náutico San Juan	1	1	0	1936	—
Criollos de Caguas	1	1	0	2006	—
Indios de Mayagüez	1	1	0	2012	—
Titanes de Morovis	1	1	0	1987	—
Gigantes de Carolina	3	0	3	—	1979, 1997, 2008
Brujos de Guayama	2	0	2	—	1991, 1994
Gallitos de Isabela	1	0	1	—	1984
Maratonistas de Coamo	1	0	1	—	2004
Santeros de Aguada	1	1	0	2019

*These titles are from Farmacia Martin, a team that later merged with the Atléticos de San Germán

^[8]

BSN awards[]

BSN statistical leaders[]

^	Active player
*	Inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame

BSN all-time scoring leaders[]

Rank	Player	Position(s)	Nationality	Years	Total points	Games played	Points per game average
1	Georgie Torres	SG	Puerto Rico	1975–2001	15,863	679	23.4
2	Mario Morales	SF	Puerto Rico	1975–1998	15,293	675	22.7
3	Mario Butler	C	Panama	1980–2008	12,252	779	15.7
4	Rolando Frazer	C	Panama	1980–2001	12,096	603	20.1
5	Raymond Dalmau	PG	Puerto Rico	1966–1985	11,592	537	21.6
6	Rubén Rodríguez	PF	Puerto Rico	1969–1991	11,549	631	18.3
7	Roberto Ríos	PG	Puerto Rico	1978–2000	11,312	681	16.6
8	Ángel Santiago	SF	Puerto Rico	1973–1996	11,287	617	18.3
9	José Quiñonez	PF	Puerto Rico	??–??	11,012	579	19
10	Christian Dalmau	PG	Puerto Rico	1992–2003, 2009–2017	10,363	605	17.1

Note: Christian Dalmau has been updated to show that he retired in 2017 - but his stats (and all stats in this section) are from 2015.

BSN all-time rebounding leaders[]

Rank	Player	Pos	Years	Reb	GP	RPG
1	Mario Butler	C	1980–2008	8,236	779	10.6
2	Rubén Rodríguez	F/C	1969–1991	6,178	631	9.8
3	Rolando Frazer	C	1980–2001	6,153	603	10.2
4	Raymond Dalmau	F/C	1966–1985	5,673	537	10.6
5	Mario Morales	G/F	1975–1998	5,665	675	8.4
6	José Ortíz	C	1980–2006	5,314	505	10.5
7	Carlos Bermúdez	F	1970–1984	4,884	422	11.6
8	Edgar de León	F/C	1981–2001	4,837	493	9.8
9	Teófilo Cruz*	C	1957–1982	4,672	584	8
10	Angel Santiago	F	1973–1996	4,447	617	7.2

BSN all-time assists leaders[]

Rank	Player	Position(s)	Years	Total AST	GP	APG
1	James Carter	PG	1987–2006	3,025	543	5.6
2	Pablo Alicea	PG	1987–2006	2,762	503	5.5
3	Christian Dalmau	PG/SG	1992–2003, 2009–2017	2,752	577	4.8
4	Javier Antonio Colón	PG	1987–2008	2,748	555	5.0
5	Federico López	PG	1981–1997	2,440	446	5.5
6	Roberto Ríos	G/F	1978–2000	2,315	681	3.4
7	Raymond Dalmau	F/C	1966–1985	2,302	537	5.1
8	Wilfredo Pagan^	PG	1992–Present	2,291	619	3.7
9	Bobby Joe Hatton	PG	1994–2012	2,235	489	4.6
10	George Torres	G/F	1975–2001	2,203	679	3.2