Belfius Mons-Hainaut

2012/13: 2nd place

Belfius Mons -Hainaut ( German Belfius mountains in Flanders) is a Belgian basketball club from Mons Hainaut in Wallonia. The professional first team is sponsored by the Dexia Bank since 2001 and was therefore known prior to the renaming of the Bank in Belfius 2001-2012 as Dexia Mons- Hainaut.

History

The club was founded in 1959 as Union St. Joseph Quaregnon in a fusion of "BC Borain " and " Jeunesse Sportive " founded in Quaregnon, a suburb of Mons. First one did not have a hall, but played on outdoor courts before moving to a school sports hall later.

First time in 1991 reached the summit in the highest national league, which you had to leave immediately after a 14th place in the championship. A year later, the immediate return to the top league and moving into the Halles de Jemappes in Jemappes, a district of Mons. In the season 1995/96 they played for the first time internationally in European club competition Korać Cup. After a third place in the national championship 1998, the association, who called himself now with title sponsor Belgacom Union Quaregnon -Mons changed its name to the new brand of the former state-owned telecommunications monopoly Belgacom and stood henceforth as Telindus Union Mons- Hainaut.

2001 Telindus has been title sponsor of the Flemish competitors BC Oostende and the Dexia bank took over as title sponsor. 2003 was achieved with coach Yves Defraigne, who had previously played for the club nor himself, and with George Evans a second place in the regular season, but failed again in the play- offs at the entry into the finals series for the championship. 2005 Defraigne finally had to leave the club and for the season 2005/ 06 in the new Mons Arena took over the Croat Nikša Bavčević as a coach. With him and a native of the U.S. players Omar Cook and Thomas Kelati you first won a national title with the Belgian Cup after the final victory over regional rival from Hainaut, Spirou Charleroi BC. In European club competition FIBA Europe League, reached the quarter-final play-offs, which were lost to eventual finalists Russian BK Khimki. Also in the championship for the first time one could reach the finals series, but had to leave the title Telindus Oostende, in whose ranks played among others, the German national team Denis usurers. In the following season could not repeat the success and the first-time participation in the ULEB Cup in 2006/ 07 ended with only one win in ten group matches frustrating.

In 2007, Chris Finch as a coach, who won the 2005 Belgian Championship with Euphony Bree since 2006 and 2012, the new British national basketball team assisted in preparations for the Olympics. With him was reached in the FIBA EuroCup, the successor competition of FIBA Europe League and predecessor contest the Euro Challenge, the final, which went over with a point against the Latvian club Barons LMT Riga lost in its ranks with the Latvian national team Raimonds Vaikulis a former player the Belgian club stood. So you missed the first title of a Belgian club team in a European competition. Then left the then already 37 -year-old George Evans and the British National player Michael Lenzly, formerly in the German Basketball Bundesliga for the TBB Trier active, the club. Evans himself went to the German first division to Trier, where his former coach Yves Defraigne already worked while switching to the Hainaut from German club Caleb Green. In the championship was not until the following year of 2009 a finals; However, the series went to the defending champion and regional rival Spirou BC. Coach Finch subsequently joined the NBA Development League to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers and the coaching staff of the Houston Rockets in the NBA.

2009, the Israeli coach Arik Shivek became the new coach. After a rather disappointing season 2009/10 they won in 2011 in the final against defending champion and record holder Ostend again the Belgian Cup and reached the championship in third place. In the following season you could successfully qualify against Beşiktaş Milangaz for the Eurocup 2011/12, where you eliminated in the first group stage, while Beşiktaş won the Euro Challenge 2012. By Restruktierung in the wake of the banking crisis ailing Dexia bank and the club 's name was changed from March 2012 in Belfius Mons -Hainaut. In the championship after a fifth place in the regular season succeeded in making the play -off semi-final series against the main round First Ostend. Then Yves Defraigne was again obliged as a coach for the following season 2012/13. In the 2012/13 season they failed again in the play- offs again defending Ostend, but only in the final series, which in three games went to the team from Flanders smooth.