The 2016 NWBA National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament presented by ABC Medical set a new record with 88 teams registering and will feature 976 athletes across five divisions. The National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament is the world’s largest single-sport event for athletes with disabilities, and makes its ninth stop in the bluegrass state for the 68th annual edition in Louisville, Ky., April 7-10. The Junior Prep, Junior Varsity, Championship Division and Division III teams will compete for a coveted National Title in the South Hall of the Kentucky Exposition Center, which also features the former home of the University of Louisville’s Memorial Hall that has hosted numerous NCAA Final Fours. 

For the first time since 1998, the Junior Prep Division, for athletes 13 years old and younger, will feature a full compliment of 16 teams for its three-day double-elimination tournament. The Junior Varsity and Junior NIT divisions, high school age children, features 32 more squads. The Junior NIT division final is set for Saturday, April 9 at 8 a.m., with the Junior Prep National Championship game immediately following at 10 a.m. The Junior Varsity will tip off for its National title at 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 9. 

The adult divisions, Championship and Division III, come into the tournament with 40 teams and will compete for a coveted National Title. The Championship Division, the nation’s elite athlete category with 16 teams, will play over a three-day period, April 7-9, in hopes of playing for the title on Saturday, April 9 at 4 p.m. The Division III teams, the NWBA’s recreation division, will kick off the tournament on Thursday, April 7 at 8 a.m., on 8 of the 12 courts with its National title game tipping on Sunday, April 10 at 10 a.m. Eastern. 

The final rankings for the Championship and Division III divisions are now available, which has determined the seeds for this year’s NWBT. 

Coming in at the No. 1 seed is the Dallas Mavericks in the Championship Division, followed by the Milwaukee Bucks in the No. 2 position. The New York Rollin’ Knocks and Rogue Valley Scorpions are the No. 3 and 4 seeds, respectively. The Bay City Thunder moved up into the No. 5 seeding. 

The Division III teams will be led with No. 1 seed TIRR Hotwheels, with the Ft. Lauderdale Sharks sitting on the other side of the bracket in the No. 2 position. The Delaware Destroyers secured the No. 3 seeding with the Nassau Kings and Charlotte Rollin Hornets A teams finishing the top five seeds. 

The Minnesota Jr. Rolling Wolves received the No. 1 seed in the Junior Varsity Division with the Atlanta BlazeSports Jr. Wheelchair Hawks receiving the No. 2 overall seed. Houston TIRR Hotwheels, Phoenix Jr. Suns and Dallas Jr. Mavericks round out the seed 3-5, respectively. 

The Junior Prep division sees the BlazeSports Junior Wheelchair Hawks anchor the No. 1 seed. The Chicago Skyhawks are seeded second, with its neighbor to the north, the Milwaukee Junior Bucks, coming in at No. 3. The CK Minnesota Rolling Rowdies and Miami Valley Junior Minutemen round out the top five. 

The Junior NIT Division will feature the Junior ranked teams from 17-32. 

The National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament will feature a total of 176 games on 12 courts, with a total of 84 games on Thursday, April 7, which starts at 8 a.m. Eastern. The second day of games will commence at 8 a.m. at the Kentucky Exposition Center, where all divisions will play into placement games, and a variety of showcase events. 

Championship Saturday will start at 8 a.m., with the Junior National Invitational Tournament being the opening draw. From 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Eastern, the National Title Games for Junior Prep, Junior Varsity and Championship Divisions will be contested. All final games will be web streamed at www.nwba.org. The Div-III Championship game will be played on Sunday, April 10 at 10 a.m. 

Individual tickets are available for the 2016 NWBT presented by ABC Medical. Online ticket sales are available by clicking here for the discounted rate. Event tickets sold at the Kentucky Exposition Center will be: $30 for adults for all sessions or $12.50 per day. Children 8-18 will be $15 for all sessions and $7 per day. Children 7 and under are free. 

On April 8-9, the NWBA’s Operation Rebound for Veterans will hold an introductory wheelchair basketball clinic at the Kentucky Exposition Center. This year’s program will attract at least 15 veterans from all military branches. 

In addition to the NWBT, the NWBA Hall of Fame will hold its annual induction ceremony at the Crowne Plaza Airport Hotel on Saturday, April 9 at 6 p.m. Eastern. This year’s inductees are: NWBA’s most prolific scorer Trooper Johnson of San Lorenzo, Calif.; non-competitors Barbara Radbel of Munster, Ind., and Kathy Curtis of El Paso, Texas; and posthumously recognized is women’s standout player Mary Ann O’Neill of Minneapolis, Minn.

The brackets for the 2016 NWBT can be found by clicking on the appropriate link below:

2016 Junior Prep Bracket
2016 Junior NIT Bracket
2016 Junior Varsity Bracket
2016 D-III Bracket – Winners
2016 D-III Bracket - Consolation
2016 Championship Bracket

2016 National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament presented by ABC Medical Seeds

At the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, Ky., April 7-10

Junior Prep (Seed / Team Name, Home City, State)
1.    BlazeSports Jr. Wheelchair Hawks, Atlanta, GA
2.    Chicago Skyhawks, Chicago, IL
3.    Milwaukee Jr. Bucks, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
4.    Courage Kenny Minnesota Roling Rowdies, Minneapolis, Minnesota
5.    Ohio Jr. Minutemen, Springfield, Ohio
6.    Charlotte Jr. Hornets, Charlotte, North Carolina
7.    RHI Mini Pacers, Indianapolis, Indiana
8.    Oklahoma Blaze, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
9.    ParaSport Spokane Prep, Spokane, Washington
10.    Fairfax Falcons, Springfield, Virginia
11.    Grand Rapids Jr. Pacers, Grand Rapids, Michigan
12.    Katie’s Komets, Collegeville, Pennsylvania
13.    Dallas Jr. Mavs, Dallas, Texas
14.    Mississippi Wheelcats, Canton, Mississippi
15.    Lakeshore Sharks, Birmingham, Alabama
16.    Cincinnati Dragons, Covington, Kentucky

Junior Varsity (Seed / Team Name, Home City, State)
1.    Minnesota Jr. Rolling Wolves, Minneapolis, Minnesota
2.    Atlanta BlazeSports Jr. Wheelchair Hawks, Atlanta, Georgia
3.    Houston TIRR Hotwheels, Houston, Texas
4.    Phoenix Jr Suns, Phoenix, Arizona
5.    Dallas Jr Mavericks, Dallas, Texas
6.    Milwaukee Jr Bucks, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
7.    Utah Rush, Henefer, Utah
8.    Grand Rapids Jr Pacers, Grand Rapids, Michigan
9.    Rancho Renegades, Downey, California
10.    Turnstone Flyers, Fort Wayne, Indiana
11.    ParaSport Spokane, Spokane, Washington
12.    Chicago Skyhawks, Chicago, Illinois
13.    LWSRA Falcons, New Lenox, Illinois
14.    Seattle Jr. Sonics, Seattle, Washington
15.    RHI Indy Racers, Indiannapolis, Indiana
16.    Brooklyn Jersey Jr Nets, Brooklyn, NY

Junior NIT (Seed / Team Name, Home City, State)
1.    Richmond Sportable Spokes, Richmond, Virginia
2.    Peoria Wildcats, Peoria, Illinois
3.    Denver Jr. Nuggets, Denver, Colorado
4.    Synergy Jr Bulls, Carol Stream, Illinois
5.    BORP Jr Road Warriors, San Lorenzo, California
6.    Katie’s Komets, Philadelphia, PA
7.    Nebraska Red Dawgs, Vermillion, South Dakota
8.    Lakeshore Lakers, Birmingham, Alabama
9.    Minnesota Jr. Rolling Gophers, Minneapolis, Minnesota
10.    Fairfax Falcons, Fairfax, Virginia
11.    Mad City Badgers, Madison, Wisconsin
12.    Tulsa Jammers, Tulsa, Oklahoma
13.    Charlotte Rolling Hornets, Charlotte, North Carolina
14.    Michigan Rolling Pistons, Canton, Michigan
15.    Achievement Center Cavaliers, Strongsville, Ohio
16.    Rockford Jr. Chariots, Rockford, Illinois

Division III (Seed / Team Name, Home City, State)
1.    TIRR Hotwheels, Houston, Texas
2.    Ft Lauderdale Sharks, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
3.    Delaware Destroyers, Wilmington, Delaware
4.    Nassau Kings, Elmont, NY
5.    Charlotte Rollin Hornets A, Cornelius, North Carolina
6.    MAPVA Richmond Rimriders, Mechanicsville, Virginia
7.    Carolina Tarwheels, Concord, North Carolina
8.    Turnstone Bandits, Fort Wayne, Indiana
9.    Cleveland WC Cavaliers, Cleveland, Ohio
10.    Memphis Rollin Grizzlies, Memphis, Tennessee
11.    Fayetteville Flyers, Fayetville, North Carolina
12.    Tampa Bay Strong Dogs, Tampa, Florida
13.    Los Angeles Hotwheels, Los Angeles, California
14.    MedStar NRH Punishers, Washington, D.C.
15.    DFW Freewheelers, Arlington, Texas
16.    Music City Lightning, Guthrie, Kentucky
17.    Shepherd Stealers, Atlanta, Georgia
18.    Cincinnati Royals, Cincinnati, Ohio
19.    Miami Valley Minutemen, Miami, Florida
20.    Magee Spokesmen, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
21.    Connecticut Spokebenders, East Haven, Connecticut
22.    Detroit Diehards, Detroit, Michigan
23.    Lafayette Spinners, Lafayette, Indiana
24.    Columbus Wheelchair Club, Columbus, Ohio

Championship (Seed / Team Name, Home City, State)
1.    Dallas Mavericks, Cedar Hill, Texas
2.    Milwaukee Bucks A, Whitewater, Wisconsin
3.    New York Rollin’ Knicks, Floral Park, NY
4.    Rogue Valley Scorpions, Medford, Oregon
5.    Bay City Thunder, Erie, Pennsylvania
6.    Utah Wheelin’ Jazz, Lehi, Utah
7.    University of Arizona Wildcats (Men’s), Tuscon, Arizona
8.    Sacramento Rollin’ Kings, Davis, California
9.    Austin Rec’ers, Austin, Texas
10.    Golden State Road Warriors, Milipitas, California
11.    San Diego Wolfpack, San Diego, California
12.    Mary Free Bed Pacers, Grand Rapids, Michigan
13.    Seattle Sonics, Seattle, Washington
14.    Albuquerque Kings, Albuquerque, New Mexico
15.    Miami Heat Wheels, Miami Beach, Florida
16.    Charlottesville Cardinals, Charlottesville, Virginia

2016 National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament presented by ABC Medical Schedule
At Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, Ky., April 7-10

Thursday, April 7 2016
Time    Event    Location
7:30-8 a.m.    2016 NWBT Opening Ceremonies    Kentucky Expo Center
8 a.m.-10 p.m.    2016 NWBT Games (84 Games/12 Courts)    Kentucky Expo Center
8-11 p.m.    VA Clinic Camp Check-in    Crowne Plaza Hotel

Friday, April 8, 2016
8 a.m.-8 p.m.    2016 NWBT Games (57 Games/11 Courts)    Kentucky Expo Center
10 a.m.-6 p.m.    VA Clinic    Kentucky Expo Center
10 a.m.-12 p.m.    Celebrity Game    Kentucky Expo Center
12 -2 p.m.    Per4Max Shootout Qualifier    Kentucky Expo Center
4-6 p.m.    Top End Youth Clinic    Kentucky Expo Center
4-6 p.m.    Junior Girl’s Player Showcase    Kentucky Expo Center
4-6 p.m.    High School Senior Boy’s Game    Kentucky Expo Center
7-9 p.m.    Junior Prep Division Banquet    Galt House Hotel

Saturday, April 9, 2016
7:30-8 a.m.    2016 NWBT Opening Ceremonies    Kentucky Expo Center
8 a.m.-6 p.m.    2016 NWBT Championship Saturday (34 Games)    Kentucky Expo Center
8 a.m.-6 p.m.    VA Clinic    Kentucky Expo Center
8 a.m.    Junior NIT Championship    Kentucky Expo Center
10 a.m.    Junior Prep Championship    Kentucky Expo Center
12 p.m.    Per4Max Shootout    Kentucky Expo Center
1:30 p.m.    NWBT Championship Opening Ceremony    Kentucky Expo Center
2:00 p.m.    Junior Varsity Championship    Kentucky Expo Center
4:00 p.m.    Championship Division Championship    Kentucky Expo Center
Half Time    ABC Medical 3-Point Contest    Kentucky Expo Center
6-9 p.m.    2016 NWBA Hall of Fame Induction    Crowne Plaza Hotel
7-11 p.m.    Junior Varsity Banquet    Galt House Hotel

Sunday, April 10, 2016
10 a.m.    Division III Championship    Kentucky Expo Center