The Jacksonville 95ers basketball team will hit the boards for the first time at 3 p.m. Sunday at Jacksonville University’s Swisher Gym.
The city’s new professional basketball franchise will play the Clermont Crocs in an exhibition game.
The Jacksonville 95ers play in the Eastern Conference of the TBL — The Basketball League. The league will have 49 teams in four divisions, including five in Canada.
Jerrod Tucker, a five-time national champion with the Jacksonville Giants and varsity boys basketball coach at the Global Outreach Charter School, is the 95ers head coach. The assistant coach is Willie Ponds Jr., currently head coach for the Seven Cities Vets, Trinity Christian Academy and Portsmouth Alliance Christian Academy
Home games are at JU’s historic 70-year-old basketball court on University Boulevard North. That is where NBA legend Artis Gilmore played in the 1969-70 season. The 95ers will share the court with the Jacksonville University Dolphins, who also play home games at Swisher.
Sunday’s tickets are $9.50 for general admission, or $95 for floor seats. Tickets are available at jacksonville95ers.com.
The 2024 inaugural season begins March 7 against the Rocket City Flight in Huntsville, Alabama, followed by March 10 against the Raleigh Firebirds in Raleigh, North Carolina. The first home game will be 7 p.m. March 15 against the Raleigh Firebirds.