Summer Basketball League Moving to the Bren Center

The Southern California Summer Pro Basketball League is moving its operation to UC Irvine’s Bren Center, the league announced Thursday.

Current NBA players, CBA players, professional players from overseas and former college players will make up the teams.

The league, based at Loyola Marymount nine of the last 11 years, will begin play July 11 and will run 29 consecutive days. There will be four games per day.

League President Gino Kwok, among the group that purchased the league from Larry Creger, said moving to Orange County was already being discussed when he took over in November. The deal was the Bren Center was completed in January.

Kwok said the league was able to attract area corporate sponsors.

Creger, the league’s president from 1980-1992, said he had been searching for a new venue for two years. There was speculation last summer of a shift to Orange County. Instead, league games were played at Redondo Beach Redondo Union and Inglewood high schools after it was unable to secure consecutive dates at Loyola Marymount.

“We felt the league should be played in a junior college, college or professional facility,” said Creger, a league consultant. “The Bren Center was the perfect size.”

Kwok said the league hopes to draw 30,000 fans during the 29 days.

The NBA Team Division will feature squads from the Lakers, Clippers, Phoenix Suns, Portland Trail Blazers and several all-star teams made up of veteran NBA players. There will also be approximately 20 free-agent teams.

Games begin at 12:30 p.m. daily. Tickets are $6 for adults, $3 for children 13 and younger, as well as senior citizens older than 60.