BIO: Terry Linnard Dozier was born in Baltimore, Maryland (USA) and played high school basketball at Dunbar High in Baltimore. He later attended the University of South Carolina, where he played from 1985 to 1989.

FAMILY: Dozier was a cousin of fellow NBA player Reggie Lewis. Dozier’s nephew, P. J. Dozier, is also an NBA player.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Terry Dozier made his NBL debut with the Geelong Supercats at 24 years of age. He scored 16 points in his first game.

Having won just 16 games across the previous three seasons, the 1991 Geelong Supercats entered the NBL season with modest expectations. But thanks to a talented starting five, a revamped team culture, and a key financial boost from a local ownership group of four major stakeholders and around 30 shareholders, the Supercats turned into one of the league’s biggest surprises—finishing with a 17–9 record and returning to the playoffs for the first time since 1984.

There were key roster changes before the season began. Import forward Daren Rowe departed the club and was replaced by Terry Dozier, a long and athletic defender who would go on to win the NBL’s Best Defensive Player award. Young wing Andrew Parkinson also exited (joining Southern Melbourne), opening the door for rookie Leigh Cleary to join the bench rotation.

Geelong’s 1991 campaign began how most predicted, with a rough 0–3 start following losses to North Melbourne (109–112), Eastside Spectres (100–119), and Perth (105–110). But the Supercats broke through with a road win over Brisbane (126–106), sparking a stunning turnaround that saw them win 16 of their remaining 22 games.

Led by head coach Barry Barnes, Geelong’s starters logged heavy minutes and delivered elite production across the board. Bobby Locke (25.7 points, 2.7 rebounds, 6.4 assists, and 3.0 steals) led the NBL in steals and ranked among the league’s top scorers in his first full season. Vince Hinchen (24.1 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 5.2 assists) and Shane Heal (23.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 7.8 assists) gave the team dynamic offensive firepower in the backcourt, while Terry Dozier (22.0 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 2.3 assists) anchored the defence and added scoring versatility. Inside, John Dorge (14.3 points, 13.7 rebounds, and 4.3 blocks) dominated the paint and led the NBL in blocked shots.

All five starters averaged over 33 minutes per game, with Jim Bateman (7.5 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.2 assists) providing steady contributions off the bench. Bruce Hultgren, Leigh Cleary, Mark Griffin, and Shane Crothers rounded out the supporting cast, helping to balance out a tight rotation built around defense and cohesion.

The Supercats’ 17–9 finish tied them with Eastside for second place, but the NBL’s head-to-head tiebreaker rule pushed Geelong down to third. Though both teams split their two meetings 1–1, the Spectres had a +1 point differential across those games, handing them the higher seed.

In the Elimination Finals, Geelong faced off against a strong North Melbourne Giants team led by Scott Fisher and Paul Maley. Game 1 saw the Supercats explode offensively, putting up a massive 139–119 win at The Arena in Geelong. Shane Heal led the way with 36 points with 11 assists and nine triples, Hinchen added 31 points and Dozier contributed 17 points and 13 rebounds in a complete team performance that saw Geelong shoot 57% from the field and dominate across every statistical category.

North Melbourne struck back in Game 2, protecting home court with a 136–116 victory. In the decisive Game 3 back in Geelong, the Giants overpowered the Supercats (125–113). Despite a strong 31-point effort from Locke, 27 from Heal, and 23 from Hinchen, the Supercats were undone by the interior strength of Maley (24 points, 12 rebounds) and the hot shooting of Scott Fisher (30 points on 14-of-20 shooting).

NEWCASTLE FALCONS
1992
After taking over from coach Ken Cole mid-season in 1991, head coach Tom Wiseman was able to redesign the Falcons lineup. Newcastle utilised three imports the season prior (Jerry Everett, Troy Truvillion, James Bullock) but having won only five games, Wiseman chose to go in a different direction, adding former NBA players Terry Dozier (via Geelong) and Everette Stephens.

The only major change to the roster saw the Falcons swap Peter Harvey (to Gold Coast) for Paul Kuiper (via Gold Coast) and a young local Shawn Dennis join the squad as a rookie.

Everette Stephens (23.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 2.1 steals, and 1.3 blocks) and Terry Dozier (22.8 points, 11.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists 1.1 steals, and 1.8 blocks) delivered a amazing season statistically, filling the stats sheet in all categories. Michael Johnson (20.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 4.1 assists) and 39 year old Al Green (18.9 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1.1 steals) put up big numbers as well but once it got to the remaining roster there was little left in the tank. Injuries saw Kuiper (7 games) and Jason Joynes (10 games) play less than half the season and the remainder of the Newcastle bench just simply wasn’t up to NBL standards.

In his first full season as coach, Wiseman was able to improve the team result from 5 wins to 9 wins, but this saw minimal improvement in the standings with Newcastle improving from bottom of the ladder to second from the bottom as a result.

1993
After struggling to compete in the NBL for four straight seasons, Wiseman was able to retain the majority of his core roster for his second full season as head coach, which delivered the Falcons most successful season since 1985.

The key to the Falcon’s success was being able to retain Terry Dozier (21.9 points, 11.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1 steals, 1.2 blocks) and Everette Stephens (21.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 5.5 assists 1.5 steals), who had developed into one of the league’s most potent import duos. A healthy Paul Kuiper (11.2 points, 7 rebounds, and 0.2 assists) who had managed to play in only a third of the prior season made a big difference and ever reliable Michael Johnson (20.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 1 steals) firing away saw Newcastle win four of their first five games.

They would finish the season with a record of 15-11 which was equal with Illawarra Hawks but thanks to a +9 points percentage in their head to head with the Hawks, they would finish in fifth place on the ladder.

Newcastle faced Brisbane in the Quarter-finals but the strength of their stars Leroy Loggins, Dave Colbert, Andre Moore and Shane Heal proved too difficult in the postseason. Brisbane would win games one (125-99) and two (122-118) ending the Falcons season.

Dozier was named the League Best Defensive Player for three consecutive years from 1991 to 1993.

1994
During the 1994 season, Dozier averaged 20.8 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists and helped the Falcons finish with a record of 13-13 and end the regular season in eighth place.

Terry Dozier played four seasons in the NBL, playing for both the Geelong Supercats and the Newcastle Falcons. He averaged 21.8 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 103 NBL games.

HIGHLIGHTS:

Dan Boyce (836 Posts)

Dan Boyce is a die-hard Sydney Kings fan who grew up in Melbourne during the roaring 90's of Australian Basketball and spent far too much time collecting Futera NBL Basketball cards.