The Pittsburgh Xplosion was scheduled to open its Continental Basketball Association season last night with a home game against the East Kentucky Miners.

But there was no basketball played last night at the Petersen Events Center, and it's not known if the Xplosion will take the court again.

Citing financial issues and longtime attendance problems, the Xplosion has ceased operations, at least for this season.

CBA commissioner Dennis Truax confirmed the move, but said the league is hopeful the team will resume play next season.

"Like a lot of people, the ownership group [in Pittsburgh] had a downturn with the economy," Truax said. "They came to us and asked for a year sabbatical in order to restructure. They're looking to possibly add additional partners and have additional investors with the franchise."

Xplosion CEO Richard Hersperger could not be reached for comment.

Pittsburgh was included when the CBA released its schedule in October, and the Xplosion had been set to host the league's All-Star game in February. Freddie Lewis, the team's former general manager and part owner, said the decision for the Xplosion to sit out the season was made earlier this month. He has left the team.

Lewis, a McKeesport resident who played 11 seasons of professional basketball, blamed poor attendance for the Xplosion's struggles. The team regularly attracted crowds in the hundreds while playing home games at the Petersen Events Center and Mellon Arena.

"We weren't getting any response, really, as far as attendance is concerned," he said. "Our biggest crowd was 2,000 people, and we gave away 1,000 of those seats.

"Over the years, we just didn't have the fan support."

The Xplosion isn't the only struggling CBA franchise.

Only four teams will play this season: East Kentucky, the Albany (N.Y.) Patroons, Lawton-Fort Sill (Okla.) Cavalry and Minot (N.D.) Skyrockets. That's down from 10 last season, and the CBA plans to fill out its schedule this year with games against teams from the American Basketball Association.

Truax said he is confident of adding between three and five more teams next season.

"We're working toward that every day," he said. "All of our ownerships groups are committed to moving forward."

Lewis isn't sure the Xplosion will be back next season.

"After another year, let's see how many teams have survived [the CBA]," he said. "The way the economy is today, it's a tough road to support a basketball team."

Lewis was instrumental in forming the Xplosion, which made its debut as an ABA expansion team in the 2005-06 season.

The Xplosion went 18-12 and reached the second round of the playoffs that year before moving to the CBA the next season. The team struggled to a 10-38 record in its first CBA season, but went 29-19 last year and reached the playoffs.

First Published: December 13, 2008, 5:00 a.m.