History

1. 1968

   Founded

   A late, underfunded ABA entry assembled by Sol Markowitz, a Covington scrap-yard owner with no business owning a pro team. Named Cincinnati for the market, housed in Covington for the rent.

2. 1968 to 1972

   The lean years

   Broke, entertaining, mostly bad in the standings, beloved by a small cult of fans. This is where the identity formed. Cold-blooded, clinging on, regrowing what it lost.

3. 1972 to 1973

   The regular season

   A sub-.500 club, 36 and 48, that backed into the final playoff seed. Nobody circled them.

4. 1973

   The Run

   As the lowest seed, the Lizards upset the heavily favored Lexington Stallions in the Icehouse Series, then pushed the eventual champion Birmingham Iron to a Game 7 in the Division Finals before losing by two. No banner. No ring. Just the run that everyone who was there never stopped talking about.

5. 1973 to 1975

   The afterglow and the squeeze

   A brief jump in attendance and respect, then the money problems that never left. Ownership pressure mounts.

6. 1975 to 1976

   The end

   19681976

   Disowned

   Forced relocation. A new ownership group moves the franchise to Calder City and rebrands it the Calder City Apollos, scrubbing the ABA roots and the Covington years. They market 1976 as year one. The Lizards are not killed so much as orphaned and disowned.

7. Present

   The Rediscovery

   During demolition of the old Icehouse, crews find a sealed back room: Markowitz's ledgers, Dietz's columns, reels of 16mm game film, photographs, boxes of unsold ticket stubs, and the franchise paperwork that proves the Apollos are the Lizards. We are digitizing and reassembling it. This site is that reassembly.