The 1979–80 Weber State Wildcats men's basketball team represented Weber State College during the 1979–80 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Members of the Big Sky Conference, the Wildcats were led by fifth-year head coach Neil McCarthy and played their home games on campus at Dee Events Center in Ogden, Utah.
| 1979–80 Weber State Wildcats men's basketball | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Big Sky Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 17 |
| AP | No. 17 [1] |
| Record | 26–3 (13–1 Big Sky) |
| Head coach |
|
| Home arena | Dee Events Center |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 17 Weber State † | 13 | – | 1 | .929 | 26 | – | 3 | .897 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Idaho | 9 | – | 5 | .643 | 17 | – | 10 | .630 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Montana | 8 | – | 6 | .571 | 17 | – | 11 | .607 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Montana State | 7 | – | 7 | .500 | 14 | – | 12 | .538 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nevada | 5 | – | 9 | .357 | 10 | – | 19 | .345 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Idaho State | 5 | – | 9 | .357 | 9 | – | 17 | .346 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northern Arizona | 5 | – | 9 | .357 | 14 | – | 12 | .538 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boise State | 4 | – | 10 | .286 | 10 | – | 16 | .385 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † Conference tournament winner Rankings from AP poll | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
They were 24–2 overall in the regular season and 13–1 in conference play,[2][3] won the regular season title (by four games), and the conference tournament.[4][5] The sole conference loss was at Idaho, the league runner-up,[6][7] which broke an 18-game winning streak and dropped Weber's poll ranking (AP, UPI) from 15 to 17.[8][9]
The Wildcats appeared in the first five finals of the conference tournament and this was the third consecutive title.
Ranked seventeenth in both major polls,[1] Weber State earned the Big Sky's berth in the expanded 48-team NCAA tournament. They were seeded seventh in the West region and hosted the subregional in Ogden, but were upset by a point by Lamar.[10][11]
All-conference
editSenior guard Bruce Collins was a unanimous selection to the all-conference team, becoming the seventh player to be named in three consecutive years. Joining him for a second straight year was senior forward David Johnson. On the second team was senior center Richard Smith and senior guard Mark Mattos; forward Gerald Mattinson and sophomore reserve guard Todd Harper were honorable mention.[12][13][14][15]
A four-year starter, Collins scored over two thousand points for the Wildcats, including 32 in his final game, the NCAA loss to Lamar.[10] He was edged out for player of the year honors by guard Don Newman of Idaho,[16] which had finished last in each of the previous five seasons.
Postseason results
edit| Date time, TV |
Rank# | Opponent# | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Big Sky tournament | |||||||||||
| Fri, Feb 29 7:00 pm |
(1) No. 16 | (4) Montana State Semifinal |
W 93–70 | 25–2 |
Dee Events Center (8,089) Ogden, Utah | ||||||
| Sat, March 1 8:00 pm |
(1) No. 16 | (3) Montana Final |
W 50–42 | 26–2 |
Dee Events Center (8,247) Ogden, Utah | ||||||
| NCAA tournament | |||||||||||
| Thu, March 6* 9:37 pm |
(7W) No. 17 | (10W) Lamar First round |
L 86–87 | 26–3 |
Dee Events Center (11,505) Ogden, Utah | ||||||
References
edit- ^ a b "AP poll, UPI poll". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). AP, UPI. March 4, 1980. p. 4C.
- ^ "College standings". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). March 3, 1980. p. 4B.
- ^ Ewer, Bill (February 28, 1980). "Weber puts record on line in BSC playoffs". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. B9.
- ^ "Weber rallies for tournament title". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. March 2, 1980. p. 3D.
- ^ "1979-80 Big Sky Conference Season Summary". sports-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. 2016. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
- ^ Robinson, Doug (February 1, 1980). "UI stops Weber win streak". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. 4B.
- ^ Van Sickel, Charlie (February 1, 1980). "Monson outcoaches rival in big Idaho upset". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 23.
- ^ Robinson, Doug (February 4, 1980). "Weber starting a new streak". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. B3.
- ^ "DePaul reigns, BYU up to 14th". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). wire services. February 5, 1980. p. 2B.
- ^ a b Rock, Brad (March 7, 1980). "Comeback 'Cats fall a point short". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. 4B.
- ^ "Lamar surprises struggling Weber State". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. March 7, 1980. p. 4C.
- ^ "Newman named All Big Sky". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). March 6, 1980. p. 3C.
- ^ "Collins, Newman picked for Big Sky All-Stars". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. March 6, 1980. p. 25.
- ^ "Collins tops all Big Sky cage team". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). Associated Press. March 6, 1981. p. D1.
- ^ "Intercollegiate athletics". Gem of the Mountains, University of Idaho yearbook. 1980. p. 22, part 4.
- ^ "MVP: Idaho's Newman named top player in Big Sky". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). March 8, 1980. p. 2C.
External links
edit- Sports Reference – Weber State Wildcats: 1979–80 basketball season