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1979–80 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball team

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The 1979–80 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball team represented the University of Notre Dame during the 1979–80 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was coached by Digger Phelps and was ranked in the Associated Press poll for the entirety of the season.

1979–80 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball
NCAA tournament, Second round loss 84–87 OT vs. Missouri
ConferenceIndependent
Ranking
CoachesNo. 11
APNo. 9
Record22–6
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Captains
Home arenaJoyce Center
Seasons
1979–80 NCAA Division I men's basketball independents standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 1 DePaul –   – 26 – 2   .929
No. 19 Iona* –   – 28 – 4   .875
Old Dominion –   – 25 – 5   .833
No. 9 Notre Dame –   – 23 – 8   .742
Tennessee State –   – 19 – 7   .731
UNLV –   – 23 – 9   .719
Saint Peter's –   – 22 – 9   .710
Cleveland State –   – 18 – 8   .692
James Madison –   – 18 – 8   .692
Illinois State –   – 20 – 9   .690
Marquette –   – 18 – 9   .667
UNC Wilmington –   – 19 – 10   .655
Penn State –   – 18 – 10   .643
Southern Mississippi –   – 17 – 10   .630
South Carolina –   – 16 – 11   .593
Campbell –   – 15 – 12   .556
East Carolina –   – 15 – 12   .556
Stetson –   – 15 – 12   .556
Long Island –   – 14 – 12   .538
Detroit –   – 14 – 13   .519
Navy –   – 14 – 13   .519
Wagner –   – 14 – 13   .519
Siena –   – 14 – 14   .500
Dayton –   – 13 – 14   .481
Fairleigh Dickinson –   – 13 – 14   .481
North Texas State –   – 13 – 14   .481
Richmond –   – 13 – 14   .481
Baltimore –   – 12 – 15   .444
William & Mary –   – 12 – 15   .444
Fordham** –   – 12 – 16   .429
St. Francis (Pa.) –   – 12 – 16   .429
St. Francis (N.Y.) –   – 11 – 15   .423
Fairfield –   – 11 – 16   .407
Army –   – 9 – 17   .346
Milwaukee –   – 9 – 17   .346
Towson State –   – 9 – 17   .346
Valparaiso –   – 8 – 18   .308
Catholic –   – 8 – 19   .296
Robert Morris –   – 7 – 19   .269
George Mason –   – 5 – 21   .192
Portland State –   – 5 – 21   .192
Manhattan –   – 4 – 22   .154
Baptist –   – 2 – 23   .080
* –Iona's 1980 NCAA Tournament games were vacated due to NCAA sanctions; disputed record 29–5.
**Disputed record 11–17.
Rankings from AP Poll

Preseason

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The Irish were ranked fifth in the preseason AP Poll, behind Indiana, Kentucky, Duke and Ohio State.[1] While they lost frontcourt contributors Bruce Flowers and Bill Laimbeer to graduation, they added a recruiting class ranked fourth nationally by the 1979–80 Street & Smith basketball yearbook.[2] The class included McDonald's All-Americans Tim Andree and John Paxson and highly regarded forward Bill Varner.[3][4] Key returning players were 1979 All-American Kelly Tripucka and future National Basketball Association (NBA) players Tracy Jackson, Bill Hanzlik and Orlando Woolridge. Woolridge was moved from forward to center to replace Flowers and Laimbeer.[5][6] Senior point guard Rich Branning was selected co-captain of the team with Hanzlik.[7]

Leading up to an Olympic year, Notre Dame played an exhibition game against the Soviet National Team, notching a surprising 86–76 win behind Tripucka's 35 points.[8]

Regular season

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The Irish suffered an early setback as senior co-captain Hanzlik missed several games with a dislocated finger,[9][7] but fared well, compiling a 6–0 record in his absence, including a marquee win against UCLA.[10] The Irish won the contest behind clutch free throws and defense from freshman John Paxson.[11] After the team's fast start, The Irish found themselves ranked third in the country and facing second-ranked Kentucky at Freedom Hall in Louisville. Despite the Wildcats missing starters Sam Bowie and Dirk Minniefield, the Irish lost the game 80–86.[12] A January loss to San Francisco left the Irish on a two-game losing streak.[13] The highlight of the Irish's season came on February 27, 1980, when they upset top-ranked DePaul 76–74 in double-overtime. The Irish were led by Kelly Tripucka's 28 points and the win was sealed by two free throws by Orlando Woolridge. The Irish were able to overcome a big scoring push by future NBA All-Stars Mark Aguirre (28 points) and Terry Cummings (16).[14][15] A regular-season finale 62–54 win at Dayton raised the Irish's record to 22–5.[16]

Roster

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1979–80 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
G 12 Rich Branning 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sr Huntington Beach, California
G 42 Bill Hanzlik 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Sr Beloit, Wisconsin
F 22 Kevin Hawkins 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jr Los Angeles, California
G 11 Tim Healy 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sr Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
F 30 Tracy Jackson 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Silver Spring, Maryland
G 15 Mike Mitchell 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) So San Bruno, California
G 23 John Paxson 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Kettering, Ohio
C 55 Gilbert Salinas 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Jr San Antonio, Texas
F 44 Kelly Tripucka 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Jr Essex Fells, New Jersey
C 32 Orlando Woolridge 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Jr Mansfield, Louisiana
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

NCAA tournament

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Notre Dame was selected for the 1980 NCAA tournament and were the 4 seed in the Midwest Region, slated to play the winner of a first-round game between Missouri and San Jose State in Lincoln, Nebraska.[17] Fifth-seeded Missouri upset the Irish 87–84 in overtime behind senior Mark Dressler's 32 points, wasting a 29-point effort by Tracy Jackson.[18]

Schedule

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Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
December 1
 No. 5 Valparaiso W 92–66  1–0
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
December 3
 No. 5 Iowa State W 87–77  2–0
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
December 5
 No. 4 at Northwestern W 73–56  3–0
 Welsh-Ryan Arena 
Evanston, Illinois
December 8
 No. 4 Saint Louis W 93–66  4–0
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
December 11
 No. 4 No. 7 UCLA W 77–74  5–0
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
December 13
 No. 4 No. 7 (Div II) St. Joseph's (IN) W 79–58  6–0
(0-0) 		Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
December 22
 No. 4 Fairfield W 69–59  7–0
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
December 29
 No. 3 No. 2 Kentucky L 80–86  7–1
 Freedom Hall 
Louisville, Kentucky
January 8
 No. 7 at San Francisco L 59–67  7–2
 War Memorial Gymnasium 
San Francisco, CA
January 10
 No. 7 at Tulane W 79–59  8–2
 Avron B. Fogelman Arena 
New Orleans, Louisiana
January 13
 No. 7 at TCU W 85–68  9–2
 Hemisphere Arena 
San Antonio, Texas
January 15
 No. 8 Villanova W 70–69  10–2
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
January 19
 No. 8 at UCLA W 80–73  11–2
 Pauley Pavilion 
Los Angeles, California
January 23
 No. 8 Canisius W 84–63  12–2
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
January 26
 No. 8 No. 15 Maryland W 64–63  13–2
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
January 30
 No. 8 at La Salle W 64–63  13–3
 Palestra 
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
February 2
 No. 8 Davidson W 105–71  14–3
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
February 4
 No. 8 Navy W 67–53  15–3
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
February 6
 No. 9 Manhattan W 93–49  16–3
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
February 9
 No. 9 North Carolina State L 55–63  16–4
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
February 11
 No. 9 San Francisco W 78–66  17–4
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
February 13
 No. 12 at Fordham W 86–76  18–4
 Rose Hill Gymnasium 
Bronx, NY
February 16
 No. 12 at South Carolina W 90–66  19–4
 Carolina Coliseum 
Columbia, SC
February 20
 No. 10 at Xavier W 85–72  20–4
 Riverfront Coliseum 
Cincinnati, OH
February 24
 No. 10 Marquette L 74–77  20–5
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
February 27
 No. 14 No. 1 DePaul W 76–74  21–5
 Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, IN
March 1
 No. 14 at Dayton W 62–54  22–5
 UD Arena 
Dayton, OH
NCAA tournament
March 8
 (4) No. 9 vs. (5) No. 16 Missouri
NCAA tournament second round 		L 84–87 OT 22–6
 Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, NE
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

[19]

Players selected in NBA drafts

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Year Round Pick Player NBA Club
1980 1 20 Bill Hanzlik Seattle SuperSonics
1980 4 78 Rich Branning Indiana Pacers
1981 1 6 Orlando Woolridge Chicago Bulls
1981 1 12 Kelly Tripucka Detroit Pistons
1981 2 25 Tracy Jackson Boston Celtics
1981 8 167 Gilbert Salinas Atlanta Hawks
1983 1 19 John Paxson San Antonio Spurs
1983 5 98 Tim Andree Chicago Bulls
1983 9 202 Bill Varner Milwaukee Bucks

[20]

References

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  1. ^ "Indiana no. 1 in preseason poll". The News-Press. November 16, 1979. p. 40. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  2. ^ "1979–80 Official Basketball Yearbook". Street & Smith's Official Yearbook. New York City: Condé Nast Publications. October 1979. pp. 26, 73.
  3. ^ Francisco, Joel (May 26, 2009). "Many players succeeded after '79 game". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  4. ^ "Golden dome shines brightly for Varner". Pittsburgh Press. June 5, 1979. p. 20. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  5. ^ Goldaper, Sam (November 25, 1979). "A Preview of the 20 Top College Basketball Teams". The New York Times. Retrieved March 3, 2019.
  6. ^ "The Top 20". Sports Illustrated. December 1, 1980. Retrieved March 3, 2019.
  7. ^ a b "Notre Dame's pied piper plays sweet Irish tune". Indianapolis News. December 28, 1979. p. 24. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  8. ^ "Notre Dame 'outsmarts' Russians". The Dispatch. November 16, 1979. p. 23. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  9. ^ "Bill Hanzlik to sit out UCLA tilt". Indianapolis Star. December 11, 1979. p. 31. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  10. ^ "Notre Dame-UCLA better than expected". Indianapolis Star. December 13, 1979. p. 53. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  11. ^ "Irish rookie sinks 4 free throws, UCLA". Detroit Free Press. December 13, 1979. p. 53. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  12. ^ "Bowie-less Kentucky impressed Irish coach". The Paducah Sun. December 31, 1979. p. 15. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  13. ^ "San Francisco center's about face stuns Notre Dame". Chillicothe Gazette. January 9, 1980. p. 17. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  14. ^ "Woolridge free throws spark Irish past DePaul". The Pantagraph. February 28, 1980. p. 11. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  15. ^ "Irish do unto DePaul as they have others". Decatur Daily Review. February 28, 1980. p. 13. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  16. ^ "Notre Dame bounces Dayton with late surge". The Cincinnati Enquirer. March 2, 1980. p. 33. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  17. ^ "Tourney a matter of momentum". South Bend Tribune. March 4, 1980. p. 26. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  18. ^ "Missouri stuns Irish in overtime". Kokomo Tribune. March 9, 1980. p. 22. Retrieved March 3, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  19. ^ "1979-80 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Schedule". sports-reference.com. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
  20. ^ "Notre Dame draft history at basketball-reference.com". Retrieved March 3, 2019.
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