1980–81 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball team

The 1980–81 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball team represented Wichita State University in the 1980–81 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They played their home games at the University of Wichita Field House. They were in their 36th season as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference and 75th season overall. They were led by head coach Gene Smithson in his 3rdseason at the school. They finished the season 26–7, 12–4 in Missouri Valley play to finish in first place. They received a bid to the 1981 NCAA Tournament and advanced to the regional finals before falling to LSU.

1980–81 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball
MVC Regular Season Champions
NCAA Tournament, Elite Eight
ConferenceMissouri Valley Conference
1980–81 record26–7 (12–4 MVC)
Head coach
Home arenaLevitt Arena (10,506)
1980–81 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L PCT  W L PCT
Wichita State124 .750  267  .788
Creighton115 .688  219  .700
Tulsa115 .688  267  .788
Drake106 .625  1811  .621
Bradley106 .625  189  .667
New Mexico State79 .438  1017  .370
West Texas State79 .438  1611  .593
Indiana State412 .250  918  .333
Southern Illinois016 .000  720  .259
1981 MVC Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll[1]

Roster

1980–81 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearHometown
F 35 Antoine Carr
So Wichita, Kansas
F 54 Cliff Levingston
Jr San Diego, California
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

    Legend
    • (C) Team captain
    • (S) Suspended
    • (I) Ineligible
    • (W) Walk-on

    Schedule and results

    Date
    time, TV
    Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
    city, state
    Regular Season
    Nov 28, 1980*
    Abilene Christian W 101–60  1–0
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Dec 1, 1980*
    Hardin-Simmons W 105–46  2–0
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Dec 5, 1980*
    McNeese State
    McDonald's Classic
    W 91–66  3–0
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Dec 6, 1980*
    Colorado State
    McDonald's Classic
    W 53–34  4–0
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Dec 8, 1980*
    Long Beach State W 80–61  5–0
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Dec 13, 1980*
    Louisiana-Monroe W 82–63  6–0
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Dec 17, 1980*
    Denver W 93–60  7–0
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Dec 20, 1980*
    at Oral Roberts W 83–61  8–0
    Mabee Center 
    Tulsa, Oklahoma
    Dec 23, 1980*
    at Texas-Rio Grande Valley L 82–83  8–1
    UTPA Fieldhouse 
    Edinburg, Texas
    Jan 3, 1981*
    Iona W 77–46  9–1
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Jan 10, 1981
    at Tulsa L 84–91  9–2
    (0–1)
    Tulsa Convention Center 
    Tulsa, Oklahoma
    Feb 28, 1981
    No. 19 at Indiana State L 72–75  21–5
    (12–4)
    Hulman Center 
    Terre Haute, Indiana
    MVC Tournament
    Mar 5, 1981*
    Southern Illinois
    Quarterfinal
    W 77–57  22–5
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Mar 6, 1981*
    Drake
    Semifinal
    W 88–74  23–5
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Mar 7, 1981*
    Creighton
    Championship Game
    L 64–70  23–6
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    1981 NCAA Tournament
    Mar 13, 1981*
    (6 MW) vs. (11 MW) Southern
    First Round
    W 95–70  24–6
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Mar 15, 1981*
    (6 MW) vs. (3 MW) No. 13 Iowa
    Second Round
    W 60–56[2]  25–6
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Mar 20, 1981*
    (6 MW) vs. (7 MW) Kansas
    Midwest Regional Semifinal Sweet Sixteen
    W 66–65  26–6
    Louisiana Superdome 
    New Orleans, Louisiana
    Mar 22, 1981*
    (6 MW) vs. (1 MW) No. 4 Louisiana State
    Midwest Regional Final Elite Eight
    L 85–96  26–7
    Louisiana Superdome 
    New Orleans, Louisiana
    *Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. MW=Midwest.
    All times are in Central Time.

    [3]

    Rankings

    Ranking movements
    Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
    NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. т = Tied with team above or below. ( ) = First place votes.
    Week
    Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Final 
    AP NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 19 16 14 19 NR NR 
    Coaches NR - NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 20 19 15 18 NR NR

    [4][5]

    Awards and honors

    References

    1. sports-reference.com 1980-81 Missouri Valley Conference Season Summary
    2. "Wichita St. ends Iowa's title dream". Chicago Tribune. March 16, 1981. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
    3. "2019-20 Wichita State Men's Basketball Fact Book" (PDF). Wichita State University Athletics. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
      • ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. pp. 877–878. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
    4. "1980-81 College Basketball Polls". Sports Reference. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
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