Wright State Raiders men's basketball

The Wright State Raiders men's basketball is the men's college basketball team that represents Wright State University in Fairborn, Ohio. The school's team currently competes in the Horizon League at the NCAA Division I level. The Raiders won their only national championship in 1983 as an NCAA Division II school. They have made a total of three NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament appearances. The Raiders play their home games at the Nutter Center, often nicknamed the "Nutt House". The official capacity for basketball games is 10,000. The Raiders are head coached by Scott Nagy, who in his third season, has led Wright State to their best start in conference play in over 25 years at 18-4 overall and 8-1 in Horizon League play.

Wright State Raiders
2020–21 Wright State Raiders men's basketball team
UniversityWright State University
Head coachScott Nagy (5th season)
ConferenceHorizon League
LocationFairborn, Ohio
ArenaNutter Center
(Capacity: 12,000)
NicknameRaiders
Student sectionRaider Rowdies
ColorsHunter Green and Vegas Gold[1]
         
Uniforms
Home
Away
Alternate
NCAA Tournament Champions
1983 (Division II)
NCAA Tournament Appearances
1993, 2007, 2018
Conference Tournament Champions
Mid-Continent Conference
1993
Horizon League
2007, 2018
Conference Regular Season Champions
Horizon League
2007, 2019, 2020

History

Wright State first sponsored men's basketball in 1970 under the direction of Coach John Ross. First year varsity letter winners included: Mark Beilinski, Jerry Butcher, Mark Donahue, Jerry Hecht, John Hildebrand, Chuck Horton, Jim Schellhase, Doug Taylor, Jim Thacker. Mike Zink. Paul Brown, and Gary Webb. Jim Thacker was named the MVP and Chuck Horton, Mark Donahue and John Hildebrand took the foul shooting honors. In 1983, Wright State won the Division II NCAA Tournament. Wright State moved to Division I in 1987, and have made NCAA Tournament appearances in 1993, 2007, and 2018.

Ralph Underhill era (1978–1996)

Ralph Underhill was the most successful coach in Wright State history, with a career total of 356 wins, including leading the team to an NCAA Division II National Championship in the 1982-83 season.

In 1999–2000 Israel Sheinfeld playing for the Raiders led the Midwestern Collegiate Conference in field goal percentage, at .543, and in rebounds per game, at 7.7.[2] He was named to the 2000 All-MCC first team.[3] In 2000–2001 he led the conference in two-point field goal percentage, at .595.[2]

Paul Biancardi era (2003–2005)

On April 8, 2003 Wright State announced that Paul Biancardi would be the new head coach. Before coaching Wright State Biancardi was an assistant at St. Louis, Boston College and Ohio State where he coached under Jim O'Brien. Recognized nationally, Biancardi was named the No. 1 assistant coach in the country by Hoop Scoop Online. In his first season as coach, Wright State finished with a 14–14 record and finished 5th in the Horizon League Standings with a 10–6 conference record and lost to Loyola (IL) in the first round of the conference tournament. In the 2004–2005 season Wright State would finish with a 15–15 while finishing 6th in the conference standings with an 8–8 record. During the Horizon League tournament the Raiders would beat Butler in the first round but lost to Detroit in the second round. In 2005–2006, Wright State's final record was 13–15, with an 8–8 conference record they would finish 7th in the standings. The Raiders would once again have an early exit from the Horizon League tournament, losing to UIC in the first round. Despite never having a winning season in the three seasons that Biancardi coached at Wright State, it was his recruiting classes that would set the Raiders up for success in the future. Wright State and Biancardi agreed to part after the NCAA barred him from recruiting for violating rules while he was an assistant at Ohio State.[4] Biancardi's final record at Wright State was 42–44

Brad Brownell era (2006–2009)

Brad Brownell left his position with UNC-Wilmington to take over the head coaching duties at Wright State beginning in the 2006–2007 basketball season. In his first season, Wright State was the regular season Horizon League Champion, going 23–10 overall, and 13–3 in conference play. Their 3 losses were at Youngstown State, at Butler, and at Milwaukee. In an impressive season, Wright State only lost one home game all season, that was a 3-point loss to Bowling Green. In the Horizon League Championship game, Wright State edged Butler 60–55 at the Nutter Center, and secured an automatic bid in the NCAA tournament. They eventually earned a 14 seed, and lost in the first round to the Pittsburgh Panthers.

The next three seasons were not as successful for Brownell as his first. Wright State finished 3rd, 3rd, and 2nd respectfully over the 2007, 2008, and 2009 seasons. However, Brad did lead Wright State to 20-win seasons in each of his four years with the program. After the conclusion of the 2009–2010 season, Brad Brownell left Wright State to take the head coaching job at Clemson University.

Brownell finished his coaching at Wright State officially 84–45 and 49–21 in conference play in 4 completed seasons. More impressively, Brownell finished 58–10 in home contests over his 4-year tenure.

Billy Donlon era (2010–2016)

Billy Donlon took over the Wright State Men's Basketball program in 2010 after the announcement that Brad Brownell would be leaving for Clemson. In the 2012–2013 season, after being projected to finish last in the league, Wright State finished 3rd in the Horizon League, and earned a first round bye in the Horizon League tournament. Wright State would beat Youngstown State in the second round of the tournament to advance to the conference semi-finals where they would play the defending Horizon League tournament champion Detroit. Miles Dixon hit a baseline jumper from behind the backboard as time expired, lifting Wright State into the Horizon League tournament championship game for the first time since the 2009–2010 season. The team went on to lose to Valparaiso in the Horizon League Championship game by 6 points. Wright State was invited to the College Basketball Invitational where they would make it to the semi-finals before losing to eventual tournament champion Tulsa. Billy Donlon also earned the Horizon League Coach of the Year award for Wright State's performance in the 2012–2013 season.

Over his six seasons he accumulated an overall record 109–94 vs DI and non DI competition.

Scott Nagy era (2016–present)

After the firing of Billy Donlon after the 2015-2016 season, Wright State hired then South Dakota State University head coach Scott Nagy to head their program. He is the highest paid coach in Raider history with an annual salary of $500k. In Nagy's first season the Raiders went 20-12 and 11-7 in league. The Raiders lost to NKU in the 4/5 match-up in the Horizon League Tournament. The Raiders chose not to participate in postseason play.

In his second season, Nagy's Raiders finished second in the Horizon League regular season (even though they swept #1 seed NKU) with a conference record of 14-4. The Raiders won the Horizon League Tournament and clinched their first NCAA tournament berth since 2007.

Retired numbers

Wright State has retired one jersey number in its history.

No. Player Position Career
42Bill EdwardsSF/PF1989–93

Facilities

The Wright State Raiders currently play their home games at the Ervin J. Nutter Center. Ervin J. Nutter, donated $1.5 million to Wright State University in 1986. Funds from both the state of Ohio and the university contributed an additional $8 million to construction efforts which began in 1988. Completed in 1990, Wright State would host the first event on December 1 where they would defeat Tennessee State 88–66.

Coaches

The Raiders have had 8 coaches in their 48 years as a program. Current head coach Scott Nagy was hired in 2016. Billy Donlon was the head coach from 2010-2016 after Brad Brownell was announced as the new Clemson head coach. Brownell is one of two coaches who have taken Wright State to the NCAA tournament, the other being the winningest coach in team history, Ralph Underhill. Underhill coached from 1978 to 1996 and accumulated 356 wins at Wright State and an NCAA DII national championship in the 1982–83 season.

Coach Career Overall record
John Ross1970–71 to 1974–7565–54
Marcus Jackson1975–76 to 1977–7845–37
Ralph Underhill1978–79 to 1995–96356–162
Jim Brown1996–977–20
Ed Schilling1997–98 to 2002–0375–93
Paul Biancardi2003–04 to 2005–0642–44
Brad Brownell2006–07 to 2009–1084–45
Billy Donlon2010–11 to 2015–16108–94
Scott Nagy2016–17 to Present66–34
NCAA DII Record (1970–1986): 321–145
NCAA DI Record (1987–present): 528–438
Overall Record: 849-583

Current coaching staff

Name Position
Scott NagyHead Coach
Brian CooleyAssistant Coach
Clint SargentAssistant Coach
Sharif ChamblissAssistant Coach
Nick (Dream Boat) GoffDirector of Operations
Nick NagyAdministrative Assistant

Seasons

WSU's records season by season since joining Division I in 1987.

SeasonHead CoachOverall RecordConf. RecordStandingPostseason
Division I Independent
1987–88Ralph Underhill16–11
1988–89Ralph Underhill17–11
1989–90Ralph Underhill21–7
1990–91Ralph Underhill19–9
Mid-Continent Conference
1991–92Ralph Underhill15–139–7T-4th
1992–93Ralph Underhill20–1010–6T-2ndNCAA 1st Round
1993–94Ralph Underhill12–189–9T-4th
Midwestern Collegiate Conference
1994–95Ralph Underhill13–176–88th
1995–96Ralph Underhill14–138–8T-4th
1996–97Jim Brown7–205–118th
1997–98Ed Schilling10–183–117th
1998–99Ed Schilling9–184–107th
1999–2000Ed Schilling11–176–8T-4th
2000–01Ed Schilling18–118–64th
Horizon League
2001–02Ed Schilling17–118–6T-4th
2002–03Ed Schilling10–184–12T-6th
2003–04Paul Biancardi14–1410–6T-4th
2004–05Paul Biancardi15–158–8T-4th
2005–06Paul Biancardi13–158–8T-3rd
2006–07Brad Brownell23–1013–3T-1stNCAA 1st Round
2007–08Brad Brownell21–1012–6T-2nd
2008–09Brad Brownell20–1312–6T-3rd
2009–2010Brad Brownell20–1212–62nd
2010–2011Billy Donlon19–1410–8T-5th
2011–2012Billy Donlon13–197–118th
2012–2013Billy Donlon21–1210–6T-3rdCBI Semi-Finals
2013–2014Billy Donlon21–1510–63rdCIT 2nd Round
2014–2015Billy Donlon11–203–138th
2015–2016Billy Donlon22–1313–5T-2nd
2016–2017Scott Nagy20–1211–75th
2017–2018Scott Nagy25–914–42ndNCAA 1st Round
2018–2019Scott Nagy21-1313-5T-1stNIT 1st Round

Record vs. Horizon League opponents

Opponent Wins Losses Pct. Streak
Cleveland State 39 34 .534 WSU 4
Detroit 32 27 .542 WSU 1
Green Bay 31 32 .492 WSU 1
IUPUI 13 3 .813 WSU 3
Milwaukee 31 30 .508 WSU 3
Northern Kentucky 24 11 .686 NKU 1
Oakland 13 7 .650 WSU 5
UIC 31 29 .517 UIC 2
Youngstown State 47 12 .797 WSU 5

Rivalries

Dayton

The Wright State University and University of Dayton series is known as the Gem City Jam. The two universities are located in Dayton, Ohio, only 10 miles apart from each other. Although the two schools no longer compete head to head in men's basketball, they still compete against each other in other sports. The series currently favors Dayton at 5–3. The last meeting was held at the University of Dayton on December 13, 1997, Dayton won 94–63.

DateLocationResult
March 5, 1988DaytonL 71–89
January 6, 1990DaytonW 101–99
December 11, 1993DaytonL 56–83
January 8, 1994Wright StateW 77–65
December 12, 1994Wright StateW 74–53
December 9, 1995DaytonL 80–98
January 9, 1997Wright StateL 63–72
December 13, 1997DaytonL 63–94

Northern Kentucky

The Wright State and Northern Kentucky series began in 1972 where both schools would routinely compete against each other up until 1987 when Wright State moved to division 1. The series would be reignited in 2015 when Northern Kentucky joined the Horizon League. Wright state currently leads the series 24-11

Other rivals

Although it may not be considered a rivalry, Wright State and Miami (OH) have played a total of 34 times since 1972, with Miami leading the series 21-13. The Raiders and the Redhawks have played each other every season since 1999.

All-time statistical leaders

Career leaders

Points Scored: Bill Edwards 2,303
Assists: Mark Woods 744
Rebounds: Bill Edwards 907
Steals: Mark Woods 314

Single-season leaders

Points Scored: Bill Edwards 757 (1992)
Assists: Lenny Lyons 259 (1985)
Rebounds: Loudon Love 332 (2017)
Steals: Mark Woods 109 (1992)

Single-game leaders

Points Scored: Bill Edwards 45 (1992)
Assists: Lenny Lyons 15 (1986)
Rebounds: Thad Burton 22 (1997)
Steals: Mark Woods 8 (1992)

Postseason

NCAA Division I Tournament history

Wright State has made three appearances in the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament, with the Raiders going 0–3.

Year Seed Round Opponent Result
1993No. 16First RoundNo. 1 IndianaL 54–97
2007No. 14First RoundNo. 3 PittsburghL 58–79
2018No. 14First RoundNo. 3 TennesseeL 47–73

NCAA Division II tournament results

The Raiders have appeared in the NCAA Division II Tournament eight times. Their combined record is 12–8. They were the 1983 National Champions.

Year Round Opponent Result
1976Regional Semifinals
Regional Finals
Evansville
Saint Joseph's (IN)
L 75–85
W 72–68
1979Regional Semifinals
Regional Finals
Northern Michigan
Saint Joseph's (IN)
L 66–75
L 68–73
1980Regional Semifinals
Regional 3rd Place Game
Eastern Illinois
Southern Indiana
L 63–74
W 88–85
1981Regional Semifinals
Regional 3rd Place Game
Northern Michigan
Southern Indiana
L 69–70
W 96–89
1982Regional Semifinals
Regional 3rd Place Game
Kentucky Wesleyan
Bellarmine
L 71–76 OT
W 87–86
1983Regional Semifinals
Regional Finals
Elite Eight
Final Four
National Championship
Lewis
Kentucky Wesleyan
Bloomsburg
Cal State Bakersfield
District of Columbia
W 71–57
W 69–67
W 73–53
W 57–50
W 92–73
1985Regional Semifinals
Regional Finals
Lewis
Kentucky Wesleyan
W 61–53
L 72–84
1986Regional Semifinals
Regional Finals
Elite Eight
Kentucky Wesleyan
SIU Edwardsville
Cheyney
W 94–84
W 77–73
L 75–78

NIT Results

The Raiders have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) one time. Their record is 0–1

Year Seed Round Opponent Result
2019No. 7First RoundNo. 2 ClemsonL 69–75

CBI results

The Raiders have appeared in one College Basketball Invitational (CBI). Their record is 2–1.

Year Round Opponent Result
2013First Round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Tulsa
Richmond
Santa Clara
W 72–52
W 57–51
L 69–81

CIT results

The Raiders have appeared in one CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). Their record is 1–1

Year Round Opponent Result
2014First Round
Second Round
East Carolina
Ohio
W 73–59
L 54–56

National championships

Wright State has won one national championship, done in their time in Division II.

Year Coach Opponent Result Record
1983Ralph UnderhillDistrict of Columbia92–7328–4
1982 NCAA DII Tournament Results
Round Opponent Score
Regional Semifinals Lewis 71–57
Regional Finals Kentucky Wesleyan 69–67
Quarterfinals Bloomsburg State 73–53
Final Four Cal State Bakersfield 57–50
Championship District of Columbia 92–73

Conference championships

Tournament championships

Wright State has three conference tournament championships, most recently in 2018 under coach Scott Nagy. The first championship came in the 1992–93 season under Ralph Underhill. The Raiders have appeared in 4 Horizon League/Midwestern Collegiate championship games, most recently was in 2013 where they lost at Valparaiso 54–62. Wright State's first and only appearance in the Mid-Continent Conference championship game resulted in a 94–88 victory over UIC.

Season Coach Conference Opponent Score Overall Record Conference Record
1992–93Ralph UnderhillMid-Continent ConferenceUIC94–8820–1010–6
2006–07Brad BrownellHorizon LeagueButler60–5523–1013–3
2017–18Scott NagyHorizon LeagueCleveland State74–5725–914–4

Regular season championships

Season Coach Overall Record Conference Record
2006–07Brad Brownell23–1013–3
2018–19Scott Nagy19-1213-5

Awards

All-Americans

(*) Denotes Honorable Mention

Division II All-Americans

  • Bob Grote – 1976
  • Rodney Benson – 1981
  • Roman Welch – 1981
  • Gary Monroe – 1983
  • Fred Moore – 1984
  • Andy Warner – 1985
  • Grant Marion – 1986
  • Mark Vest – 1986

Mid-Continent Conference Player of the Year

  • Bill Edwards – 1993

Horizon League Player of the Year

  • DaShaun Wood – 2007
  • Loudon Love - 2020

Horizon League Coach of the Year

  • Paul Biancardi – 2004
  • Brad Brownell (co) – 2008
  • Billy Donlon – 2013
  • Scott Nagy - 2017, 2018, 2019

First-Team All-Mid-Continent Conference

  • Bill Edwards (1992, 1993)
  • Mark Woods (1993)
  • Mike Nahar (1994)

First-Team MCC/Horizon League

  • Vitaly Potapenko (1995, 1996)
  • Keion Brooks (1997, 1999)
  • Kevin Melson (2000, 2001)
  • Israel Sheinfeld (2000)
  • Seth Doliboa (2003, 2004)
  • DaShaun Wood (2006, 2007)
  • Vaughn Duggins (2008, 2011)
  • Grant Benzinger (2017)

Raiders in the NBA

Two Wright State alumni have gone on to play in the NBA. They are:

Raiders in international leagues

References

  1. "Wright State Athletics Logo". February 13, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2017.
  2. "Israel Sheinfeld College Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.
  3. "Chad Angeli Named to the All-MCC Men's Basketball First Team". Milwaukee Athletics. March 1, 2000.
  4. "Biancardi departs Wright State by 'mutual agreement'". Sports.espn.go.com. March 14, 2006. Retrieved August 26, 2015.
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