1980–81 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball
MVC regular season champions
NCAA tournament, Elite Eight
ConferenceMissouri Valley Conference
Record26–7 (12–4 MVC)
Head coach
Home arenaLevitt Arena (10,506)
1980–81 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Wichita State124 .750267  .788
Creighton115 .688219  .700
Tulsa115 .688267  .788
Drake106 .6251811  .621
Bradley106 .625189  .667
New Mexico State79 .4381017  .370
West Texas State79 .4381611  .593
Indiana State412 .250918  .333
Southern Illinois016 .000720  .259
1981 MVC tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll[1]

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 third season 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.

Coach Smithson celebrates after the Shockers upset Iowa in the NCAA tournament.

Roster

1980–81 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearHometown
C 0 Ozell Jones 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)220 lb (100 kg) So Long Beach, California
G 3 James Gibbs 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)165 lb (75 kg) So Mount Vernon, New York
G 10 Zoran Radović 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)175 lb (79 kg) So Belgrade, Yugoslavia
G 21 Tony Martin 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)175 lb (79 kg) Jr Willingboro, New Jersey
F 32 Jay Jackson 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)205 lb (93 kg) Jr Valley Falls, Kansas
G/F 33 Mike Jones 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)190 lb (86 kg) Jr Joliet, Illinois
F 35 Antoine Carr 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)225 lb (102 kg) So Wichita, Kansas
F 40 Karl Papke 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)185 lb (84 kg) Fr Wichita, Kansas
F 41 Mike Denny 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)195 lb (88 kg) Sr Midland, Texas
G 44 Randy Smithson 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)180 lb (82 kg) Sr Normal, Illinois
F 45 Eric Kuhn 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)225 lb (102 kg) Jr Wichita, Kansas
C 50 Žarko Đurišić 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)235 lb (107 kg) Fr Titograd, Yugoslavia
F/C 54 Cliff Levingston 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)210 lb (95 kg) Jr San Diego, California
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

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

    Roster

    [2]

    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
    Jan 12, 1981
    West Texas A&M W 100–85  10–2
    (1–1)
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Jan 15, 1981
    New Mexico State W 74–68  11–2
    (2–1)
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Jan 17, 1981
    Southern Illinois W 73–47  12–2
    (3–1)
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Jan 22, 1981
    at Creighton W 77–72  13–2
    (4–1)
    Omaha Civic Auditorium 
    Omaha, Nebraska
    Feb 7, 1981
    Drake W 79–67  17–2
    (8–1)
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Feb 9, 1981
    at Southern Illinois W 81–61  18–2
    (9–1)
    SIU Arena 
    Carbondale, Illinois
    Feb 12, 1981
    Bradley W 87–65  19–2
    (10–1)
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Feb 16, 1981
    Tulsa L 72–74  19–3
    (10–2)
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Feb 19, 1981
    at New Mexico State L 60–82  19–4
    (10–3)
    Pan American Center 
    Las Cruces, New Mexico
    Feb 21, 1981
    Creighton W 83–70  20–4
    (11–3)
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Feb 26, 1981
    at Bradley W 70–57  21–4
    (12–3)
    Robertson Memorial Field House 
    Peoria, Illinois
    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[3]  24–6
    Levitt Arena 
    Wichita, Kansas
    Mar 15, 1981*
    (6 MW) vs. (3 MW) No. 13 Iowa
    Second Round
    W 60–56[4]  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.

    [5]

    Rankings

    Ranking movements
    Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
    — = Not ranked
    Week
    PollPre1234567891011121314Final
    AP19161419
    Coaches20191518

    [6][7]

    Awards and honors

    References

    1. sports-reference.com 1980-81 Missouri Valley Conference Season Summary
    2. "1980-81 Men's Basketball Roster". Wichita State University Athletics. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
    3. "Northeastern Advances in West Regional". The New York Times. March 14, 1981. Retrieved April 22, 2023.
    4. "Wichita St. ends Iowa's title dream". Chicago Tribune. March 16, 1981. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
    5. "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.
    6. "1980-81 College Basketball Polls". Sports Reference. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
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