1983–84 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team

The 1983–84 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team represented Gonzaga University of Spokane, Washington, in the 1983–84 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by third-year head coach Jay Hillock, the Bulldogs managed a 17–11 (.607) overall record (6–6 in WCAC, 4th),[3][4][5][6] and played their home games on campus at the John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion.

1983–84 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball
ConferenceWest Coast Athletic Conference
Record17–11 (6–6 WCAC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Bruce Wilson
  • Joe Hillock [1]
  • Rich Alvari [2]
Home arenaJohn F. Kennedy
Memorial Pavilion
Seasons
1983–84 West Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
San Diego 9 3   .750 18 10   .643
Santa Clara 7 5   .583 22 10   .688
Saint Mary's 7 5   .583 12 16   .429
Gonzaga 6 6   .500 17 10   .630
Pepperdine 6 6   .500 15 13   .536
Loyola Marymount 5 7   .417 12 15   .444
Portland 2 10   .167 11 17   .393
Rankings from AP Poll

Without a conference tournament, Gonzaga's season was not quite enough to qualify for the 53-team NCAA tournament, the WCAC berth went to champion San Diego (9–3).[5] In earlier non-conference games, Gonzaga met Inland Empire rival Washington State of the Pac-10 at the Spokane Coliseum in December and the Cougars made a late basket and won by a point.[7][8][9][10] Two weeks later, Gonzaga outscored WSU by a point in overtime at the Far West Classic in Portland to halt their losing streak to the Cougars at eleven games.[11][12] A week later, Gonzaga broke a four-game losing streak to the other Palouse rival, the Idaho Vandals.[13][14]

Two key senior scorers were lost to injury early in the season: swingman Bryce McPhee played in only six games due to a broken leg (right fibula),[15] and forward Jason Van Nort was sidelined in early January with ongoing issues after knee surgeries.[14] Both redshirted and returned as fifth-year seniors in the following season.

With the active roster depleted to eight players, the coaching staff dipped into the intramural ranks for help and added sophomore Gino Cerchai to the Zags' bench.[16] The 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) guard saw action in two home games and made both of his free throw attempts, met with great appreciation from the student section.[2][17]

This Gonzaga team is largely remembered for Spokane native John Stockton; the senior point guard from Gonzaga Prep was a three-year starter and the team leader throughout the season,[1] and was the conference player of the year. Despite flying well below the national radar for the majority of his collegiate career, Stockton was selected 16th overall in the 1984 NBA draft by the Utah Jazz,[18][19][20][21] where he played nineteen seasons. He was named to the NBA All-Star Game ten times, made two appearances in the NBA Finals, and was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.

Roster edit

1983–84 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 12 John Stockton 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Sr Gonzaga Prep Spokane, WA
G 14 Jeff Condill 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) So SIU-Edwardsville Barrington. IL
F 22 Jeff Reinert 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jr New Mexico Bellingham, WA
G 23 Mark Matthews 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Ricks JC Rexburg, ID
G/F 24 Bryce McPhee     6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Sr Bellarmine Prep Tacoma, WA
F 25 Danny Roe 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Fr St. Maries HS St. Maries, ID
C 32 Tim Ruff 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 245 lb (111 kg) Jr Acalanes HS Walnut Creek, CA
F 33 Jason Van Nort     6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Sr
F 34 Dave Clement 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Jr Highline HS Seattle, WA
F/C 35 Blair Anderson 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Sr Bella Vista HS Fair Oaks, CA
G 11 Gino Cerchai (W) 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) So St. Ignatius Prep San Francisco, CA
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
  • Bruce Wilson
  • Joe Hillock
  • Rich Alvari

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

Roster

Source:[2][7][13][14][15]

Schedule and results edit

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
Non-Conference Regular Season
Nov 25, 1983*
Carroll W 100–57  1–0
John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion 
Spokane, Washington
Nov 28, 1983*
Central Washington W 86–54  2–0
John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion 
Spokane, Washington
Dec 1, 1983*
at Idaho State W 65–63 OT 3–0
Holt Arena 
Pocatello, Idaho
Dec 3, 1983*
at Boise State L 54–72  3–1
BSU Pavilion 
Boise, Idaho
Dec 7, 1983*
Eastern Washington W 86–57  4–1
John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion 
Spokane, Washington
Dec 9, 1983*
at Montana State W 78–68  5–1
Worthington Arena 
Havre, Montana
Dec 12, 1983*
Washington State L 72–73  5–2
Spokane Coliseum 
Spokane, Washington
Dec 17, 1983*
Weber State L 84–94  5–3
John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion 
Spokane, Washington
Dec 27, 1983*
vs. Robert Morris
Far West Classic
W 73–57  6–3
 
Portland, Oregon
Dec 28, 1983*
vs. Oregon
Far West Classic
L 52–72  6–4
 
Portland, Oregon
Dec 29, 1983*
vs. Washington State
Far West Classic
W 71–70 OT 7–4
 
Portland, Oregon
Jan 2, 1984*
at Loyola Marymount L 68–70 OT 7–5
Gersten Pavilion 
Los Angeles, California
Jan 7, 1984*
at Idaho W 59–52  8–5
Cowan Spectrum 
Moscow, Idaho
Jan 10, 1984*
at Eastern Washington W 91–80  9–5
Reese Court 
Cheney, Washington
Jan 13, 1984*
Seattle Pacific W 84–67  10–5
John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion 
Spokane, Washington
WCAC Regular Season
Jan 19, 1984
at San Diego W 60–58  11–5
(1–0)
USD Sports Center 
San Diego, California
Jan 21, 1984
at Saint Mary's L 51–52  11–6
(1–1)
McKeon Pavilion 
Moraga, California
Jan 26, 1984
Pepperdine L 56–57  11–7
(1–2)
John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion 
Spokane, Washington
Jan 28, 1984
Loyola Marymount W 84–66  12–7
(2–2)
John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion 
Spokane, Washington
Feb 2, 1984
at Santa Clara L 55–56  12–8
(2–3)
Leavey Center 
Santa Clara, California
Feb 7, 1984*
Whitworth W 66–57  13–8
John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion 
Spokane, Washington
Feb 11, 1984
Portland W 73–54  14–8
(3–3)
John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion 
Spokane, Washington
Feb 18, 1984
Santa Clara W 73–63  15–8
(4–3)
John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion 
Spokane, Washington
Feb 24, 1984
at Loyola Marymount W 73–70  16–8
(5–3)
Gersten Pavilion 
Los Angeles, California
Feb 25, 1984
at Pepperdine L 62–69  16–9
(5–4)
Firestone Fieldhouse 
Malibu, California
Mar 1, 1984
Saint Mary's L 70–72  16–10
(5–5)
John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion 
Spokane, Washington
Mar 3, 1984
San Diego L 69–71  16–11
(5–6)
John F. Kennedy Memorial Pavilion 
Spokane, Washington
Mar 6, 1984
at Portland W 56–55  17–11
(6–6)
Howard Hall 
Portland, Oregon
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

References edit

  1. ^ a b Hamilton, Linda (June 20, 1984). "The more you see him, the more you like him". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. G6.
  2. ^ a b c Closky, Evan (March 24, 2017). "The tale of Gino: How a redshirt sophomore won the hearts of Gonzaga fans in 1984". KREM-TV. (Spokane, Washington). Retrieved January 14, 2019.
  3. ^ "Zags clip Pilots' wings in WCAC season finale". Spokane Chronicle. (Washington). March 9, 1984. p. 14.
  4. ^ "Pilots lose final game, finish in WCAC cellar". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire service reports. March 9, 1984. p. 4D.
  5. ^ a b "Final college basketball standings". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire services. March 15, 1984. p. 6C.
  6. ^ "1983-84 Gonzaga Bulldogs Roster and Stats - College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.
  7. ^ a b Blanchette, John (December 12, 1983). "New-look GU faces WSU". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 13.
  8. ^ "WSU faces challenge from Gonzaga guards". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). December 12, 1983. p. 1C.
  9. ^ Blanchette, John (December 13, 1983). "Winkler's 12-footer drops GU". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. C1.
  10. ^ "Winkler's shot gives Cougars 73-72 win over Gonzaga". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). December 13, 1983. p. 1B.
  11. ^ Devlin, Vince (December 31, 1983). "Deja vu? Not quite, Zags by 1". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 15.
  12. ^ Sahlberg, Bert (December 31, 1983). "Cougars lose final touch". p. 1C.
  13. ^ a b "Tonight's games: Gonzaga at Idaho". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). January 7, 1984. p. 19.
  14. ^ a b c Devlin, Vince (January 8, 1984). "Ruff gets rough with GU in tough". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. C1.
  15. ^ a b "Zags' McPhee out for season". Spokane Chronicle. (Washington). December 29, 1983. p. 19.
  16. ^ Weaver, Dan (February 20, 1984). "Halftime isn't the only show as Zags bite big into WCAC". Spokane Chronicle. (Washington). p. 13.
  17. ^ Blanchette, John (February 12, 1984). "Zags sprint in second half". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. D2.
  18. ^ Blackwell, Dave (June 19, 1984). "Jazz surprise by taking Stockton". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. D1.
  19. ^ Blackwell, Dave (June 20, 1984). "Stockton pick hailed as Jazz coup". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. G1.
  20. ^ Blanchette, John (June 20, 1984). "Jazz sound out Stockton in first round". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 21.
  21. ^ Cawood, Neil (June 20, 1984). "After Bowie, Blazers take Thompson and who?". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). p. 3C.

External links edit