Weber State Wildcats men's basketball

The Weber State Wildcats men's basketball team is the basketball team representing Weber State University in Ogden, Utah. The program is classified in the NCAA Division I, and is a member of the Big Sky Conference. The team last played in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament in 2016. The Wildcats are currently coached by Eric Duft.

Weber State Wildcats
2023–24 Weber State Wildcats men's basketball team
UniversityWeber State University
First season1962
All-time record1,061–613 (.634)
Head coachEric Duft (2nd season)
ConferenceBig Sky
LocationOgden, Utah
ArenaDee Events Center
(Capacity: 11,592)
NicknameWildcats
ColorsPurple and white[1]
   
Uniforms
Home jersey
Team colours
Home
Away jersey
Team colours
Away
Alternate jersey
Team colours
Alternate
NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen
1969, 1972
NCAA tournament round of 32
1979, 1995, 1999
NCAA tournament appearances
1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2014, 2016
Conference tournament champions
1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2014, 2016
Conference regular season champions
1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2014, 2016

Street & Smith ranked Weber State 51st in its 2005 list of the 100 greatest college basketball programs of all time,[2][3] while Jeff Sagarin placed the program 116th in his 2009 all-time rankings in the ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia.[4]

With a winning percentage of .630, the Wildcats have the 27th highest winning percentage in Division I college basketball through the end of the 2018–19 season.

Season by season records edit

Statistics overview
Season Coach Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Dick Motta (Big Sky) (1962–1968)
1962–63 Dick Motta 22–4
1963–64 Dick Motta 17–8 7–3 2nd
1964–65 Dick Motta 22–3 8–2 1st
1965–66 Dick Motta 20–5 8–2 T–1st
1966–67 Dick Motta 18–7 5–5 T–3rd
1967–68 Dick Motta 21–6 12–3 1st NCAA First Round
Dick Motta: 120–33 (.784) 40–15 (.727)
Phil Johnson (Big Sky) (1968–1971)
1968–69 Phil Johnson 27–3 15–0 1st NCAA West Regionals
1969–70 Phil Johnson 20–7 12–3 1st NCAA First Round
1970–71 Phil Johnson 21–6 12–2 1st NCAA First Round
Phil Johnson: 68–16 (.810) 39–5 (.886)
Gene Visscher (Big Sky) (1971–1975)
1971–72 Gene Visscher 18–11 10–4 1st NCAA West Regionals
1972–73 Gene Visscher 20–7 13–1 1st NCAA First Round
1973–74 Gene Visscher 14–12 8–6 3rd
1974–75 Gene Visscher 5–8 1–2
Gene Visscher: 57–38 (.600) 32–12 (.727)
Neil McCarthy (Big Sky) (1975–1985)
1974–75 Neil McCarthy 6–7 (11–15) 5–6 (6–8) 5th
1975–76 Neil McCarthy 21–11 9–5 T–1st
1976–77 Neil McCarthy 20–8 11–3 2nd
1977–78 Neil McCarthy 19–10 9–5 3rd NCAA 1st Round
1978–79 Neil McCarthy 25–9 10–4 1st NCAA 2nd Round
1979–80 Neil McCarthy 26–3 13–1 1st NCAA 1st Round
1980–81 Neil McCarthy 8–19 5–9 T–5th
1981–82 Neil McCarthy 15–13 6–8 T–4th
1982–83 Neil McCarthy 23–8 10–4 T–1st NCAA 1st Round
1983–84 Neil McCarthy 23–8 12–2 1st NIT 2nd Round
1984–85 Neil McCarthy 20–9 9–5 3rd
Neil McCarthy: 206–105 (.662) 99–52 (.656)
Larry Farmer (Big Sky) (1985–1988)
1985–86 Larry Farmer 18–11 7–7 T–4th
1986–87 Larry Farmer 7–22 4–10 8th
1987–88 Larry Farmer 9–21 6–10 8th
Larry Farmer: 34–54 (.386) 17–27 (.386)
Denny Huston (Big Sky) (1988–1991)
1988–89 Denny Huston 17–11 9–7 5th
1989–90 Denny Huston 14–15 8–8 T–5th
1990–91 Denny Huston 12–16 7–9 T–5th
Denny Huston: 43–42 (.506) 25–24 (.510)
Ron Abegglen (Big Sky) (1991–1999)
1991–92 Ron Abegglen 16–13 10–6 T–3rd
1992–93 Ron Abegglen 20–8 10–4 2nd
1993–94 Ron Abegglen 21–9 11–3 T–1st
1994–95 Ron Abegglen 21–9 11–3 T–1st NCAA Round of 32
1995–96 Ron Abegglen 20–10 10–4 T–2nd
1996–97 Ron Abegglen 15–13 9–7 T–4th
1997–98 Ron Abegglen 14–13 12–4 2nd
1998–99 Ron Abegglen 25–8 13–3 1st NCAA Round of 32
Ron Abegglen: 152–83 (.647) 86–34 (.717)
Joe Cravens (Big Sky) (1999–2006)
1999-00 Joe Cravens 18–10 10–6 T–4th
2000–01 Joe Cravens 15–14 8–8 T–4th
2001–02 Joe Cravens 18–11 8–6 3rd
2002–03 Joe Cravens 26–6 14–0 1st NCAA First Round
2003–04 Joe Cravens 15–14 7–7 2nd
2004–05 Joe Cravens 14–16 7–7 5th
2005–06 Joe Cravens 10–17 4–10 T–7th
Joe Cravens: 116–88 (.569) 58–44 (.569)
Randy Rahe (Big Sky) (2006–2022)
2006–07 Randy Rahe 20–12 11–5 1st NCAA first round
2007–08 Randy Rahe 16–14 10–6 3rd
2008–09 Randy Rahe 21–10 15–1 1st NIT first round
2009–10 Randy Rahe 20–11 13–3 1st NIT first round
2010–11 Randy Rahe 18–14 11–5 3rd CBI first round
2011–12 Randy Rahe 25–7 14–2 2nd CIT second round
2012–13 Randy Rahe 30–7 18–2 2nd CIT Finals
2013–14 Randy Rahe 19–12 14–6 1st NCAA second round
2014–15 Randy Rahe 13–17 8–10 T–7th
2015–16 Randy Rahe 26–9 15–3 1st NCAA first round
2016–17 Randy Rahe 20–14 12–6 T–3rd CIT second round
2017–18 Randy Rahe 20–11 13–5 T–3rd
2018–19 Randy Rahe 18–15 11–9 T–4th
2019–20 Randy Rahe 12–20 8–12 T–8th
2020–21 Randy Rahe 17–6 12–3 T–2nd
2021–22 Randy Rahe 21-12 13-7
Randy Rahe: 312–184 (.629) 195–82 (.704)
Eric Duft (Big Sky) (2022–Present)
2022–23 Eric Duft 7-9 2-1
Eric Duft: 7–9 (.438) 2–1 (.667)
Total: 1,092-649 (.627)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

Updated through January 31, 2022[5]

Postseason edit

NCAA tournament results edit

The Wildcats have appeared in 16 NCAA Tournaments, with a combined record of 6–17. Two of those wins are among the biggest upsets in NCAA Tournament history. In 1995, No. 14-seeded Weber State upset third-seeded Michigan State.

In 1999, led by Harold Arceneaux, the Wildcats, again a No. 14 seed, faced perennial powerhouse North Carolina in the first round in Seattle. North Carolina was making its 25th consecutive NCAA appearance and had been to the Final Four two years in a row. The Wildcats were heavy underdogs against the Tar Heels, but controlled the game, leading for most of the second half. North Carolina had no answer for Arceneaux, who scored from everywhere on the floor and finished with 36 points (20 in the second half). Weber State led by 10 points with 3:59 left in the game, and went on to win 76–74. They were the first team to defeat the Tar Heels in the first round since first-round byes were eliminated in 1985. The Wildcats pushed Florida to overtime in the second round before losing 82–74. These were the deepest tournament runs by a Big Sky team since Idaho advanced to the Sweet 16 in 1982.

Year Seed Round Opponent Result
1968 Round of 23 New Mexico State L 57–68
1969 Round of 25
Sweet Sixteen
Regional third place
Seattle
Santa Clara
New Mexico State
W 75–73
L 59–63OT
W 58–56
1970 Round of 25 Long Beach State L 73–92
1971 Round of 25 Long Beach State L 66–77
1972 Round of 25
Sweet Sixteen
Regional third place
Hawaiʻi
No. 1 UCLA
San Francisco
W 91–64
L 58–90
L 64–74
1973 Round of 25 Long Beach State L 75–88
1978 Round of 32 Arkansas L 52–73
1979 No. 7 MW Round of 40
Round of 32
No. 10 New Mexico State
No. 2 Arkansas
W 81–78OT
L 63–74
1980 No. 7 W Round of 48 No. 10 Lamar L 86–87
1983 No. 9 W Round of 48 No. 8 Washington State L 52–62
1995 No. 14 S Round of 64
Round of 32
No. 3 Michigan State
No. 6 Georgetown
W 79–72
L 51–53
1999 No. 14 W Round of 64
Round of 32
No. 3 North Carolina
No. 6 Florida
W 76–74
L 74–82OT
2003 No. 12 M Round of 64 No. 5 Wisconsin L 74–81
2007 No. 15 W Round of 64 No. 2 UCLA L 42–70
2014 No. 16 W Round of 64 No. 1 Arizona L 59–68
2016 No. 15 E Round of 64 No. 2 Xavier L 53–71

NIT results edit

The Wildcats have appeared in three National Invitation Tournaments (NIT), with a combined record of 1–3.

Year Round Opponent Result
1984 First Round
Second Round
Fordham
Southwestern Louisiana
W 75–63
L 72–74
2009 First Round San Diego State L 49–65
2010 First Round Cincinnati L 62–76

CBI results edit

The Wildcats have appeared in one College Basketball Invitational (CBI) and lost their opening game.

Year Round Opponent Result
2011 First Round Oregon L 59–68

CIT results edit

The Wildcats have appeared in three CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournaments (CIT), with a combined record of 6–3. They advanced to the championship game in 2013.

Year Round Opponent Result
2012 First Round
Second Round
Utah Valley
Loyola Marymount
W 72–69
L 78–84 OT
2013 First Round
Second Round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Championship Game
Cal Poly
Air Force
Oral Roberts
Northern Iowa
East Carolina
W 85–43
W 78–57
W 83–74
W 59–56
L 74–77
2017 First Round
Second Round
Cal State Fullerton
Texas A&M–Corpus Christi
W 80–76
L 73–82

Honors and accolades edit

Retired numbers edit

Number Player Years Year retired
1 Damian Lillard 2008–2012 2017
22 Bruce Collins 1976–1980 2016
35 Willie Sojourner 1968–1971 2015

Weber State players in the NBA/ABA edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Weber Color Palette". Retrieved December 22, 2023.
  2. ^ Weber State Named in Street & Smith's Top-100 Greatest College Basketball Programs of All-Time
  3. ^ 100 Greatest College Basketball Programs of All Time
  4. ^ The ESPN/Sagarin All-Time Rankings
  5. ^ "Weber State Wildcats Index". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2022-02-01.

External links edit