1973–74 Idaho State Bengals men's basketball team
The 1973–74 Idaho State Bengals men's basketball team represented Idaho State University during the 1973–74 NCAA Division I men's basketball season.
| 1973–74 Idaho State Bengals men's basketball | |
|---|---|
Big Sky Champions | |
| Conference | Big Sky Conference |
| Record | 20–8 (11–3 Big Sky) |
| Head coach |
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| Home arena | ISU Minidome |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Idaho State † | 11 | – | 3 | .786 | 20 | – | 8 | .714 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Montana | 11 | – | 3 | .786 | 19 | – | 8 | .704 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weber State | 8 | – | 6 | .571 | 14 | – | 12 | .538 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gonzaga | 7 | – | 7 | .500 | 13 | – | 13 | .500 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boise State | 6 | – | 8 | .429 | 12 | – | 14 | .462 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Idaho | 5 | – | 9 | .357 | 12 | – | 14 | .462 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Montana State | 5 | – | 9 | .357 | 11 | – | 15 | .423 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northern Arizona | 3 | – | 11 | .214 | 3 | – | 18 | .143 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † One-game playoff winner | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Bengals were led by third-year head coach Jim Killingsworth and played their home games on campus at the ISU Minidome in Pocatello. They finished the regular season at 19–7 overall, with a 11–3 record in the Big Sky Conference, as did the Montana Grizzlies, and the teams split their season series.
With two years until the conference tournament was introduced, the Big Sky title was decided with an unscheduled one-game playoff at Missoula on Tuesday night. Before a record crowd at Dahlberg Arena, the visiting Bengals won 60–57 and advanced to the 25-team NCAA tournament, their first appearance in fourteen years.
ISU hosted the first round (subregional) of the West regional, and met #17 New Mexico (20–6) in the nightcap on Saturday night. The visiting Lobos, WAC champions, won by eight to end the Bengals' season at 20–8.
Senior forward Jim Anderson was named to the all-conference team; senior center Dan Spindler and junior guard Kevin Hoyt were honorable mention.
Idaho State returned to the NCAA tournament three years later and advanced to the Elite Eight, which remains the best-ever showing for a Big Sky team.