1977–78 Weber State Wildcats men's basketball team
The 1977–78 Weber State Wildcats men's basketball team represented Weber State College during the 1977–78 NCAA Division I basketball season. Members of the Big Sky Conference, the Wildcats were led by third-year head coach Neil McCarthy and played their home games on campus at the new Dee Events Center in Ogden, Utah. They were 17–9 overall in the regular season and 9–5 in conference play.
| 1977–78 Weber State Wildcats men's basketball | |
|---|---|
Big Sky tournament champions | |
| Conference | Big Sky Conference |
| Record | 19–10 (9–5 Big Sky) |
| Head coach |
|
| Home arena | Dee Events Center |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Montana | 12 | – | 2 | .857 | 20 | – | 8 | .714 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Idaho State | 11 | – | 3 | .786 | 16 | – | 10 | .615 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weber State † | 9 | – | 5 | .643 | 19 | – | 10 | .655 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boise State | 8 | – | 6 | .571 | 13 | – | 14 | .481 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gonzaga | 7 | – | 7 | .500 | 14 | – | 15 | .483 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northern Arizona | 5 | – | 9 | .357 | 11 | – | 14 | .440 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Montana State | 3 | – | 11 | .214 | 9 | – | 17 | .346 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Idaho | 1 | – | 13 | .071 | 4 | – | 22 | .154 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † Conference tournament winner | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weber State was third in the regular season standings and qualified for the four-team conference tournament, hosted by regular season champion Montana in Missoula. The Wildcats defeated defending champion Idaho State in the semifinal, then upset the host in the final in overtime.
Weber State appeared in the first five finals of the conference tournament; this was the first of three consecutive titles.
The Wildcats received the Big Sky's automatic bid to the 32-team NCAA tournament, but lost in the first round to seventh-ranked Arkansas in Eugene, Oregon; Arkansas ultimately advanced to the Final Four. It was Weber State's first NCAA appearance in five years, since they went to six consecutive (1968–1973).
Sophomore guard Bruce Collins was named to the all-conference team; forward David Johnson and center Richard Smith, also sophomores, were honorable mention.