1977–78 NCAA Division I men's basketball season

The 1977–78 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began in November 1977, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1978 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Championship Game on March 27, 1978, at The Checkerdome in St. Louis, Missouri. The Kentucky Wildcats won their fifth NCAA national championship with a 94–88 victory over the Duke Blue Devils.

1977–78 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
Preseason AP No. 1	North Carolina Tar Heels[1][2]
NCAA Tournament	1978
Tournament dates	March 11 – 27, 1978
National Championship	The Checkerdome St. Louis, Missouri
NCAA Champions	Kentucky Wildcats
Helms National Champions	Kentucky Wildcats
Other champions	Texas Longhorns (NIT)
Player of the Year (Naismith, Wooden)	Butch Lee, Marquette (Naismith) Phil Ford, North Carolina (Wooden)
Player of the Year (Helms)	Jack Givens, Kentucky
← 1976–77 1978–79 →

Season headlines

• On December 13, 1977, the University of Evansville's first season of NCAA Division I men's basketball came to a tragic and premature end when Air Indiana Flight 216 crashed just after takeoff from Evansville Regional Airport in Evansville, Indiana, killing all 29 people on board, including Evansville Purple Aces head coach Bobby Watson and all but one member of the team, which was on its way to Murfreesboro, Tennessee, for a game against Middle Tennessee. The only surviving member of the team, 18-year-old freshman David Furr, was not on the plane because he was out for the season with an ankle injury, but Furr and his younger brother died in an automobile accident two weeks after the plane crash. With its entire 1977–78 men's basketball team dead after Furr's accident, the university decided to cancel the rest of the season rather than attempt to continue it with a substitute team.^{[3][4][5][6][7][8]}
• In the Pacific 8 Conference, UCLA won its 12th of what would ultimately be 13 consecutive conference titles.
• For the first time, the NCAA used a seeding process to align teams in the NCAA tournament brackets.^[9]
• Bob Bender of Duke becomes the first player to play in the NCAA championship game for two different teams. He had played for Indiana in the 1976 championship game.^[9]

Season outlook

Pre-season polls

Main article: 1977–78 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

The top 20 from the AP Poll during the pre-season.^[10]

'Associated Press' Ranking Team 1 North Carolina 2 Kentucky 3 Marquette 4 Notre Dame 5 San Francisco 6 UCLA 7 Arkansas 8 UNLV 9 Cincinnati 10 Louisville 11 Syracuse 12 Purdue 13 Michigan 14 Maryland 15 Alabama 16 Minnesota 17 Wake Forest 18 Holy Cross 19 Detroit 20 St. John's

UPI Coaches Ranking Team 1 (tie) Kentucky North Carolina 3 Marquette 4 Notre Dame 5 San Francisco 6 UCLA 7 Purdue 8 Cincinnati 9 Arkansas 10 Louisville 11 Orange 12 Michigan 13 Maryland 14 (tie) Indiana State St. John's Utah Wake Forest 18 Kansas State 19 Alabama 20 Holy Cross

Conference membership changes

School	Former conference	New conference
UC Irvine Anteaters	Division II independent	Pacific Coast Athletic Association
William and Mary Tribe	Southern Conference	Division I independent

Regular season

Conferences

Conference winners and tournaments

The Southwestern Athletic Conference — with members Alcorn State, Grambling State, Jackson State, Mississippi Valley State, Prairie View A&M, Southern, and Texas Southern — became a Division I conference this season.^[11]

Conference	Regular season winner[12]	Conference player of the year	Conference tournament	Tournament venue (City)	Tournament winner
Atlantic Coast Conference	North Carolina	Phil Ford, North Carolina[13]	1978 ACC men's basketball tournament	Greensboro Coliseum (Greensboro, North Carolina)	Duke
Big Eight Conference	Kansas	Mike Evans, Kansas State[14]	1978 Big Eight Conference men's basketball tournament	Kemper Arena (Kansas City, Missouri) (Semifinals and Finals)	Missouri
Big Sky Conference	Montana	None selected	1978 Big Sky Conference men's basketball tournament	Adams Field House (Missoula, Montana)	Weber State
Big Ten Conference	Michigan State	None Selected	No Tournament
East Coast Conference	La Salle (East) Lafayette (West)	Michael Brooks, La Salle	1978 East Coast Conference men's basketball tournament	Kirby Sports Center (Easton, Pennsylvania)	La Salle
Eastern Athletic Association (Eastern 8)	Rutgers & Villanova	James Bailey, Rutgers	1978 Eastern 8 men's basketball tournament	Civic Arena (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)	Villanova
Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC)	Division I ECAC members played as independents during the regular season (see note)		1978 ECAC Metro Region tournament	Nassau Coliseum (Uniondale, New York)	St. John's
			1978 ECAC New England Region tournament	Providence Civic Center (Providence, Rhode Island)	Rhode Island
			1978 ECAC South-Upstate Region tournament	War Memorial Auditorium (Rochester, New York) (Finals)	St. Bonaventure
Ivy League	Penn	Keven McDonald, Penn[15]	No Tournament
Metro Conference	Florida State	Harry Davis, Florida State, & Rick Wilson, Louisville	1978 Metro Conference men's basketball tournament	Riverfront Coliseum (Cincinnati, Ohio)	Louisville
Mid-American Conference	Miami (OH)	Archie Aldridge, Miami (OH)[16]	No Tournament
Missouri Valley Conference	Creighton	Larry Bird, Indiana State	1978 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball tournament	Omaha Civic Auditorium (Omaha, Nebraska)	Creighton
Ohio Valley Conference	East Tennessee State & Middle Tennessee	Otis Howard, Austin Peay	1978 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball tournament	E.A. Diddle Arena (Bowling Green, Kentucky) (Semifinals and Finals)	Western Kentucky
Pacific-8 Conference	UCLA	David Greenwood, UCLA Bruins men's basketball<	No Tournament
Pacific Coast Athletic Association	Fresno State & San Diego State	Joel Kramer, San Diego State	1978 Pacific Coast Athletic Association men's basketball tournament	Anaheim Convention Center (Anaheim, California)	Cal State Fullerton
Southeastern Conference	Kentucky	Reggie King, Alabama[17]	No Tournament
Southern Conference	Appalachian State	Ron Carter, VMI[18]	1978 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament	Roanoke Civic Center (Roanoke, Virginia) (Semifinals and Finals)	Furman[19]
Southland Conference	Lamar & McNeese State	Andrew Toney, Southwest Louisiana[20]	No Tournament
Southwest Conference	Arkansas & Texas	Ron Brewer, Arkansas	1978 Southwest Conference men's basketball tournament	The Summit (Houston, Texas)	Houston
Southwestern Athletic Conference	Jackson State & Southern	Purvis Short, Jackson State[21]	1978 SWAC men's basketball tournament		Jackson State
Sun Belt Conference	UNC Charlotte	Wayne Cooper, New Orleans[22]	1978 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball tournament	Charlotte Coliseum (Charlotte, North Carolina) (Semifinals and Finals)	New Orleans
West Coast Athletic Conference	San Francisco	Bill Cartwright, San Francisco	No Tournament
Western Athletic Conference	New Mexico	None Selected	No Tournament

NOTE: From 1975 to 1981, the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC), a loosely organized sports federation of colleges and universities in the Northeastern United States, organized Division I ECAC regional tournaments for those of its members that were independents in basketball. Each 1978 tournament winner received an automatic bid to the 1978 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament in the same way that the tournament champions of conventional athletic conferences did.^[23]

Conference standings

1977–78 ACC men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 16 North Carolina 9 – 3   .750 23 – 8   .742 No. 7 Duke † 8 – 4   .667 27 – 7   .794 NC State 7 – 5   .583 21 – 10   .677 Virginia 6 – 6   .500 20 – 8   .714 Wake Forest 6 – 6   .500 19 – 10   .655 Maryland 3 – 9   .250 15 – 13   .536 Clemson 3 – 9   .250 15 – 12   .556 † 1978 ACC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll[24]	1977–78 Big Eight Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 10 Kansas 13 – 1   .929 24 – 5   .828 Iowa State 9 – 5   .643 14 – 13   .519 Nebraska 9 – 5   .643 22 – 8   .733 Kansas State 7 – 7   .500 18 – 11   .621 Oklahoma 7 – 7   .500 14 – 13   .519 Oklahoma State 4 – 10   .286 10 – 16   .385 Missouri † 4 – 10   .286 14 – 16   .467 Colorado 3 – 11   .214 9 – 18   .333 † 1978 Big Eight tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll[25]	1977–78 Big Sky men's basketball standings v t e 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 † Big Sky Conference tournament winner
1977–78 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 4 Michigan State 15 – 3   .833 25 – 5   .833 No. 13 Indiana 12 – 6   .667 21 – 8   .724 Minnesota 12 – 6   .667 17 – 10   .630 Michigan 11 – 7   .611 16 – 11   .593 Purdue 11 – 7   .611 16 – 11   .593 Ohio State 9 – 9   .500 16 – 11   .593 Illinois 7 – 11   .389 13 – 14   .481 Iowa 5 – 13   .278 12 – 15   .444 Northwestern 4 – 14   .222 8 – 19   .296 Wisconsin 4 – 14   .222 8 – 19   .296 Rankings from AP Poll	1977–78 ECC men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT East La Salle † 5 – 0   1.000 18 – 12   .600 Temple 4 – 1   .800 24 – 4   .857 American 2 – 3   .400 16 – 12   .571 Drexel 2 – 3   .400 13 – 15   .464 Saint Joseph's 2 – 3   .400 13 – 15   .464 Hofstra 0 – 5   .000 8 – 19   .296 West Lafayette 10 – 0   1.000 23 – 8   .742 Delaware 5 – 5   .500 16 – 11   .593 Bucknell 5 – 5   .500 13 – 15   .464 Lehigh 5 – 5   .500 8 – 18   .308 Rider 4 – 6   .400 11 – 16   .407 West Chester 2 – 8   .200 6 – 19   .240 † 1978 ECC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll	1977–78 Eastern 8 men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT East Rutgers 7 – 3   .700 24 – 7   .774 Villanova † 7 – 3   .700 23 – 9   .719 Pittsburgh 5 – 5   .500 16 – 11   .593 UMass 5 – 5   .500 15 – 12   .556 West Duquesne 5 – 5   .500 11 – 17   .393 George Washington 4 – 6   .400 15 – 11   .577 Penn State 4 – 6   .400 8 – 19   .296 West Virginia 3 – 7   .300 12 – 16   .429 † 1978 Eastern 8 Tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll
1977–78 Ivy League men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 20 Penn 12 – 2   .857 20 – 8   .714 Princeton 11 – 3   .786 17 – 9   .654 Columbia 11 – 3   .786 15 – 11   .577 Harvard 7 – 7   .500 11 – 15   .423 Dartmouth 5 – 9   .357 10 – 16   .385 Cornell 5 – 9   .357 9 – 17   .346 Yale 3 – 11   .214 8 – 16   .333 Brown 2 – 12   .143 4 – 22   .154 Rankings from AP Poll[26]	1977–78 Metro Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 15 Florida State 12 – 1   .923 23 – 6   .793 No. 9 Louisville † 9 – 3   .750 23 – 7   .767 Memphis State 7 – 5   .583 19 – 9   .679 Cincinnati 6 – 6   .500 17 – 10   .630 Georgia Tech 6 – 6   .500 15 – 12   .556 Saint Louis 2 – 10   .167 7 – 20   .259 Tulane 1 – 12   .077 5 – 22   .185 † 1978 Metro Conference tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll[27]	1977–78 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 19 Miami (Ohio) 12 – 4   .750 19 – 9   .679 Toledo 11 – 5   .688 21 – 6   .778 Central Michigan 11 – 5   .688 16 – 10   .615 Bowling Green State 10 – 6   .625 12 – 15   .444 Northern Illinois 9 – 7   .563 11 – 16   .407 Eastern Michigan 7 – 9   .438 11 – 16   .407 Ohio 6 – 10   .375 13 – 14   .481 Ball State 6 – 10   .375 10 – 15   .400 Western Michigan 4 – 12   .250 7 – 20   .259 Kent State 4 – 12   .250 6 – 21   .222 Rankings from AP Poll
1977–78 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Creighton † 12 – 4   .750 19 – 9   .679 Southern Illinois 11 – 5   .688 17 – 10   .630 Indiana State 11 – 5   .688 23 – 9   .719 New Mexico State 9 – 7   .563 15 – 14   .517 Bradley 8 – 8   .500 14 – 14   .500 Wichita State 8 – 8   .500 13 – 14   .481 Tulsa 7 – 9   .438 9 – 18   .333 West Texas State 4 – 12   .250 8 – 19   .296 Drake 2 – 14   .125 6 – 22   .214 † 1978 MVC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll	1977–78 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Middle Tennessee 10 – 4   .714 18 – 8   .692 East Tennessee State 10 – 4   .714 18 – 9   .667 Western Kentucky† 9 – 5   .643 16 – 14   .533 Austin Peay State 8 – 6   .571 15 – 12   .556 Eastern Kentucky 8 – 6   .571 15 – 11   .577 Tennessee Tech 7 – 7   .500 11 – 15   .423 Murray State 4 – 10   .286 8 – 17   .320 Morehead State 0 – 14   .000 4 – 19   .174 † 1978 OVC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll	1977–78 Pacific-8 Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 2 UCLA 14 – 0   1.000 25 – 3   .893 Oregon State 9 – 5   .643 16 – 11   .593 Washington State 7 – 7   .500 16 – 11   .593 USC 7 – 7   .500 14 – 13   .519 Oregon 6 – 8   .429 16 – 11   .593 Washington 6 – 8   .429 14 – 13   .519 California 4 – 10   .286 11 – 16   .407 Stanford 3 – 11   .214 13 – 14   .481 Rankings from AP Poll[28]
1977–78 Pacific Coast Athletic Association men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Fresno State 11 – 3   .786 21 – 6   .778 San Diego State 11 – 3   .786 19 – 9   .679 Cal State Fullerton † 9 – 5   .643 23 – 9   .719 Pacific 9 – 5   .643 17 – 10   .630 Long Beach State 7 – 7   .500 16 – 13   .552 San Jose State 4 – 10   .286 8 – 19   .296 UC Santa Barbara 3 – 11   .214 8 – 19   .296 UC Irvine 2 – 12   .143 8 – 17   .320 † 1978 PCAA tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll[29]	1977–78 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 1 Kentucky 16 – 2   .889 30 – 2   .938 Mississippi State 13 – 5   .722 18 – 9   .667 LSU 12 – 6   .667 18 – 9   .667 Alabama 11 – 7   .611 17 – 10   .630 Florida 8 – 10   .444 15 – 12   .556 Auburn 8 – 10   .444 13 – 14   .481 Tennessee 6 – 12   .333 11 – 16   .407 Vanderbilt 6 – 12   .333 10 – 17   .370 Georgia 5 – 13   .278 11 – 16   .407 Ole Miss 5 – 13   .278 10 – 17   .370 Rankings from AP Poll[30]	1977–78 Southern Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Appalachian State 9 – 3   .750 15 – 13   .536 VMI 7 – 3   .700 21 – 7   .750 Marshall 8 – 5   .615 14 – 15   .483 Furman † 7 – 5   .583 19 – 11   .633 Chattanooga 7 – 5   .583 16 – 11   .593 Western Carolina 4 – 8   .333 7 – 19   .269 Davidson 3 – 7   .300 9 – 18   .333 The Citadel 2 – 11   .154 8 – 19   .296 † 1978 Southern Conference tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll
1977–78 Southland Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT McNeese State 8 – 2   .800 20 – 8   .714 Lamar 8 – 2   .800 18 – 9   .667 Southwestern Louisiana 7 – 3   .700 19 – 8   .704 Texas-Arlington 3 – 7   .300 10 – 17   .370 Arkansas State 2 – 8   .200 9 – 18   .333 Louisiana Tech 2 – 8   .200 6 – 21   .222 Rankings from AP Poll[31]	1977–78 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 5 Arkansas 14 – 2   .875 32 – 4   .889 No. 17 Texas 14 – 2   .875 26 – 5   .839 Houston † 11 – 5   .688 25 – 8   .758 Texas Tech 10 – 6   .625 19 – 10   .655 Baylor 8 – 8   .500 14 – 13   .519 SMU 6 – 10   .375 10 – 18   .357 Texas A&M 5 – 11   .313 12 – 15   .444 Rice 2 – 14   .125 4 – 22   .154 TCU 2 – 14   .125 4 – 22   .154 † 1978 SWC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll	1977–78 SWAC men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Southern 9 – 3   .750 23 – 5   .821 Jackson State 9 – 3   .750 21 – 5   .808 Alcorn State 8 – 4   .667 22 – 7   .759 Texas Southern 7 – 5   .583 16 – 10   .615 Grambling State 3 – 9   .250 10 – 14   .417 Prairie View† –   – 14 – 13   .519 Mississippi Valley State†* –   – 15 – 20   .429 † – Played as non-Division I program. * – Overall record adjusted to 16–19. Rankings from AP Poll
1977–78 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT UNC Charlotte 9 – 1   .900 20 – 7   .741 New Orleans † 8 – 2   .800 21 – 6   .778 Jacksonville 6 – 4   .600 14 – 14   .500 South Alabama 3 – 7   .300 18 – 10   .643 South Florida 2 – 8   .200 13 – 14   .481 Georgia State 2 – 8   .200 5 – 21   .192 † 1978 Sun Belt Conference tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll	1977–78 West Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 11 San Francisco 12 – 2   .857 23 – 6   .793 Nevada 10 – 4   .714 19 – 8   .704 Portland 9 – 6   .600 19 – 8   .704 Santa Clara 9 – 6   .600 21 – 8   .724 Seattle 6 – 8   .429 11 – 16   .407 Saint Mary's 5 – 9   .357 13 – 14   .481 Loyola Marymount 4 – 11   .267 11 – 15   .423 Pepperdine 3 – 12   .200 7 – 19   .269 Rankings from AP Poll	1977–78 WAC men's basketball standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 12 New Mexico 13 – 1   .929 24 – 4   .857 No. 14 Utah 12 – 2   .857 23 – 6   .793 Colorado State 8 – 6   .571 18 – 9   .667 Arizona 7 – 8   .467 15 – 11   .577 BYU 6 – 8   .429 12 – 18   .400 Arizona State 6 – 9   .400 13 – 14   .481 Wyoming 3 – 11   .214 12 – 15   .444 UTEP 2 – 12   .143 10 – 16   .385 Rankings from AP Poll[32]

Division I independents

A total of 78 college teams played as Division I independents. Among them, DePaul (27–3) had both the best winning percentage (.900) and the most wins.^[33][34]

1977–78 NCAA Division I men's basketball independents standings v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 3 DePaul –   – 27 – 3   .900 No. 18 Detroit –   – 25 – 4   .862 Illinois State –   – 24 – 4   .857 No. 8 Marquette –   – 24 – 4   .857 Pan American –   – 22 – 4   .846 VCU –   – 24 – 5   .828 Fairfield –   – 22 – 5   .815 North Texas State –   – 22 – 6   .786 Syracuse –   – 22 – 6   .786 Rhode Island –   – 24 – 7   .774 Providence –   – 24 – 8   .750 St. John's –   – 21 – 7   .750 Utah State –   – 21 – 7   .750 Georgetown –   – 23 – 8   .742 No. 6 Notre Dame –   – 23 – 8   .742 Holy Cross –   – 20 – 7   .741 Northeast Louisiana –   – 20 – 7   .741 UNC Wilmington –   – 19 – 7   .731 St. Bonaventure –   – 21 – 8   .724 UNLV –   – 20 – 8   .714 Virginia Tech –   – 19 – 8   .704 James Madison –   – 18 – 8   .692 Maine –   – 17 – 8   .680 Army –   – 19 – 9   .679 Dayton –   – 19 – 10   .655 St. Francis (NY) –   – 16 – 9   .640 Iona –   – 17 – 10   .630 William & Mary –   – 16 – 10   .615 Air Force –   – 15 – 10   .600 Loyola (IL) –   – 16 – 11   .593 Mercer –   – 16 – 11   .593 Oklahoma City –   – 16 – 11   .593 Seton Hall –   – 16 – 11   .593 Boston College –   – 15 – 11   .577 Butler –   – 15 – 11   .577 Saint Francis (PA) –   – 15 – 11   .577 South Carolina –   – 16 – 12   .571 Siena –   – 13 – 10   .565 Navy –   – 14 – 11   .560 Milwaukee –   – 15 – 12   .556 Niagara –   – 14 – 12   .538 Northeastern –   – 14 – 12   .538 Southern Mississippi –   – 13 – 12   .520 Portland State –   – 14 – 13   .519 Stetson –   – 14 – 13   .519 Oral Roberts –   – 13 – 14   .481 Xavier –   – 13 – 14   .481 Cleveland State –   – 12 – 13   .480 Tennessee State –   – 11 – 12   .478 Catholic –   – 12 – 14   .462 Manhattan –   – 12 – 14   .462 Georgia Southern –   – 12 – 15   .444 Northwestern State –   – 12 – 15   .444 Connecticut –   – 11 – 15   .423 Old Dominion –   – 11 – 15   .423 Vermont –   – 11 – 15   .423 Boston University –   – 10 – 15   .400 Hardin–Simmons –   – 10 – 16   .385 Campbell –   – 9 – 15   .375 Centenary (LA) –   – 10 – 17   .370 Denver –   – 10 – 17   .370 Colgate –   – 9 – 17   .346 East Carolina –   – 9 – 17   .346 Fordham –   – 8 – 18   .308 Long Island –   – 8 – 18   .308 Saint Peter's –   – 8 – 18   .308 Baptist –   – 8 – 19   .296 Samford –   – 8 – 19   .296 Canisius –   – 7 – 19   .269 Houston Baptist –   – 7 – 19   .269 New Hampshire –   – 7 – 19   .269 Wagner –   – 7 – 19   .269 Evansville –   – 1 – 3   .250 Fairleigh Dickinson –   – 6 – 18   .250 Valparaiso –   – 6 – 19   .240 Robert Morris –   – 4 – 19   .174 Richmond –   – 4 – 22   .154 Hawaii –   – 1 – 26   .037 Rankings from AP Poll

Informal championships

Conference	Regular season winner	Most Valuable Player
New Jersey-New York 7 Conference	Rutgers	None selected

Rutgers finished with a 6–1 record in head-to-head competition among members of the New Jersey-New York 7 Conference.

Conference	Regular season winner	Most Valuable Player
Philadelphia Big 5	Temple & Villanova	Michael Brooks, La Salle

Temple and Villanova both finished with 3–1 records in head-to-head competition among the Philadelphia Big 5.

Statistical leaders

Points per game				Rebounds per game				Field goal percentage				Free throw percentage
Player	School	PPG		Player	School	RPG		Player	School	FG%		Player	School	FT%
Freeman Williams	Portland St.	35.9		Ken Williams	N. Texas St.	14.7		Joe Senser	West Chester St.	68.5		Bunny Gibson	Marshall	94.4
Larry Bird	Indiana St.	30.0		Henry Taylor	Pan American	14.2		Mike O'Koren	N. Carolina	64.3		Mark Tucker	Oklahoma St.	91.2
Purvis Short	Jackson St.	29.5		Dean Uthoff	Iowa St.	14.0		Pat Cummings	Cincinnati	64.2		Anthony Williams	Jacksonville	90.9
Oliver Mack	E. Carolina	28.0		Reggie King	Alabama	13.3		Rick Robey	Kentucky	63.5		Brian Appel	Hofstra	90.5
Roger Phegley	Bradley	27.6		Calvin Natt	NE Louisiana	13.2		Mel Daniels	Stetson	63.4		Ron Perry	Holy Cross	90.0

Post-season tournaments

NCAA tournament

Main articles: 1978 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament and 1978 NCAA Division I Basketball Championship Game

Final Four

	National semifinals					National finals
	E1	Duke	90
	MW2	Notre Dame	86
						E1	Duke	88
						ME2	Kentucky	94
	ME2	Kentucky	64
	W2	Arkansas	59			Third place
						MW2	Notre Dame	69
						W2	Arkansas	71

National Invitation tournament

Main article: 1978 National Invitation Tournament

Semifinals & finals

	Semifinals				Finals
	Georgetown	85
	NC State	86
					NC State	93
					Texas	101
	Texas	96
	Rutgers	76			Third place
					Georgetown	72
					Rutgers	85

Awards

Consensus All-American teams

Main article: 1978 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans

Consensus First Team

Player	Position	Class	Team
Butch Lee	G	Senior	Marquette
David Greenwood	F	Junior	UCLA
Larry Bird	F	Senior	Indiana State
Mychal Thompson	C	Senior	Minnesota
Phil Ford	G	Senior	North Carolina

Consensus Second Team

Player	Position	Class	Team
Ron Brewer	G	Senior	Arkansas
Jack Givens	G/F	Senior	Kentucky
Rod Griffin	G	Senior	Wake Forest
Rick Robey	F/C	Senior	Kentucky
Freeman Williams	G	Senior	Portland State

Major player of the year awards

• Wooden Award: Phil Ford, North Carolina
• Naismith Award: Butch Lee, Marquette
• Helms Player of the Year: Jack Givens, Kentucky
• Associated Press Player of the Year: Butch Lee, Marquette
• UPI Player of the Year: Butch Lee, Marquette
• NABC Player of the Year: Phil Ford, North Carolina
• Oscar Robertson Trophy (USBWA): Phil Ford, North Carolina
• Adolph Rupp Trophy: Butch Lee, Marquette
• Sporting News Player of the Year: Phil Ford, North Carolina

Major coach of the year awards

• Associated Press Coach of the Year: Eddie Sutton, Arkansas
• Henry Iba Award (USBWA): Ray Meyer, DePaul
• NABC Coach of the Year: Bill Foster, Duke & Abe Lemons, Texas
• UPI Coach of the Year: Eddie Sutton, Arkansas
• Sporting News Coach of the Year: Bill Foster, Duke

Other major awards

• Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award (Best player under 6'0): Mike Scheib, Susquehanna
• Robert V. Geasey Trophy (Top player in Philadelphia Big 5): Michael Brooks, La Salle
• NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in New York City metro area): George Johnson, St. John's

Coaching changes

A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.

Team	Former Coach	Interim Coach	New Coach	Reason
Auburn	Bob Davis		Sonny Smith
East Tennessee State	Sonny Smith		Jim Halihan
Indiana State	Bob King		Bill Hodges
Kent State	Rex Hughes	Mike Boyd	Ed Douma
Long Beach State	Dwight Jones		Tex Winter
Mississippi State	Ron Greene		Jim Hatfield
Northwestern	Tex Winter		Rich Falk
Saint Louis	Ron Coleman		Ron Ekker
Southwestern Louisiana	Jim Hatfield		Bobby Paschal
Western Kentucky	Jim Richards		Gene Keady
West Texas A&M	Ron Ekker		Ken Edwards

References

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2. "1978 Preseason AP Men's Basketball Poll". College Poll Archive. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
3. "ASN Aircraft accident Douglas C-53 (DC-3) N51071 Evansville-Dress Regional Airport, IN (EVV)". Aviation-safety.net. December 13, 1977. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
4. "Team plane crashes in flames". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 14, 1977. p. 1.
5. "Air crash ends Evansville's dreams". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire service reports. December 14, 1977. p. 1D.
6. "UE Plane Crash". October 9, 2023.
7. Johnson, Dave (December 15, 1977). "Evansville Fans, Community Took Watson to Heart". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
8. "Last Evansville player dies in auto accident". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. (Florida). UPI. December 29, 1977. p. 1E.
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10. • ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
11. Coaches Database: SWAC regular-season champions Accessed April 1, 2021
12. "2009 NCAA Men's Basketball Record Book – Conferences Section" (PDF). NCAA. 2009. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
13. 2008–09 ACC Men's Basketball Media Guide – Year by Year section Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2009-02-14
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15. Men's Ivy League Outstanding performers Archived 2008-04-29 at the Wayback Machine, Ivy League, retrieved 2009-02-01
16. 2008–09 MAC Men's Basketball Media Guide – Records Section, Mid-American Conference, retrieved 2009-02-14
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23. Varsity Pride: ECAC Men's Basketball Tournaments
24. sports-reference.com 1977-78 Atlantic Coast Conference Season Summary
25. sports-reference.com 1977-78 Big Eight Conference Season Summary
26. "1977–78 Ivy League Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
27. sports-reference.com 1977-78 Metropolitan Collegiate Athletic Conference Season Summary
28. "2017-18 Men's Basketball Media Guide". Pac-12 Conference. p. 72. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
29. "1978-78 Pacific Coast Athletic Association Season Summary". Retrieved July 10, 2017.
30. sports-reference.com 1977-78 Southeastern Conference Season Summary
31. "1977-78 Men's Southland Conference Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
32. sports-reference.com 1977-78 Western Athletic Conference Season Summary
33. "1977-78 Men's Independent Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
34. "1977-78 Men's New Jersey-New York 7 Conference Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2024.