1997–98 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
Basketball season
The 1997–98 NCAA Division I men's basketball season concluded in the 64-team 1998 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament whose finals were held at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. The Kentucky Wildcats earned their seventh national championship by defeating the Utah Utes 78–69 on March 30, 1998. They were coached by Tubby Smith and the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player was Kentucky's Jeff Shepherd.
In the 32-team 1998 National Invitation Tournament, the Minnesota Golden Gophers defeated the Penn State Nittany Lions at the Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Following the season, the 1998 NCAA Men's Basketball All-American Consensus First team included Mike Bibby, Antawn Jamison, Raef LaFrentz, Paul Pierce, and Miles Simon. The consensus second team was composed of Vince Carter, Mateen Cleaves, Pat Garrity, Richard Hamilton, and Ansu Sesay.
Season headlines
Pre-season polls
The top 25 from the pre-season AP Poll.
Conference membership changes
These schools joined new conferences for the 1997–98 season.
Regular season
Conference winners and tournaments
28 conference seasons concluded with a single-elimination tournament, with only the Ivy League and the Pac-10 choosing not to conduct conference tournaments. Conference tournament winners generally received an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament .
Conference
Regular season winner[1]
Conference player of the year
Conference tournament
Tournament venue (City)
Tournament winner
America East Conference
Delaware
Speedy Claxton , Hofstra [2]
1998 America East men's basketball tournament
Bob Carpenter Center (Newark, Delaware )
Delaware [3]
Atlantic 10 Conference
Temple (East)Xavier (West)
Cuttino Mobley , Rhode Island [4]
1998 Atlantic 10 men's basketball tournament
The Spectrum (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania )
Xavier [5]
Atlantic Coast Conference
Duke
Antawn Jamison , North Carolina [6]
1998 ACC men's basketball tournament
Greensboro Coliseum (Greensboro, North Carolina )
North Carolina [7]
Big 12 Conference
Kansas
Raef LaFrentz , Kansas [8]
1998 Big 12 men's basketball tournament
Kemper Arena (Kansas City, Missouri )
Kansas [9]
Big East Conference
Connecticut (Big East 6)Syracuse (Big East 7)
Richard Hamilton , Connecticut [10]
1998 Big East men's basketball tournament
Madison Square Garden (New York City, New York )
Connecticut [10]
Big Sky Conference
Northern Arizona
Andrew Mavis , Northern Arizona [11]
1998 Big Sky Conference men's basketball tournament
Dee Events Center (Ogden, Utah )
Northern Arizona [11]
Big South Conference
UNC Asheville
Josh Pittman , UNC Asheville [12]
1998 Big South Conference men's basketball tournament
Vines Center (Lynchburg, Virginia )
Radford [12]
Big Ten Conference
Michigan State
Mateen Cleaves , Michigan State [13]
1998 Big Ten Conference men's basketball tournament
United Center (Chicago, Illinois )
Michigan [13]
Big West Conference
Pacific (Eastern)Utah State (Western)
Michael Olowokandi , Pacific [14]
1998 Big West Conference men's basketball tournament
Lawlor Events Center (Reno, Nevada )
Utah State [14]
Colonial Athletic Association
William & Mary
Jarod Stevenson , Richmond [15]
1998 CAA men's basketball tournament
Richmond Coliseum (Richmond, Virginia )
Richmond [15]
Conference USA
Cincinnati (American)Memphis (National)
DeMarco Johnson , Charlotte [16]
1998 Conference USA men's basketball tournament
Shoemaker Center (Cincinnati, Ohio )
Cincinnati [16]
Ivy League
Princeton
Steve Goodrich , Princeton [17]
No Tournament
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
Iona
Kashif Hameed , Iona [18]
1998 MAAC men's basketball tournament
Pepsi Arena (Buffalo, New York )
Iona [19]
Mid-American Conference
Akron (East)Ball State (West)
Bonzi Wells , Ball State [20]
1998 MAC men's basketball tournament
SeaGate Convention Centre (Toledo, Ohio )
Eastern Michigan [20]
Mid-Continent Conference
Valparaiso
Bryce Drew , Valparaiso [21]
1998 Mid-Continent Conference men's basketball tournament
The MARK of the Quad Cities (Moline, Illinois )
Valparaiso [21]
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
Coppin State
Antoine Brockington , Coppin State
1998 MEAC men's basketball tournament
Richmond Coliseum (Richmond, Virginia )
South Carolina State
Midwestern Collegiate Conference
Detroit
Mark Miller , Illinois-Chicago [22]
1998 Midwestern Collegiate Conference men's basketball tournament
Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena (Green Bay, Wisconsin )
Butler
Missouri Valley Conference
Illinois State
Rico Hill , Illinois State [23]
1998 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball tournament
Savvis Center (St. Louis, Missouri )
Illinois State
Northeast Conference
Long Island
Charles Jones , Long Island [24]
1998 Northeast Conference men's basketball tournament
Spiro Sports Center (Staten Island, New York )
Fairleigh Dickinson [25]
Ohio Valley Conference
Murray State
De'Teri Mayes , Murray State [26]
1998 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball tournament
Gaylord Entertainment Center (Nashville, Tennessee ) (Semifinals and Finals)
Murray State [26]
Pacific-10 Conference
Arizona
Mike Bibby , Arizona [27]
No Tournament
Patriot League
Lafayette
Stefan Ciosici , Lafayette [28]
1998 Patriot League men's basketball tournament
Kirby Sports Center (Easton, Pennsylvania )
Navy [29]
Southeastern Conference
Kentucky (East)Ole Miss (West)
Ansu Sesay , Ole Miss [30]
1998 SEC men's basketball tournament
Georgia Dome (Atlanta, Georgia )
Kentucky
Southern Conference
Appalachian State (North)Chattanooga (South)
Bobby Phillips , Western Carolina (Coaches)[31] & Chuck Vincent , Furman (Media)[31]
1998 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament
Greensboro Coliseum (Greensboro, North Carolina )
Davidson [32]
Southland Conference
UTSA
Roderic Hall , UTSA [33]
1998 Southland Conference men's basketball tournament
Hirsch Memorial Coliseum (Shreveport, Louisiana ) (Semifinals & Finals)
Nicholls State
Southwestern Athletic Conference
Texas Southern
Randy Bolden , Texas Southern [34]
1998 SWAC men's basketball tournament
F. G. Clark Center (Baton Rouge, Louisiana )
Prairie View A&M
Sun Belt Conference
South Alabama
Chico Fletcher , Arkansas State [35]
1998 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball tournament
Cajundome (Lafayette, Louisiana )
South Alabama
Trans America Athletic Conference
Charleston (East) Georgia State (West)
Mark Jones , UCF [36]
1998 TAAC men's basketball tournament
Memorial Coliseum (Jacksonville, Florida )
Charleston
West Coast Conference
Gonzaga
Bakari Hendrix , Gonzaga [37]
1998 West Coast Conference men's basketball tournament
Toso Pavilion (Santa Clara, California )
San Francisco
Western Athletic Conference
TCU (Mountain)Utah (Pacific)
Lee Nailon , TCU [38]
1998 WAC men's basketball tournament
Thomas & Mack Center (Las Vegas , Nevada )
UNLV
Statistical leaders
Source for additional stats categories
Postseason tournaments
NCAA tournament
National semifinals
National championship game
E1
North Carolina
59
W3
Utah
65
W3
Utah
69
S2
Kentucky
78
S2
Kentucky
86
M3
Stanford
85
National Invitation tournament
Semifinals & finals
Semifinals
Finals
Georgia
60
Penn State
66
Penn State
72
Minnesota
79
Fresno State
89
Minnesota
91
Third Place - Georgia 95, Fresno State 79
Award winners
Consensus All-American teams
[39]
Major player of the year awards
Major freshman of the year awards
Major coach of the year awards
Other major awards
References
^ "2001 NCAA Men's Basketball Record Book – Conferences Section" (PDF) . NCAA. 2001. Retrieved February 4, 2009 .
^ America East Players of the Year , America East Conference , retrieved 2012-10-14
^ America East Championship results , America East Conference , retrieved 2012-10-14
^ 2008–09 A-10 men's basketball media guide – Awards section Archived May 23, 2011, at the Wayback Machine , Atlantic 10 Conference , retrieved 2012-10-14
^ 2008–09 A-10 men's basketball media guide – Championship section Archived May 23, 2011, at the Wayback Machine , Atlantic 10 Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 2010–11 ACC men's basketball media guide Archived 2012-11-12 at the Wayback Machine , Atlantic Coast Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ "2010–11 ACC Men's Basketball Media Guide – History Section" (PDF) . Atlantic Coast Conference. 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 12, 2012. Retrieved 2011-01-27 .
^ 2008–09 Big 12 Men's Basketball Media Guide – Awards section , Big 12 Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ "2007–08 Big 12 Tournament Media Guide" (PDF) . Big 12 Conference. March 2000. Retrieved January 27, 2011 .
^ a b 2008–09 Big East men's basketball media guide – Records section Archived April 28, 2009, at the Wayback Machine , Big East Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ a b 2010–11 Big Sky men's basketball media guide , Big Sky Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ a b 2010–11 Big South men's basketball media guide – History section , Big South Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ a b 2010–11 Big Ten Men's Basketball Media Guide Archived November 12, 2012, at the Wayback Machine , Big Ten , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ a b 2010–11 Big West Conference men's basketball media guide , Big West Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ a b CAA men's basketball record book Archived March 26, 2009, at the Wayback Machine , Colonial Athletic Association , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ a b 2010–11 Conference USA Men's Basketball Media Guide – History Section Archived July 8, 2011, at the Wayback Machine , Conference USA , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 2010–11 Ivy League men's basketball media guide , Ivy League , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ Men's Basketball All-MAAC Awards Archived March 12, 2009, at the Wayback Machine , Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ "Men's Basketball Championship History" . MAAC. June 30, 2007. Retrieved January 27, 2011 .
^ a b 2010–11 MAC men's basketball media guide , Mid-American Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ a b 2010–11 Summit League men's basketball media guide Archived March 4, 2012, at the Wayback Machine , Summit League , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 2008–09 Horizon League Men's Basketball Record Book Archived May 23, 2011, at the Wayback Machine , Horizon League , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 2010–11 MVC Men's Basketball Media Guide – Honors Section Archived July 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine , Missouri Valley Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 1998–99 NEC Men's Basketball All-Conference Team , Northeast Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 1998–99 NEC Men's Basketball media guide Archived July 27, 2011, at the Wayback Machine , Northeast Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ a b 2010–11 OVC men's basketball media guide , Ohio Valley Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ "2010–11 Pacific-10 Men's Basketball Media Guide – History & Records" (PDF) . Pac-10 Conference . 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 17, 2011. Retrieved January 27, 2011 .
^ 2010–11 Patriot League Men's Basketball media guide Archived July 8, 2011, at the Wayback Machine , Patriot League , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 2010–11 Patriot League Men's Basketball media guide Archived November 12, 2012, at the Wayback Machine , Patriot League , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 2010–11 SEC Men's Basketball Record Book Archived July 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine , Southeastern Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ a b 2010–11 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Honors Section Archived September 17, 2011, at the Wayback Machine , Southern Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 2010–11 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Postseason Section Archived September 17, 2011, at the Wayback Machine , Southern Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 2010–11 Southland Conference Men’s Basketball Media Guide , Southland Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 2010–11 SWAC Men’s Basketball Media Guide Archived November 12, 2012, at the Wayback Machine , SWAC , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 2010–11 Sun Belt Men's Basketball Media Guide , Sun Belt Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ Atlantic Sun men's basketball record book , Atlantic Sun Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 2010–11 WCC Men's Basketball Media Guide Archived July 8, 2011, at the Wayback Machine , West Coast Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ 2010–11 WAC Men's Basketball Media Guide Archived March 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine , Western Athletic Conference , retrieved 2011-01-27
^ NCAA Record Book - DIVISION I CONSENSUS ALL-AMERICA SELECTIONS p.6