1975–76 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team

The 1975–76 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team represented the University of Michigan in intercollegiate college basketball during the 1975–76 season. The team played its home games in the Crisler Arena in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and was a member of the Big Ten Conference. Under the direction of head coach Johnny Orr, the team finished second in the Big Ten Conference.[1]

1975–76 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball
NCAA tournament, Runner Up
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 9
APNo. 9
Record25–7 (14–4 Big Ten)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
MVPRickey Green
CaptainWayman Britt
Home arenaCrisler Arena
1975–76 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 1 Indiana18–0 1.00032–0  1.000
No. 9 Michigan14–4 .77825–7  .781
Purdue11–7 .61116–11  .593
Michigan State10–8 .55614–13  .519
Iowa9–9 .50019–10  .655
Minnesota8–10 .44416–10  .615
Illinois7–11 .38914–13  .519
Northwestern7–11 .38912–15  .444
Wisconsin4–14 .22210–16  .385
Ohio State2–16 .1116–20  .231
Rankings from AP Poll

The team lost to all four ranked opponents it played during the regular season.[1] However, the team earned the third of four consecutive NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament invitations,[2] and it defeated the first three ranked opponents that it faced in the tournament.[1] Wayman Britt served as team captain, and Rickey Green earned team MVP.[3] As a team, it led the conference in scoring offense with an 85.8 average in conference games as well as in field goal percentage with a 52.1%.[4][5]

The team began the season ranked sixteenth and peaked at ninth, where it finished the season in the Associated Press Top 20 Poll. It was ranked for a total of 16 out of 17 weeks during the season.[6] The team also ended the season ranked ninth in the final UPI Coaches' Poll.[7]

That season, Hubbard set the current school record for single-season rebounds by a freshman of 352.[8] The team set a new school record by totaling 2753 points over the course of the season. The record would last for eleven seasons.[9] The team set the school single-season total assist record of 600.[10]

On January 12, 1976, the team began a 22-game home winning streak against Ohio State that continued through a November 30, 1977, victory over Eastern Michigan. This surpassed the 17-game streak from December 1, 1964 – January 29, 1966, and stood as the longest home winning streak in school history until a 24-game streak that started on January 5, 1985.[11]

In the 32-team 1976 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, Michigan reached the championship game by winning the Midwest region. In so doing they defeated the Wichita State Shockers 74–73, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 80–76 and the Missouri Tigers 95–88. Then in the final four, the team defeated the previously unbeaten Rutgers Scarlet Knights 86–70 before losing in the championship game to the unbeaten Indiana Hoosiers 86–68.[12][13]

Regular season

The team set the school record by totaling 2753 points during its 32-game season. The record lasted until 1987.[9] The team also set the school record for field goal percentage (.510, 1138-for-2231), which would last for five seasons.[14]

Statistics

The team posted the following statistics:[15]

Name GP GS Min Avg FG FGA FG% 3FG 3FGA 3FG% FT FTA FT% OR DR RB Avg Ast Avg PF DQ TO Stl Blk Pts Avg
Rickey Green32322665420.491----1061350.7851181193.71324.188163819.9
Phil Hubbard32312083810.546----661130.584534735211.0361.11291048215.1
John Robinson32311733020.573----1021230.82972552628.2742.383144814.0
Wayman Britt32321533260.469----42550.76401351354.21233.8109934810.9
Steve Grote32291342650.506----69950.726393963.01123.5116833710.5
Dave Baxter323801640.488----46560.821045451.4621.95402066.4
Joel Thompson28142860.488----10170.588063632.3170.6370943.4
Alan Hardy29041830.494----10190.526044441.5180.617024923.2
Tom Bergen29024430.558----15170.882035351.280.33303632.2
Tom Staton22014520.269----6100.600013130.690.42008341.6
Lloyd Schinnerer111171.6130.333----460.6670440.410.130560.6
Bobby Jones5051.0221.000----120.5000000.000.020051.0
Len Lillard5051.000----000330.600.010000.0
Donald Johnston1022.000----000000.000.000100.0
TEAM321231233.8
Season Total32113822490.5064776480.7361278129440.459218.569229275386.0
Opponents32100521320.471----4466350.7021224122438.351416.162525245676.8

Rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
Week
PollPre123456789101112131415Final
AP Poll[6]1616181616171916171516151311149

NCAA tournament
  • Midwest
    • Michigan 74, Wichita State 73
    • Michigan 80, Notre Dame 76
    • Michigan 95, Missouri 88
  • Final Four
    • Michigan 86, Rutgers 70
    • Indiana 86, Michigan 68

[16]

Awards and honors

Team players drafted into the NBA

Seven players from this team were selected in the NBA draft.[17][18][19][20]

YearRoundPickOverallPlayerNBA Club
19764960Wayman BrittLos Angeles Lakers
197711616Rickey GreenGolden State Warriors
197731155Steve GroteCleveland Cavaliers
1977522110John RobinsonLos Angeles Lakers
197831761Dave BaxterSeattle SuperSonics
19784369Joel ThompsonHouston Rockets
197911515Phil HubbardDetroit Pistons

References
  1. 2007-08 Men's Basketball Media Guide. University of Michigan. 2007. p. 198.
  2. 2007-08 Men's Basketball Media Guide. University of Michigan. 2007. p. 12.
  3. "All-Time Accolades". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. pp. 9–10. Archived from the original on September 1, 2010. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
  4. "Big Ten Basketball 2009-10 Media Guide". CBS Interactive. p. 36. Archived from the original on July 3, 2010. Retrieved September 3, 2010.
  5. "Big Ten Basketball 2009-10 Media Guide". CBS Interactive. p. 37. Archived from the original on July 3, 2010. Retrieved September 3, 2010.
  6. "Division I Records" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. pp. 68–83. Retrieved August 28, 2010.
  7. "Division I Records" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. p. 85. Retrieved August 28, 2010.
  8. 2007-08 Men's Basketball Media Guide. University of Michigan. 2007. p. 166.
  9. "All-Time Records". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. p. 2. Archived from the original on April 1, 2011. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
  10. "All-Time Records". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. p. 16. Archived from the original on April 1, 2011. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
  11. "Through The Years". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. p. 7. Archived from the original on September 2, 2010. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
  12. "1976 Men's College Basketball Bracket". CBS Sports. Retrieved September 5, 2010.
  13. "1976 NCAA basketball tournament Bracket". databaseSports.com. Retrieved September 5, 2010.
  14. "All-Time Records". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. p. 10. Archived from the original on April 1, 2011. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
  15. "Men's Basketball Statistic Archive Query Page". CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on April 18, 2010. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  16. "RotoWire Fantasy Football, Baseball, Basketball and More".
  17. "1976 NBA Draft". Basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 25, 2014.
  18. "1977 NBA Draft". Basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 25, 2014.
  19. "1978 NBA Draft". Basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 25, 2014.
  20. "1979 NBA Draft". Basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 25, 2014.
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