1975–76 Weber State Wildcats men's basketball team

The 1975–76 Weber State Wildcats men's basketball team represented Weber State College during the 1975–76 NCAA Division I basketball season. Members of the Big Sky Conference, the Wildcats were led by first-year head coach Neil McCarthy and played their home games on campus at Wildcat Gym in Ogden, Utah. They were 20–10 overall in the regular season and 9–5 in conference play.

1975–76 Weber State Wildcats men's basketball
ConferenceBig Sky Conference
Record21–11 (9–5 Big Sky)
Head coach
Home arenaWildcat Gym
1975–76 Big Sky men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Weber State9–5 .64321–11  .656
Boise State †9–5 .64318–11  .621
Idaho State9–5 .64316–11  .593
Northern Arizona8–6 .57115–12  .556
Montana7–7 .50013–12  .520
Montana State6–8 .4299–16  .360
Gonzaga5–9 .35713–13  .500
Idaho3–11 .2147–19  .269
† Conference tournament winner

This was McCarthy's first full season as head coach; he had been promoted in the middle of the previous season, following the sudden resignation of Gene Visscher in late January.[1][2]

The Wildcats were regular season co-champions with Idaho State and Boise State,[3][4] and the league champion hosted the new conference tournament. The seeding of the three co-champions for the four-team bracket was done by a random draw in late February, conducted via a Saturday night conference telephone call by commissioner John Roning from Moscow, Idaho.[5][6][7]

Weber was drawn as the top seed, which included the right to host at Wildcat Gym in Ogden.[5][6][7] At this time, both Weber and Boise still played in small gymnasiums, while ISU's Minidome had more than double the seating capacity of the others.

The Wildcats defeated fourth-seeded Northern Arizona in the semifinal,[8][9] but lost to Boise State in the final in double overtime.[10][11]

For the third consecutive year, senior forward Jimmie Watts was named to the all-conference team, this time as a unanimous choice. Senior center Al DeWitt was on the second team, and senior forward Paul Marigney was honorable mention.[12][13][14]

Postseason results
Date
time, TV		 Opponent Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Big Sky tournament
Fri, March 5
7:00 pm 		Northern Arizona
Semifinal		 W 63–58  21–10
 Wildcat Gym (4,411)
Ogden, Utah
Sat, March 6
8:00 pm 		Boise State
Final		 L 70–77 2OT 21–11
 Wildcat Gym (4,679)
Ogden, Utah
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Mountain time.

References
  1. "Visscher quits Weber post; McCarthy picked". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. January 25, 1975. p. 3B.
  2. "McCarthy moves up". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). January 25, 1975. p. 6A.
  3. "College hoop standings". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). March 2, 1976. p. 16.
  4. "College cage standings". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). March 1, 1976. p. 3B.
  5. "Top four head for tourney". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. March 1, 1976. p. 2B.
  6. "Weber hosts Sky playoffs". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). March 1, 1976. p. 16.
  7. "Wildcats win tourney 'draw'". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). March 1, 1976. p. B7.
  8. Blodgett, Gary R. (March 6, 1976). "Big Sky feud: Weber-Boise State". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. 6A.
  9. "Weber, Boise advance in Big Sky". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. March 6, 1976. p. 2B.
  10. Blodgett, Gary R. (March 8, 1976). "Boise faces tough Rebels". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. C3.
  11. "Boise rules Big Sky after overtime win". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. March 7, 1976. p. 1B.
  12. "Trio tops Big Sky all-star team". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. March 3, 1976. p. 2B.
  13. "Watts gets 'Sky honor for 3rd year". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). UPI. March 2, 1976. p. B6.
  14. "Gonzaga's Jim Grady 2nd-team Sky choice". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. March 2, 1976. p. 20.
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