1978–79 Indiana State Sycamores men's basketball team

Roster

The Sycamores were led by Bird, the NCAA Player of the Year, and his 28.6 scoring average. He was followed by Carl Nicks’ 19.3 average. The starting lineup also included Miley, Alex Gilbert and Steve Reed. Heaton and Leroy Staley were key reserves. The remainder of the roster consisted of Tom Crowder, Eric Curry, Rod McNelly, Rich Nemcek, Bob Ritter and Scott Turner.

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Season summary

In 1979, the NCAA tournament championship game was the most-watched game in the history of the sport, in no small part because of Indiana State star Larry Bird. Bird was not a one-man show, but the unheralded Sycamores rode him to a 33–0 record heading into the title game. The well-rounded Bird averaged 29 points, 14.8 rebounds, and, most significantly, six assists as he changed the way the game was played.

Offseason

Head coach Bob King suffered a stroke and was unable to continue as head coach of the Sycamores. Assistant Bill Hodges was elevated to the position of head coach.

Exhibition vs. Soviet National Team

On November 20, the touring Soviet National team came to Hulman Center to play Indiana State. ISU defeated the Soviets, 83–79, to become one of only four college teams to beat them that season.

Regular season

During the 1978–79 season, Indiana State qualified for the NCAA tournament. ISU finished the regular season 29–0, 16–0 in the Missouri Valley Conference, and earned the top ranking in the country.

The only time that the perfect regular season was in jeopardy was on Feb. 1. The Sycamores were 18–0 against New Mexico State. With three seconds remaining, the Sycamores were down 83–81. New Mexico State was at the free throw line and the shot was missed. The missed shot was rebounded by Brad Miley and passed to Bob Heaton. Heaton launched a 50-foot desperation shot which banked through the net to send the game into overtime.

Bird received several honors at the end of regular season. He won the USBWA College Player of the Year, Naismith and Wooden Awards, given to the year's top male college basketball player.

Schedule and results

|- !colspan=9 style=| Exhibition |- !colspan=9 style=| Regular season |- !colspan=9 style= | Missouri Valley Conference tournament |- !colspan=9 style= | NCAA Tournament

• Source: Schedule

NCAA basketball tournament

The top seed in the NCAA Midwest Regional was awarded to the Sycamores. The final game of the regional tournament was against Arkansas with a berth in the Final Four on the line. With the game tied at 71, the right-handed Heaton was the hero again with a last second left-handed shot in the lane to win the game. They advanced to the championship game and faced Michigan State University, which was led by sophomore Magic Johnson. In what was the most-watched college basketball game ever, Michigan State defeated Indiana State 75–64, and Johnson was voted Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four.

• West

  • Indiana State (#1 seed) 86, Virginia Tech (#8 seed) 69
  • Indiana State 93, Oklahoma (#5 seed) 72
  • Indiana State 73, Arkansas (#2 seed) 71

• Final Four

  • Indiana State 76, DePaul 74
  • Michigan State 75, Indiana State 64

Rankings

Main article: 1978–79 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

^Coaches did not release Week 1 or Week 2 polls.

Awards and honors

• Larry Bird, Consensus All-American teams
• Larry Bird, All-Missouri Valley Conference
• Larry Bird – AP, UPI, USBWA, The Sporting News, Basketball Weekly All-American selections
• Larry Bird, Missouri Valley Conference Most Valuable Player
• Larry Bird – 1979 Oscar Robertson Trophy, Naismith Award, John R. Wooden Award, Adolph Rupp Trophy, AP Player of the Year, Eastman Award
• Bill Hodges, NCAA Coach of the Year

References

References

1. "1978-79 Basketball Cumulative Statistics". [[Indiana State Sycamores.
2. "1978-79 Dream Season Recap".
3. "Naismith Awards - History".
4. "Wooden Award - Athletics".
5. (January 18, 1979). "Indiana St. Guns Down Shockers".
6. (January 20, 1979). "Sycamores Down Creighton, 90-80".
7. (February 5, 1979). "Flying to the Top".
8. (February 7, 1979). "Indiana State Drubs Drake". [[The New York Times]].
9. (February 6, 1979). "Sycamores hit 100 in Win over Drake".
10. (March 12, 1979). "Arkansas Advances With Indiana State". [[The New York Times]].
11. (March 16, 1979). "Indiana St., Arkansas, DePaul, UCLA Win". [[The Washington Post]].
12. (March 18, 1979). "Last-Second Basket Beats Arkansas". [[The New York Times]].
13. (March 25, 1979). "Michigan State, Indiana State Gain NCAA Final". [[The Washington Post]].
14. (March 27, 1979). "Michigan State Defeats Indiana State for N.C.A.A. Title". [[The New York Times]].
15. Katz, Andy. "From coast to coast, a magical pair". ESPN.
16. "RotoWire Fantasy Football, Baseball, Basketball and More".