1997–98 West Virginia Mountaineers men's basketball team

The 1997–98 West Virginia Mountaineers men's basketball team represented West Virginia University as a member of the Big East Conference during the 1997-98 season. The team played their home games at WVU Coliseum in Morgantown, West Virginia. Led by 20th-year head coach Gale Catlett, the Mountaineers received an at-large bid to the 1998 NCAA tournament as the No. 10 seed in the West region. West Virginia advanced to the Sweet Sixteen and finished with an overall record of 24–9 (11–7 Big East).[4]

1997–98 West Virginia Mountaineers men's basketball
NCAA tournament, Sweet Sixteen
ConferenceBig East Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 18
Record24–9 (11–7 Big East)
Head coach
Home arenaWVU Coliseum
Seasons
1997–98 Big East men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Big East 6
No. 6 Connecticut 15 3   .833 32 5   .865
St. John's 13 5   .722 22 10   .688
West Virginia 11 7   .611 24 9   .727
Villanova 8 10   .444 12 17   .414
Notre Dame 7 11   .389 13 14   .481
Boston College 6 12   .333 15 16   .484
Big East 7
No. 21 Syracuse 12 6   .667 26 9   .743
Miami 11 7   .611 18 10   .643
Seton Hall 9 9   .500 15 15   .500
Providence 7 11   .389 13 16   .448
Pittsburgh 6 12   .333 11 16   .407
Rutgers 6 12   .333 14 15   .483
Georgetown 6 12   .333 16 15   .516
1998 Big East tournament winner
As of March 30, 1998[1][2][3]
Rankings from AP poll

Roster

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1997–98 West Virginia Mountaineers men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
F 24 Damian Owens 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Sr Seat Pleasant, Maryland
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

[5]

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
Regular season
Nov 15, 1997*
East Carolina W 87–66  1–0
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Nov 22, 1997
Alabama A&M W 114–85  2–0
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Nov 28, 1997
at Puerto Rico-Mayagüez W 111–63  3–0
Caguas Municipal Complex (106)
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Nov 29, 1997*
vs. Rice W 78–61  4–0
Caguas Municipal Complex 
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Nov 30, 1997*
vs. Dayton W 96–74  5–0
Caguas Municipal Complex 
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Dec 3, 1997
at No. 13 Connecticut L 75–88  5–1
(0–1)
Harry A. Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, Connecticut
Dec 6, 1997
St. John's W 86–70  6–1
(1–1)
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Dec 13, 1997*
Ohio W 89–63  7–1
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Dec 16, 1997*
Robert Morris W 101–52  8–1
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Dec 20, 1997*
vs. No. 20 Georgia W 86–81  9–1
Georgia Dome 
Atlanta, Georgia
Dec 22, 1997*
No. 23 at Virginia Tech W 55–52  10–1
Cassell Coliseum 
Blacksburg, Virginia
Dec 27, 1997*
No. 23 Duquesne W 90–78  11–1
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Dec 31, 1997
No. 22 at Georgetown L 65–74  11–2
(1–2)
Verizon Center 
Washington, D.C.
Jan 3, 1998*
No. 22 Boston College W 79–57  12–2
(2–2)
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Jan 5, 1998
No. 25 Georgetown W 81–70  13–2
(3–2)
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Jan 10, 1998
No. 25 Miami (FL) W 98–84  14–2
(4–2)
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Jan 15, 1998
No. 21 Notre Dame L 72–74  14–3
(4–3)
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Jan 18, 1998
No. 21 at Villanova W 79–65 OT 15–3
(5–3)
The Pavilion 
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Jan 20, 1998
No. 23 at Rutgers W 80–72  16–3
(6–3)
Louis Brown Athletic Center 
Piscataway, New Jersey
Jan 24, 1998
No. 23 Providence W 81–63  17–3
(7–3)
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Jan 28, 1998
No. 17 vs. Pittsburgh W 76–72  18–3
(8–3)
Civic Arena 
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Feb 3, 1998
No. 15 Pittsburgh W 90–72  19–3
(9–3)
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Feb 7, 1998
No. 15 at St. John's L 69–77  19–4
(9–4)
Carnesecca Arena 
New York, New York
Feb 11, 1998
No. 16 No. 6 Connecticut W 80–62  20–4
(10–4)
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Feb 14, 1998
No. 16 at No. 23 Syracuse L 58–73  20–5
(10–5)
Carrier Dome 
Syracuse, New York
Feb 16, 1998*
No. 20 vs. Marshall W 71–58  21–5
Charleston Civic Center 
Charleston, West Virginia
Feb 22, 1998
No. 20 Seton Hall W 81–71  22–5
(11–5)
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Feb 25, 1998
No. 19 at Boston College L 69–72  22–6
(11–6)
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Feb 28, 1998
No. 19 at Miami (FL) L 66–70  22–7
(11–7)
Miami Arena 
Miami, Florida
Big East Tournament
Mar 4, 1998*
(5) No. 23 vs. (12) Rutgers
First round
L 65–72  22–8
Madison Square Garden 
New York, New York
NCAA Tournament
Mar 12, 1998*
(10 W) vs. (7 W) No. 24 Temple
First round
W 82–52[6]  23–8
BSU Pavilion 
Boise, Idaho
Mar 14, 1998*
(10 W) vs. (2 W) No. 9 Cincinnati
Second Round
W 75–74[7]  24–8
BSU Pavilion 
Boise, Idaho
Mar 19, 1998*
(10 W) vs. (3 W) No. 7 Utah
West Regional semifinal – Sweet Sixteen
L 62–65  24–9
Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim 
Anaheim, California
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
W=West.
All times are in Eastern.

[8] [9]

Rankings

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[10]

References

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  1. ^ sports-reference.com 1997-98 Big East Conference Season Summary
  2. ^ Keefe, Gavin, "Big East Notes: The Big East 7 and Big East 6? Big Deal!", The Day, January 1, 1996, p. 7.
  3. ^ "PLUS: COLLEGE BASKETBALL -- BIG EAST CONFERENCE; League Cuts Games In Search of Bids," The New York Times, August 7, 1998.
  4. ^ "1997-98 West Virginia Mountaineers Roster and Stats - College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". Sports Reference. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  5. ^ "2019–20 West Virginia Men's Basketball Record Book" (PDF). WVU Athletic Dept. Retrieved June 26, 2021.[permanent dead link]
  6. ^ "West Virginia Rolls Over Temple". The New York Times. March 13, 1998. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
  7. ^ "MOUNTAINEERS STUN NO. 2 SEED". The Washington Post. March 15, 1998. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
  8. ^ "1997-98 West Virginia Mountaineers Schedule and Results". Sports Reference. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  9. ^ "1997-98 Men's Basketball Schedule". West Virginia University Athletic Department. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  10. ^ *ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. pp. 1064–1065. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.