1980–81 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball team

American college basketball season March 2026 August 2023 1980–81 Wichita State Shockers Basketball Missouri Valley Conference MVC 26–7 12–4 Gene Smithson 3rd Levitt Arena (10,506) MVC regular season champions NCAA tournament Elite Eight The 1980–81 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball team represented Wichita State University in the 1980–81 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They played their home games at the University of Wichita Field House. They were in their 36th season as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference and 75th season overall. They were led by head coach Gene Smithson in his third season at the school. They finished the season 26–7, 12–4 in Missouri Valley play to finish in first place. They received a bid to the 1981 NCAA Tournament and advanced to the regional finals before falling to LSU. thumb|right|Coach Smithson celebrates after the Shockers upset Iowa in the NCAA tournament. Roster 1980 Wichita State Shockers y Ozell Jones 0 C 6 11 220 so y Long Beach, California James Gibbs 3 G 5 9 165 so Mount Vernon, New York Zoran Radović 10 G 6 3 175 so y Belgrade, Yugoslavia Tony Martin 21 G 6 3 175 jr Willingboro, New Jersey Jay Jackson 32 F 6 7 205 jr Valley Falls, Kansas Mike Jones 33 GF 6 5 190 jr Joliet, Illinois Antoine Carr 35 F 6 9 225 so y Wichita, Kansas Karl Papke 40 F 6 6 185 fr Wichita, Kansas Mike Denny 41 F 6 6 195 sr Midland, Texas Randy Smithson 44 G 6 3 180 sr Normal, Illinois Eric Kuhn 45 F 6 7 225 jr Wichita, Kansas Žarko Đurišić 50 C 6 10 235 fr y Titograd, Yugoslavia Cliff Levingston 54 FC 6 8 210 jr y San Diego, California Gene Smithson https://goshockers.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/1980-81 1980-81 Men's Basketball Roster https://goshockers.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/1980-81 Wichita State University Athletics March 25, 2023 Schedule and results AP yes 1980–81 yes yes |- !colspan=12 style="Wichita State Shockers"| Regular season Nov 28, 1980 yes 1980 men Abilene Christian Wildcats Abilene Christian Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 101–60 1–0 Dec 1, 1980 yes 1980 men Hardin-Simmons Cowboys Hardin-Simmons Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 105–46 2–0 Dec 5, 1980 yes 1980 men McNeese State Cowboys McNeese State Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas McDonald's Classic 91–66 3–0 Dec 6, 1980 yes 1980 men Colorado State Rams Colorado State Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas McDonald's Classic 53–34 4–0 Dec 8, 1980 yes 1980 men Long Beach State 49ers Long Beach State Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 80–61 5–0 Dec 13, 1980 yes 1980 men Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks Louisiana-Monroe Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 82–63 6–0 Dec 17, 1980 yes 1980 men Denver Pioneers Denver Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 93–60 7–0 Dec 20, 1980 yes yes 1980 men Oral Roberts Golden Eagles Oral Roberts Mabee Center Tulsa, Oklahoma 83–61 8–0 Dec 23, 1980 yes yes 1980 men Texas-Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros Texas-Rio Grande Valley UTPA Fieldhouse Edinburg, Texas 82–83 8–1 Jan 3, 1981 yes 1980 men Iona Gaels Iona Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 77–46 9–1 Jan 10, 1981 yes 1980 men Tulsa Golden Hurricane Tulsa Tulsa Convention Center Tulsa, Oklahoma 84–91 9–2 0–1 Jan 12, 1981 1980 men West Texas A&M Buffaloes West Texas A&M Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 100–85 10–2 1–1 Jan 15, 1981 1980 men New Mexico State Aggies New Mexico State Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 74–68 11–2 2–1 Jan 17, 1981 1980 men Southern Illinois Salukis Southern Illinois Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 73–47 12–2 3–1 Jan 22, 1981 yes Creighton Omaha Civic Auditorium Omaha, Nebraska 77–72 13–2 4–1 Feb 7, 1981 1980 men Drake Bulldogs Drake Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 79–67 17–2 8–1 Feb 9, 1981 yes Southern Illinois SIU Arena Carbondale, Illinois 81–61 18–2 9–1 Feb 12, 1981 1980 men Bradley Braves Bradley Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 87–65 19–2 10–1 Feb 16, 1981 Tulsa Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 72–74 19–3 10–2 Feb 19, 1981 yes New Mexico State Pan American Center Las Cruces, New Mexico 60–82 19–4 10–3 Feb 21, 1981 Creighton Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas 83–70 20–4 11–3 Feb 26, 1981 yes Bradley Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, Illinois 70–57 21–4 12–3 Feb 28, 1981 yes 19 1980 men Indiana State Sycamores Indiana State Hulman Center Terre Haute, Indiana 72–75 21–5 12–4 |- !colspan=12 style="Wichita State Shockers"| MVC tournament Mar 5, 1981 yes 1980 men Southern Illinois Salukis Southern Illinois Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas Quarterfinal 77–57 22–5 Mar 6, 1981 yes 1980 men Drake Bulldogs Drake Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas Semifinal 88–74 23–5 Mar 7, 1981 yes Creighton Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas Championship Game 64–70 23–6 |- !colspan=9 style="Wichita State Shockers" | 1981 NCAA tournament Mar 13, 1981 yes yes 6 MW Southern 11 MW Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas First round 95–70Northeastern Advances in West Regional https://www.nytimes.com/1981/03/14/sports/no-headline-040705.html The New York Times March 14, 1981 April 22, 2023 24–6 Mar 15, 1981 yes yes 6 MW Iowa 13 3 MW Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas Second Round 60–56Chicago Tribune Wichita St. ends Iowa's title dream http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1981/03/16/page/53/article/wichita-st-ends-iowas-title-dream March 16, 1981 November 9, 2020 25–6 Mar 20, 1981 yes yes 6 MW Kansas 7 MW Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, Louisiana Midwest Regional semifinal – Sweet Sixteen 66–65 26–6 Mar 22, 1981 yes yes 6 MW Louisiana State 4 1 MW Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, Louisiana Midwest Regional final – Elite Eight 85–96 26–7 yes AP Poll Central Time MW Midwest 2019-20 Wichita State Men's Basketball Fact Book https://goshockers.com/documents/2019/10/11/1920_MBB_FactBook.pdf Wichita State University Athletics November 9, 2020 Rankings 1980–81 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings AP 0 15 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 19 16 14 19 NR NR Coaches 0 15 NR - NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 20 19 15 18 NR NR *ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game Random House 877–878 2009 978-0-345-51392-2https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/seasons/1981-polls.html 1980-81 College Basketball Polls Sports Reference November 9, 2020 Awards and honors Antoine Carr – AP Honorable Mention All-American Cliff Levingston – AP Honorable Mention All-American References Category:Wichita State Shockers men's basketball seasons Wichita State Wichita State Shock Shock