1977–78 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball team

American college basketball season March 2026 August 2023 basketball 1977–78 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Notre Dame Fighting Irish logo.svg 150 Independent 11 6 23–8 Digger Phelps Danny Nee Scott Thompson 1st Joyce Center NCAA tournament Final Four The 1977–78 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball team represented the University of Notre Dame during the 1977–78 NCAA men's basketball season. The team was led by head coach Digger Phelps and played their home games at the Joyce Center. Notre Dame entered the season with high expectations, as they opened with an AP preseason ranking of No. 4. Battle tested from a challenging schedule, the Irish earned a spot in the 1978 NCAA Tournament and played their way to the first Final Four appearance in school history. Roster 1977 Notre Dame Fighting Irish y yes Dave Batton y 45 F/C 6 9 225 Sr Springfield, PA Springfield Rich Branning 12 G 6 3 160 So Huntington Beach, CA Marina Jeff Carpenter 10 G 6 0 165 Sr Oak Park, IL Fenwick Chris Fabian 24 G 6 2 195 Jr Haddonfield, NJ Haddonfield Bruce Flowers y 34 F/C 6 8 210 Jr Huntington Woods, MI Berkley Randy Haefner 22 F 6 6 205 Sr Milford, OH McNicholas Bill Hanzlik y 42 G/F 6 7 185 So Beloit, WI Beloit Tim Healy 11 G 6 1 170 So Fort Lauderdale, FL Cardinal Gibbons Tracy Jackson 30 F 6 6 210 Fr Silver Spring, Maryland Paint Branch y Bill Laimbeer y 52 C 6 11 235 Jr Palos Verdes, CA Palos VerdesOwens CC Gilbert Salinas 55 C 6 11 215 Fr San Antonio, Texas   Kelly Tripucka 44 F 6 6 230 Fr Essex Fells, New Jersey Bloomfield y Don Williams Duck Williams y 25 G 6 3 180 Sr Washington, D.C. Mackin Orlando Woolridge 32 C 6 9 215 Fr Mansfield, Louisiana Mansfield y Digger Phelps Danny Nee Scott Thompson Schedule and results |- !colspan=9 style=Notre Dame Fighting Irish| Regular Season Nov 26, 1977 yes 4 1977 men Ole Miss Rebels Ole Miss Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 111–62 1–0 Nov 30, 1977 yes 3 Baylor Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 98–57 2–0 Dec 3, 1977 yes 3 1977 men Valparaiso Crusaders Valparaiso Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 89–75 3–0 Dec 5, 1977 yes 3 1977 men Lafayette Leopards Lafayette Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 76–42 4–0 Dec 7, 1977 yes yes 3 1977 men Northwestern Wildcats Northwestern Welsh-Ryan Arena Evanston, Illinois 88–48 5–0 Dec 10, 1977 yes yes 3 UCLA 5 Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, California Rivalry 69–66 12,829 6–0 Dec 14, 1977 yes yes 2 Indiana Assembly Hall Bloomington, Indiana 66–67 6–1 Dec 23, 1977 yes 5 Saint Joseph's (IN) Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 108–72 7–1 Dec 31, 1977 yes yes 4 Kentucky 1 Freedom Hall Louisville, Kentucky 68–73Kentucky Rally Tops Notre Dame, 73-68 https://www.nytimes.com/1978/01/01/archives/kentucky-rally-tops-notre-dame-7368-kentucky-rallies-to-top-notre.html The New York Times January 1, 1978 November 15, 2020 7–2 Jan 10, 1978 yes yes 5 San Francisco Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena Oakland, California 70–79 7–3 Jan 14, 1978 yes yes 5 St. Bonaventure Rochester Community War Memorial Rochester, New York 79–78 8–3 Jan 17, 1978 yes 7 1977 men Manhattan Jaspers Manhattan Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 81–64 9–3 Jan 19, 1978 yes 7 Villanova Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 70–69 10–3 Jan 22, 1978 yes 7 UCLA 3 Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana Rivalry 75–73 11,345 11–3 Jan 23, 1978 yes 7 1977 men Dartmouth Big Green Dartmouth Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 78–64 12–3 Jan 25, 1978 yes 5 1977 men West Virginia Mountaineers West Virginia Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 103–82 13–3 Jan 29, 1978 yes 5 Maryland Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 69–54 14–3 Feb 1, 1978 yes yes 4 La Salle The Palestra Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 95–90 15–3 Feb 4, 1978 yes 4 1977 men Davidson Wildcats Davidson Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 100–76 16–3 Feb 12, 1978 yes 4 DePaul 11 Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 68–69 OTDePaul 69, Notre Dame 68 https://www.nytimes.com/1978/02/13/archives/depaul-69-notre-dame-68.html The New York Times February 13, 1978 August 5, 2023 16–4 Feb 16, 1978 yes yes 7 1977 men Fordham Rams Fordham Madison Square Garden New York, New York 95–76 17–4 Feb 18, 1978 yes yes 7 1977 men South Carolina Gamecocks South Carolina Carolina Coliseum Columbia, South Carolina 60–65 17–5 Feb 21, 1978 yes 9 North Carolina State Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 70–59 18–5 Feb 26, 1978 yes 9 Marquette 1 Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 65–59Irish Upset Marquette, 65-59 https://www.nytimes.com/1978/02/27/archives/irish-upset-marquette-6559-notre-dame-upsets-no1-marquette-6559.html The New York Times February 27, 1978 November 15, 2020 11,345 19–5 Mar 4, 1978 yes yes 7 1977 men Dayton Flyers Dayton University of Dayton Arena Dayton, Ohio 59–66 19–6 Mar 6, 1978 yes 10 1977 men Loyola Ramblers Loyola-Chicago Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana 83–68 20–6 |- !colspan=9 style=Notre Dame Fighting Irish| NCAA Tournament Mar 12, 1978 yes yes 6 Houston Mabee Center Tulsa, Oklahoma First round 100–77 21–6 Mar 17, 1978 yes yes 6 Utah 14 Allen Fieldhouse Lawrence, Kansas Midwest Regional Final – Sweet Sixteen 69–56 22–6 Mar 19, 1978 yes yes 6 DePaul 3 Allen Fieldhouse Lawrence, Kansas Midwest Regional Final – Elite Eight 84–64Notre Dame, Duke Win Region Titles https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1978/03/20/notre-dame-duke-win-region-titles/6cac6852-7f5f-4ebc-a2e6-b6eee147c7bf/ The Washington Post March 20, 1978 November 15, 2020Finally in the Finals https://vault.si.com/vault/1978/03/27/finally-in-the-finals https://web.archive.org/web/20201203173157/https://vault.si.com/vault/1978/03/27/finally-in-the-finals dead December 3, 2020 Sports Illustrated March 27, 1978 November 15, 2020 23–6 Mar 25, 1978 yes yes 6 Duke 7 Checkerdome St. Louis, Missouri National semifinal – Final Four 86–90Duke Holds Off Irish https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1978/03/26/duke-holds-off-irish/4aa46382-47d3-4411-88eb-09d58bec4a90/ The Washington Post March 26, 1978 November 15, 2020 23–7 Mar 27, 1978 yes yes 6 Arkansas 5 Checkerdome St. Louis, Missouri National consolation – Third-place game 69–71 23–8 AP poll Eastern Time MW Midwest 2019-20 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Men's Basketball Media Guide https://und.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/2019-20-ND-MBB-Media-Guide.pdf 116 Notre Dame Athletics November 15, 2020 Rankings 1977–78 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia 978-0-345-51392-2 Random House 2009 846–847 References Category:Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball seasons Notre Dame Notre Dame Category:NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament Final Four seasons Notre Dame Fighting Irish Notre Dame Fighting Irish