1978–79 South Alabama Jaguars men's basketball
Sun Belt Regular season champions
NCAA tournament, second round
ConferenceSun Belt Conference
DivisionEast Division
Record20–7 (10–0 Sun Belt)
Head coach
Home arenaJaguar Gym
Mobile Municipal Auditorium
1978–79 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
South Alabama100 1.000207  .741
South Florida64 .6001414  .500
UNC Charlotte64 .6001611  .593
Jacksonville55 .5001911  .633
New Orleans37 .3001116  .407
Georgia State010 .000720  .259
1979 Sun Belt Conference tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1978–79 South Alabama Jaguars basketball team represented the University of South Alabama during the 1978–79 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Jaguars were led by head coach Cliff Ellis, in the second year as head coach. They played their home games at the Mobile Civic Center, and were members of the Sun Belt Conference. They finished the season 20–7, 10–0 in Sun Belt play to finish in first place. They were upset by Jacksonville in the Sun Belt tournament, but did receive an at-large bid to the 1979 NCAA tournament as the No. 6 seed in the Midwest region. In the second round, the Jaguars lost to Louisville, 69–66.[1]

Roster

1978–79 South Alabama Jaguars men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearHometown
F Rory White 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)210 lb (95 kg) So Tuskegee, Alabama
F 15 Ed Rains 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
So Ocala, Florida
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

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

    Schedule and results

    Date
    time, TV
    Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
    city, state
    Regular season
    Nov 25, 1978*
    SIU Edwardsville W 111–78  1–0
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Nov 30, 1978*
    at Mississippi State L 78–86  1–1
    Humphrey Coliseum 
    Starkville, Mississippi
    Dec 9, 1978*
    at Northwestern State W 79–66  2–1
    Prather Coliseum 
    Natchitoches, Louisiana
    Dec 11, 1978*
    Georgia Southern L 91–93  2–2
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Dec 14, 1978*
    North Park W 75–68  3–2
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Dec 18, 1978*
    at UAB L 72–75  3–3
    BJCC Arena (5,483)
    Birmingham, Alabama
    Dec 27, 1978*
    Austin Peay
    Senior Bowl Tournament
    W 96–67  4–3
    Mobile Municipal Auditorium 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Dec 28, 1978*
    Louisiana Tech
    Senior Bowl Tournament
    W 71–69  5–3
    Mobile Municipal Auditorium 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Dec 30, 1978*
    Wisconsin–Whitewater W 111–90  6–3
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Jan 8, 1979*
    Houston Christian W 97–74  7–3
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Jan 10, 1979*
    at UNC Wilmington L 63–65  7–4
    Trask Coliseum 
    Wilmington, North Carolina
    Jan 13, 1979*
    Charlotte W 71–60  8–4
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Jan 15, 1979
    Georgia State W 84–70  9–4
    (1–0)
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Jan 18, 1979
    at New Orleans W 80–73  10–4
    (2–0)
    Human Performance Center 
    New Orleans, Louisiana
    Jan 22, 1979
    Jacksonville W 72–61  11–4
    (3–0)
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Jan 25, 1979
    New Orleans W 101–65  12–4
    (4–0)
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Jan 29, 1979
    at Georgia State W 89–71  13–4
    (5–0)
    GSU Sports Arena 
    Atlanta, Georgia
    Feb 1, 1979
    South Florida W 114–83  14–4
    (6–0)
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Feb 6, 1979*
    Florida State W 78–61  15–4
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Feb 8, 1979*
    UAB W 71–69  16–4
    Jaguar Gym (3,159)
    Mobile, Alabama
    Feb 10, 1979
    at Jacksonville W 72–71  17–4
    (7–0)
    Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum 
    Jacksonville, Florida
    Feb 12, 1979
    at South Florida W 73–61  18–4
    (8–0)
    Curtis Hixon Hall 
    Tampa, Florida
    Feb 15, 1979*
    Illinois State L 70–77  18–5
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    Feb 17, 1979*
    at Charlotte W 66–63  19–5
    Charlotte Coliseum 
    Charlotte, North Carolina
    Sun Belt Conference tournament
    Feb 24, 1979*
    vs. Jacksonville
    Semifinals
    L 77–85  19–6
    Charlotte Coliseum 
    Charlotte, North Carolina
    Regular season
    Feb 28, 1979*
    Northwestern State W 97–91  20–6
    Jaguar Gym 
    Mobile, Alabama
    NCAA tournament
    Mar 10, 1979*
    (6 MW) vs. (3 MW) No. 18 Louisville
    Second round
    L 66–69  20–7
    Moody Coliseum 
    Dallas, Texas
    *Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
    MW=Midwest.
    All times are in Central Time.

    [2]

    References

    1. "Rutgers, Syracuse Fives Advance". The New York Times. March 11, 1979. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
    2. "2019-20 South Alabama Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). University of South Alabama Athletics. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
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