1976–77 Arizona Wildcats men's basketball team

The 1976–77 Arizona Wildcats men's basketball team represented the University of Arizona in the 1976-77 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Coached by fifth-year head coach Fred Snowden and led by senior center Bob Elliott, the Wildcats made their second consecutive NCAA tournament appearance (after a drought of 25 seasons), but were upset in the opening round by Southern Illinois. The Wildcats played their home games at the McKale Center in Tucson, Arizona competing as members of the Western Athletic Conference.

1976–77 Arizona Wildcats men's basketball
NCAA tournament
Conference	Western Athletic Conference
Record	21–6 (11–4 WAC)
Head coach	Fred Snowden (5th season)
Assistant coaches	Ken Maxey (4th season) Dave Toney (2nd season) Steve Kanner (2nd season)
Home arena	McKale Center
Seasons ← 1975–76 1977–78 →

1976–77 WAC men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
No. 14 Utah	11	–	3		.786			22	–	7		.759
Arizona	11	–	4		.733			21	–	6		.778
New Mexico	8	–	6		.571			19	–	11		.633
Wyoming	8	–	6		.571			17	–	10		.630
Colorado State	6	–	8		.429			13	–	12		.520
Arizona State	6	–	9		.400			15	–	13		.536
BYU	4	–	10		.286			12	–	15		.444
UTEP	3	–	11		.214			11	–	15		.423
Rankings from AP Poll

Previous season

The Wildcats finished the 1975-76 season 24–9 overall, 11–3 in WAC play to finish atop the conference, a three win improvement from the season before. They finished the season ranked No. 15, reached the NCAA tournament for the first time in 25 years, advancing to the Elite Eight.^[1]

Roster

1976–77 Arizona Wildcats men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 00 Gilbert Myles 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Jr Edison HS Fresno, California G 12 Gary Harrison 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sr Willow Run HS Ypsilanti, Michigan G 14 Tom Ehlmann 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jr St. Charles HS St. Charles, Missouri G/F 21 Len Gordy 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sr Chester HS Chester, Pennsylvania F 22 Tim Marshall 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Central HS Pontiac, Michigan G 23 Greg Lloyd 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 165 lb (75 kg) So Eastern HS Lansing, Michigan G/F 24 Herman Harris 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Sr Chester HS Chester, Pennsylvania G/F 25 Ron Fuller 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So Southwest HS Atlanta, Georgia F 32 Larry Demic 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) So Westside HS Gary, Indiana C 33 Brian Jung 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 225 lb (102 kg) So Canyon del Oro HS Tucson, Arizona F 34 Mitch Jones 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr East HS Rochester, New York C 41 Bob Aleksa 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Sr East HS Aurora, Illinois F 42 Jay Geldmacher 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Sr Elgin HS Elgin, Illinois C 44 Jerome Gladney 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Sr King HS Detroit, Michigan F 52 Phil Taylor 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr Manual HS Denver, Colorado F/C 55 Bob Elliott 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Sr Pioneer HS Ann Arbor, Michigan	Head coach Fred Snowden (Wayne State (MI)) Assistant coach(es) Ken Maxey (Michigan) Dave Toney (Purdue) Steve Kanner (Arizona) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on   Injured   Current redshirt

Source^[2][3]

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Regular season
NCAA Tournament
Mar 12, 1977*	No. 20	vs. Southern Illinois First round	L 77–81	21–6	Omaha Civic Auditorium  Omaha, Nebraska
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Mountain.

Source^[4][5]

Rankings

See also: 1976–77 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

^[6]

References

1. "1975-76 Arizona Wildcats Roster and Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
2. 1976-77 Arizona Wildcats Basketball Media Guide. Tucson, Arizona: University of Arizona. 1977. pp. 8–12.
3. "1976-77 Arizona Wildcats Roster and Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
4. "1976-77 Men's Basketball Schedule". Sports Reference. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
5. "1976-77 Men's Basketball Schedule". Arizona Wildcats. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
6. ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia. Random House. 2009. pp. 836–837. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.