1970–71 Wright State Raiders men's basketball team American college basketball season
The 1970–71 Wright State Raiders men's basketball team represented Wright State University
in the 1970–71 NCAA College Division men's basketball season. This was the inaugural varsity season, led by head coach John Ross.
They played their home games at Stebbins High School in Riverside, Ohio .[ 1]
Background
Wright State University was launched in the mid-1960s along with Cleveland State University to add additional public education opportunities in Ohio. Under the leadership of Dr. Brage Golding, It became an independent school in 1967, and by 1968 the school decided to launch an athletic department. Dr. Golding asked Don Mohr to lead this effort. Don Mohr later served as athletic director and baseball coach.
After launching one of the first varsity soccer teams in the area, Don Mohr turned his attention to basketball with the belief that varsity basketball would do the most to increase awareness of the new university. He hired John Ross as head basketball coach, who was a successful local high school basketball coach as well as a college scout. In 1969-70 Wright State competed as a junior varsity team, then in the following year Coach Ross led the team on its inaugural campaign. For this 70-71 campaign Coach Ross brought on long-time Wright State coach Jim Brown as his assistant.
These early teams, much like the young university, had a do-it-yourself blue-collar ethos. Without a history or tradition to live up to, the teams took great pride in setting a foundation and creating the standard for all who would follow. Laundry was do-it-yourself, meals were typically cold sandwiches after practices that were late at night when gym time was available. Scholarships were limited and travel was often by van. It was the beginning.[ 2] [ 3] [ 4] [ 5] [ 6]
Roster
1970–71 Wright State Raiders men's basketball team
Players
Coaches
Pos.
#
Name
Height
Weight
Year
Previous school
Hometown
G
12
Fred Clark
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
168 lb (76 kg)
Fr
Roosevelt
Dayton, Ohio
G
Greg Cross
—
—
Sr
Xenia
Xenia, Ohio
G
20
Mark Donahue
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
—
Sr
Fairmont West
Kettering, Ohio
F
21
Bill Fogt
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
175 lb (79 kg)
Fr
Piqua
Piqua, Ohio
G
10
Dave Magill
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
—
Fr
Belmont
Dayton, Ohio
C
22
Greg McCurdy
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
Fr
Centerville
Sidney, Ohio
F
25
Jim Minch
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
Fr
Carroll
Dayton, Ohio ,
Ken Schrier
—
—
Sinclair
Northridge
C
30
Jim Thacker
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
—
So
Tecumseh
Clark County
G
24
Mike Tollinger
6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
—
Fr
Stebbins
Riverside, Ohio
G
23
Tim Walker
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
170 lb (77 kg)
Fr
Centerville
Centerville, Ohio
G
14
Dave Wilkerson
—
—
Jr
Shawen Acres
Dayton, Ohio
F
31
Ed Woosley
—
—
Muskingum
Dayton, Ohio
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Jim Brown (Dayton )
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on
Sources[ 7]
[ 8]
[ 9]
[ 10]
[ 11]
[ 12]
[ 13]
[ 14]
[ 15]
[ 16]
Schedule and results
Date time, TV
Rank#
Opponent#
Result
Record
Site city, state
Regular season
Nov 20, 1970
at Cumberland
L 82-84 3OT
0–1
Gatliff Memorial Gymnasium[ 17] Williamsburg, Kentucky
Nov 21, 1970
at Berea
L 79-96
0–2
Berea, KY
Dec 12, 1970
at Ashland
L 56-85
0–3
Ashland, Ohio
Dec 4, 1970
at Taylor
L 89-102
0–4
Upland, Indiana
Dec 5, 1970
vs. Wilberforce
L 93-101
0–5
Upland, Indiana
Dec 12, 1970
at Findlay
L 67-87
0–6
Findlay, Ohio
Dec 14, 1970
Grand Valley State
W 91-84
1–6
Stebbins High School Riverside, OH
Dec 15, 1970
vs. Harris Teacher McKendree Invitational tournament [ 18]
W 83-63
2–6
Lebanon, Illinois
Dec 16, 1970
vs. Scott AFB McKendree Invitational tournament [ 19]
W 68-58
2–6
Lebanon, Illinois
Dec 18, 1970
Cumberland
W 95-93
3–6
Stebbins High School Riverside, OH
Dec 22, 1970
at Rose-Hulman
W 103-91
4–6
Terre Haute, Indiana
Jan 2, 1971
at Otterbein
L 79-105
4–7
Westerville, Ohio
Jan 16, 1971
Cedarville
L 71-82
4–8
Stebbins High School Riverside, OH
Jan 20, 1971
at Wilberforce
W 68-67
5–8
Wilberforce, Ohio
Jan 23, 1971
at Rio Grande
L 69-71
5–9
Portsmouth, Ohio
Jan 27, 1971
at Wilmington
L 89-116
5–10
Wilmington, Ohio
Jan 20, 1971
at Northwood
L 76-87
5–11
Midland, Michigan
Feb 6, 1971
Marian (IN)
L 81-82
5–12
Stebbins High School Riverside, OH
Feb 9, 1971
at St. Joseph’s
L 59-87
5–13
Rensselaer, Indiana
Feb 13, 1971
at Defiance
L 93-105
5–14
Defiance, Ohio
Feb 17, 1971
at Transylvania
L 65-86
5–15
Lexington, Kentucky
Feb 22, 1971
Bellarmine
L 82-84
5–16
Stebbins High School Riverside, OH
Feb 25, 1971
at Earlham
L 84-89
5-17
Richmond, Indiana
Feb 16, 1971
at Walsh
W 92-83
6–17
North Canton, OH
*Non-conference game.
# Rankings from
AP Poll . (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
MW=Midwest.
Sources[ 20]
Statistics
Number
Name
Average
Points
Rebounds
23
Magill
16.8
420
98
20
Donahue
13.3
334
140
23
Thacker
13.3
333
224
21
Fogt
11.8
296
209
25
Minch
8.8
222
187
12
Clark
6.3
153
60
23
Wilkerson
8.5
94
32
23
Tollinger
3.1
73
40
23
Walker
3.6
55
38
23
Woosley
3.0
48
41
23
Schrier
4.0
8
5
22
McCurdy
2.8
31
33
23
Cross
0.4
4
3
23
Cornett
0.1
1
2
[ 21]
Awards
Mark Donahue
MVP
Bill Fogt
Raider Award
[ 22]
References
^ "The History of Raider Basketball – The Early Years" . Wright State Athletics. November 20, 2017. Retrieved May 3, 2023 .
^ "Wright State Record Book" (PDF) . Retrieved March 2, 2023 .
^ "The History of Raider Basketball - The Early Years" . November 20, 2017. Retrieved May 2, 2023 .
^ "Donald J. Mohr interview, First Athletic Director and First Director of Financial Aid, Wright State University" . Wright State University Retirees Association Oral History Project University Archives.
^ Abrahamowicz, Dan; Brown, Jim (January 26, 2018). "Jim Brown, Former Coach, Men's Basketball, Wright State University" . Wright State University Retirees Association Oral History Project . Wright State University Retirees Association Oral History Project University Archives.
^ "Wright State's first president Brage Golding dies" . Wright State University News Room. Retrieved May 7, 2023 .
^ "Wright State Record Book" (PDF) . Retrieved March 2, 2023 .
^ Nuhn, Gary (November 21, 1971). "Wright State Tougher 2.0 Hard on School's Hoop Team" . Dayton Daily News . Vol. 95, no. 73. Cox Media. p. 12 D.
^ Nuhn, Gary (November 24, 1970). "Late-Starting Thacker WSU's Big Hope" . Dayton Daily News . Vol. 94, no. 77. Cox Media. p. 7.
^ Nuhn, Gary (October 25, 1970). "WSU Now Enjoying Luxury of Working on Big Floor" . Dayton Daily News . Vol. 94, no. 47. Cox Media. p. 13 D.
^ Nuhn, Gary (January 13, 1970). "Hustle, Donahue Wright Bright Spots" . Dayton Daily News . Vol. 93, no. 127. Cox Media. p. 11.
^ Nuhn, Gary (November 8, 1970). "Raiders Progressing Out of Hoops Shadows" . Dayton Daily News . Vol. 94, no. 61. Cox Media. p. 14 D.
^ "box score" . Dayton Daily News . Vol. 94, no. 86. Cox Media. December 3, 1970. p. 29.
^ Stewart, D.L. (January 16, 1970). "Unbeaten Satans Finaly at Home" . The Journal Herald . Vol. 163, no. 14. Charles T. Alexander. p. 19.
^ Nuhn, Gary (December 1, 1970). "Ross Isn't buying everything about Ashland" . Dayton Daily News . Vol. 94, no. 84. Cox Media. p. 15.
^ Nuhn, Gary (November 21, 1971). "Wright State's Tougher 2.0 Hard on School's Hoops Team" . Dayton Daily News . Vol. 95, no. 73. Cox Media. p. 12D.
^ Pacmolka, Roger (November 25, 1970). "Raiders Nipped in Triple Overtime" . The Guardian . Vol. 7, no. 11. Wright State University Student Body. p. 8.
^ "Raiders Spurt To 5-7 Season Record" . The Guardian . Vol. 7, no. 13. Wright State University Student Body. January 7, 1971. p. 8.
^ "Raiders Spurt To 5-7 Season Record" . The Guardian . Vol. 7, no. 13. Wright State University Student Body. January 7, 1971. p. 8.
^ "Wright State Record Book" (PDF) . Retrieved March 2, 2023 .
^ "1970-71 Wright State University Basketball Statistics" (PDF) . Retrieved May 3, 2023 .
^ "Wright State University Basketball 1972-73" . Wright State Athletics. Retrieved September 22, 2023 .
Venues
WSU Physical Education Building (1970–1990)
Nutter Center (1990–present)
Rivalries People Seasons NCAA national championship in bold