1979–80 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team

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1979–80 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball
NIT, Second Round
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Record18–12 (12–6 SEC)
Head coach
Home arenaColeman Coliseum
Seasons
1979–80 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 4 Kentucky 15 3   .833 29 6   .829
No. 3 LSU 14 4   .778 26 6   .813
Alabama 12 6   .667 18 12   .600
Tennessee 12 6   .667 18 11   .621
Ole Miss 9 9   .500 17 13   .567
Mississippi State 7 11   .389 13 14   .481
Vanderbilt 7 11   .389 13 13   .500
Georgia 7 11   .389 14 13   .519
Auburn 5 13   .278 10 18   .357
Florida 2 16   .111 7 21   .250
1980 SEC tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll[1]

The 1979–80 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team represented the University of Alabama in the 1979–80 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team's head coach was C.M. Newton, who was in his 12th season at Alabama. The team played their home games at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. They finished the season 18–12, 12–6 in SEC play, finishing in a tie for third place.

The Tide reached the second round of the SEC tournament, where they lost to LSU. Afterwards, the Tide accepted a bid to the 1980 National Invitation Tournament and reached the second round where they lost to Murray State University.[2]

The team lost Reggie King from the previous season to the NBA's Kansas City Kings. The Tide's key freshman signees were guards Mike Davis and Vance Wheeler and forwards Cliff Windham and Eugene Jones.

After the season, coach C.M. Newton resigned to become an assistant commissioner of the Southeastern Conference. After a year in the position, Newton was hired as coach at Vanderbilt University.[3]

Roster[edit]

1979–80 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
F 51 Eddie Phillips 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
So A. H. Parker High School Birmingham, Alabama
F 32 Ken Johnson 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Jr Central High School Phenix City, AL
G 10 Robert Scott 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Sr A. H. Parker High School Birmingham, Alabama
G 20 Eddie Adams 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
So Central High School Phenix City, Alabama
C 41 Phillip Lockett 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
So Livingston High School Livingston, Alabama
G 44 Mike Davis 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Fayette High School Fayette, Alabama
F 33 Cliff Windham 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Livingston High School Emelle, Alabama
F Carl Mitchell 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
F Eugene Jones 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Fr
G Vance Wheeler 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Fr
F 40 Maurice Myers 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
So Holy Family High School Birmingham, Alabama
Reggie Strickland
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

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

References[edit]

  1. ^ sports-reference.com 1979-80 Southeastern Conference Season Summary
  2. ^ "1979-80 Alabama Crimson Tide Roster and Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.
  3. ^ "Hall of Fame coach and administrator C.M. Newton, 88, dies". USA Today.