Western Carolina Catamounts men's basketball

Western Carolina Catamounts
Western Carolina Catamounts
	2020–21 Western Carolina Catamounts men's basketball team
University	Western Carolina University
Head coach	Mark Prosser (3rd season)
Conference	SoCon
Location	Cullowhee, North Carolina
Arena	Ramsey Center ; (Capacity: 7,826)
Nickname	Catamounts
Colors	Purple and Gold[1];
NCAA Tournament Appearances
	1996
Conference Tournament Champions
	1996

The Western Carolina Catamounts men's basketball team is the intercollegiate men' basketball team that represents Western Carolina University. The team currently competes in the Southern Conference. Western Carolina won the Southern Conference Tournament in 1996 and participated in the 1996 NCAA Tournament where they fell to #1 Seed Purdue 71-73, almost becoming the first #16 Seed to beat a #1 Seed in tournament history.

Team record

Statistics overview
Season	Coach	Overall	Conference	Standing	Postseason
Independent () (1973–1976)
1973-74	Jim Hartbarger	11–14
1974-75	Fred Conley	15–11
1975-76	Fred Conley	13–12
Southern Conference (Division I) (1976–present)
1976-77	Fred Conley	8–16
1977-78	Steve Cottrell	7–19	4–8	6th
1978-79	Steve Cottrell	14–14	5–7	4th
1979-80	Steve Cottrell	17–10	9–7	3rd
1980-81	Steve Cottrell	18–10	9–7	T-4th
1981-82	Steve Cottrell	19–8	11–5	2nd
1982-83	Steve Cottrell	17–12	9–7	4th
1983-84	Steve Cottrell	15–13	9–7	4th
1984-85	Steve Cottrell	14–14	8–8	4th
1985-86	Steve Cottrell	14–14	8–8	T-5th
1986-87	Steve Cottrell	10–19	4–12	7th
1987-88	Herb Krusen	8–19	2–14	9th
1988-89	Dave Possinger	12–16	4–10	8th
1989-90	Greg Blatt	10–18	3–11	8th
1990-91	Greg Blatt	11–17	3–11	7th
1991-92	Greg Blatt	11–17	5–9	5th
1992-93	Greg Blatt	6–21	2–16	10th
1993-94	Benny Dees	12–16	8–10	6th
1994-95	Benny Dees	14–14	8–6	4th
1995-96	Phil Hopkins	17–13	10–4	T-2nd	NCAA First Round
1996-97	Phil Hopkins	14–13	7–7	T-5th
1997-98	Phil Hopkins	12–15	6–9	T-7th
1998-99	Phil Hopkins	8–21	2–14	12th
1999-00	Phil Hopkins	14–14	7–9	8th
2000-01	Steve Shurnia	6–25	3–13	12th
2001-02	Steve Shurina	12–16	6–10	9th
2002-03	Steve Shurina	9–19	6–10	9th
2003-04	Steve Shurina	13–15	6–10	9th
2004-05	Steve Shurina	8–22	3–13	12th
2005-06	Larry Hunter	13–17	7–7	7th
2006-07	Larry Hunter	11–20	7–11	T-6th
2007-08	Larry Hunter	10–21	6–14	T-9th
2008-09	Larry Hunter	16–15	11–9	T-5th
2009-10	Larry Hunter	22–12	11–7	T-4th	CIT First Round
2010-11	Larry Hunter	18–15	12–6	T-3rd
2011-12	Larry Hunter	17–18	8–10	T-7th
2012-13	Larry Hunter	14–19	9–9	T-5th
2013-14	Larry Hunter	19–15	10–6	5th
2014-15	Larry Hunter	14–16	8–8	4th
2015-16	Larry Hunter	16–18	10–8	T-5th	CBI First Round
2016-17	Larry Hunter	9–23	4–14	T-8th
2017-18	Larry Hunter	13–19	8–10	6th
2018-19	Mark Prosser	7–25	4–14	T-8th
2019-20	Mark Prosser	19–12	10–8	T-5th
Total:
National champion Postseason invitational champion Conference regular season champion Conference regular season and conference tournament champion Division regular season champion Division regular season and conference tournament champion Conference tournament champion

[2]

Notable players and coaches

Catamounts in the NBA

Player	Position	Years in NBA
Western Carolina Catamounts in the NBA
Mel Gibson	G	1963-1964
Bubba Wilson	SG	1978-1980
Frankie King	G	1995-1997
Jarvis Hayes	SF	2003-2010
Kevin Martin	SG	2004-2016

Notable moments

One of the most notable moments in the program's history occurred on December 9, 2012, against the Appalachian State Mountaineers in Cullowhee. In the second half of that game, with 11:07 to go, the Mountaineers were leading 49–40. Appalachian State player Brian Okam was shooting the second of two free throws, when as soon as he shot the ball it sailed high in the air and fell in the arms of a teammate about 10 feet short of the rim. A Western Carolina TV analyst commentating on the game soon reacted, in a surprised manner, "I'm not sure what that was. Good lord." Eventually, the Catamounts would go on to win 70–64. The incident has gone viral on YouTube, reaching over 18 million views.[3]

Postseason appearances

NCAA Tournament

The Catamounts have appeared in one NCAA Tournament. Their record is 0–1. In the 1996 Tournament, Western Carolina was seeded #16, but played #1 seed Purdue close before falling 71–73.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result/Score
1996	First Round	Purdue	L 71–73

CIT

The Catamounts have appeared in one CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). Their record is 0–1.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result/Score
2010	First Round	Marshall	L 88–90

CBI

The Catamounts have appeared in one College Basketball Invitational (CBI). Their record is 0–1.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result/Score
2016	First Round	Vermont	L 74–79

References

Western Carolina University Athletic Guidelines (PDF). October 1, 2014. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
2010–11 Charlotte Men's Basketball Media guide
https://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaab-the-dagger/appalachian-state-center-comically-bad-free-throw-attempt-224629074--ncaab.html

External links

Official website

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[1] Western Carolina University Athletic Guidelines (PDF). October 1, 2014. Retrieved April 9, 2016.

[2] 2010–11 Charlotte Men's Basketball Media guide

[3] ttps://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaab-the-dagger/appalachian-state-center-comically-bad-free-throw-attempt-224629074--ncaab.html

Western Carolina Catamounts men's basketball
Venues	Breese Gymnasium (1929–1956) Reid Gymnasium (1956–1986) Ramsey Center (1986–present)
Culture & lore	Paws "Fight on! You Catamounts"
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21

Southern Conference men's basketball
Teams	Chattanooga Mocs The Citadel Bulldogs East Tennessee State Buccaneers Furman Paladins Mercer Bears Samford Bulldogs UNC Greensboro Spartans VMI Keydets Western Carolina Catamounts Wofford Terriers
Championships & awards	Southern Conference men's basketball champions Player of the Year
Seasons	1931–32 2010–11 2011–12 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20

Western Carolina University
Campus	History Academics Campus Centers, Institutes, & Affiliates Cullowhee
Athletics	Western Carolina Catamounts Football Men's basketball Women's basketball Hennon Stadium North State Conference Old Mountain Jug Ramsey Center Southern Conference E. J. Whitmire Stadium
Administration	Presidents and Chancellors University of North Carolina System
Student life	Pride of the Mountains WWCU Greek life