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1977–78 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team

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1977–78 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball
NCAA tournament, runner-up
ACC Tournament champions
ConferenceAtlantic Coast Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 9
APNo. 7
Record27–7 (8–4 ACC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
MVPJim Spanarkel
CaptainJim Spanarkel
Home arenaCameron Indoor Stadium
Seasons
1977–78 ACC men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 16 North Carolina 9 3   .750 23 8   .742
No. 7 Duke 8 4   .667 27 7   .794
NC State 7 5   .583 21 10   .677
Virginia 6 6   .500 20 8   .714
Wake Forest 6 6   .500 19 10   .655
Maryland 3 9   .250 15 13   .536
Clemson 3 9   .250 15 12   .556
1978 ACC tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll[1]

The 1977–78 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team represented Duke University. The head coach was Bill Foster. The team played its home games in the Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina, and was a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They advanced through the NCAA tournament to the championship game, where they lost to the Kentucky Wildcats by a score of 88–94.

Schedule

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
November 26, 1977*
Johns Hopkins W 95–49  1–0
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, N.C.
November 29, 1977*
Washington College W 110–66  2–0
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, N.C.
December 2, 1977
vs. No. 2 North Carolina
Big Four Tournament
L 66–79  2–1
Greensboro Coliseum 
Greensboro, N.C.
December 3, 1977
vs. No. 18 Wake Forest
Big Four Tournament
W 97–84  3–1
Greensboro Coliseum 
Greensboro, N.C.
December 8, 1977*
at SMU W 91–67  4–1
 
Dallas, Texas
December 10, 1977*
at Southern California L 81–87 OT 4–2
 
Los Angeles, Calif.
December 13, 1977*
Chicago W 99–61  5–2
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, N.C.
December 28, 1977*
vs. Duquesne W 74–65  6–2
Reynolds Coliseum 
Raleigh, N.C.
December 29, 1977*
vs. Saint Joseph's W 74–61  7–2
Reynolds Coliseum 
Raleigh, N.C.
January 2, 1978*
at Virginia Tech W 86–79  8–2
 
Blacksburg, Va.
January 4, 1978
at Maryland W 88–78  9–2
 
College Park, Md.
January 7, 1978
at NC State L 50–74  9–3
 
Raleigh, N.C.
January 9, 1978*
Lehigh W 105–63  10–3
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, N.C.
January 11, 1978
at Clemson W 107–85  11–3
 
Clemson, S.C.
January 14, 1978
No. 2 North Carolina W 92–84  12–3
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, N.C.
January 18, 1978
No. 17 Wake Forest W 81–72  13–3
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, N.C.
January 21, 1978*
No. 17 at La Salle W 91–81  14–3
 
Philadelphia, Pa.
January 25, 1978
No. 11 at No. 18 Virginia L 73–74  14–4
 
Charlottesville, Va.
January 28, 1978*
No. 11 East Carolina W 105–82  15–4
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, N.C.
February 2, 1978
No. 17 at Wake Forest L 60–79  15–5
 
Winston-Salem, N.C.
February 8, 1978
No. 13 Virginia W 100–75  16–5
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, N.C.
February 11, 1978
Davidson W 104–88  17–5
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, N.C.
February 15, 1978
No. 20 NC State W 76–64  18–5
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, N.C.
February 18, 1978
No. 20 Maryland W 81–70  19–5
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, N.C.
February 22, 1978
No. 13 Clemson W 78–62  20–5
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, N.C.
February 25, 1978
No. 13 at No. 8 North Carolina L 83–87  20–6
 
Chapel Hill, N.C.
March 1, 1978
No. 15 vs. Clemson
ACC tournament
W 83–72  21–6
Greensboro Coliseum 
Greensboro, N.C.
March 2, 1978
No. 15 vs. Maryland
ACC Tournament
W 81–69  22–6
Greensboro Coliseum 
Greensboro, N.C.
March 4, 1978
No. 15 vs. Wake Forest
ACC Tournament
W 85–77  23–6
Greensboro Coliseum 
Greensboro, N.C.
March 12, 1978*
No. 8 vs. Rhode Island
NCAA East First round
W 63–62  24–6
Charlotte Coliseum 
Charlotte, N.C.
March 17, 1978*
No. 7 vs. No. 20 Pennsylvania
NCAA East Regional semifinal
W 84–80  25–6
Providence Civic Center 
Providence, R.I.
March 19, 1978
No. 7 vs. Villanova
NCAA East Regional Final
W 90–72  26–6
Providence Civic Center 
Providence, R.I.
March 25, 1978*
No. 7 vs. No. 6 Notre Dame
NCAA Final Four
W 90–86  27–6
Checkerdome 
St. Louis, Mo.
March 27, 1978*
No. 7 vs. No. 1 Kentucky
NCAA Championship
L 88–94  27–7
Checkerdome 
St. Louis, Mo.
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
Source: Duke Athletics[2][3]

Awards and honors

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Team players drafted into the NBA

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No one from the men's basketball team was selected in the 1978 NBA draft. However, Jim Spanarkel was drafted 16th overall in the 1979 NBA draft. Also, Mike Gminski was picked 7th overall in the 1980 NBA Draft, and Gene Banks and Kenny Dennard were picked 28th and 78th in the 1981 NBA draft, respectively.[4]

References

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  1. ^ sports-reference.com 1977-78 Atlantic Coast Conference Season Summary
  2. ^ "2019–20 Duke MBB Media Guide" (PDF). Duke Athletics. Duke University. October 14, 2019. p. 174. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
  3. ^ "1977–78 Men's Basketball Schedule". Duke Athletics. Duke University. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  4. ^ "1978 NBA Draft on Basketballreference.com". Archived from the original on March 18, 2010. Retrieved May 4, 2009.