Army Black Knights men's basketball

Army Black Knights
Army Black Knights
	2024–25 Army Black Knights men's basketball team
University	United States Military Academy
Head coach	Kevin Kuwik (2nd season)
Conference	Patriot
Location	West Point, New York
Arena	Christl Arena ; (capacity: 5,043)
Nickname	Black Knights
Colors	Black, gold, and gray;
Uniforms
Home	Away ;
Pre-tournament Premo-Porretta champions
	1923, 1944
Pre-tournament Helms champions
	1944

The Army Black Knights men's basketball team represents the United States Military Academy in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college basketball. Army currently competes as a member of the Patriot League and plays its home games at Christl Arena in West Point, New York.

History

Bob Knight, the coach with the most wins in NCAA men's basketball history, began his head coaching career at Army from 1965 to 1971 before moving on to Indiana. One of Knight's players at Army was Mike Krzyzewski, who later was head coach at Army before moving on to Duke and becoming the winningest men's basketball coach in NCAA Division I history.

Since its inception in 1903, Army retrospectively has been awarded two national championships, has made eight NIT appearances, has refused two NCAA tournament invitations, in 1944 and 1968, and has an overall 49.7% winning percentage.

The Black Knights were retroactively named national champions by Premo-Porretta for 1923 and by the Helms Athletic Foundation for 1944,^[2] when they went undefeated (15–0),^[3] but declined an invitation to the NCAA tournament due to World War II. The 1944 squad was captained by Edward C. Christl, who earned a posthumous Distinguished Service Cross during World War II and for whom the Black Knights' home arena is named.^[4]

Head coach Bob Knight turned down the 1968 NCAA tournament invitation in favor of the NIT,^[5] because he believed the Black Knights had a better chance of winning the NIT with Lew Alcindor and UCLA playing in the NCAA tournament. Further, Madison Square Garden was close enough to West Point to allow the Corps of Cadets to be attend the games, and Army had participated in the NIT seven times in 10 years, including four of Knight's five seasons as head coach. They would go on to lose their first game of the 1968 NIT to Notre Dame.^[6]

The Black Knights are one of only three original major programs that were playing college basketball in 1939, when the inaugural NCAA tournament was held, that are still active Division I programs and one of 34 eligible teams to have never participated in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament .^[7]^[8] Army shares this distinction with William & Mary and The Citadel. St. Francis Brooklyn was a major program in 1939, and never made an NCAA tournament appearance but discontinued athletics in 2023,^[9] and is no longer eligible for the tournament.

The Black Knights have played in the National Invitational Tournament eight times^[10] and also played in the 2016 edition of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT), their first appearance in a postseason tournament in 38 years, losing to NJIT in the first round.

Seasons

In 119 seasons, the Black Knights have a record of 1262–1276.^[3]

Postseason results

National Invitation tournament

The Black Knights have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) eight times. Their combined record is 13–10.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
1961	First Round	Temple	L 66–79
1964	First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals 3rd Place Game	St. Bonaventure Duquesne Bradley NYU	W 64–62 W 67–65 L 52–67 W 60–59
1965	First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals 3rd Place Game	St. Louis Western Kentucky St. John's NYU	W 70–66 W 58–54 L 60–67 W 75–74
1966	First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals 3rd Place Game	Manhattan San Francisco BYU Villanova	W 71–66 W 80–63 L 60–66 L 65–76
1968	First Round	Notre Dame	L 58–62
1969	First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals 3rd Place Game	Wyoming South Carolina Boston College Tennessee	W 51–49 W 59–45 L 61–73 L 52–64
1970	First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals 3rd Place Game	Cincinnati Manhattan St. John's LSU	W 72–67 W 77–72 L 59–60 W 75–68
1978	First Round	Rutgers	L 70–72

CollegeInsider.com tournament

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

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
2016	First Round	NJIT	L 65–79

CBI results

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

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
2021	First Round	Bellarmine	L 67–77

Head coaches

Coach	Years	Record
Joseph Stilwell	1902–04 1908–11 1913–14	41–14
No coach	1904–06	10–8
Harry Fisher	1906–07	9–5
B.H. Koehler	1907–08	9–3
Harvey Higley	1911–13	19–6
Jacob Devers	1914–16	16–9
Arthur Conrad	1916–17	3–8
Ivens Jones	1917–19	11–9
Joseph O'Shea	1919–21	30–7
Harry Fisher	1921–23 1924–25	46–5
Van Vleit	1923–24	16–2
Ernest Blood	1925–26	11–6
Leo Novak	1926–39	126–56
Valentine Lentz	1939–43	31–31
Edward Kelleher	1943–45	29–1
Stewart Holcomb	1945–47	18–13
John Mauer	1947–51	33–35
Elmer Ripley	1951–53	19–17
Bob Vanatta	1953–54	15–7
Orvis Sigler	1954–58	39–47
George Hunter	1958–63	63–48
Tates Locke	1963–65	40–15
Bob Knight	1965–71	102–50
Dan Dougherty	1971–75	31–66
Mike Krzyzewski	1975–80	73–59
Pete Gaudet	1980–82	12–41
Les Wothke	1982–90	92–135
Tom Miller	1990–92	10–46
Mike Conners	1992–93	4–22
Dino Gaudio	1993–97	36–72
Pat Harris	1997–2002	42–96
Jim Crews	2002–09	59–140
Zach Spiker	2009–16	102–112
Jimmy Allen	2016–2023	98–112
Kevin Kuwik	2023–	0–0

^[11]

All-Americans

The following Army players were named NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans:

William Copthorne – 1910 (Helms Athletic Foundation)
William Roberts – 1913 (Helms Athletic Foundation)
Elmer Oliphant – 1915 (Helms Athletic Foundation)
Gene Vidal – 1918 (Helms Athletic Foundation)
Harry Wilson – 1927 (Helms Athletic Foundation)
Dale Hall – 1944 (Consensus Second Team), 1945 (Consensus Second Team)
Gary Winton – 1977 (AP Honorable Mention), 1978 (AP Honorable Mention)
Kevin Houston – 1987 (NABC Third Team)

Academic All-Americans

The following Army players were named Academic All-America:

Mike Silliman – 1964
John Ritch – 1965
Robert Sherwin – 1972, 1973
Steve Rothert – 1989

Basketball Hall of Fame

The following Army players and coaches have been inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame:

Ernest Blood – 1960, former coach
John Roosma – 1961, former player
Elmer Ripley – 1972, former coach, inducted as a contributor
Harry A. Fisher – 1973, former coach, inducted as a contributor
Bob Knight – 1991, former coach
Mike Krzyzewski – 2001, former coach and player, inducted as a coach

Major awards

Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference Award: Outstanding Scholar-Athlete of the Year

John Ritch – 1965

Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award

Robert Sherwin – 1973

Haggerty Award

Kevin Houston – 1987

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year

Randy Cozzens – 1985
Kevin Houston – 1987

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Coach of the Year

Les Wothke – 1985

Patriot League Men's Basketball Coach of the Year

Pat Harris – 2001–02
Zach Spiker – 2012–13

Patriot League Men's Basketball Rookie of the Year

David Ardayfio – 1990–91
Alex Morris – 1992–93
Kyle Wilson – 2012–13

Patriot League Men's Basketball Defensive Player of the Year

Marcus Nelson – 2008–09
Josh Caldwell - 2020-21
Josh Caldwell - 2021-22

References

^ Army Brand Guidelines (PDF). April 13, 2015. Retrieved June 28, 2020.
^ ESPN, ed. (2009). ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. New York, NY: ESPN Books. p. 536. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
^ ^a ^b "Army Black Knights School History". sports-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
^ Noles, Jim (2018). Undefeated: From Basketball to Battle - West Point's Perfect 1944 Season. Philadelphia: Casemate Publishers. ISBN 978-1-61200-512-6. OCLC 1096218534.
^ "NCAA Taps 8 Tourney Fives". Syracuse Herald-Journal. February 21, 1968. p. 82. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
^ Chase, Chris (March 11, 2015). "The Odd Reason Army Has Never Made the NCAA Tournament". USA Today. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
^ Feinstein, John (February 1, 2016). "Kryzyzewski, Knight Coached at Army. Army Still Has Not Made an NCAA Tournament Appearance". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
^ "Wall Street Journal blog: March Madness Claims New Victims". Retrieved March 18, 2008.
^ McDaniel, Mike (March 21, 2023). "St. Francis Brooklyn to Eliminate Entire Athletics Program". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2010-05-27. Retrieved 2011-05-22.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^ "Army Black Knights Index". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.

External links

Official website

[1] Army Brand Guidelines (PDF). April 13, 2015. Retrieved June 28, 2020.

[2] ESPN, ed. (2009). ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. New York, NY: ESPN Books. p. 536. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.

[schoolhist-3] "Army Black Knights School History". sports-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 8, 2022.

[4] Noles, Jim (2018). Undefeated: From Basketball to Battle - West Point's Perfect 1944 Season. Philadelphia: Casemate Publishers. ISBN 978-1-61200-512-6. OCLC 1096218534.

[5] "NCAA Taps 8 Tourney Fives". Syracuse Herald-Journal. February 21, 1968. p. 82. Retrieved April 25, 2024.

[6] Chase, Chris (March 11, 2015). "The Odd Reason Army Has Never Made the NCAA Tournament". USA Today. Retrieved April 25, 2024.

[7] Feinstein, John (February 1, 2016). "Kryzyzewski, Knight Coached at Army. Army Still Has Not Made an NCAA Tournament Appearance". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 25, 2024.

[8] "Wall Street Journal blog: March Madness Claims New Victims". Retrieved March 18, 2008.

[9] McDaniel, Mike (March 21, 2023). "St. Francis Brooklyn to Eliminate Entire Athletics Program". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 2, 2023.

[10] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2010-05-27. Retrieved 2011-05-22.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[11] "Army Black Knights Index". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.

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v t e Army Black Knights men's basketball
Venues	Gillis Field House (1938–1985) Christl Arena (1985–present)
Culture & lore	Army Mules "The Army Goes Rolling Along" All-Military Classic
People	Head coaches All-Americans Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 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 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
Helms and Premo-Porretta national championships in bold

v t e United States Military Academy
Academics	Combating Terrorism Center DPE
Athletics	Army West Point Black Knights Army–Navy Game Army–Navy Game (lacrosse) Army–Navy Cup Baseball Basketball Men Women Commander-in-Chief's Trophy Football Handball Ice Hockey (m) Lacrosse (m) Soccer (m) Softball Rugby (m) Facilities Arvin Gymnasium Christl Arena Doubleday Field Gillis Field House Michie Stadium Tate Rink
Campus	Chapels Catholic Jewish Old Cadet Protestant Flirtie Walk Grounds Cemetery Hayes Gym Lusk Reservoir Monuments Plain Thayer Hotel Trophy Point West Point Light
History	Academy History Constitution Island Fort Clinton Fort Putnam Great Chain Kosciuszko's Garden Redoubt Four
People	Alumni Top-ranking graduates "Class the stars fell on" Notable non-grads Master of the Sword Superintendent current Sylvanus Thayer
Traditions	Class ring Honor Code IOCT Mules On, Brave Old Army Team Sandhurst Competition Thayer Award The Corps
Lore	Eggnog riot

v t e Patriot League men's basketball
Teams	American Eagles Army Black Knights Boston University Terriers Bucknell Bison Colgate Raiders Holy Cross Crusaders Lafayette Leopards Lehigh Mountain Hawks Loyola Greyhounds Navy Midshipmen
Championships & awards	Patriot League men's basketball tournament Player of the Year
Seasons	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 2021–22 2022–23