1967–68 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team

1967–68 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record12–2 (6–8 Big Ten)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
CaptainMatthew Aitch
Home arenaJenison Fieldhouse
Seasons
1967–68 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Ohio State 10 – 4   .714 21 – 8   .724
Iowa 10 – 4   .714 16 – 9   .640
Purdue 9 – 5   .643 15 – 9   .625
Northwestern 8 – 6   .571 13 – 10   .565
Wisconsin 7 – 7   .500 13 – 11   .542
Michigan State 6 – 8   .429 12 – 12   .500
Illinois 6 – 8   .429 11 – 13   .458
Michigan 6 – 8   .429 11 – 13   .458
Indiana 4 – 10   .286 10 – 14   .417
Minnesota 4 – 10   .286 7 – 17   .292
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1967–68 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team represented Michigan State University in the 1967–68 NCAA Division I men's basketball season as members of the Big Ten Conference. They played their home games at Jenison Fieldhouse in East Lansing, Michigan and were coached by John E. Benington in his third year as head coach of the Spartans. They finished the season 12–2, 6–8 in Big Ten play to finish in a three-way tie for sixth place.

Previous season

The Spartans finished the 1966–67 season 16–7, 10–4 in Big Ten play to finish tied for the Big Ten championship. However, Indiana was selected for the NCAA tournament.

Roster and statistics

1967–68 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team
No Name Pos Year Height Pts Reb
11 Lloyd Ward G SO 5–9 2.3 0.7
12 John Bailey G SR 6–0 10.1 2.7
13 Thomas Steenken G SO 6–1 0.0 0.7
14 Richie Jordan G JR 5–7 3.0 4.0
15 Steven Rymal G SR 6–1 7.0 2.5
21 James O'Brien G SR 6–3 – –
23 Vernon Johnson G JR 5–11 1.3 0.7
24 John Holmes F JR 6–4 1.5 2.2
25 Robert Gale F SO 6–5 1.6 1.5
31 Harrison Stepter G JR 6–2 9.6 3.1
32 Steven Kirkpatrick G SO 6–2 1.2 –
33 Heywood Edwards F SR 6–6 9.7 6.2
34 Tom Lick C JR 6–10 3.8 3.7
35 Lee Lafayette F JR 6–6 16.8 10.5
41 James Gibbons C SO 6–6 6.3 3.6
42 Gerald Geistler C SR 6–8 0.5 1.3
44 Ron Binge F SO 6–5 2.0 0.5
43 Bernie Copeland F JR 6–6 7.0 6.9

Source[1][2]

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
Regular season
Dec 1, 1967*
 Cal State Fullerton W 80–49  1–0
 Jenison Fieldhouse 
East Lansing, MI
Dec 12, 1967*
 at Western Michigan W 78–67  2–0
 University Arena 
Kalamazoo, MI
Dec 14, 1967*
 at Butler L 55–65  2–1
 Hinkle Fieldhouse 
Indianapolis, IN
Dec 16, 1967*
 Hardin-Simmons W 95–76  3–1
 Jenison Fieldhouse 
East Lansing, MI
Dec 20, 1967*
 Nebraska W 74–70  4–1
 Jenison Fieldhouse 
East Lansing, MI
Dec 23, 1967*
 Wichita State L 80–90  4–2
 Levitt Arena 
Wichita, KS
Dec 29, 1967*
 vs. No. 9 Vanderbilt
Sugar Bowl Tournament 		L 63–73  4–3
 The Field House 
New Orleans, LA
Dec 30, 1967*
 vs. Memphis State
Sugar Bowl Tournament 		L 57–73  4–4
 The Field House 
New Orleans, LA
Jan 6, 1968
 at Illinois L 56–66  4–5
(0–1) 		Assembly Hall 
Champaign, IL
Jan 13, 1968
 at Michigan
Rivalry 		W 86–81  5–5
(1–1) 		Crisler Arena 
Ann Arbor, MI
Jan 16, 1968
 at Wisconsin L 68–70  5–6
(1–2) 		Wisconsin Field House 
Madison, WI
Jan 20, 1968
 Northwestern W 75–62  6–6
(2–2) 		Jenison Fieldhouse 
East Lansing, MI
Jan 23, 1968
 Iowa L 71–76  6–7
(2–3) 		Jenison Fieldhouse 
East Lansing, MI
Jan 27, 1968*
 at Southern Illinois W 68–56  7–7
 The SIU Arena 
Carbondale, IL
Jan 30, 1968*
 Notre Dame W 89–57  8–7
 Jenison Fieldhouse 
East Lansing, MI
Feb 3, 1968
 Michigan W 82–77  9–7
(3–3) 		Jenison Fieldhouse 
East Lansing, MI
Feb 10, 1968
 at Ohio State L 62–90  9–8
(3–4) 		St. John Arena 
Columbus, OH
Feb 17, 1968
 at Northwestern L 61–69  9–9
(3–5) 		Welsh-Ryan Arena 
Evanston, IL
Feb 20, 1968
 Indiana W 75–70  10–9
(4–5) 		Jenison Fieldhouse 
East Lansing, MI
Feb 24, 1968
 Wisconsin W 87–77  11–9
(5–5) 		Jenison Fieldhouse 
East Lansing, MI
Feb 27, 1968
 at Iowa L 58–76  11–10
(5–6) 		Carver-Hawkeye Arena 
Iowa City, IA
Mar 2, 1968
 Minnesota L 68–75  11–11
(5–7) 		Jenison Fieldhouse 
East Lansing, MI
Mar 5, 1968
 at Purdue L 75–93  11–12
(5–8) 		Mackey Arena 
West Lafayette, IN
Mar 9, 1968
 Illinois W 62–59  12–12
(6–8) 		Jenison Fieldhouse 
East Lansing, MI
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
Source[3][2]

References

  1. ^ "1967-68 Michigan State Spartans Roster and Stats | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
  2. ^ a b "Michigan State Spartans 2016-17 Media Guide" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on January 17, 2017. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  3. ^ "1967-68 Michigan State Spartans Schedule and Results - College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.