1972–73 Memphis State Tigers men's basketball team
American college basketball season
The 1972–73 Memphis State Tigers men's basketball team represented Memphis State University as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference during the 1972–73 men's college basketball season .[ 1] The team was led by third-year head coach Gene Bartow and played their home games at Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis, Tennessee .
As MVC champions, the Tigers participated in the 1973 NCAA Tournament . They defeated South Carolina and Kansas State to reach the first Final Four in program history. After a win over Providence to reach the national championship game, Memphis State was defeated by unbeaten, 6-time defending National champion UCLA , 87–66. The team finished with a 24–6 record (12–2 MVC).
Roster
1972–73 Memphis State Tigers men's basketball team
Players
Coaches
Pos.
#
Name
Height
Weight
Year
Hometown
G
10
Bill Laurie
5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
160 lb (73 kg)
Jr
Versailles, Missouri
G
11
Jerry Tetzlaff
6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
Sr
South Bend, Indiana
G
12
Shannon Kennedy
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
165 lb (75 kg)
So
Muncie, Indiana
G
15
Jim Liss
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
165 lb (75 kg)
So
Crown Point, Indiana
F
20
Billy Buford
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
210 lb (95 kg)
Jr
Glasgow, Kentucky
G
21
Larry Finch
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
Sr
Memphis, Tennessee
F
23
Larry Trosper
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
So
Ripley, Tennessee
F
24
Ken Andrews
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
Jr
Puxico, Missouri
F
33
Ronnie Robinson
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
200 lb (91 kg)
Sr
Memphis, Tennessee
F/C
34
Ed Wilson
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
225 lb (102 kg)
Fr
Memphis, Tennessee
F/C
35
Larry Kenon
6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
Jr
Birmingham, Alabama
G
40
Doug McKinney
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
Sr
Fairfield, Ohio
F
42
Wes Westfall
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
210 lb (95 kg)
Jr
St. Louis, Missouri
G/F
43
Bill Cook
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
Fr
Memphis, Tennessee
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on
Roster
[ 2]
[ 3]
Schedule and results
Date time, TV
Rank#
Opponent#
Result
Record
Site city, state
Regular season
Dec 2, 1972 *
No. 11
Missouri Western
W 108–74
1–0
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Dec 5, 1972 *
No. 11
at Louisiana State
L 81–94
1–1
Maravich Assembly Center Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Dec 7, 1972 *
No. 11
South Florida
W 87–73
2–1
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Dec 9, 1972 *
No. 11
at No. 5 Marquette
L 69–72
2–2
Milwaukee Arena Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Dec 12, 1972 *
No. 19
Texas
L 79–80
2–3
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Dec 16, 1972 *
No. 19
Navy
W 80–51
3–3
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Dec 20, 1972 *
UC Santa Barbara
W 80–74
4–3
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Dec 23, 1972 *
at Arkansas
W 87–86
5–3
Barton Coliseum Little Rock, Arkansas
Dec 26, 1972 *
Cornell
W 96–64
6–3
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Dec 30, 1972 *
at No. 10 Vanderbilt
W 74–71
7–3
Memorial Gymnasium Nashville, Tennessee
Jan 4, 1973
at Drake
W 97–92 2 OT
8–3 (1–0)
Veterans Memorial Auditorium Des Moines, Iowa
Jan 6, 1973
at Bradley
W 76–74
9–3 (2–0)
Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, Illinois
Jan 13, 1973 *
Central Florida
W 124–75
10–3
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Jan 13, 1973
Saint Louis
W 72–60
11–3 (3–0)
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Jan 20, 1973 *
Saint Joseph's (IN)
W 112–92
12–3
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Jan 25, 1973
No. 17
Louisville
W 81–76
13–3 (4–0)
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Jan 27, 1973
No. 17
New Mexico State
W 75–61
14–3 (5–0)
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Feb 1, 1973
No. 17
Drake
W 73–68
15–3 (6–0)
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Feb 3, 1973 *
No. 17
Bradley
W 79–64
16–3 (7–0)
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Feb 8, 1973
No. 15
at Louisville
L 69–83
16–4 (7–1)
Freedom Hall Louisville, Kentucky
Feb 10, 1973
No. 15
at Tulsa
W 91–87 OT
17–4 (8–1)
Expo Square Pavilion Tulsa, Oklahoma
Feb 15, 1973
No. 16
Wichita State
W 99–77
18–4 (9–1)
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Feb 17, 1973
No. 16
West Texas A&M
W 116–79
19–4 (10–1)
Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee
Feb 22, 1973
No. 14
at North Texas
W 93–88
20–4 (11–1)
North Texas Men's Gym Denton, Texas
Feb 24, 1973
No. 14
at New Mexico State
W 54–53
21–4 (12–1)
Pan American Center Las Cruces, New Mexico
Mar 3, 1973
No. 10
at Saint Louis
L 56–70
21–5 (12–2)
Kiel Auditorium St. Louis, Missouri
NCAA Tournament
Mar 15, 1973 *
No. 12
vs. South Carolina Midwest Regional semifinal – Sweet Sixteen
W 90–76
22–5
Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas
Mar 17, 1973 *
No. 12
vs. No. 9 Kansas State Midwest Regional final – Elite Eight
W 92–72
23–5
Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas
Mar 24, 1973 *
No. 12
vs. No. 4 Providence National semifinal – Final Four
W 98–85
24–5
St. Louis Arena St. Louis, Missouri
Mar 26, 1973 *
No. 12
vs. No. 1 UCLA National Championship
L 66–87
24–6
St. Louis Arena St. Louis, Missouri
*Non-conference game.
# Rankings from
AP Poll . (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
MW=Midwest region.
All times are in
Eastern Time .
[ 4]
Rankings
Awards and honors
NBA draft
[ 5]
References
Venues Rivalries Culture & lore People Seasons NCAA Final Four appearances in italics